Sufetula gigantea Muller, Hayden & Leger 2025, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Müller, Anne
name: Hayden, James
name: Lees, David C.
name: Léger, Théo
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2025
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Crambidae
Sufetula
Sufetula gigantea

description: Sufetula gigantea Müller, Hayden & Léger, sp. nov.
LSID urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: 1C91E835-808D-478A-B0C5 - 0206262B1ADB
(Figures 6, 22, 44)
Material examined. Holotype. ♀. PHILIPPINES: Negros, Patag, Lake Danao, 9.35 ǫN 123.18 ǫE; 1400m; 21 May 1996; W. Mey leg.; DNA voucher MFNLEP-PYRALPHIL09-B10; genitalia slide MfN gen. prep. 302F; specimen identifier coll.mfn-berlin.de_u_2a6f56 (MfN). Paratypes. 6 ♀; specimen identifiers coll.mfn-berlin.de_u_2a6f55, 2a6f57, 7816dc, 5a289e, 74ed33, d7611e; 2 unsexed; specimen identifiers coll.mfn-berlin.de_u_339649, e554a3; 2 ♀; specimen identifiers NHMUK015666225, NHMUK015111017. Detailed information in Table S1.
Similar species. Sufetula choreutalis, S. sythof fi.
Diagnosis. This species (Figure 6) is the largest Lathrotelinae species found on the Philippines. It is superficially similar to Sufetula choreutalis, but its wing length of 9.5 - 12.5 mm is conspicuously longer than that of S. choreutalis (wing length¼ 5 - 6 mm). The uniformly coloured cream costal spots without dark centers and the dashed marginal lines of the fore- and hindwing further separates this species from Sufetula choreutalis. In the female genitalia (Figure 45), the light sclerotisation on the posterior 1/3 of the ductus bursae separates this species from S. choreutalis. Male specimens are unknown.
Description. Wings (Figure 6). Forewing length: 9.5 - 12.5 mm; ground colour brown. Antemedian line pale yellow, thinly edged with dark brown distally; slightly arched outwards, conspicuously indented outwards twice at 1/3 and 2/3. Costa with two conspicuous cream spots. Discoidal spot rather large, round, black. Postmedian line cream, curved outwards around apical spot around medial veins, then straight basad along M 2 -M 3; perpendicular towards dorsum from M 3 to CuP; straight distad on CuP; perpendicular to dorsum between CuP and 1Aþ2A, then obliquely basad to dorsum. Subterminal area suffused with round, dark brown spot at apex and indent of postmedian line between M 3 and CuP, otherwise cream; submarginal line thin, dashed with dark brown. Fringes pale brown. Hindwing cream, faintly speckled with dark brown. Median line slightly waved, cream-coloured with basal edge dark brown. Postmedian dark brown patch at apex. Submarginal line thin, dashed with dark brown. Fringes pale brown. Forewing CuP vein present. Tympanal organs (Figure 22). ♀. Bullae tympani with lateral fourth recessed lateral of venula prima. Saccus tympani shallow, small, less than half width of bulla, not observed in male. Venulae secundae incurved, reaching posterior 1/3 of sternum. Male genitalia. Not known. Female Genitalia (Figure 44). Posterior and anterior apophyses very similar to Sufetula choreutalis. Colliculum cylindrical, sclerotised, at anterior edge with transverse ridges. Ductus bursae straight, with light sclerotisation on posterior 1/3, covered with spicules near corpus opening. Corpus bursae ca 1.4 × ductus length, oval, reticulated with erected papillae at anterior fourth. Signum 3/5 of corpus length, forming oblong patch of short, tooth-shaped thorns.
Distribution. Known from Negros (Patag), Mindoro (Mt Halcon, Mt Dulangan) and Mindanao (Davao Oriental, Mt Agtuuganon) at an elevation between 1050 m and 1675 m (Figure 55).
Etymology. From the Latin giganteus, a, um, “from the Giants”, referring to the large size of the moths.
DNA barcoding. The specimen with DNA voucher MFNLEP-PYR-ALPHIL-C10 from Mindanao differs from the other two specimens from Negros by a p-distance of 3.5%.
Remarks. The unique specimen on hand from Mindanao (coll.mfn-berlin.de_u_2a6f57) shows substantially smaller forewings (9.5 mm), a less marked postmedian line and slightly different colour when compared to the specimen of Negros. The female genitalia show minor differences. Investigation of additional material will be essential to decide whether or not the Mindanao specimen represents a different species.
description: Published as part of Müller, Anne, Hayden, James, Lees, David C. & Léger, Théo, 2025, Assessment of species diversity of the Lathrotelinae (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) from the Philippines using morphology and DNA barcoding reveals eight new species, pp. 1-24 in Journal of Asia-Pacific Biodiversity CLXVI (CLXVI) on pages 17-18, DOI: 10.1016/j.japb.2025.01.012, http://zenodo.org/record/15396126