Calisto torrei Nunez, sp. n.
Creators: name: Aguila, Rayner Núñez
name: Matos- Maraví, Pável F.
name: Wahlberg, Niklas
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2013
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Nymphalidae
Calisto
Calisto torrei

description: Calisto torrei Núñez sp. n.
Figures 1–4, 17–18, 23, 26, 29, 33, 34, 37–50
Type material. Holotype— 3, CUBA, Sancti Spiritus, Banao, ascent to (“subida a” in the original label) La Sabina, 450m, 10/V/2012, 21°52'48"N 79°35'32"W, R. Núñez, DNA voucher RN01–01 (M065). Deposited in CZACC. Paratypes— 9 3, 7 Ƥ: same data as holotype (1 3); northern slope of (“ladera norte de” in the original label) Pico Potrerillo, 750–850m, 11/V/2012, 21°53'27"N 80°00'49"W, R. Núñez, DNA voucher RN01–02 (M066) (3 3); Topes de Collante, Mi Retiro, V/2002, 21°53'41"N 80°01'02"W, R. Núñez, DNA voucher PM15–01 (M047), genitalia 3 & Ƥ in glycerine, prep. legs RNA209/210, wings RNA166/199/241 (2 3, 2 Ƥ);; Deposited in CZACC. Cienfuegos, Buenos Aires, 600m, 16/VI/1967, 21°59'13"N 80°11'20"W, prep. wings RNA272 (1 Ƥ); same data as preceding except V/2006, R. Núñez, DNA voucher PM07–11 (M018), genitalia in glycerine, prep. wings RNA197 (1 Ƥ); Pico San Juan, 1140m, V/2006, 21°59'25"N 80°08'50"W, R. Núñez (2 3); same data as preceding except 12/V/2012, R. Núñez, DNA voucher RN01–03 (M067) (1 3, 2Ƥ); same data as preceding except ex ova, emerged 10/VIII/2012 (1 Ƥ). Deposited in CZACC.
Etymology. The name honors Salvador Luis de La Torre who devoted his life to the study of Cuban Lepidoptera and described several native Calisto taxa.
Diagnosis. Calisto torrei is superficially most similar to Calisto bradleyi Munroe 1950, Calisto muripetens Bates 1939 and Calisto occulta Núñez 2012. From the first, it differs by its larger average size: forewing length (FWL) 3 (Mean ±SD) = 21.3±1.0 mm, N=10 Ƥ FWL=23.2±1.0, N=6 versus 3 FWL=19.3± 0.8 mm, N=15, Ƥ FWL=19.4±1.1 MM, N=15. Calisto torrei also differs by the presence of an apical rounded lobe on androconial patch and the lack of a small bar of iridescent blue scales at underside of anal lobe that is present in C. bradleyi. From C. muripetens and C. occulta, C.torrei differs by having the anterior margin of androconial patch located behind the posterior margin of cell instead ahead, so its overall shape is slender Calisto torrei has also a smaller area of the cell, about 33–40%, covered by red scales whereas in C. muripetens and C. occulta this area is 50–66%. Internally, C. bradleyi female genitalia of is proportionally smaller and its dorsal crown is very thin compared to that of C. torrei.
Description. Forewing length 3 19.7–23.0 mm, Ƥ 21.2–24.3 mm. Dorsal surface of wings brown, uniform in both sexes; male androconial patch darker than background, almost black, anterior margin behind posterior margin of cell, overall shape as an obtuse slender triangle due to oblique outer margin (Figures 1, 3, 23). Ventral wing surface brown with darker lines, background slightly paler distal of post discal line; forewing ocellus with two bluish white iridescent pupils, post discal line externally edged with pale yellow scaling at ocellus area; cell colored red at the middle half to two thirds, both base and apex brown-colored as surrounding background; hindwing background mixed with pale yellow and ochre scales basal to post discal line which is externally edge by pale yellow scaling, heavier around ocellus; post discal area splashed with pale yellow and lilac scales and three white dots at vein interspaces M1–M2, M2–M3 and M3–Cu1, central dot of row distinctly larger than others; both subterminal lines slightly rust-colored near apex (Figures 2, 4, 17, 18). Male genitalia with tegumen about two thirds the length of uncus, flat and rounded at posterior half; uncus slightly arched and gradually tapering toward apex; digitiform projection of valvae stout, slightly curved to straight at both margins; aedeagus sinuate with an almost indistinct left curve at basal and a pronounced right curve at middle of apical half (Figure 26). Female genitalia with dorsal crown tall, height about 0.4x width; corpus bursae about the same length of ductus bursae (Figure 29).
Distribution. Calisto torrei has been collected in few localities on both sections of the Guamuhaya massif (Alturas de Banao and Alturas de Trinidad), the major mountain range of central Cuba (Figures 33, 34).
Biology. Collecting sites are at low to moderate elevations (450–1140 m). Habitats include broad leaf evergreen forest, rainforest, and mogotes' (limestome hills) vegetation complex (Figures 37–40). Individuals have been observed taking nectar on Palicourea domingensis (Rubiaceae).
On May 13th 2012 a captive female laid two pale yellow eggs glued to the walls of a plastic container. After 24 hours, egg color turned beige with tiny orange brown spots. A single larva hatched 7 days after oviposition and ate the entire corion.
First instar (Figure 41) — Head width 0.72 mm, height 0.70 mm. Initial length 3.50 mm, final length 4.9 mm. Head dark brown, almost black; body pale beige with 7 thin reddish brown longitudinal lines. After feeding on grass, the background turned pale green. First molt occurred after 7days.
Second to fifth instars (Figures 42–47) After first molt, the coloration of larva changed to a new pattern that persisted through subsequent instars with the only variation being a gradual darkening toward final instar. Head width, height, final length and duration of second to fifth instars were: 0.93, 0.98, 8.5 mm, and 7 days at the 2nd, l.30, 1.33, 12 mm, and 9 days at the 3rd, 1.85, 1.95, 17 mm, and 11 days at the 4th, and 2.58, 2.82, 25 mm, and 15 days at the 5th, respectively. Head background pale grayish brown with the following dark brown, almost black, marks: lateral vertical lines from stemmata to horns continue to meet at middle of top of head; X shaped mark with upper arms short, almost indistinct on the epicranium; a transverse band across the frontoclypeus interrupted at the middle of frons. Body background stramineous with an increasing ochre tint toward final instar; dorsal line pale brown with dots on sides at the middle of each segment; other lines only slightly darker than background and gradually fading toward last abdominal segment; subdorsal lines in zig zag with angles closest to dorsal line at the beginning and end of each segment; suprastigmatal line the thickest one, straight, darkened forming dots over spiracles; stigmatal and infrastigmatal lines thinner, convex between spiracles.
After it stopped feeding, the mature larva remained straight for 2 days, emptied its digestive tract, wove a thin silk thread and hung head down, in J position, and pupated one day later.
Pupa (Figures 48–50) — Length 12 mm, maximum width 4.8 mm. Background pale brownish gray, darker at sides of abdomen; a pair of ventral black dots on eyes and another pair at apex of metathoracic tibiae; diffuse orange coloration at the base of labial palpi and at sides of antennae tips; a row of tiny dark brown dots on veins near wing outer margin; wing sheaths with a darker diffuse spot at the middle and another darker near costa at apical third; abdomen with a dark brown line on sides, abdomen with dorsal transverse ridges reduced to a pairs of small crests on segments 1 to 6; last abdominal segment long, stout, cremaster area enlarged, broad and slightly flattened.
The adult emerged in the afternoon, 3 to 4:00 pm, of August 10th after 11 days. Total developing time was 93 days.
The natural host plant is unknown.
Remarks. Calisto torrei represents one of the “orphan” lineages found in the molecular results of Núñez et al. (2012), where it was represented by the specimen coded as PM07-11. Following this lead, the new taxon was discovered after reviewing the available collections, the field collection of more individuals including immature stages, and the sequencing of more specimens. It was confused with sympatric Calisto muripetens Bates by Fontenla & Rodríguez (1990) and Núñez et al. (2012).
DNA analysis showed genetic distances of 5.0 and 8.5% from sympatric C. muripetens and C. aquilum (a new species described below), respectively. Close relatives, C. bradleyi and C. occulta, are separated by 4.8% and 5.0% and have their populations more than 300 and 450 km away, respectively. Intraspecific variation was 0.15% for C. torrei (4 specimens, 4 localities), 0% for both C. bradleyi (3 specimens, 1 locality) and C. muripetens (3 specimens, 3 localities), and 0.82% for C. occulta (5 specimens, 2 localities).
Immature stages also showed diagnostic features for C. torrei. Element patterns of larval head and body exhibit a unique configuration when compared with larvae of other Cuban Calisto including those of Calisto bruneri Michener 1949, C. muripetens and C. bradleyi that will be described in a future article. Similarly the pupa shows a characteristic grayish ochre background different from that of C. occulta, which is yellower, although it exhibits a comparable spot pattern.
description: Published as part of Aguila, Rayner Núñez, Matos- Maraví, Pável F. & Wahlberg, Niklas, 2013, New Calisto species from Cuba, with insights on the relationships of Cuban and Bahamian taxa (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae, Satyrinae), pp. 503-521 in Zootaxa 3669 (4) on pages 504-506, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3669.4.5, http://zenodo.org/record/249423