Phaselia pithana Wehrli 1941
Creators: name: Werner, Maria Johanna
name: Hausmann, Axel
name: Kostjuk, Igor
name: Wanke, Dominic
name: Rajaei, Hossein
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2023
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Geometridae
Phaselia
Phaselia pithana

description: Phaselia pithana Wehrli, 1941, bona sp.   
(Figs 11–16, 66–72, 116–119, 144, 145)  
 Phaselia serrularia pithana Wehrli, 1941. In: Seitz, A (ed.), Die Grossschmetterlinge der Erde 4 (Supplement): 467. Holotype ♁, in ZFMK (Iran, Kuh i Mirabi). Hereby upgraded to species level based on morphological and genetic examination.   
 Taxonomic remark. Phaselia pithana bona sp. shows a unique combination of spines on valvae and a characteristic form of the aedeagus. Additionally, P. pithana bona sp. differs from all other species by a high genetic distance (minimum p-distance from nearest neighbour P. smettboi sp. nov. is 6.34%). We therefore upgrade this taxon from subspecies level of P. serrularia to species level.   
 Type material examined.   
Holotype ♁, “NE-Iran Kuh i Mirabi, Geröllzone [rubble zone], 2200 m Juli-Afg [early] Aug. Exp., leg. Wernicke ”, g. prep. (♁) 1204/2021 D. Wanke (in ZFMK).  
 Paratype 1 ♀, “[Armenia] Transkauk[asus] Fl[uss] Arax, Njuvady [O Meghri & Alvank], 1.ix.1932, [leg.] M. Rjabov”, g. prep. 1205/2021 D. Wanke [labelled as Paratype of Phaselia pithana, but our examination confirmed this specimen as P. phaeoleucaria shurensis comb. nov.] (in ZFMK).   
 Additional material examined. 87 ♁♁, 95 ♀♀ (see the complete list in the appendix).   
 Re-description. Wingspan. Males: 26–37 mm (average 32.9 mm, n = 27), females: 29–40 mm (average 33.9 mm, n = 22).   
 Forewing. Ground colour warm white speckled with tiny light to dark grey-brown dots; basal area and postmedial area darker than medial area; antemedial line darker than basal area, clearly zigzagged with rounded tips, all three teeth are of similar length; medial line present as a diffuse darker brown shadow close to postmedial line; postmedial line thin, dark brown, strongly kinked inwards on costal area; subterminal line dark brown, serrate with well-pronounced triangular spikes, distally accompanied by a white shadow, terminal line dark brown, wavy.   
 Hindwing. Ground colour white, speckled with brown towards terminal area; postmedial line brown, medially projected outwards; sometimes interrupted or even invisible; subterminal line barely visible as a light shadow.   
Discal spots usually visible as brown, short streaks or tiny dots on all wings, sometimes faded. Fringes in all wings white and brown, dark at the end of the veins. Ventral side generally paler than dorsal side, pattern of upper side shines through the wings, visible as a shadow (figs 11–16).  
 Male genitalia. Uncus triangular, tip incurved; gnathos well-sclerotized, medially not fused; valva trapezoidal; costal part of valva slightly sclerotized, distally finger-shaped, extended over the apex of valvula; sacculus triangular, distally equipped with equally distributed spines; dorsal and ventral tip of sacculus elongated with one or more stronger spines; juxta variable, formed as two ovals fused on the upper or lower half, or wide, triangular and distally decreasingly sclerotized; saccus wide, triangular, terminally curved. Aedeagus narrow and often greatly curved; vesica with two separate, well-sclerotized cornuti: a claw-like curved cornutus, often just slightly bent and a long and well-twisted, spinose, plate-like cornutus (figs 66–72).   
 Female genitalia. Ovipositor large and wide; apophyses posteriores up to two times longer than apophyses anteriores; lamella antevaginalis narrow and often weakly sclerotized; ductus bursae inconspicuous and narrow; corpus bursae membranous, ornamented with a small but well-sclerotized, round, stellate signum (figs 116–119).   
 Diagnosis. Phaselia pithana bona sp. can be confused with P. serrularia, P. phaeoleucaria stat. rev., P. smettboi sp. nov., P. erika (nominotypical subspecies and jonubi ssp. nov.) and P. kasyi.   
 For differentiation of P. pithana bona sp. from P. serrularia see the diagnosis of the respective species above. Characters of the compared species are given in parentheses.
description: Published as part of Werner, Maria Johanna, Hausmann, Axel, Kostjuk, Igor, Wanke, Dominic & Rajaei, Hossein, 2023, Integrative taxonomic revision of the genus Phaselia Guenée, [1858] (Geometridae: Ennominae) in the Middle East and Central Asia, pp. 1-66 in Zootaxa 5326 (1) on pages 11-12, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5326.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/8243811