Elachista galactitella Eversmann 1844
Creators: name: Kaila, Lauri
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2015
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Elachistidae
Elachista
Elachista galactitella

description: Elachista galactitella (Eversmann, 1844)
Figs. 57–58, 124–125, 148
Oecophora galactitella Eversmann, 1844: 595.
Elachista galacticella, incorrect subsequent spelling.
Elachista bustilloi Traugott-Olsen, 1988: 306; Parenti (2001).
Elachista madridensis Traugott-Olsen, 1992: 202. Syn. nov.
Material studied. Type material. Holotype ♂ of E. madridensis labelled: Type [rounded with red margin]; Wing praeparat nr. a. 4.11.89 sex: ♂ E. Traugott-Olsen; Campo Real, Madrid, 640 m, 2-7-1982 A. Vives leg. Elachista madridensis sp. n. det. E. Traugott-Olsen; Holotipo [red]; MNCN Cat. Tipos No 11371 [red]; MNCN Prep. Gen. No 60980 [the preparate contains a pair of wings, the specimen was originally without abdomen] MNCN _ Ent No Cat. 42116 (MNCN, Madrid). Other material. France: Gallia mer. Provence, La Bessee, 1100 m, M. u. W. Glaser leg. [no date]; L. Kaila prep. 5809 (SMNK); Provence, 4 km N Eyguians, 12. VI.1989, 1 ♂, B. Å. Bengtsson leg., Bengtsson prep. 3370 (Coll. Bengtsson). Italy: Prov. Calabria, Monte Pollino, 3 km N of Civita, 800 m, 31.V– 1. VI.2005, 5 ♂, 1 ♀, P. Skou leg. L. Kaila prep. 4752, 4753, 4754 (prep. 4752 in MZH, 4753, 4754 in ZMUC); Sesvenne valley, Laatsch, 4. VII.2004, 1 ♂, J. Junnilainen leg., L. Kaila prep. 5078 (MZH); 7. VII.2004, 3 ♂, J. Junnilainen leg. & Coll.; Bolzano, above Laatsch, steep open slope, 1180 m, 46°40’43’’N, 10°31’38’’E, uvl, 10.VII.2004, 5 ♂, B. Landry & P. Schmitz leg. (MHNG); Valle d’Aosta, Dint. Ozein, Aymavilles (Aosta), 1250 m, 5. VII.1989, 1 ♂, U. Parenti leg., J. Tabell prep. 4457 (Coll. Tabell); 14. VI.1990, 1 ♀, (Coll. Tabell); V. d’Aosta, Ozein (Aymavilles, AO), 1250 m, Stipa pennata, A143, 13–22. VI.1994, 3 ♂, 1 ♀, P. G. Varalda leg. (Coll. Tabell); Russia: S. Ural, Verbljushka, 10. VI.1998, 1 ♂, T. & K. Nupponen leg. (L. Kaila prep. 3347, MZH), 14. VII.1998, 2 ♂, 15. VII.1998, 1 ♂, K. Nupponen leg., 19. VI.1999, 2 ♂, T. & K. Nupponen leg. (Coll. Nupponen), S. Ural, Orenburg district, Donskoje village 6 km S, mount Verbljushka, 27. VI.2003, 1 ♂, K. Nupponen leg. (MZH); 28. VI.2003, 2 ♂, K. Nupponen leg., J. Tabell prep. 4382, DNA samples 16258–9 Lepid. Phyl. (Coll. Tabell). Switzerland: Ws., 600 m, Leuk-Pfynwald, 6.VI.2001, 5 ♂, 9. VI.2001, 1 ♂, 25. VIII.2001, 1 ♂, Landry & Merz leg. (MHNG, MZH).
Diagnosis. Forewing of E. galactitella is shiny white. It most resembles E. kalki Parenti, which is more stoutbodied with broader wings. Their genitalia are entirely different (cf. Kaila 2005). The male genitalia are similar to those of E. deresyensis, but differ by the width of uncus lobes: they are twice as long as broad in E. galactitella, about as long as broad in E. deresyensis. The female genitalia most resemble those of E. elsaella. They differ by the size of antrum which is significantly larger in E. galactitella. It also lacks a sclerotized band typical of E. elsaella.
Biology. This species has been reared in an ex ovo experiment on Stipa pennata L. (Poaceae) in the laboratory (Parenti 2004).
Distribution. France, Italy, Spain, Russia and Switzerland. Parenti (2001) also mentions Turkey. This record is based on the erroneous synonymy of E. deresyensis and E. galactitella by Kaila (1999a).
Remarks. E. galactitella is referred to as OTU 4 in Mutanen et al. (2015). The synonymy of E. bustilloi Traugott-Olsen and E. galactitella Eversmann was established by Parenti & Domínguez (1995) and again by Parenti (2004) with a somewhat more detailed account. The single known specimen of E. madridensis was collected together with the holotype of E. bustilloi. The E. madridensis specimen lacks an abdomen. Its external appearance is identical to that of E. galactitella (E. bustilloi, a synonym of it) with a shiny white forewing. E. madridensis is considered a synonym of E. galactitella.
description: Published as part of Kaila, Lauri, 2015, The Elachista dispunctella (Duponchel) complex (Lepidoptera, Elachistidae) revisited, with exceptional level of synonymy, pp. 301-358 in Zootaxa 3980 (3) on pages 350-352, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3980.3.1, http://zenodo.org/record/254013