Thiotricha confluens Lee & Li 2024, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Lee, Ga-Eun
name: Li, Houhun
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2024
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Gelechiidae
Thiotricha
Thiotricha confluens

description: Thiotricha confluens sp. nov.   
(Figs 10C, 24N, 34D, 51E)  
 Type material. Holotype ♂, CHINA, Zhejiang Province, Qingyuan County, Baishanzu Nature Reserves (27.73°N, 119.17°E), 1149 m, 15.viii.2016, leg. Qingyun Wang, Meiqing Yang and Ping Liu, genitalia slide no. LGE18285.   
 Paratypes. CHINA: Zhejiang Province: 1 ♀, same data as holotype except 13.viii.2016; 8 ♂♂, 1 ♀, Wuyanling (27.35°N, 119.92°E), 680–1000 m, Taishun County, 28.vii–3.viii.2005, leg. Haili Yu, genitalia slide no. ZJL05389m, ZJL05390f; 2 ♂♂, 4 ♀♀, Wuyanling (27.35°N, 119.92°E), 790 m, Taishun County, 2, 3.viii.2007, leg. Qing Jing; 6 ♂♂, 4 ♀♀, Laofoyan Village (28.37°N, 118.67°E), 424 m, Shuangxi Town, Xianxialing, Jiangshan City, 8, 9.viii.2016, leg. Qingyun Wang, Meiqing Yang and Ping Liu (one male and one female are deposited in NHMUK); 1 ♂, Wangdongyang Wetlands Reserves (27.67°N, 119.63°E), 1301 m, Jingning County, 12.viii.2016, leg. Qingyun Wang, Meiqing Yang and Ping Liu; 1 ♂, Wangdongyang Wetlands Reserves (27.41°N, 119.38°E), 1174 m, Jingning County, 17.viii.2018, leg. Shuai Yu, Mengran Xing and Chen Liu; Fujian Province: 1 ♂, Sangang, 740 m, Mt. Wuyi, 26.vii.2008, leg. Weichun Li, Yongling Sun and Haiyan Bai; 1 ♂, 2 ♀♀, Guadun, 1100 m, Mt. Wuyi, 29.vii.2008, leg. Weichun Li, Yongling Sun and Haiyan Bai, genitalia slide nos. LGE16029f, LGE18286f; 1 ♂, Huyuan, 1250 m, Mt. Meihua, 18.iv.2014, leg. Xiaofei Yang; 1 ♀, Shangping Village, Yongan City, 21.iv.2014, leg. Xiaofei Yang; Yunnan Province: 1 ♂, Caiyanghe, 1650 m, Pu’er City, 28.vii.2007, leg. Bingbing Hu; 1 ♂, 4 ♀♀, Taiyanghe Nature Reserves (22.79°N, 100.98°E), 1450 m, 31.iii–23.viii.2014, leg. Zhenguo Zhang, genitalia slide nos. LGE 15085m, LGE15086f; 1 ♀, Baoshan (24.82°N, 98.78°E), 2009 m, 17.viii.2014, leg. Kaijian Teng, Shurong Liu and Hua Rong; 1 ♂, Taiyanghe Nature Reserves (22.79°N, 100.98°E), 8.vi.2015, leg. Zhenguo Zhang; 1 ♂, Taiyanghe National Forest Park (22.79°N, 100.98°E), 1450 m, Pu’er City, 4.vii.2015, leg. Kaijian Teng, genitalia slide no. LGE16350; 1 ♂, 2 ♀♀, Wufenchang (21.72°N, 100.15°E), 640 m, Daluo Town, Menghai County, Jinghong City, 2.viii.2016, leg. Kaijian Teng, Ga-Eun Lee and Tao Wang, genitalia slide no. LGE 16260m.   
 Diagnosis. The species is closely similar to T. rhodopa Meyrick, 1908 and T. chrysantha Meyrick, 1908 from India. Compared to T. rhodopa, the forewing markings of T. confluens are broader and another broad band is present along the costal 1/3. Thiotricha chrysantha can be differentiated from the new species by the presence of carmine-pink scales surrounding white patches on dorsum and a fuscous spot near tornus of the forewing. The male sternum VIII of T. confluens is easily distinguished from other species by the broadly convex and serrate lateral margins. The male genitalia resemble those of T. rhodopa and T. rosatorna, but the valva of T. confluens has very narrowed base and ventral margin usually slightly convex at middle. The female genitalia are very similar to those of T. rosatorna, but the ductus bursae of T. confluens is more slender, the ostium bursae is smaller and the signum bears a single projection whereas the latter species have additional three small projections posteriorly.   
 Description. Adult (Fig. 10C). Wingspan 9.0–12.0 mm. Head light ochre, frons white. Labial palpus light ochre, segment II with basal 1/2 broadly suffused with white, segment III black-tipped. Antenna with scape light ochre except dorsal surface white; flagellum mixed light ochre and brown, dorsal surface white in basal 1/2, male cilia slightly longer than diameter. Thorax light ochre, sometimes mixed with white, median line brown. Tegula light ochre. Forewing ground color light ochre, slightly mixed with white on termen and tornus; anterior edge of costa black in basal 1/4; apical spot very small, bordered inwardly by grey scales; dorsum with a very large, semicircular white patch in basal 1/3 and after middle of wing, respectively; other markings dark brown: a somewhat indistinct broad band along costa from base to basal 1/3 of wing; a shot, outwardly oblique costal streak from 2/3, gradually narrowed and reaching apical spot, bordered outwardly by white scales; just beyond this another costal streak in parallel with former streak, narrowly extended to apex above apical spot; a very broad, oblique band arising from near base of dorsum, running over first white patch, confluent with a costal band at basal 1/4 or 1/3 of wing, then running longitudinally to 2/3, gradually narrowed distally; another broad, oblique band arising from middle of dorsum, running over second white patch, confluent with former band after middle of wing; an inwardly directed, V-shaped marking on tornus, its anterior arm narrowly extended to apical spot; fringe on apical area brown with a dark brown terminal band, on termen carmine-pink with a metallic terminal band, on dorsum brown and sometimes suffused with carmine-pink distally. Hindwing dark brown except apex light ochre; fringe brown except apical area cream with a terminal dark brown band. Legs white mixed with light ochre; fore femur, tibia and tarsus black on outer surface; mid tibia with a black spot near apex; mid tarsus with first tarsomere brown to black at middle, second tarsomere dark brown in basal 1/2, remaining tarsomeres strongly mixed with dark brown; hind tibia with an oblique brown streak near apex, hind tarsus as in mid tarsus.   
 Male sternum VIII (Fig. 24N). Approximately 1/6 length of abdomen, posterior 1/2 with lateral margins slightly convex and serrate, bifurcate from posterior 1/4; each tine slender and sharply pointed at apex.   
 Male genitalia (Fig. 34D). Uncus tongue-shaped. Gnathos hook long and simple. Tegumen approximately 4 times as long as uncus. Valva slender, very narrowed at base, gradually broadening to middle then almost uniformly elongate to round apex. Anellus lobe slender and digitate, 1/5 length of valva; apical bristle short and hooked. Juxta with inner margin nearly straight or broadly convex, bearing sparse setae. Vinculum triangular medially. Saccus subtriangular or tongue-shaped, rounded at apex, slightly exceeding tegumen pedunculus. Aedeagus with basal 2/5 globular, stout and cylindrical medially, strikingly broadened apically; apex slightly curved upward, a slender interior sclerite arising from near apex and exceeding apex.   
 Female genitalia (Fig. 51E). Papillae anales moderately sclerotized, anterior margin with a linear sclerotization extended from apophyses posteriores. Apophyses anteriores slightly shorter than apophyses posteriores. Tergum VIII nearly straight or broadly convex on posterior margin. Sternum VIII longer than tergum VIII, anterior margin strongly produced in U-shape. Ostium bursae very large and opening in anterior 1/2 of sternum VIII, covered with a spinous intersegmental membrane. Ductus bursae narrow, slightly broadened near corpus bursae; colliculum placed near base; ductus seminalis arising from near anterior margin of colliculum. Corpus bursae ovate, as long as ductus bursae; signum placed at middle, basal plate round, with a semicircular process projecting anteriorly.   
 Distribution. China (Fujian, Yunnan, Zhejiang).   
 Etymology. The species name is from Latin, confluens (confluent), referring to the basal band confluent with a band from dorsum.   
 Remarks. This species was included in the phylogenetic study of Thiotrichinae (Lee et al. 2021) as Thiotricha sp. 7. The genetic sequences are available from GenBank.
description: Published as part of Lee, Ga-Eun & Li, Houhun, 2024, A taxonomic review of Thiotricha Meyrick, 1886 (Lepidoptera, Gelechiidae, Thiotrichinae) from China, with descriptions of 84 new species, pp. 1-222 in Zootaxa 5449 (1) on pages 57-58, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5449.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/11233121