Sorolopha sphaerocopa
Creators: name: Sakagami, Kota
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2023
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Tortricidae
Sorolopha
Sorolopha sphaerocopa

description: Sorolopha sphaerocopa (Meyrick, 1930)
(Figs 7, 8, 14, 19)
Argyroploce sphaerocopa: Meyrick, 1930: 719. TL: Vietnam.
Choganhia sphaerocopa: Razowski, 1960: 387, fig. 13 (♂ genit.).
Acanthothyspoda sphaerocopa: Diakonoff, 1966: 56.
Eudemis (Acanthothyspoda) sphaerocopa: Diakonoff, 1968: 47.
S. sphaerocopa: Diakonoff, 1973: 86, figs. 124–125, 138 (♂, ♀ genit.); Kawabe, 1975: 32, figs. 7–8; Kawabe, 1982: 93, pl. 22, figs. 17–18; Kuznetsov, 2001: 287, pl. 171, fig. 2 (♂ genit.); Le, et al. 2013: 523, figs. 6, 14, 23 (♂, ♀ genit.); Nasu, 2013: 202, pl. 24, figs. 5–6.
Diagnosis. Sorolopha sphaerocopa has a mean forewing length of 7.0 mm (6.3–7.6 mm, n = 27). The ground color of the forewing is variable, from brown or black to dull green, with a semicircular marking in the apical area. In comparison to congeners, the forewing is relatively narrow. Males have scale tuffs near the anal margin of the hindwings. Sorolopha sphaerocopa is very similar to S. asymmetrana Kuznetzov, 2003 in the forewing pattern and in features of the male genitalia (cf., Kuznetzov 2003: 733, fig. 17; Nedoshivina 2010: 339, pl. 7, fig. 1), but the two species can be separated by the shape of the ventral process of cucullus. The apex of the ventral process is narrowed in S. asymmetrana, whereas it is uniform in width in S. sphaerocopa. Sorolopha sphaerocopa is also very similar to S. asphaeropa Diakonoff, 1973 in male genitalia (cf., Diakonoff 1973: 87, fig. 148), but it can be separated by features of the hindwing (Diakonoff 1973).
Material examined. JAPAN: HONSHU: Chiba Pref.: Uchiurayama, Amatsu-kominato-cho, 1♀, collected on 5.VIII.1995, Y. Iwasaka leg., genitalia slide KS 233♀, (NHMIC). Shizuoka Pref.: Cape Tsumeki (34°39′52″N, 138°58′53″E, alt. 50 m), Shimoda, 1♀, collected on 19.IV.2021, S. Yagi leg., genitalia slide KS 239♀, (ELKU); Taraimisaki Toji (34°37′57″N, 138°54′13″E, alt. 35 m), Shimoda, 2♀, collected on 10.IX.2022 by light traps, S. Yagi leg., genitalia slide KS 238♀, (ELKU). Hyogo Pref.: Kirihata (34°51′22″N, 135°18′57″E, alt. 116 m), Takarazuka, 1♂, emerged on 18. VI.2018, reared from fungus galls on Machilus thunbergii, collected on 20. V.2018, K. Sakagami leg. Mie Pref.: Ogisu-keikoku, Suzuka, 1♂, collected on 29.X.2005, T. Mano leg., genitalia slide KS212♂. SHIKOKU: Ehime Pref.: Nishitani, Kumakôgen, 1♂, collected on 22.VII.2020, K. Sakagami leg. KYUSHU: Fukuoka Pref.: Hikosan, Soeda, Tagawa, 1♂, collected on 25. VI.2014, S. Yagi leg., genitalia slide KS240♂, (ELKU). NANSEI ISLANDS: Yakushima Is.: Kurio, 3♂, 1♀, collected on 3–4.XI.1976, F. Komai leg., (OMU); Onoaida, 2♂, 2♀, collected on 5–9.XI.1979, Y. Nasu leg., (OMU), genitalia slide KS211♂. Amami Ôshima Is.: Chinase, 3♂, 4♀, emerged on 30.IV.2019, reared from Cinnamomum yabunikkei, collected on 11. VI.2019, K. Sakagami leg., genitalia slide KS 213♀, 214♂; same locality, 2♂, 1♀, emerged on 30.IV.2019, reared from C. yabunikkei, collected on 11. VI.2019, K. Sakagami leg. Iriomotejima Is.: Funaura (24°23′22″N, 123°48′32″E, alt. 9 m), 2♂, collected on 6 and 8.III.2016, K. Sakagami leg., genitalia slide KS40♂, 59♂; same locality, 1♀, collected on 8.III.2016, Y. Kitajima leg.; Shirahama, 1♀, emerged on 24.XII.2004, reared from M. thunbergii, collected date unknown, Y. Nasu leg. Ishigakijima Is.: Arakawa (24°22′15.0″N 124°08′32.1″E, alt. 130 m), 1♀, collected on 26.X.2022, K. Sakagami leg., genitalia slide KS 236♀. Taketomijima Is.: Takana, collected on 14.III.2016, Y. Kitajima leg.
Distribution. Vietnam, China, Japan (southward from the Kanto area), Thailand, Indonesia (Sumatra), India.
Host plant. Cinnamomum camphora, C. yabunikkei, Machilus thunbergii, M. japonica (all Lauraceae), Elaeocarpus japonicus (Elaeocarpaceae) (Kawabe 1982, Nasu 2013).
Biology. Adults are present from May to October in Honshu, Japan, frequently collected in light traps. Larvae tie together young leaves of the host and feed on leaves within the leaf shelters. A larva was collected from a fungus bud gall on Machilus thunbergii (present study).
Remarks. Diakonoff (1973) proposed the sphaerocopa group based on this species. S. sphaerocopa exhibits a wide variety of body and wing colors, with light green, brown, and black. The terminal part of the cucullus and ventral process of the cucullus are variable in shape. Additionally, male genitalia illustrated as S. sphaerocopa in Kuznetzov (2001) are clearly different from those of S. sphaerocopa (cf., Kuznetsov 2001: 287, pl. 171, fig. 2). Future studies should examine specimens of this species collected from various regions.
description: Published as part of Sakagami, Kota, 2023, Review of the species of Sorolopha Lower (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) in Japan with descriptions of three new species, pp. 131-142 in Zootaxa 5278 (1) on page 136, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5278.1.6, http://zenodo.org/record/7895134