Leptolepida krugeri Laszlo & Schintlmeister 2021, sp. n.
Creators: name: László, Gyula M.
name: Schintlmeister, Alexander
name: Vetina, Alvaro A.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2021
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Notodontidae
Leptolepida
Leptolepida krugeri

description: Leptolepida krugeri László & Schintlmeister sp. n. (Figs. 69–71, 129–130, 144)
Holotype. Male, “ Mozambique, Maputo Special Reserve, West Gate, 22m, (Sand Thicket), 26°30’14.2”S, 32°42’59.6”E, 3–13.XII.2016, Aristophanous, M., Cristóvão, J., László, G., Miles, W. leg., ANHRT: 2017.22”, “ANHRTUK 00006268”, gen. slide No.: LG 5382 (ANHRT).
Paratypes. Mozambique. 1 male, Maputo Special Reserve, West Gate, Sand Forest, 22m, 26º30’14.2”S, 32 º 42’59.6”E, 21–22.ii.2018, Actinic Light Trap, László, G., Mulvaney, J., Smith, L. leg., ANHRT:2018.2, unique number: ANHRTUK 00199584; 1 male, same locality and collectors, but Sand Thicket, 24–25.ii.2018, unique number: ANHRTUK 00197889 (ANHRT). Republic of South Africa. 1 male, 1 female, KwaZulu-Natal, Charters Creek, 5–6.X.1997, leg. N.J. Duke, Schintlmeister photo No.: 26601 (male), 26602 (female); 1 male, Umdoni Park, 17.IV.1978, leg. D.M. Kroon, Schintlmeister photo No.: 29336, gen. slide No.: TM 16925; 1 female, same site, 15–19.IV.1975, leg. L. & G. Vári, Schintlmeister photo No.: 29337, gen. slide No.: TM 16926 (TMSA).
Diagnosis. Leptolepida krugeri sp. n. is the southern African allopatric sister species of L. malangae Bethune- Baker, 1922, described from northern Angola. The external appearance of the new species differs markedly from that of L. malangae in its paler, greyish forewing ground colour with a considerably darker, brownish costal area, without the strikingly different coloration of its congener. Differences in the male genitalia also support recognition of two species based on the following features: the new species has a noticeably wider genital capsule and a somewhat longer and slightly more robust distal process of the uncus; the peculiar ventral process of the uncus is positioned at the uncus base in the new species, whereas that of L. malangae projects from the distal process of the uncus at its basal third; the new species has a somewhat wider juxta with shorter apical lobes, compared to that of L. malangae; and the phallus is shorter than that of its congener with the coecum penis slightly dilated and more broadly rounded (it tapers gradually in L. malangae). Furthermore, the cornutus of the endophallus of L. krugeri is considerably thinner, almost straight and abruptly tapered after its wide basal part, situated subbasally, whereas it is more robust, gently curved, tapering gradually and situated basally in L. malangae. As the female of L. malangae is currently unknown, comparative studies of female genitalia were not carried out in this paper.
description: Published as part of László, Gyula M., Schintlmeister, Alexander & Vetina, Alvaro A., 2021, A contribution to the knowledge of the prominent moths (Lepidoptera, Noctuoidea Notodontidae) of the Maputo Special Reserve with descriptions of four new species, pp. 201-243 in Zootaxa 4965 (2) on pages 217-218, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4965.2.1, http://zenodo.org/record/4749851