Euselasia pontasis Callaghan, Llorente-Bousquets & Luis-Martinez, 2007, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Callaghan, Curtis J.
name: Llorente-Bousquets, Jorge
name: Luis-Martinez, Armando
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2007
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Lycaenidae
Euselasia
Euselasia pontasis

description: Euselasia pontasis sp. nov.
(Figures 1, 10, 15)
Description. Male. Forewing length of Holotype 15 mm. Forewing costa curved, tip slightly falcate, distal margin straight to Cu1, where it angles sharply to the pointed tornus. Hind wing costa short, curving concave to a point at Cu1, then again bending concave to a point at the tornus; inner margin nearly straight to base. Dorsal wing ground color dark brown. Forewing with dark orange area extending from cell to inner margin; hind wing with round dark orange discal area below cell, inner margin dark grey. Ventral surface ground color grey – brown. Forewing with a row of submarginal spots between veins, and a faint irregular band crossing the discal area from costa to inner margin; hindwing with similar row of sub-marginal spots; discal area lighter with paler scaling extending along veins into limbal area; the indistinct discal band, continuing from the forewing, extends from costa to end of the cell where it divides slightly before rejoining, continuing to just before inner margin where it curves abruptly basad.
Head, thorax, abdomen dark orange dorsad, dark brown ventrad; antennae brown, ventrad with white scales between sections; orbit, frontoclypeus; labial palpi and forelegs dark brown; median and hind legs cream colored.
Male genitalia (Fig.11) with uncus same length as tegumen, squared with minute teeth, and with a small dorsal notch; tegumen rounded caudad with long blunt lateral projections nearly reaching the valvae; vinculum narrow, slightly wider at base. Valvae pointed, narrow, rounded at base with long, thick lateral setae; dorsal process on transtilla prominent and pointed; aedeagus slightly curved, with a rounded point.
Female. unknown
Types. Holotype male with label reading: “Chincultic”, Chiapas, 11-VII-92, John Kemner 4500’, 468 KEMNER 2870 Base Kemner, and a red type label. 5 Paratype males as follows: 2 males Santa Rosa Comitán, Chiapas, V-61, leg. Escalante, MGCL/4110, 4111; 1 male Ochna, [Ochuc] Chiapas, 17-X-65. leg. P. Hubbell, MGCL/4112; 1 male Las Delicias, Chiapas, leg. R. Wind MGCL/4102; 1 male S. Cristóbal de las Casas 4800’ 25-VI-69, leg. R. Wind, MGCL/4113.
The Holotype is deposited in the MZFC. The paratypes are in the McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, Florida Museum of Natural History.
Etymology. The name refers to the pointed distal margins on the fore- and hind wings.
Diagnosis. This little butterfly appears at first glance to be related to Euselasia angulata (Bates, 1868), sharing the pointed distal margins on both fore- and hindwings. Examination of the male genitalia of both species, however, shows many differences between them. Euselasia pontasis has a longer process on the tegumen, lacks internal process on the valvae and has a narrower aedeagus. The male genitalia are not close to any other Mexican riodinid.
Distribution and Habits. (Fig. 15) This species inhabits the southern highlands in the State of Chiapas near the Guatemalan border. Nothing is known of its habits. The holotype comes from Chinkultic (an archeological site of the Mayan culture in the Parque Nacional Lagunas de Montebello, La Trinitaria Municipality in Chiapas; 16°36'50'' 91°47'30''). This species probably also occurs in Guatemala highlands.
description: Published as part of Callaghan, Curtis J., Llorente-Bousquets, Jorge & Luis-Martinez, Armando, 2007, Descriptions of four new Mexican riodinids (Lepidoptera: Riodinidae), pp. 33-43 in Zootaxa 1660 on page 34, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.179912