Stigmella kristenseni Diskus & Stonis, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Stonis, Jonas R.
name: Diškus, Arūnas
name: Remeikis, Andrius
name: Gerulaitis, Virginijus
name: Karsholt, Ole
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2016
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Nepticulidae
Stigmella
Stigmella kristenseni

description: Stigmella kristenseni Diškus & Stonis, sp. nov.
(Figs 18, 27, 191–203)
Type material. Holotype: Ƌ, PERU, Dept. Lima, 45 km NE Chosica, Millo Valley, Quabrada Yanac, 11°36'30"S, 76°24'18"W, elevation ca. 4000 m, 26–28.i.1987, O. Karsholt, genitalia slide no. AD670Ƌ (ZMUC). Paratype: 1 Ƌ, PERU, Dept. Ayacucho, 25 W Puquio, Senal Cerro Palmaderas, 14°39'41"S, 74°27'31"W, elevation ca. 4100 m, 10–12.iii.1987, O. Karsholt, genitalia slide no. AD654Ƌ (ZMUC).
Diagnosis. This rather large, externally speckled, in male genitalia highly peculiar species differs from other known Stigmella by the combination of a denticulate inner process of valva, rod-like sclerotization of vinculum plate, and narrow apically spinose phallus.
Male (Figs 191, 192). Forewing length about 3.8 mm; wingspan about 8.1–8.2 mm. Head: palpi grey; frontal tuft comprised of cream and dark grey-brown scales (the latter prevail); collar cream, comprised of lamellar scales; scape white cream; antenna longer than half the length of forewing; flagellum with 43–44 segments, grey, glossy. Thorax and tegula cream, speckled with pale brown and brown scales. Forewing silvery cream, irregularly speckled with pale brown to dark brown scales without purple or blue iridescence; sometime silvery white scales occur at forewing apex, along costal and tornal margin; fringe pale grey cream to brown cream; underside of forewing grey-brown, with no spots. Hindwing and its fringe pale grey cream to brown cream on upper side and underside, with no spots or androconia. Abdomen pale brown on upper side, brownish cream on underside; tufts indistinctive; genital segments brownish cream.
Female. Unknown.
Male genitalia (Figs 193–203). Capsule longer (525 µm) than wide (235 µm). Uncus long, with four very short lobes caudally. Gnathos with two very long, little sinuous caudal processes, very slender central plate, and short, rounded anterior processes (Fig. 197). Valva 290–295 µm long, 75–85 µm wide, with short apical process, wide, apically rounded inner lobe (Fig. 196), and plate-like spinose inner process (Figs 200–203); transtilla with slender transverse bar and long, tapering sublateral processes. Juxta absent or indistictive. Vinculum with long tapering lateral lobes; ventral plate thickened along posterior margin and with median rod-like sclerotization (Fig. 193). Phallus (Figs 195, 199) 475 µm long, medially 35 µm wide, widening at apical part; in phallus apex vesica with a large lamellar cornutus and many small spine-like cornuti (Fig. 199).
Bionomics. Adults fly in late January and March. Otherwise biology unknown.
Distribution (Figs 18, 27). This species occurs in the high Peruvian Andes (Peru: Lima Departamento and Ayacucho Departamento) at altitudes about 4000–4100 m.
Etymology. The species is named after Professor DSc. Niels Peder Kristensen (1943–2014), one of the greatest insect taxonomists and morphologists of his time, particularly of primitive Lepidoptera, and an inspiring teacher and outstanding supervisor, the editor-in-chief of the two Lepidoptera volumes of “Handbook of Zoology”, former director of Zoologisk Museum of Københavns Universitet, and honary member of a number of academic societies (for his honors and awards see Simonsen et al. 2015).
The authors of the present paper are deeply indebted to Niels Peder Kristensen for the initial stimulus for the Neotropical Nepticulidae project, and his generous support during its course and the loan of Neotropical Nepticulidae material belonging to the ZMUC.
description: Published as part of Stonis, Jonas R., Diškus, Arūnas, Remeikis, Andrius, Gerulaitis, Virginijus & Karsholt, Ole, 2016, Leaf-mining Nepticulidae (Lepidoptera) from record high altitudes: documenting an entire new fauna in the Andean páramo and puna, pp. 1-94 in Zootaxa 4181 (1) on page 69, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4181.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/164243