Astrotischeria trilobata Diskus & Stonis, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Jonas R. Stonis
name: Arūnas Diškus
name: Fernando Carvalho Filho
name: Owen T. Lewis
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2018
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Tischeriidae
Astrotischeria
Astrotischeria trilobata

description: Astrotischeria trilobata Diškus & Stonis, sp. nov.
(Figs. 9, 10, 20–69, 233, 245–248)
Type material. Holotype: ♂, BOLIVIA, Nor Yungas Province, Coroico, 16°11'54"S, 67°43'13"W, elevation 1650 m, mining larva on Austroeupatorium inulaefolium (Kunth) R. M. King & H. Rob. (Asteraceae), 26.iv.2014, ex pupa v.2014, field card no. 5166, A. Diškus, genitalia slide no. AD752 ♂ (ZMUC). Paratypes: 4 ♂, 10 ♀, same label data as holotype, genitalia slide nos AD749 ♂, AD751 ♂, AD912♀, AD914♀, head and forewing venation slide no. AD913♀ (ZMUC); 7♂, 7♀, 16°12'24"S, 67°43'54"W, 1680 m, on Austroeupatorium, 07–16.vi.2018, card no. 5237, A.Diškus, J.R. Stonis, 5 ♂, ECUADOR, Loja Province, Vilcabamba, 4°16'06"S, 79°10'40"W, elevation 1990 m, 22.i.2017, field card no. 5225, A. Diškus, genitalia slide nos AD910♂ (from mature pupa, adult not preserved), AD915♂ (ZMUC).
Diagnosis. The combination of two very wide, apically pointed dorsal lobes of valva and the rather slender but pointed apical lobes of phallus in the male genitalia distinguishes A. trilobata sp. nov. from all other Astrotischeria, including other members of the A. trilobata group. The fact that it feeds on Austroeupatorium also makes this species distinctive.
Male (Figs. 28, 32, 34–36). Forewing length: 2.8–3.5 mm; wingspan: 6.3–7.3 mm. Head: face and palpi pale ochre; frontal tuft comprised of ochre cream and some grey-ochre lamellar scales; antenna with about 42 segments, distinctly longer than half the length of forewing; flagellum metallic grey, annulated with grey-black to black; sensillae very long and fine, cream. Thorax and tegula ochre, speckled with grey-black scales, particularly densely anteriorly. Forewing of the Bolivian specimens (Figs. 28–33, 37) densely speckled with black scales (with metallic grey bases) only laterally; a characteristic, very wide but sinuous longitudinal zone left non-speckled, orangeochre; forewing of the Ecuadorian specimens (Figs. 34–36) darker: sometimes black scales irrorate almost whole forewing with no (Fig. 36) or very little dark ochre longitudinal zone left (Figs. 34, 35); fringe black-grey on costal margin and tornus, distinctly greyish ochre on termen; fringe-line distinct, formed by black scales; forewing underside brown-black to grey-black, without spots or androconia. Hindwing very slender, black-grey to black on both upper and underside, without androconia; fringe blackish grey. Legs densely speckled with grey scales with little purple iridescence, distally ochreous cream on upper side. Abdomen dark metallic grey to black-grey with some blue and purple iridescence on upper side and laterally, ochreous cream on underside; anal tufts rather indistinct, grey on upper side; genital plates ochreous cream.
Female (Figs. 20–27, 29–31, 33, 37). Similar to male but forewing pattern usually brighter; sometimes thorax without dark scales, purely ochre. Otherwise as male.
Male genitalia (Figs. 9, 10, 38–50). Capsule 505–560 µm long, 240–280 µm wide. Uncus (Figs. 42, 44–47) consisting of two long lateral lobes and two short, rounded median lobes (Figs. 42). Valva divided (Figs. 9, 10, 39, 45–47): ventral lobe slender, 50–85 µm wide, 305–340 µm long (excluding basal process); dorsal lobes consisting of two lobes: an inwardly curved, distally pointed, 160 µm long lobe (Figs. 11, 12, 38, 43, 45–47) and longer, slightly dentate (Figs. 44, 48), distally pointed lobe (Figs. 9, 10, 38, 45, 48); transtilla absent; basal process of valva long (Figs. 38, 43, 47). Anellus thickened, with 3–4 setae laterally (Figs. 38, 47), and two rounded apical lobes (Figs. 41, 43). Phallus 400–435 µm long, distally deeply bifurcated, without spines (Figs. 40, 49, 50).
Female genitalia (Figs. 51–53). Total length 1135–1200 mm. Ovipositor small, clothed with short, stout and darker, modified setae (‘peg setae’) (Figs. 51, 53); area between ovipositor lobes triangularly shaped (Fig. 51), with tiny papillae and some setae. Second pair of lobes, lateral and anterior to the ovipositor lobes, significantly smaller, bearing very long slender setae. Anterior and posterior apophyses very long and stout, particularly the posterior ones (Figs. 51, 53); remaining three apophysis pairs (Figs. 51, 52) formed as slender rod-like and wide lobe-like projections (prela, Fig. 53). Tips of one pair of rod-like prela articulating with anterior apophyses in a groove in half of their length (Fig. 51). Vestibulum without antrum, however vestibulum may look thickened laterally because of prela (Fig. 52). Ductus bursae widened posteriorly, with pectinations (numerous indistict, blunt spines). Corpus bursae round (Fig. 53), without spines or signum. Ductus spermathaecae very narrow, with about 4.5 coils (Fig. 53), utriculus very small, oval-shaped (Fig. 53).
Bionomics (Figs. 54–69). Host plant: Austroeupatorium inulaefolium (Kunth) R. M. King & H. Rob., Asteraceae, a plant species native to South America, from Panama to Argentina and possessing some antimicrobial activity against intracellular and extracellular organisms (Bua et al. 2017). Mining larvae recorded from January (in southern Ecuador) and April, June (in Bolivia). Blotch mine (at early stage triangular, afterwards irregular, Figs. 57–69) either without frass or usually with little black or brown-black loose or compact granules of frass irregularly deposited predominantly in the narrow corner of the mine (Figs. 58, 60, 61, 69); the initial, slender part of leaf mine sometimes looks pale green because the unconsumed upper tissue of plant (Figs. 57–61, 69); old leaf mine usually looks pale brown or whitish brown. Silk-lined nidus inside of the mine usually rather indistinct. Larva pale yellowish green, with dark green intestine and blackish brown head (Figs. 62–65). Mining larva better visible from underside of the leaf than upper side; sometimes larva can hardly be seen, particularly in early stages of development because the larva can hide itself in the narrow part of the leaf. Pupation inside of leaf mine, in a silklined nidus, without cocoon; pupa brown. Exit slit on usually on upper side, only sometimes on underside of the leaf. Adults known from February and May, July.
Distribution (Fig. 233). Known from the south Ecuadorian (Figs. 245–247) and Bolivian (Fig. 248) Andes at the elevation of about 1600–2000 m.
Etymology. The species name is derived from Latin tris (three) and lobatus (lobed) in reference to the threelobed valva in the male genitalia.
description: Published as part of Jonas R. Stonis, Arūnas Diškus, Fernando Carvalho Filho & Owen T. Lewis, 2018, American Asteraceae-feeding Astrotischeria species with a highly modified, three-lobed valva in the male genitalia (Lepidoptera, Tischeriidae), pp. 1-69 in Zootaxa 4469 (1) on pages 14-27, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4469.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/1454525