Thiotricha minorirugata Lee & Li 2024, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Lee, Ga-Eun
name: Li, Houhun
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2024
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Gelechiidae
Thiotricha
Thiotricha minorirugata

description: Thiotricha minorirugata sp. nov.   
(Figs 9E, 24H, 33D, 50F)  
 Type material. Holotype ♂, CHINA, Sichuan Province, Wenchuan County, Sanjiang Town, Caoping Village (30.95°N, 103.32°E), 1557 m, 11.vii.2014, leg. Kaijian Teng, Wei Guan, Weichun Li and Shurong Liu, genitalia slide no. LGE18452. Paratypes. CHINA: Sichuan Province: 2 ♂♂, same data as holotype; Guangdong Province: 2 ♀♀, Mt. Dadong, 650 m, Lianzhou, 22.vi.2004, leg. Dandan Zhang, genitalia slide nos. ZJL05185, LGE18448; Xizang Autonomous Region: 1 ♂, Chengjiao (29.33°N, 95.33°E), 1016 m, Motuo County, 4.viii.2018, leg. Mujie Qi, genitalia slide no. LGE19062; Yunnan Province: 1 ♀, Bubang (21.6°N, 101.59°E), 650 m, Mengla County, 24.viii.2005, leg. Yingdang Ren, genitalia slide no. LGE18457; 1 ♀, Mengyuan (21.72°N, 101.39°E), 640 m, Mengla County, Xishuangbanna, 12.viii.2010, leg. Yinghui Sun and Lixia Li; 2 ♀♀, Nanlahe (21.59°N, 101.58°E), 652 m, Bubang Town, Mengla County, 12.vii.2013, leg. Shurong Liu, Yuqi Wang and Kaijian Teng, genitalia slide no. LGE18431; 1 ♀, Bubang (21.60°N, 101.59°E), 656 m, Xishuangbanna, 24.vii.2014, leg. Kaijian Teng, Wei Guan, Xiuchun Wang and Shurong Liu, genitalia slide no. LGE18278; 1 ♂, 3 ♀♀, Linjiapu (25.29°N, 98.70°E), 2144 m, Tengchong City, 14−16.viii.2014, leg. Kaijian Teng, Shurong Liu and Hua Rong, genitalia slide nos. LGE 18455m, LGE18456f.   
 Diagnosis. The forewing pattern of T. minorirugata is similar to that of T. crassiflagella, but the former is much lighter in color. The scape of antenna is fuscous posteriorly in T. minorirugata whereas it is fuscous distally in T. crassiflagella. The male sternum VIII of T. minorirugata is distinctive as it is trifid and more slender than in other related species. The male genitalia are very similar to those of T. angusteproducta, but the valva of T. minorirugata is less wrinkled, the saccus is shorter and the aedeagus is weakly curved distally than the latter species. The female genitalia are somewhat similar to those of T. spinesigna, T. angusteproducta and T. cornuata, but the ductus bursae is wider and the appendix bursae is absent in T. minorirugata.   
 Description. Adult (Fig. 9E). Wingspan 8.0−9.0 mm. Head cream to light yellow. Labial palpus cream to light yellow, longer in female; segment III nearly as long as II, fuscous on ventral surface and at apex. Antenna with scape cream, posterior margin fuscous; flagellum dark fuscous except basal half of dorsal surface cream, male cilia shorter than diameter. Thorax cream to light yellow, fuscous medially. Tegula cream to light yellow, anterior margin fuscous. Forewing ground color cream to light yellow, brown apically, tinged with white near tornus; apical spot usually bordered inwardly by silvery white scales; markings fuscous to black: a broad band from base to near apex along costa, bordered outwardly by a white streak running from distal 1/4 of costa toward apical spot, the streak tinged with cream or light yellow on costa; a broad longitudinal band above dorsum, running from near base to basal 1/2 or 2/3 of wing, often indistinct or absent; an outwardly oblique streak arising from base or distal 1/3 of former band, running toward distal 1/4 across wing, often gradually attenuated, not reaching costal band; an inwardly directed, V-shaped marking in distal 1/3 above fold, nearly reaching apical spot anteriorly and near tornus posteriorly; fringe on costa, termen and dorsum dark fuscous. Hindwing dark fuscous except near apex white; fringe fuscous, apical area white with a terminal dark fuscous band. Legs as in T. spinesigna except ground color cream to light yellow and streaks on mid and hind tibiae somewhat slender.   
 Male sternum VIII (Fig. 24H). 1/5 length of abdomen, lateral margins concave; bifid at posterior 1/2, leaving a slender tine on right side; posterior 1/5 or 1/6 furcate, right tine slightly shorter and thicker than left one.   
 Male genitalia (Fig. 33D). Uncus with base narrow, broadest at middle, rounded at apex; a sclerotized, longitudinal line from base to distal 1/2; sparsely setose along distal margin. Gnathos hook long and simple. Tegumen approximately 4 times as long as uncus. Valva slender, basal 3/5 incurved, then slightly curved outward distally; distal 1/5 slightly concave on inner margin, rounded at apex; left valva narrower than right valva, slightly wrinkled in basal half. Anellus lobe very small, ovate; apical bristle slightly longer than anellus lobe. Juxta with a subtriangular projection in basal 1/2 of inner margin. Vinculum simple. Saccus short, triangular, not exceeding tegumen pedunculus. Aedeagus with basal 2/5 dilated, then narrowed and uniformly elongate medially; distal 1/5 gradually narrowed to apex, curved upward.   
 Female genitalia (Fig. 50F). Papillae anales moderately sclerotized.Apophyses anteriores 2/3 length or slightly longer than 1/2 length of apophyses posteriores. Tergum VIII concave on posterior and anterior margins. Sternum VIII twice as long as tergum VIII, strongly elongate anteriorly in U-shape; anterior half membranous except anterior margin; a large, oblong sclerotization above ostium bursae. Ostium bursae opening at anterior 1/3 of sternum VIII. Ductus bursae narrow at base, broadened from ductus seminalis, then almost uniformly elongate to corpus bursae; a small, ovate or elliptical sclerotization near base; ductus seminalis arising from posterior 1/5 or 1/8. Corpus bursae ovate, approximately 1/3 length of ductus bursae; signum situated at middle, basal plate rhomboidal or elliptical, with a thumb-like narrow process produced anteriorly.   
 Variations. A single female specimen collected from Guangdong has a costal streak at middle of the forewing as in T. spinesigna, T. angusteproducta and T. cornuata, but such pattern is very rare within the species.   
 Distribution. China (Guangdong, Sichuan, Xizang, Yunnan).   
 Etymology. The species name is derived from Latin, minor (less) and rugatus (wrinkle), referring to the valva less wrinkled than other related species.
description: Published as part of Lee, Ga-Eun & Li, Houhun, 2024, A taxonomic review of Thiotricha Meyrick, 1886 (Lepidoptera, Gelechiidae, Thiotrichinae) from China, with descriptions of 84 new species, pp. 1-222 in Zootaxa 5449 (1) on pages 49-50, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5449.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/11233121