Nothocasis rosariae Scalercio, Infusino & Hausmann, new species
Creators: name: Scalercio, Stefano
name: Infusino, Marco
name: Hausmann, Axel
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2016
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Geometridae
Nothocasis
Nothocasis rosariae

description: Nothocasis rosariae Scalercio, Infusino & Hausmann, new species
Material examined. Holotype male: HOLOTYPE / Nothocasis / rosariae [red rectangle label]; Italia Calabria / Sila—Vivaio Sbanditi (CS) / 1350m— 8.9.15 / 39.3889°, 16.6022° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino (Coll. Crea-Sam, Italy). Paratypes altogether 21 males and 16 females. 1 male: Italia Calabria / Sila—Vivaio Sbanditi (CS) / 1350m— 22/09/2014 / 39°23’20”N; 16°36’08”E / leg. S. Scalercio; Prep. number CREASAM 42, Stefano Scalercio [DNA barcode specimen ID LEP-SS-00294]. 1 male: Italia Calabria / Sila—Vivaio Sbanditi (CS) / 1350m— 13/10/2014 / 39°23’20”N; 16°36’08”E / leg. S. Scalercio; Prep. number CREASAM 50, Stefano Scalercio [DNA barcode specimen ID LEP-SS-00162]. 1 female: Italia Calabria / Sila—Vivaio Sbanditi (CS) / 1350m— 13/10/2014 / 39°23’20”N; 16°36’08”E / leg. S. Scalercio; Prep. number CREASAM 58, Stefano Scalercio [DNA barcode specimen ID LEP-SS-00295]. 1 female: Italia Calabria / Sila—Vivaio Sbanditi (CS) / 1350m— 13/10/2014 / 39°23’20”N; 16°36’08”E / leg. S. Scalercio; Prep. number CREASAM 51, Stefano Scalercio [DNA barcode specimen ID LEP-SS-00163]. 3 males: Italia Calabria / Sila—Vivaio Sbanditi (CS) / 1356m— 20.x.15 / 39.3889°, 16.6022° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 1 male: Italia Calabria / Sila—Vivaio Sbanditi (CS) / 1356m— 15.ix.15 / 39.3889°, 16.6022° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 1 female: Italia Calabria—SL_A1 / Sila, Montagna Grande (CS) / 1370 m— 05/10/2015 / 39.2766°, 16.6102° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino; Prep. number CREASAM 59, Stefano Scalercio. 1 male: Italia Calabria—PO_A1 / Serrapaolo, Saracena (CS) / 990 m— 24/08/ 2015 / 39.8225°, 16.0911° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino; Prep. number CREASAM 57, Stefano Scalercio. 1 female: Italia Calabria—PO_A1 / Serrapaolo, Saracena (CS) / 990 m— 14/10/2015 / 39.8225°, 16.0911° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 2 females: Italia Calabria—PO_A1 / Serrapaolo, Saracena (CS) / 990 m— 18.xi.2015 / 39.8225°, 16.0911° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 1 male: Italia Calabria—PO_A2 / Serrapaolo, Saracena (CS) / 1010 m— 24/ 08/2015 / 39.8225°, 16.0883° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino [DNA barcode specimen ID LEP-SS-00364]. 1 male: Italia Calabria—PO_B2 / Bruscata, Saracena (CS) / 1370 m— 24/08/2015 / 39.8103°, 16.0468° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino [DNA barcode specimen ID LEP-SS-00363]. 1 male and 1 female: Italia Calabria—PO_B2 / Bruscata, Saracena (CS) / 1370 m— 14/10/2015 / 39.8103°, 16.0468° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 1 female: Italia Calabria— PO_C1 / T.ne Magara, Saracena (CS) / 1465 m— 18.xi.15 / 39.7939°, 16.0520° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 1 male: Italia Calabria—PO_C2 / T.ne Magara, Saracena (CS) / 1460 m— 24/08/2015 / 39.7914°, 16.0503° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino [DNA barcode specimen ID LEP-SS-00361]. 1 male: Italia Calabria—PO_C2 / T.ne Magara, Saracena (CS) / 1460 m— 24/08/2015 / 39.7914°, 16.0503° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino [DNA barcode specimen ID LEP-SS- 00362]. 1 female: Italia Calabria—PO_C2 / T.ne Magara, Saracena (CS) / 1460 m— 24/08/2015 / 39.7914°, 16.0503° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino [DNA barcode specimen ID LEP-SS-00360]. 1 female: Italia Calabria— PO_C2 / T.ne Magara, Saracena (CS) / 1460 m— 14/10/2015 / 39.7914°, 16.0503° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 1 male and 1 female: Italia Calabria—PO_C2 / T.ne Magara, Saracena (CS) / 1460 m— 14/10/2015 / 39.7914°, 16.0503° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 1 female: Italia Calabria—PO_C2 / T.ne Magara, Saracena (CS) / 1460 m— 18.xi.15 / 39.7914°, 16.0503° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino; Prep. number CREASAM 60, Stefano Scalercio. 1 male: Italia Calabria—PO_C3 / T.ne Magara, Saracena (CS) / 1475 m— 24/08/2015 / 39.7859°, 16.0523° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 1 male: Italia Calabria—PO_C3 / T.ne Magara, Saracena (CS) / 1475 m— 14/10/2015 / 39.7859°, 16.0523° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino (all in Coll. Crea-Sam). 1 female: Italia Calabria / Sila—Vivaio Sbanditi (CS) / 1350m— 6.x.15 / 39.3889°, 16.6022° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 2 males: Italia Calabria—PO_A1 / Serrapaolo, Saracena (CS) / 990 m— 14/10/2015 / 39.8225°, 16.0911° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 1 male: Italia Calabria— PO_A2 / Serrapaolo, Saracena (CS) / 1010 m— 14/10/2015 / 39.8225°, 16.0883° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 1 male: Italia Calabria—PO_B2 / Bruscata, Saracena (CS) / 1370 m— 24/08/2015 / 39.8103°, 16.0468° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 2 females: Italia Calabria—PO_B2 / Bruscata, Saracena (CS) / 1370 m— 14/10/2015 / 39.8103°, 16.0468° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 1 female: Italia Calabria—PO_C1 / T.ne Magara, Saracena (CS) / 1465 m— 18.xi.15 / 39.7939°, 16.0520° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 2 males: Italia Calabria—PO_C2 / T.ne Magara, Saracena (CS) / 1460 m— 14/10/2015 / 39.7914°, 16.0503° / leg. Scalercio & Infusino (all in coll. ZSM).
Other material examined. 4 males and 3 females: Serrapaolo (PO_A1), Saracena (CS), Italy, 990 m, 14.x.2015, 39.8225°, 16.0911°, leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 6 males and 9 females: Bruscata (PO_B2), Saracena (CS), Italy, 1370 m, 14.x.2015, 39.8103°, 16.0468°, leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 2 males: Bocca di Novacco (PO_B3), Saracena (CS), Italy, 1340 m, 14.x.2015, 39.8140°, 16.0451°, leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 4 males and 1 female: Timpone Magara (PO_C1), Saracena (CS), Italy, 1465 m, 23.ix.2015, 39.7939°, 16.0520°, leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 5 males and 6 females: Timpone Magara (PO_C1), Saracena (CS), Italy, 1465 m, 14.x.2015, 39.7939°, 16.0520°, leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 4 males and 3 females: T.ne Magara (PO_C2), Saracena (CS), Italy, 1460 m, 23.ix.2015, 39.7914°, 16.0503°, leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 20 males and 24 females: T.ne Magara (PO_C2), Saracena (CS), Italy, 1460 m, 14.x.2015, 39.7914°, 16.0503°, leg. Scalercio & Infusino. 1 male: Greece, Epirus, 20km N Konitza, 40.1906 N, 20.7966 E, 20-Oct- 2009, 520m, leg. Dr. Grünewald [DNA barcode specimen ID BC ZSM Lep 35649]. 1 male: Italy, Basilicata, Monte Sirino W, forestry road, 1570m, 40.2417° N, 16.3633° E, 05- Sep-2011, leg. A. Hausmann [DNA barcode specimen ID BC ZSM Lep 60930].
Description. External characters (Figs. 1–4): Wingspan male 22-28 mm (n=17), 26 mm for the holotype (Fig. 1), wingspan female 23–29 mm (n=21). Wings light grey. Transverse lines of forewings parallel to distal margin (termen) of the wing, black or dark grey, bordered by brownish scales especially along basal, medial and postmedial lines. Terminal line dissolved to a row of paired black dots, one above and the other below distal terminations of veins. Discal spots black, surrounded by a pale ring. Forewing pattern, especially in male, not well contrasted and defined due to irroration by dark grey scales. Fringe concolorous with wings, sometimes darker at vein terminations. Hindwing without transverse lines, with terminal area slightly darker. Discal spots black. Underside of wings as upperside, but paler. Frons, thorax and abdomen concolorous with wings. Antennae ciliatesetose in males and scarcely ciliate in females, flagellum dorsally chequered black and white. Hindtibia of both sexes with one pair of distal spurs, male hindtibia with a pencil longer than the tibia. Tympanal organs mediumsized.
Male genitalia (Figs. 5–12): Uncus long, tubular, distal portion sparsely setose, width constant from the basis to the tip, inversely T-shaped. Socii and gnathos absent. Valva setose, bilobed at tip. Apices of the cleft valva densely setose. Costa strongly sclerotized. Harpe well developed, forked, V-shaped distally, with two pointed tips. Juxta large, trapezoidal. Saccus short and flat. Aedeagus short, narrow at base and at tip, slightly dilated at 4/5 of its length. Vesica without spinose cornuti.
Female genitalia (Figs. 13–16): Papillae anales wide, setose. Apophyses posteriores long, slightly curved at 1/ 5 of their length. Apophyses anteriores more robust, 1/4 length of apophyses posteriores. Antrum well sclerotized, cup-shaped, showing in mounted genitalia a width/length ratio 3.3–3.6 (n=3) and bidimensional shape with apices pointed and widely projecting laterally. Ductus bursae short, not sclerotized. Ductus seminalis projecting from short membranous appendix bursae between ductus bursae and corpus bursae. Posterior part of corpus bursae narrowly cylindrical, weakly sclerotized, slightly granulated or with sparse microspines. Anterior part of corpus bursae elliptic, membranous, without signum.
Variation (Fig. 4). Forewing pattern more variable than hindwing pattern. Forewing sometimes with two anastomoses of medial and postmedial lines on veins CuA1 and CuA2. Forewing ground colour varying from dark grey to light grey. Some specimens with a dark grey medial fascia, bordered by brownish antemedial and postmedial fasciae. Such variants have been observed throughout the entire flight season and in both sexes, but only in the populations of Pollino Massif, while the wing pattern in the populations of the Sila Massif were much more homogeneous.
Genetic data (Fig. 17). Genetically heterogeneous in the distribution area (Italy and Greece), mean intraspecific variation 0.65%, maximum variation 1.93% (n=11). Nearest species: Nothocasis sertata (minimum pairwise distance 2.25%). Within the known range of N. rosariae it is possible to identify three genetic lineages consistent with different geographic areas. Populations of peninsular Italy are grouped in two different clusters at a minimum pairwise distance of 0.50% (=three basepairs). One cluster refers to specimens from the Pollino Massif (maximum intra-populational variation 0.23%) and the other to specimens from the Sila Massif (maximum intrapopulational variation 0%). The single specimen from Epirus, Greece, diverges by 1.77% (minimum pairwise distance) from the Italian populations, by 2.85% from N. sertata. So far, no other specimens of Nothocasis have been sequenced to the full barcode fragment (658bp), but a short fragment (307bp) of Nothocasis polystictaria from Nepal at a genetic distance of 14.1% (Kimura 2, complete deletion) from the European species seems to question its taxonomic position within the genus. The same applies for two short sequences (164bp) of the holotypes of N. posteropuncta and N. hyberniata, both described from Nepal and both at genetic distances of 10.8%.
Similar species. The new species can be confused with small individuals of Epirrita which fly synchronously in the same habitats, and with Trichopteryx carpinata (however, with an early spring phenology), both easily distinguishable by dissection of genitalia. Differing from Nothocasis sertata in wing pattern (Figs. 2–3), and morphology of genitalia (males: Figs. 5–6, 7–12; females: Figs. 13, 15–16). Most important diagnostic features are: - forewing pattern more diffuse than in N. sertata, brown scales bordering medial and postmedial lines not arranged in well-defined fasciae;
- uncus tubular, with constant width from basis to tip and inversely T-shaped in N. rosariae sp. n., uncus wider at basis and inversely Y-shaped in N. sertata;
- Harpe distally with two pointed tips in N. rosariae sp. n., bilobous in N. sertata;
- width/length ratio of antrum 3.3–3.6 (n=3), with a bidimensional shape in mounted genitalia laterally pointed and widely projecting in N. rosariae sp. n., 2.2–2.5 (n=3), with a less diverging and less pointed shape in N. sertata;
- Posterior part of corpus bursae narrow and weakly sclerotized, cylindrical in N. rosariae sp. n., weakly sclerotized on the entire surface of ductus bursae in N. sertata.
Phenology. During field research we collected 128 individuals belonging to Nothocasis rosariae, most of which not designed as paratypes because not mounted with pins. The species starts to fly in late August when few individuals (n=8) have been collected in the beech forest of the Pollino National Park. In September the abundance slightly increased (n=16), reaching its peak in October (n=100). Last individuals were collected as late as mid- November (n=5). Males were much more abundant at the beginning of the flight season, while in November only females were collected.
Biology. Unknown. Adults were most abundantly collected within pure Fagus sylvatica forests. Without further evidence, we can only hypothesize that larvae most likely feed on beech rather than on Acer pseudoplatanus, as its European sibling species N. sertata (Hausmann & Viidalepp 2012).
Distribution (Fig. 18). The type specimens have been collected in two localities of the Sila Massif and in three localities of the Pollino Massif (Calabria, Italy), where other ten specimens were collected in two different localities. More abundant populations were found in the Pollino Massif (Calabria, Italy) (n=118). The northernmost population was found on the Mount Sirino (n=1) (Basilicata, Italy). One specimen has been collected in the Epirus (Greece). To date it appears to be a trans-Ionian species, but further investigation is needed to delimitate the range of this species in Italy and in the Balkan countries. One record from Tuscany was confirmed as N. sertata through dissection, another from Croatia at the border to Bosnia through DNA barcoding (Iva Mihoci, pers. comm.).
Habitat (Figs. 19–20). Forested habitats, especially in beech forests (Fagus sylvatica) but found also in Calabrian black pine forests (Pinus nigra laricio). Young forests having a closed canopy seems to be preferred to old forests having discontinuity in the canopy cover. Vertical distribution from 520m up to 1475m.
Derivatio nominis. The species is dedicated to Rosaria Calcagnile, the mother of the first author.
description: Published as part of Scalercio, Stefano, Infusino, Marco & Hausmann, Axel, 2016, Nothocasis rosariae sp. n., a new sylvicolous, montane species from southern Europe (Lepidoptera: Geometridae, Larentiinae), pp. 177-192 in Zootaxa 4161 (2) on pages 178-186, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4161.2.2, http://zenodo.org/record/256340