Nemophora brachypetala Meyrick 1912
Creators: name: Kozlov, Mikhail V.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2016
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Adelidae
Nemophora
Nemophora brachypetala

description: Nemophora brachypetala (Meyrick, 1912)
(Figs. 1, 2, 14, 21–25, 51, 52, 58)
Nemotois brachypetala: Meyrick 1912a: 6. Holotype ♂: Australia, Northern Territory, Darwin (12o23'S, 130o44'E); labelled: 8 mm circle with red margin, print ‘Holo- | type’; 5 × 9 mm, black ink ‘Port Darwin | N. Australia | FPD[odd].[19]10’; 13 × 14 mm, black ink + print ‘ Nemotois | brachypetala | 1/1 Meyr. | E. Meyrick det. | in Meyrick Coll.’; 3 × 23 mm, black ink ‘ brachypetala Meyr. ’; 8 × 18 mm, print + black ink ‘Specimen photographed | E. S. Nielsen | ANIC 1984’; 8 × 13 mm, print ‘B. M. | Genitalia slide | No. 29430’ (NHM) [examined]. Meyrick 1912b: 8; Turner 1913: 225.
Nemophora brachypetala: Nielsen 1996: 31.
Other material. Australia, Darwin. 2 ♂ 4 ♀, 27.xii.1908 – 5.i.1909 (Dodd) (NHM).
Diagnosis. In wing pattern N. brachypetala is similar to N. polydaedala, from which differs by the absence of yellow costal stripe inside fascia. In male genitalia this species is similar to N. opalina, from which differs by wide hood-shaped tegumen, valvae that are not fused to vinculum, and shape of valva, which has convex ventral margin and prominent base, extending laterally beyond the margins of vinculum.
Description. Male (Figs. 1, 14). FWL 4.7–5.2 mm, WLR 0.37–0.42. Vertex with sparse light ochreous to brown piliform scales; frons glossy golden. PLB 0.5–0.6 × vertical eye diameter and 1.3–1.6 × scapus, light ochreous brown. Proboscis light brown, base with ochreous brown scales. Eyes enlarged; interocular index 1.0– 1.2; occipital index 0.17–0.22. Length of antenna 2.9–3.5 × FWL. Scape and base of flagellum bronze; pegs present only on 3rd and 4th flagellomers; basal 15–25 flagellomers with rings of light brown scales (in some specimens these rings are almost indistinct); distal part of flagellum light bronze. Tegula dark bronze to coppery bronze; thorax glossy golden. Forewing coppery bronze; basal field dark brown, with distinct external border, reaching costa at 0.35 × FWL and dorsum at 0.25 × FWL, with glossy golden spots along costa and between M and CuA stems, and with pale yellow spot connecting wing base below medial golden spot with costal margin outside costal golden spot. Extent of yellow spot variable; in some specimens it is narrow while in others it almost reaches dorsal wing margin. Fascia dark brown, its width at costa is 2–3 × width at dorsum; medial part of fascia sparsely scattered by yellow scales. Tornal spot brown, diffuse, variable in size. Fringe bronze. Hindwing light coppery bronze; costal area grey; fringe bronze to light brown. Legs bronze to brown, apices of all tibiae and tarsomeres distally darker, sometimes with coppery tint. Epiphysis at 0.45–0.55, reaching or almost reaching apex of tibia. Abdomen brown with bronze lustre; basal sternites glossy golden.
Female (Fig. 2). FWL 4.3–4.5 mm. Antenna 1.6 × FWL, base not thickened. Hindwing darker than in males. Posterior margins of pregenital tergites brownish yellow. Otherwise similar to male.
1. Genitalia of N. polydaedala are unknown.
Male genitalia (Figs. 21–25, 51, 52, 58). Tegumen hood-shaped, wide. Socius oval, 1.0 × diameter of phallus. Vinculum 2.7 × length of valva, with slightly convex lateral margins and gently W-shaped distal margin. Apex of valva slightly extends beyond the apex of tegumen. Ventral margin of valva wave-shaped, medially with small lobe; dorsal margin concave; apex of valva widely rounded. Valvae fused basally up to 0.25 × total length; internal margins indistinct. Anellus 0.5 × length of valva. Transtilla with short triangular medial process. Juxta 0.55 × length of phallus; arrow head narrow (WLR 0.45), with pointed tip and long pointed lateral arms. Phallus 1.15 × length of vinculum, gently C-shaped; apical part forms prominent, laterally flattened lobe (Fig. 58); base of phallus funnel-shaped.
description: Published as part of Kozlov, Mikhail V., 2016, Taxonomic revision of Australian long-horn moths of the genus Nemophora (Lepidoptera: Adelidae), pp. 84-100 in Zootaxa 4097 (1) on pages 86-88, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4097.1.4, http://zenodo.org/record/255663