Sesamia lusese Hévin & Kergoat & Zilli & Capdevielle-Dulac & Musyoka & Sezonlin & Conlong & Van Den Berg & Ndemah & Le Gall & Cugala & Nyamukondiwa & Pallangyo & Njaku & Goftishu & Assefa & Kandonda & Bani & Molo & Chipabika & Ong'amo & Clamens & Barbut & Le Ru 2024, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Hévin, Noémie M. C.
name: Kergoat, Gael J.
name: Zilli, Alberto
name: Capdevielle-Dulac, Claire
name: Musyoka, Boaz K.
name: Sezonlin, Michel
name: Conlong, Desmond
name: Van Den Berg, Johnnie
name: Ndemah, Rose
name: Le Gall, Philippe
name: Cugala, Domingos
name: Nyamukondiwa, Casper
name: Pallangyo, Beatrice
name: Njaku, Mohamedi
name: Goftishu, Muluken
name: Assefa, Yoseph
name: Kandonda, Onésime Mubenga
name: Bani, Grégoire
name: Molo, Richard
name: Chipabika, Gilson
name: Ong'amo, George
name: Clamens, Anne-Laure
name: Barbut, Jérôme
name: Le Ru, Bruno
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2024
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Noctuidae
Sesamia
Sesamia lusese

description: Sesamia lusese Le Ru sp. nov.
Figures 8 F, Q; 10; 12 C – D
Type material.
Holotype ♂, TANZANIA, Mbeya Region, Lusese, 08 ° 51 ′ 34 ″ S, 33 ° 51 ′ 10 ″ E, 1307 m a. s. l., III. 2014, light trap, gen. prep. LE RU Bruno / 858, (B. Le Ru leg.) (MNHN).
Diagnosis.
(See also the identification key of incerta subgroup, section 3.4. 2.). This species can be distinguished from the other known members of the incerta subgroup by the combination of the following characters of the male genitalia: tegumen with large ovoid peniculi; vinculum u-shaped at the outer margin and w-shaped at the inner margin without indentation, with a large sized saccus, almost square; juxta large, the inferior plate triangle-shaped, almost isosceles, slightly curved at the bottom, the two lateral sides straight, ending with a long and wide, shortly bifid superior plate at least 1.7 times shorter than the inferior one; phallus almost straight.
Description.
(Fig. 12 C, D). Antenna ochraceous, shortly pectinate, flagellum adorned dorsally with ochraceous scales; palpus ochraceous; eyes brown. Head and thorax covered with long ochraceous hairs. Legs ochraceous slightly suffused with fuscous scales. Forewing ochraceous, slightly suffused with brown and fuscous scales, much more in the termen area; a longitudinal grey ochraceous fascia along lower margin of cell, partly within, partly without cell from base of cell to the subterminal line; one antemedial dark brown spot; outer margin adorned with more or less visible brown spots between the veins, fringe light ochraceous suffused with brown and fuscous scales, basal line of fringe light ochraceous. Hindwing white, very slightly suffused with brown scales in costal and apical areas, fringe concolor (white), suffused with fuscous scales in apex. Underside of forewing light ochraceous, slightly suffused with fuscous scales in costa, apex and termen areas, fringe light ochraceous suffused with fuscous scales, basal line light ochraceous. Underside of hindwing white suffused with brown and fuscous scales in costal and apical areas, fringe concolor (white), suffused with fuscous scales in apex. — Forewing length: male 26.0 mm (N = 1). — Male genitalia (Fig. 8 F, Q). Tegumen with large ovoid peniculi; vinculum u-shaped at the outer margin and w-shaped at the inner margin without indentation, with a large saccus, almost square. Valve with sacculus and cucullus separate; costa short and narrow, heavily sclerotized, ending with a stout and long straight spine, with one apical teeth; sacculus heavily sclerotized rounded at base, a broad and short apical extension, curved inwards, strongly club-shaped, bearing numerous short and stout spines; cucullus weakly sclerotized, slightly clavate at apex, with scattered and papillated hairs; juxta large, the inferior plate triangle-shaped, almost isosceles, slightly curved at the bottom, the two lateral sides straight, ending with a long and wide, shortly bifid superior plate at least 1.7 times shorter than the inferior one; uncus angled and stout at base, narrowed in distal part, pointed at apex, tufted with long hairs on upper side; phallus short and thin, almost straight; lamina ventralis with an elongate carinal crest, produced into paired lateral lobes; vesica with a large almost circular flat cornutus.
Etymology.
Named after Lusese, a small village in Mbeya region in Tanzania; treated as a noun in apposition.
Distribution.
Tanzania. Known from a single locality in a transition area between ‘ wetter Zambezian miombo woodland (dominated by Brachystegia, Julbernardia and Isoberlinia) ’ (Mosaic # 25) and ‘ undifferentiated montane vegetation’ (Mosaic # 19 a) vegetation mosaics (White 1983) (Fig. 10) belonging to the Zambezian bioregion (sensu Linder et al. 2012).
Ecology.
Ecology unknown, but likely on Paniceae (Poaceae), like the three related species, S. lalaci sp. nov., S. msowero sp. nov. and S. pennipuncta. The only known individual was caught using a light trap in a bushland on a hill inhabited by various Poales belonging to the following genera: Cenchrus, Megathyrsus and Panicum.
Remarks.
This species is morphologically very close to S. lalaci sp. nov., S. msowero sp. nov. and S. pennipuncta, and its identification is impossible without a thorough examination of the genitalia.
description: Published as part of Hévin, Noémie M. C., Kergoat, Gael J., Zilli, Alberto, Capdevielle-Dulac, Claire, Musyoka, Boaz K., Sezonlin, Michel, Conlong, Desmond, Van Den Berg, Johnnie, Ndemah, Rose, Le Gall, Philippe, Cugala, Domingos, Nyamukondiwa, Casper, Pallangyo, Beatrice, Njaku, Mohamedi, Goftishu, Muluken, Assefa, Yoseph, Kandonda, Onésime Mubenga, Bani, Grégoire, Molo, Richard, Chipabika, Gilson, Ong'amo, George, Clamens, Anne-Laure, Barbut, Jérôme & Le Ru, Bruno, 2024, Revisiting the taxonomy and molecular systematics of Sesamia stemborers (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae: Apameini: Sesamiina): updated classification and comparative evaluation of species delimitation methods, pp. 447-501 in Arthropod Systematics & amp; Phylogeny 82 on pages 447-501, DOI: 10.3897/asp.82.e113140