Prophaecasia malawiana Heppner & Bae 2017, new species
Creators: name: Heppner, John B.
name: Bae, Yang-Seop
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2018
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Tortricidae
Prophaecasia
Prophaecasia malawiana

description: Prophaecasia malawiana Heppner & Bae, new species (Figs. 1–4)
Type locality: Malawi (Senga Bay, Salima District).
Diagnosis. Superficially, Prophaecasia malawiana can be distinguished by the pale tan scaling of the head scaling (olive-green in P. anthion, olive gray in P. usambarae), and the bicolored gray-green and dark pink forewing (olive-green and light pink in P. anthion, green and pink and white in P. lindae). Also, the forewing white vertical stria present in P. anthion and P. lindae is absent in P. malawiana. In contrast to P. usambarae, the pink mark at the apex of the forewing is lacking in P. malawiana, and the inner margin of the pink distal forewing patch is curved inward in P. malawiana, whereas it is straight in P. usambarae. In the male genitalia the longer and wider caulis arms and reduced base of the caulis of P. malawiana differ from that found in congeners, and in P. usambarae the valvae are recurved ventrally (dorsally in P. malawiana), whereas in P. caemelionopa the valvae are strongly convex toward the apex.
Description. Male (Fig. 1). Head (Figs. 2–3): Vertex pale tan-white; frons pale tan-white; labial palpus pale tanwhite; antenna bronze-brown, with scape light tan-white. Thorax: Grayish pale olive-green, with anterior margin dark brown; tegulae with some dark brown scales; venter white; legs pale tan-white, with dark gray dorsally and black-brown bands on tarsi, hindlegs tan-white except for small black-brown spot on distal two tarsi. Wing expanse 10.8–11.3 mm male (n = 2). Forewing (Fig. 1) gray in basal half, with irregular mottling of pale gray, interrupted striae and spots, with fine, faint, interrupted black striae from costa to dorsal margin; costa with small black strigulae from base to apex, with short white strigulae between black strigulae; distal half of forewing deep pink with narrow black line along basal margin, arched from dorsal margin to near apex, with a slender pink line directed towards wing base near costal edge of pink region; entire pink area covered with irregular black spots and dashes, some merged into a subterminal black line from apex to tornus; apical half of wing dark gray along costa except for one pink line extended from pink area to near apex; termen with fine line of pink, with several black spots on upper termen; fringe pink with some black scales on termen and tornus; venter dark gray, with pale gray-tan on cubital section. Hindwing dark gray-brown; fringe dark gray with a basal line of pale tan, but mixed with pink from apex to tornus; venter dark gray. Abdomen: Dorsum lustrous dark gray; venter light tan; genital tuft light tan; pregenital plates (Fig. 4b) tree trunk-shaped (or spearhead-like) on sternite, with a flanged base at anterior end, acute and attenuated posteriorly. Male genitalia (Fig. 4) with tegumen somewhat quadrate, truncated dorsally, lacking distinct uncus; gnathos a thin rod-like structure curved dorsally; socius (Fig. 4a) with broad, short arm, heavily setose on distal half, with very long setae; valva with straight sacculus, followed by an 45° angle dorsally to narrow and somewhat acute apex, densely setose, with strong, dense setae on saccular angle and a separate wide setal tuft near base; juxta (Fig. 4a) triangular at base and as Y-shaped short narrow flanged caulis with wide dorsal arms (twice as long as rod-like base) of juxta-caulis complex; anellus a circular short collar fused to caulis arms; phallus short and tubular, with indistinct cornuti; vinculum undeveloped, rounded. Female unknown.
Specimens studied. Holotype male: Malawi: Safari Beach Lodge, Senga Bay, Salima Dist., 13–16 Feb 2009, J. B. Heppner (gen. slide JBH 3497). Paratype (1♂): Malawi: Makuzi Lodge, Chinteche (480 m), Nkata Bay Dist., 23–24 Feb 2014 (1♂), J.B. Heppner & R.J. Murphy.
Etymology. The species is named after the country of Malawi.
Biology. Unknown.
Distribution. Known only from Malawi.
Discussion. Prophaecasia malawiana appears to be most closely related to P. anthion from Borneo and P. lindae from Cambodia. Both of the latter species have male genitalia very similar to the new species from Malawi, other than the small caulis of P. malawiana. Another species possibly related to P. malawiana is from Nigeria, Anthozela prodiga Razwoski & Wojtusiak (2012), with male genitalia similar to Prophaecasia, and it is likely that this species also belongs in the genus Prophaecasia. The wing maculation of P. malawiana also is remarkably like that of A. prodiga, but the genitalia differ considerably, whereas the male genitalia of P. malawiana are very similar to those of P. anthion and P. lindae.
Razowski & Wojtusiak (2012) have placed other Africa species in the genus Anthozela that are very similar in maculation to P. malawiana and probably belong to other genera. Anthozela prodiga possibly belongs in Prophaecasia; Anthozela postuma Razowski & Wojtusiak probably belongs in Loboschiza; and Anthozela usambarae Razowski & Wojtusiak (2014), is transferred to Prophaecasia. All species of Prophaecasia are known from very few specimens, so additional material is required before any convincing conclusions can be drawn.
description: Published as part of Heppner, John B. & Bae, Yang-Seop, 2018, Prophaecasia species in Malawi (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae: Olethreutinae: Olethreutini), pp. 133-136 in Zootaxa 4388 (1) on pages 133-136, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4388.1.10, http://zenodo.org/record/1187791