Thiotricha nigrimaculata 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 nigrimaculata

description: Thiotricha nigrimaculata sp. nov.   
(Figs 2E, 18B, 26R, 41F, 58E)  
 Type material. Holotype ♂, CHINA, Yunnan Province, Pu’er City, Taiyanghe Nature Reserves, Yuyingtang, 1450 m, 21.iv.2015, leg. Kaijian Teng, genitalia slide no. LGE18305. Paratypes. CHINA: Yunnan Province: 1 ♂, 1 ♀, same data as holotype except 5, 7.iv.2015; 2 ♀♀, Mt. Xiaohei, 2300 m, Longling County, 10.viii.2005, leg. Yingdang Ren, genitalia slide no. ZJL05439; 2 ♂♂, 3 ♀♀, Xiaoheishan Nature Reserves (24.52°N, 98.84°E), 1974 m, Longling County, 17−19.vii.2013, leg. Tengteng Liu, Yuqi Wang and Kaijian Teng, genitalia slide nos. LGE 18311m, LGE18312f (one male and one female are deposited in NHMUK); 1 ♂, 3 ♀♀, Taiyanghe Nature Reserves (22.79°N, 100.98°E), 1450 m, 31.iii–19.viii.2014, leg. Zhenguo Zhang; 1 ♂, Xiaodifangxincun (24.87°N, 98.75°E), 2116 m, Tengchong County, 12.viii.2014, leg. Kaijian Teng, Shurong Liu and Hua Rong, genitalia slide no. LGE16160; 1 ♀, Linjiapu (25.29°N, 98.70°E), 2144 m, Tengchong County, 15.viii.2014, leg. Kaijian Teng, Shurong Liu and Hua Rong, genitalia slide no. LGE16161; 1 ♀, Taiyanghe Nature Reserves, Pu’er City, 8.vi.2015, leg. Zhenguo Zhang; 1 ♂, 1 ♀, Baoshan (24.82°N, 98.78°E), 2009 m, 17.vii.2015, leg. Kaijian Teng and Xia Bai; 1 ♀, Xiaoheishan Nature Reserves (24.52°N, 98.84°E), 1974 m, Longling County, 27.vii.2015, leg. Kaijian Teng and Xia Bai; 1 ♂, Gaoligongshan National Forest Park (24.83°N, 98.77°E), Baoshan City, 23.vii.2015, leg. Kaijian Teng and Xia Bai; 1 ♂, 1 ♀, Xiajinguang (23.17°N, 104.8°E), 1470 m, Malipo County, Wenshan City, 28.vii.2016, leg. Kaijian Teng, Ga-Eun Lee and Tao Wang, genitalia slide no. LGE 16278m.   
 Diagnosis. The forewing shape of T. nigrimaculata is distinctive as the apex is very narrowed and not falcate. It can easily be distinguished from its congeners by the dark fuscous wing with two or three black spots sometimes forming a triangle. The narrow valva, the juxta with a hummock-like process and the stout aedeagus are diagnostic for the male genitalia. In the female genitalia, the sternum VIII is more strongly produced in V- or U-shape and the signum is smaller than other related species.   
 Description. Adult (Figs 2E, 18B). Wingspan 12.5–17.5 mm. Head cream to pale ochre, often mixed with brown posteriorly. Labial palpus cream to pale ochre except ventral margin and outer surface of segments I-II dark brown; in male, segment I nearly as long as II; segment III slightly longer than II, apex dark brown-tipped; hair pencil not reaching apex of III; in female, segment I short, segment II as long as III. Antenna with scape pale ochre, sometimes tinged with brown distally; flagellum dark brown except basal half of dorsal surface pale ochre, male cilia approximately twice as long as diameter. Thorax dark brown except lateral margin pale ochre. Tegula pale ochre, often irregularly mixed with dark brown, a slender black line along inner margin. Forewing ground color dark brown, basal 1/3 broadly pale ochre especially near fold; a black spot at basal 2/5 near costa; a black costal streak from distal 1/5, obliquely outward, reaching half way across wing, bordered inwardly by white scales; apical spot very small, round; two black spots at basal 1/3 and 1/2, respectively, that at 1/3 placed below fold and often obsolete, that at 1/2 placed above fold and usually smaller than spot near costa; distal 1/3 sometimes with a short black streak or a spot, rarely extended toward apical spot; termen with a black spot near apex, its anterior and inner margins tinged with white scales; fringe on apical area and dorsum mixed brown and pale ochre, on termen with coarse, dark fuscous metallic ciliation. Hindwing fuscous, fringe brown. Legs pale ochre; fore coxa and tarsus strongly mixed with dark brown; fore femur and tibia black on outer surface; mid tibia with two or three dark brown streaks in distal half, mid tibia strongly mixed with dark brown; hind tibia with distal half of outer surface dark brown, sometimes with an oblique dark brown streak; hind tarsus dark brown on outer surface except apex of each tarsomeres.   
 Male sternum VIII (Fig. 26R). Approximately 1/6 length of abdomen, narrowly trapezoidal, before apex serrate on lateral margins, posterior apex concave in U-shape.   
 Male genitalia (Fig. 41F). Uncus oblong, slightly constricted near base. Gnathos hook simple, long. Tegumen approximately 2.5 times as long as uncus. Valva slender, slightly constricted at base, then uniformly elongate to apex. Anellus lobe digitate, 1/5 length of valva; apical bristle sometimes strongly hooked, 1/2 or 2/3 length of anellus lobe. Juxta with a hummock-like process, its apex with long sparse setae. Vinculum broadly convex. Saccus sub-triangular, slightly exceeding tegumen pedunculus, rounded at apex. Aedeagus stout, with basal half dilated, strongly melanized from middle to before apex, blunt at apex.   
 Female genitalia (Fig. 58E). Papillae anales weakly sclerotized. Apophyses anteriores 2/3 length of apophyses posteriores. Tergum VIII deeply concave medially; sternum VIII broadly concave posteriorly and strongly produced anteriorly in U-shape or V-shape. Ostium bursae very large and round, opening in anterior half of sternum VIII. Ductus bursae narrow at base, then gradually broadening toward corpus bursae, with ductus seminalis arising from near base. Corpus bursae elliptical, 1/2 or 2/3 length of ductus bursae; signum round, small, consisting of minute denticles, situated near posterior margin of corpus bursae.   
 Distribution. China (Yunnan).   
 Etymology. The species name is derived from Latin, nigri- (black) and maculatus (spotted), referring to the black spots on the forewing.   
 Remarks. The forewing shape of T. nigrimaculata is not typical to the pancratiastis -group as the apex is very narrowed and not falcate. However, the male labial palpus has a long segment I and the hair pencil on the dorsal surface of segment II. The species was included in the phylogenetic study of Thiotrichinae (Lee et al. 2021) as Thiotricha sp. 9. The genetic sequences for this species are available from GenBank.
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 121-122, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5449.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/11233121