Homoeocera georginas Laguerre, 2010

Laguerre, Michel, 2010, Description of two new Homoeocera Felder from Guatemala and Mexico (Lepidoptera, Arctiidae, Arctiinae, Euchromiini), ZooKeys 33 (33), pp. 29-38 : 34-35

Homoeocera georginas Laguerre , sp. n.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:226C6379-FAC5-43CE-A280-61D3E5101C79

Figs 2c , 3 g–i

Type material. Holotype: 1 ♁, GUATEMALA, Quetzaltenango, Fuentes Georginas , 11 & 12.V.2007, 2460 m, 14°45.008 N – 91°28.820 W, M. Laguerre leg. [printed white label] / Gen. ML 1539 [hand-written white label] / MILA0966 [printed yellow label] / HOLOTYPE [printed red label]; GenBank accession no. GU332717 , BOLD access code ARCTB307-08 / MILA0966 [ MNHN] . PARATYPES (21 ♁): GUA- TEMALA: same data as holotype, 9 ♁, one has been dissected: Gen. ML 1833, two specimens have been bar-coded, GenBank accession no. GU332716 (BOLD access codes ARCTB335-08 / MILA0994) and GU332718 (ARCTA791-07 / MILA0510, dissection Gen. ML 1833), all M. Laguerre leg [ MLC]. Same locality as holotype, 9 ♁, 02.VII.2008, José Monzon leg., [ JMC] ; 1 ♁, same locality as holotype but 27.IX.2006, Monzon, Heppner & Sutton leg., [ JMC] ; 2 ♁, same locality as holotype but 24–25. VIII.2001, A. Bailey & J. Monzon leg. [ DVUC]. One paratype will be deposited in BMNH and USNM .

Etymology. The name is a reference to the type locality: Fuentes Georginas, a popular spot with hot springs high in the mountains on the Pacific slope.

Diagnosis. Similar to gigantea but less robust species with a yellow cast on forewings and very characteristic deep crimson red legs. By comparison H. gigantea is a larger and more robust species well characterized by the wider black margin of the fore- and hindwings. There is no yellowish cast on the forewings, the black indentation in space 2 of the hindwings is more pronounced, the abdomen upperside has a bluish hue with blue intersegmental lines (very difficult to see on dried specimens), the tip on the antennae below are not white, palpi are red not black.

In H. gigantea , the uncus is shorter and wider, the lateral protuberances are longer, wider and rounded (tapered in georginas ) in lateral view, cylindrical in ventral view. The valvae are asymmetrical, the left one being slightly longer than the right one which reaches the base of uncus. The tegumen is a little wider, the concavity more pronounced and always without saccus. In the aedeagus, the ventral process is less than half the length of the upper process (greater than half in georginas ), narrower but more sclerotized (almost black), and the apex of the ventral process is abruptly cut, not tapered as in georginas .

Description. Female unknown. Head, collar, tegulae, thorax and antennae deep black. Abdomen above entirely black with yellow intersegmental lines, difficult to see on dried specimens. Forewing length 18–20 mm (n = 10). Forewings transparent with a slight yellowish cast and entirely bordered by a thin black line (about 0.5 mm) with a small indentation on vein CuA2. Base of the wings largely black. Black subrectangular spot at the end of the cell reaching the costa. Hindwings reduced, entirely transparent, with termen bordered with a thin black line but without the yellowish cast. Border wider along anal angle and with a small indentation just above the anal angle. The immediate basal area black.

The underside is almost identical to the upperside, except the tip of the antennae which is white, palpi are entirely black, there is a milky white iridescence just inside the anal border on the hindwings and all legs are deep crimson red except the claws which are dark-brown.

Male Genitalia ( Fig. 3 g–i): Uncus long, pointed and curved downward, like a bird beak with a protuberance on each side. In lateral view these protuberances are very slender with a total length less than half the length of uncus. In ventral view, these protuberances have a rounded and almost cylindrical appearance. Valvae are symmetrical slighly curved inward and slightly spatulate at tip, reaching the middle of uncus. Tegumen slightly concave and without saccus. Adaegus very characteristic, divided into two distinct parts: an upper one, long, thin, slightly curved upwards and bearing a small smooth vesica and a lower part slightly longer than half the upper one, wider and strongly sclerotized, corrugated and with a bevelled extremity.

Distribution and biology. For the moment, known only for a restricted area in Guatemala, on the Pacific slope, at high altitude. Biology is unknown.

Remarks. Although sample size of barcoded specimens is small, the relatively large genetic divergence between gigantea and georginas , at about 3.8%, fully support the recognition of these taxa as separate species.

Figures

Figure 2. a Homoeocera gigantea, from Costa Rica, Cartago,Tapanti, X.1985 b Homoeocera gigantea from Guatemala, Quetzaltenango, Fuentes Georginas, 2460 m, 9.V. 2007, M. Laguerre leg. c Homoeocera georginas. nov., from Guatemala, Quetzaltenango, Fuentes Georginas, 2460 m, 9.V.2007, M. Laguerre leg. d Homoeocera papalo. nov., from Mexico, Oaxaca, Concepcion Papalo, 2275 m, 10.VII.1997, G. Nogueira leg.

Figure 3. Homoeocera male genitalia with successively: ventral view, lateral view, penis in lateral view, all in natural positions for: a–c H. gigantea from Costa Rica d–f H. gigantea from Guatemala g–i H. georginas sp. n. from Guatemala j–l H. papalo sp. n. from Mexico. Scale bar = 1 mm.