Elachista deficiens Meyrick

Sruoga, Virginijus & Kus, Arūnas Di Š, 2006, Redescription of the type specimens of the Elachista freyerella species-group (Lepidoptera: Elachistidae: Elachistinae) from India and Sri Lanka, Zootaxa 1350, pp. 33-43 : 37

Elachista deficiens Meyrick

( Figs. 4–7 )

Elachista deficiens Meyrick, 1922: 508

Material examined: ɗ, labelled: rounded white label with red margin “Holo- | type ”; white rectangle “Maskeliya | Ceylon | Pole. 4. 03; Elachista | deficiens | 1/1 Meyrick | E. Meyrick det. | in Meyrick Coll.; deficiens Meyr. ; B. M. ɗ | Genitalia slide | No. 29575”. In BMNH.

Male. Forewing length 3.5 mm; wingspan 7.7 mm. Head: Vertex and neck tuft mottled due to brown tips of greyish scales; frons white with some metallic lustre; labial palpus whitish above, fuscous below, apices dark brown; flagellum brownish, not clearly ringed. Thorax: Forewing pale, greyish brown, mottled by dark brown tipped scales. Dark brown scales beyond the middle of wing forming two irregular spots near the costal and tornal margins. Same scales present in apical part, where they form an irregular spot. Irregular tornal and costal spots whitish. Hindwing dark brown.

Female. Unknown.

Pregenital abdomen ( Fig. 7 ). Tergites VII and VIII with weakly sclerotized patches ( Fig. 7 a, c); sternites VII and VIII with pair of curved, heavily sclerotized rods ( Fig. 7 b, d).

Male genitalia ( Figs. 5, 6 ). Uncus lobes unmodified, curved, basally bulbous, narrowed towards tip; ventral surface covered with short and thick, and rather long and slender setae. Basal arms of gnathos reinforced, spinose knob large and oval. Valva about 5 times longer than wide; sacculus basally slightly expanded, medially almost straight, distally with stout spine; cucullus rounded; hump of costa not large. Digitate process long and narrow, distally only slightly dilated, with few thin setae. Median margin of juxta lobes strongly sclerotized; lobes rounded, with few short setae. Vinculum produced into long tapering saccus. Aedeagus almost as long as valva, with a large pointed extension and strongly curved at 2/3; basal part broadened, with prominent dorsal lobe of caecum.

Distribution. Sri Lanka ( Fig. 4 ).

Biology. The holotype was captured in early April; no other information available.

Diagnosis. E. deficiens can be distinguished most easily from other species of the E. freyerella species-group by the shape of the aedeagus, particularly the pointed extension at approximately 2/3 of its length.

Remarks. The holotype is in a poor condition; the forewings are rather rubbed and therefore the description is approximate.

Figures

FIGURE 4. Map of collecting sites of Elachista antipetra (), E. deficiens (), E. quadrata (), E. spiculifera (), E. stichospora ().

FIGURES 5 – 7. Elachista deficiens, male. 5, general view (aedeagus removed); 6, aedeagus; 7, pregenital abdomen: VII, segment VII; VIII, segment VIII; a, c, sclerotized patches on tergites VII and VIII; b, d, sclerotized rods on sternites VII and VIII. Genitalia slide No. 29575 (BMNH). Scale bar 0.1 mm.