Coleophora clypeiferella Hofmann, 1871

Koo, Jun-Mo & Cho, Soowon, 2024, Taxonomic revision of the family Coleophoridae (Lepidoptera: Gelechioidea) in Korea, including seven newly recorded species of the genus Coleophora Hübner, Zootaxa 5558 (1), pp. 1-102 : 6-10

1. Coleophora clypeiferella Hofmann, 1871

[Korean name: jeom-nal-gae-myeong-a-ju-tong-na-bang (newly named)]

( Figs 1A ; 2A ; 3A ; 6A )

Coleophora (?) clypeiferella Hofmann, 1871a: 221 . Type locality: Germany, Frankfurt am Main // [depository unconfirmed here].

Eupista clypeiferella ; Toll 1953: 227.

Inoescumia clypeiferella ; Lelej 2016: 105; Anikin 2019: 84; Anikin 2021: 327.

Coleophora clypeiferella ; Hofmann 1871b: 328; Spuler 1910: 394; Schütze 1931: 86; Patzak 1974: 272; Chalmers-Hunt 1987: 157; Vives 1988: 66; Razowski 1990: 167; Li & Zheng 1998: 211; Baldizzone & Wolf 2000: 411; Baldizzone & Savenkov 2002: 384; Baldizzone et al. 2006: 42; Oku 2013: 245; Kusunoki & Oku 2015: 100; Buschmann & Richter 2016: 162; Buschmann 2023: 120.

Material examined. 1♀, “Sinnam [[Sinnam-myeon, now Shindong-myeon]] / Chuncheon GW [[Chuncheon-si, Gangwon-do]] / 14.VIII.2003 / H.L.Han ” // gen. slide no. KJM0228 // wings slide no. KJM0369 // specimen accession no. CBNUPM000333, in CBNU .

Diagnosis. The species is comparable with C. cuprea Li & Zheng, 1998 , C. pallidiptera Li & Zheng, 1998 , and C. resupina Li & Zheng, 1998 , in having modified club-shaped setae on the abdomen and in sharing an elongated gnathos knob, fused transtilla, and thorn-like processes on the dorsal margin of the sacculus in the male genitalia. However, the species can be distinguished from the latter by the following characteristics: 1) the abdomen of C. clypeiferella has a row consisting of 12 club-shaped setae on the tergum I, while C. pallidiptera (see Li & Zheng 1998: Fig. 37) has a row consisting of fewer setae, about 8, on the tergum I, as well as fewer setae on the remaining setose terga; 2) in the male genitalia of C. clypeiferella (see Kusunoki & Oku 2015: Fig. 34), a fused semicircular transtilla, a small thorn-like dorsal process situated inside the base of the larger one, and a bundle of cornuti about the same length as the ventral juxtal rod are present, while in C. cuprea (see Li & Zheng 1998: Figs 33, 34), a small dorsal process situated outside the base of the larger one, and a bundle of cornuti about half the length of the ventral juxtal rod are present, in C. pallidiptera (see Li & Zheng 1998: Fig. 36), a fused triangular transtilla, a small process on the dorso-subdistal margin, not at the base of the larger one, and a bundle of cornuti about half the length of the ventral juxtal rod are present, and in C. resupina (see Li & Zheng 1998: Figs 39, 40), a fused belt-like transtilla, a small dorsal process situated outside the base of the larger one, and a bundle of cornuti about half the length of the ventral juxtal rod are present; and 3) in the female genitalia of C. clypeiferella , the sterigma with a triangularly convex anterior margin, and the ductus bursae about 18.3× longer than the length of the sterigma are present, while in C. cuprea (see Li & Zheng 1998: Fig. 35), the ductus bursae about 7.0× longer than the length of the sterigma are present, and in C. resupina (see Li & Zheng 1998: Fig. 41), the sterigma with straight anterior margin, and the ductus bursae about 8.0× longer than the length of the sterigma are present (female of C. pallidiptera unknown).

Redescription. Female adult ( Fig. 1A ), forewing length 6.4 mm (wingspan 13.0 mm) (n=1) ( Oku 2013: wingspan 12.0–15.0 mm; De Prins & Steeman 2024: wingspan 12.0–16.0 mm; Richter 2022: wingspan 15.0 mm; Wullaert 2024: wingspan 12.0–16.0 mm).

Head: Vertex greyish-orange. Postocular scales greyish-orange. Antenna about 0.6× shorter than the length of the forewing, thickened with greyish-orange scales and same-coloured erect ventral scales in the basal 3/10 (including the basal part of the flagellum), then with appressed scales, alternately ringed with white and dark brown distally. Second palpomere of labial palpus greyish-orange with a brownish-orange diagonal streak on the outer surface, greyish-orange on the inner surface, about 1.2× longer than the length of the third palpomere; the latter greyish-orange entirely. Proboscis covered with greyish-orange scales.

Thorax: Notum greyish-orange with same-coloured tegula. Forewing greyish-orange with densely scattered brownish-orange scales (some also with dark brown scales sparsely); two dots dark brown, one linear at the middle of 1A+2A vein, other rather elliptical at the distal end of the discal cell (some with indistinct dots or without any dots); fringe greyish-orange; venation ( Fig. 2A ) with R 1 arising from right before the basal half of the discal cell; distance between origins of R 1 and R 2 about 1.5× longer than that of R 2 and R 3; R 4+5 and M 1 slightly stalked at the base; distance between origins of M 1 and M 2+3 about 1.4× longer than that of M 2+3 and CuA 1+2; CuA 1+2 arising from the posterior corner of the discal cell; 1A+2A forked at about basal 1/3; discal cell closed. Hindwing brownish-grey with greyish-orange fringe; frenulum with two acanthi fused distally into a single acanthus; costa slightly arched at the basal 3/10; venation ( Fig. 2A ) with near straight Rs; origin of M 1 remote from that of Rs; discal cell open. Hind tibia greyish-orange with brownish-orange scales at the base and the subdistal end, white scales at the extreme distal end on the outer surface, and white evenly on the inner surface; dorsal bristles greyish-orange; two pairs of spurs, one pair at the basal 7/10, other pair at the distal end. Hind tarsus brownish-orange with a white distal ring on each tarsomere.

Abdomen: Abdomen covered with greyish-orange scales; portions bearing tergal club-shaped setae glabrous; each tergal seta with strongly sclerotized elliptical head; setae of the tergum I with basal elliptical head, except outermost seta on both sides; tergum I with 11–12 setae forming a single row; tergum II with about 32–33 setae forming two rows. In the female ( Fig. 6A ), anterior lateral struts arched at the posterior 3/10; posterior lateral struts absent; transverse strut gradually narrower medially; anterior edge weakly sclerotized; posterior edge strongly sclerotized. Terga I and II, each completely covered by modified club-shaped setae; terga III–VI, each covered posterior half by setae; tergum VII without setae; setae gradually decrease in size towards the posterior segment, increase in number, and then decrease. Sternum II broadly sclerotized; sterna III–VII, each broadly sclerotized, except the central portion.

Male genitalia: See Toll (1953: Fig. 163); Patzak (1974: Fig. 229); Kusunoki & Oku (2015: Fig. 34); Richter (2022). Gnathos knob elongated, dorsally rounded, about 2.0× longer than the basal arm of gnathos, with four setae at the ventral base. Tegumen elongated subtrapezoidal; median stem of tegumen of the same length as pedunculus; pedunculus dilated outward. Transtilla fused together, expanding into a semicircular shape. Vinculum well-sclerotized. Valvula setose, subquadrate, with a more sclerotized dorso-distal corner than other portions. Cucullus thumb-shaped, setose on the costa and the distal portion, about 0.8× shorter than the sacculus. The sacculus broadly elongated with a rough distal margin, setose on the distal portion and the ventral margin, of the same length as tegumen; two thorn-like processes situated on the dorsal margin, pointing proximally, well-sclerotized; large process about 2.5–4.0× longer than the smaller one; small process situated inside the base of the larger one. Phallotheca membranous, with two sclerotized juxtal rods; juxtal rods slender, tapering toward a pointed apex, about the same length as the sacculus; dorsal rod arched; ventral rod near straight. Aedeagus membranous. Annulus indistinct. Longitudinal sclerite of outer tube weakly sclerotized. Vesica with numerous cornuti forming a single row.

Female genitalia ( Fig. 3A ): See also Toll (1953: Fig. 316); Patzak (1974: Fig. 359); Kusunoki & Oku (2015: Fig. 38); Richter (2022). Papillae anales elongated elliptical with setae. Apophyses posteriores about 1.8× longer than the apophyses anteriores. Sterigma trapezoidal with short setae along the posterior margin except medial concavity of the posterior margin; posterior margin emarginate medially into a U-shape; anterior margin expanded into a triangular shape. Ostium bursae ovoidal, located at the anterior 2/3 of the sterigma. Colliculum goblet-shaped, about the same length as the sterigma; anterior half with thickened lateral walls and indistinct median lamina. Ductus bursae spiral, gradually narrower beyond the base of the ductus seminalis, then gradually broadened again toward the corpus bursae, about 18.3× longer than the length of the sterigma; about posterior 1/5 of the ductus bursae spinulate; median lamina in the posterior half of the ductus bursae. Ductus seminalis arising from the half of the ductus bursae. Corpus bursae globular, about 0.1× shorter than the length of the ductus bursae; signum leaf-shaped, dentate ventrally, with two marks placed side by side on the signal plate.

Larval case (seed miner): Tubular silken case camouflaged with fragments of host plants. See Chalmers-Hunt (1987: Fig. 26 ); Kusunoki & Oku (2015: Figs 26 , 29 : larva; Figs 27 , 28 : larval case; Fig. 30: cocoon).

Host plants. [ Amaranthaceae ] Chenopodium album L. ( Suire 1961; Patzak 1974; Razowski 1990; Emmet et al. 1996; Oku 2013; Kusunoki & Oku 2015; De Prins & Steeman 2024; Wullaert 2024), Chenopodiastrum murale (L.) S. Fuentes, Uotila & Borsch (recorded as Chenopodium murale L.) and Oxybasis rubra (L.) S. Fuentes, Uotila & Borsch (recorded as Chenopodium rubra L.) ( Falkovitsh 2006).

Biology. The larvae of the species are known to primarily feed on the seed of Chenopodium album L. in Europe and Japan ( Suire 1961; Patzak 1974; Razowski 1990; Emmet et al. 1996; Falkovitsh 2006; Kusunoki & Oku 2015; De Prins & Steeman 2024; Wullaert 2024). According to the records provided by Kusunoki & Oku (2015), De Prins & Steeman (2024), and Wullaert (2024), the young larvae are observed to inhabit a tubular silken case, supplemented with small pieces of the host plant (see Oku 2015: Fig. 26 , where the case length extends to 2.0–3.0 mm). Subsequently, they incorporate seed and flower fragments into the larval case (see Oku 2015: Fig. 28 , where the case length extends to 5.0–6.0 mm). Following this phase, mature larvae descend to the ground, abandon their cases, and burrow to construct a brown, robust, capsule-shaped cocoon for overwintering (see Oku 2015: Fig. 30, with a cocoon length of 5.0 mm). Kusunoki & Oku (2015) emphasized that this unique overwintering behaviour is exclusive to the C. salicorniae species-group and confirmed that the adults of the species are present from mid-August to early September in Ishikari Beach, Hokkaido, and from mid-August to late September in Honshu. Additionally, they also noted that the species mainly occurs in sandy areas along the Sea of Japan coast.

Distribution. Europe, Russia (Southern European part, Western and Southern Siberia, Far East), Caucasus, Kazakhstan, China, Japan ( Baldizzone & Savenkov 2002; Baldizzone et al. 2006; Oku 2013; Kusunoki & Oku 2015; Anikin 2019), Korea (new record).

Remarks. Kusunoki & Oku (2015) noted that the larvae predominantly inhabit sandy areas along the Sea of Japan coast. In Hokkaido, there have been no observations of larvae in cultivated or fallow land. Nevertheless, this species has been identified in inland areas of Honshu, such as Nagano ( Hirano 2013). Kusunoki & Oku (2015) suggested that the distribution of the species in these inland regions is probably along riverbanks in sandy areas. Considering this information, it is likely that the Korean specimen was collected in sandy areas along the Palmi Stream, crossing Shindong-myeon, Chuncheon-si.

Furthermore, in comparison with collection records in the neighbouring country Japan, the Korean specimen was collected in Chuncheon-si, Gangwon-do (latitude N37°), while in Japan, they were collected in Nagano (latitudes ranging N35–36°) and Akita (latitude ranging N38–40°), Honshu and Ishikari Beach (latitude 43°), Hokkaido, and the emergence period aligns well with the period in Japan. According to the plant data book for Korea, as provided by NIE (2017), Ch. album L., recognized as the main host plant, is distributed in Gangwon-do, where C. clypeiferella was collected. Therefore, it is likely that the Korean population has similar ecological habits as the Japanese population, especially the Nagano population.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Newly recorded Coleophora spp.Adult.A, Coleophora clypeiferella, CBNUPM000333 (female); B, C. kamchatica, CBNUPM000212 (male); C, C. lativittella, OONNIN0000015631 (female); D, C. levantis, OONNIN0000015632 (male); E, C. parthenica, CBNUPM000160 (male); F, C. parthenica, CBNUPM000161 (female); G, C. uliginosella, CBNUPM000214 (male); H, C. vacciniella, CBNUPM000385 (male).

FIGURE 2. Newly recorded Coleophora spp. Venation. A, Coleophora clypeiferella, with close-up of frenulum, slide no. KJM0369 (female, reversed left wings, CBNUPM000333); B, C. kamchatica, with close-up of frenulum, slide no. KJM0478 (male, CBNUPM000212); C, C.lativittella, frenulummissing, slideno.KJM0179(female,OONNIN0000015631);D,C.levantis, frenulum missing, slide no. KJM0178 (male, OONNIN0000015632); E, hindwing of C. levantis, with close-up of frenulum, slide no. KJM0479 (female); F, C. parthenica, with close-up of frenulum, slide no. KJM0484 (female, CBNUPM000161); G, C. uliginosella, with close-up of frenulum, slide no. KJM0482 (female, CBNUPM000215); H, C. vacciniella, with close-up of frenulum, slide no. KJM0483 (male, CBNUPM000385).

FIGURE 3. Newly recorded Coleophora spp. Genitalia. A, female genitalia of Coleophora clypeiferella, with closeup of sterigma+colliculum (top), posterior portion of ductus bursae (middle), and signum (bottom), slide no. KJM0228 (CBNUPM000333); B, male genitalia of C. kamchatica, with close-up of transtilla bearing small spines (left) and distal portion of sacculus (right), slide no. KJM0157 (CBNUPM000212); C, phallus of male genitalia of C. kamchatica, with close-up of dorsal view of juxtal rods (left) and cornuti (right), slide no. KJM0157 (CBNUPM000212); D, female genitalia of C. lativittella, with close-up of sterigma+colliculum (top), posterior portion of ductus bursae (middle), and signum (bottom), slide no. KJM0088 (OONNIN0000015631).

FIGURE 6. Newly recorded Coleophora spp. Abdomen. A, female abdomen of Coleophora clypeiferella, slide no. KJM0228 (CBNUPM000333); B, male abdomen of C. kamchatica, slide no. KJM0157 (CBNUPM000212); C, female abdomen of C. lativittella, slide no. KJM0088 (OONNIN0000015631); D, male abdomen of C. levantis, slide no. KJM0091 (OONNIN0000015632); E, female abdomen of C. levantis, slide no. KJM0420 (in INU).

FIGURE 26. Larval tubular silken cases of C. adspersella and C. sternipennella, and their collection site. A, B, concrete walls where the two species were dormant (in May 2023); C, C. adspersella dormant on concrete wall; D, trivalved distal end of larval case of C. adspersella; E, larval case of C. adspersella, indicating lateral (top), dorsal (middle), and ventral (bottom) views; F, C. sternipennella dormant on concrete wall; G, trivalved distal end of larval case of C. sternipennella; H, larval case of C. sternipennella, indicating lateral (top), dorsal (middle), and ventral (bottom) views.

FIGURE 27. Ecological photographs of C. mayrella. A, field of white clover (Trifolium repens), which is a host plant; B, female ovipositing deep inside flower (on May 26th, 2023); C, egg (indicated by the black arrow) deposited between wings (composed of two middle petals) and keel (composed of two innermost petals) (on May 26th, 2023); D, egg (on May 26th, 2023); E, egg about to hatch (on May 30th, 2023); F, 1st instar larva (on May 30th, 2023); G, intact seed pod; H, damaged seed pod with close-up of hole penetrated by larva (top) and interior showing damaged inner wall, seed, and frass (bottom); I, close-up of hole penetrated by larva into seed; J, 2nd instar larva feeding on inside of seed (on June 1st, 2023); K–O, larval seed cases; P, Q, parasitoid, Tetrastichus sp., dorsal and lateral views, with close-up of submarginal vein showing the characteristic single seta of the genus (indicated by the red arrow).

FIGURE 28. Ecological photographs of C. serinipennella. A, field of white goosefoot (Chenopodium album), which is a host plant; B–D, stem with galls (cecidia, indicated by red arrows), with close-up of larva feeding inside galls (on July 8th, 2024); E, larva.

FIGURE 29. Ecological photographs of C. serinipennella (eclosed on August 1st, 2024). A, intact stem gall; B, stem gall cut laterally showing cocoon with pupa inside; C, closed exit hole; D, open exit hole; E, pupal exuvia, indicating dorsal (left), lateral (middle), and ventral (right) views.