Temnora fumosa seychellensis Bolotov & Spitsyn, 2021

Bolotov, Ivan N., Kolosova, Yulia S., Spitsyna, Elizaveta A. & Spitsyn, Vitaly M., 2021, New and recent records of hawk moths (Lepidoptera: Sphingidae) from Seychelles, with a description of a new insular subspecies, Ecologica Montenegrina 39, pp. 109-120 : 114-116

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 10.37828/em.2021.39.12
publication LSID	urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:8586E0DE-2671-467B-8D7E-E5D3AA0E4FB9
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/1F6F87F7-2666-FFCD-FF19-FF1D670FE45E
treatment provided by	Felipe
scientific name	Temnora fumosa seychellensis Bolotov & Spitsyn
status	subsp. nov.

Treatment

Temnora fumosa seychellensis Bolotov & Spitsyn ssp. nov.

= Diodosida peckoveri De Joannis (1894): 432 [ Mahé].

= Temnora fumosa peckoveri Fryer (1912): 15 View in CoL [ Mahé, Silhouette]; Legrand (1966): 169, pl. 13, fig. 2 [ Mahé, Silhouette]; Matyot (2005): 67 [ Mahé, Silhouette, Denis]; Gerlach & Matyot (2006): 91 [ Mahé, Silhouette, Denis].

= Temnora peckoveri Lawrence & Henwood (2009): 50 View in CoL , figs 1-2; De Prins & Mazzei (2016): 26, fig. 25 [La Digue].

Figs 1-5 View Figure 1 View Figure 2 View Figure 3 View Figure 4 View Figure 5 , Table 1.

Type material. Holotype male RMBH Sph 0913 SEYCHELLES: Praslin Island, La Plaine Hollandaise, 4.3234°S, 55.7262°E, alt. 120 m, sedge- fern swamp with pandanus trees surrounded by palm-cinnamon forest, 08 February 2016, at UV light, Bolotov leg. ( Fig. 2 View Figure 2 A-B). GoogleMaps

Diagnosis. The new subspecies could be distinguished from Temnora fumosa fumosa based on the structure of harpe ( Figs. 3-4 View Figure 3 View Figure 4 ). T. fumosa fumosa shares a long, narrow, sickle-shaped harpe ( Fig. 4D View Figure 4 ). In contrast, the new subspecies shares a much wider and shorter, straight harpe with an upcurved, claw-like end ( Fig. 4E View Figure 4 ). Furthermore, both the new subspecies and T. fumosa fumosa differ from T. peckoveri by the lack of a strong long tooth at the distal end of aedeagus (compare Fig. 4A, 4B, and 4C View Figure 4 ). The harpe of the new subspecies is much broader proximally and narrower distally compared with that of T. peckoveri ( Fig. 4F View Figure 4 ).

Description. Male ( Fig. 2 View Figure 2 ): Wingspan 50 mm, forewing length 25 mm. Eye, antenna, and head dark olive. Labial palpus somewhat elongated (approximately two eye’s diameter), dark olive dorsally, light grey ventrally. Thorax, patagium, and tegula dark olive. Legs light grey, slightly darkened dorsally. Forewing outer margin with deep, rounded excavation below apex. Forewing upperside dark olive with broad darker brown antemedial and postmedial bands; postmarginal area greyish olive, with a dark, inconspicuous zig zag subterminal band and a small white spot at costa subterminally. Small white discal spot present. Forewing underside dark olive, with unclear blackish or dark brown triangular patch from the base to the discal area. Hindwing upperside uniformly dark brown with long dark olive scales. Hindwing underside dark olive, with a row of submarginal black spots and a dark patch between veins CuA1 and CuA2. Abdomen dark olive. Male genitalia ( Figs 3-4 View Figure 3 View Figure 4 ): Tegumen very broad, strongly sclerotized. Uncus bifurcated apically; uncus and gnathos form a typical macroglossine “bird- beak” structure. Valva slightly elongated, rounded apically. Harpe broad, straight, upcurved and pointed near the distal end. The base of harpe very broad. Aedeagus long, straight, with an oblique densely serrated ridge. Vesica long, with a bunch of ultra-elongate spines.

Female: Not examined.

Etymology. This subspecies is named after the Seychelles Archipelago, where it is distributed.

Distribution. Endemic to the Inner Seychelles ( Fig. 1 View Figure 1 ). So far it is known to occur on the granitic islands of Mahé ( De Joannis 1894), Silhouette ( Fryer 1912), La Digue ( De Prins and Mazzei 2016), Cousine ( Lawrence and Henwood 2009), and Praslin (this study), and on the coralline island of Denis ( Matyot 2005).

Habitat. The holotype was collected from a somewhat unusual habitat, i.e. at the middle of a continuous highland wetland densely covered by Ferns Dicranopteris linearis (Burm. f.) Underw. ( Gleicheniaceae ) and Bog Bulrush Schoenoplectiella mucronata (L.) Jung & Choi ( Cyperaceae ), with patches of Nutrush Scleria sumatrensis Retz. ( Cyperaceae ) and groups of Horne’s Pandanus Martellidendron hornei (Balf. f.) Callm. & Chassot ( Pandanaceae ) ( Fig. 5 View Figure 5 ). However, the moth most likely came from the edge of surrounding mixed secondary forest dominated by various endemic palms and cinnamon trees. This forest patch also houses Indian Mulberry Morinda citrifolia L. ( Rubiaceae ), a host plant of this taxon on the Inner Seychelles ( Matyot 2005).

Conservation. The new subspecies appears to be Endangered [EN B1, B2 + aс(iii)]. It has an estimated extent of occurrence (EOO) of 330 km 2 and an area of occupancy (AOO) of 174 km 2 ( Gerlach and Matyot 2006). Furthermore, it has a highly fragmented range, is known to occur on a few islands, and shares extreme fluctuations in number of subpopulations. Previously, this subspecies was accessed as Vulnerable [VU B1abiii, B2abiii] in Seychelles but that assessment was based on its earlier treatment as a population of the more widespread taxon Temnora peckoveri (see Gerlach and Matyot 2006).