Megacraspedus knudlarseni, Huemer, Peter & Karsholt, Ole, 2018

Huemer, Peter & Karsholt, Ole, 2018, Revision of the genus Megacraspedus Zeller, 1839, a challenging taxonomic tightrope of species delimitation (Lepidoptera, Gelechiidae), ZooKeys 800, pp. 1-278 : 115-116

Megacraspedus knudlarseni sp. n.

Examined material.

Holotype ♂, "SPAIN.Islas Canarias Gran Canaria. Mogán, El Barranquillo Andres, 2 km. S. 24.vii.1995 K. Larsen" "GU 16/1454 ♂ P. Huemer" (ZMUC). Paratype. Spain. 1 ♂, Gran Canaria, Barranquillo Andrés, 700 m, 11-24.vi.2018, leg. P. Falck, genitalia slide 2721 Falck (RCPF).

Description.

Adult. Male (Figure 94). Wingspan 13 mm. Labial palpus long, porrect, black, white on lower and upper surface; segment 3 reduced. Antennal scape with pecten of several hairs; flagellum brown, indistinctly ringed with black. Head, thorax and tegula whitish. Forewing grey-brown from brown- and black-tipped scales; costa and veins lighter; fringes light grey, whitish at base. Hindwing grey with white fringes.

Female. Unknown.

Variation. Unknown.

Male genitalia (Figure 222). Uncus broad, about same length as width, maximum width at base, outer margins slightly converging, apical third strongly converged to weakly pointed apex; gnathos hook stout, about one-third longer than uncus, weakly curved, with pointed apex; anterior margin of tegumen with moderately broad and deep emargination, anteromedially sclerotised ridges merged in middle of tegumen; pedunculi small, sub-triangular; valva long, moderately slender, extending to posterior third of uncus, basally broader, distally slightly constricted, apically weakly inflated, setose; saccular area covered with few setae, without separated sacculus; posterior margin of vinculum shallowly emarginated, without lateral hump, elongated sub-rectangular vincular sclerite without sclerotised posteriomedial edge; saccus about three-quarters length of valva, nearly V-shaped, apical quarter more abruptly tapered to hardly rounded apex, ratio maximum width to length approximately 0.9, posterior margin medially emarginated, without lateromedial curvature, medial part smooth, without sclerotised ridge, length of lateral sclerites approximately 0.6 times maximum width of saccus; phallus moderately slender, inflated coecum about twice width of digitate distal two-thirds, long and curved sclerotised ridge, apex rounded.

Female genitalia. Unknown.

Diagnosis.

Megacraspedus knudlarseni sp. n. is amongst the smallest species in the genus, with a reduced segment 3 of the labial palps, and only comparable with M. skulei sp. n. (Figs 142-143), from which it differs in having an antennal pecten, and by the grey-brown forewings with lighter costa and veins. The male genitalia are somewhat similar to other species of the M. fallax species group but differ in several characters such as the shape of the uncus, the elongated valva-vinculum complex, the vincular sclerites, the anterior margin of the saccus and other details.

Molecular data.

Not available, barcoding failed.

Distribution.

Spain (Canary Islands: Gran Canaria).

Biology.

Host plant and early stages are unknown. The holotype was collected in the second half of July at an unreported altitude, and the paratype was collected in June in an altitude of 700 m.

Etymology.

The name (a noun in the genitive case) is dedicated to Knud Larsen, Denmark, who collected the holotype of this species and other valuable material for our study.

Remarks.

The systematic position of M. knudlarseni sp. n. in the M. fallax species group is based only on the labial palps and the overall similarity of the male genitalia, whereas molecular data are unavailable for this species.