Bradyrrhoa imperialella ( Ragonot, 1887 )

Yepishin, Viktor, Bidzilya, Oleksiy, Budashkin, Yuriy, Zhakov, Oleksandr, Mushynskyi, Vadym & Novytskyi, Sergiy, 2020, New records of little known pyraloid moths (Lepidoptera: Pyraloidea) from Ukraine, Zootaxa 4808 (1), pp. 101-120 : 113

Bradyrrhoa imperialella ( Ragonot, 1887)

( Figs 32–34 )

Material examined: 1♂, Crimea, Karadah , 12.vii.1938 (V. S[ovynskyi]) ( NMNHU) . 2♂, Crimea, Karadah , 13.vii.2004, 2.viii.2006 (Yu. Budashkin), genitalia slide: V. Yepishin prep. no. 181.19 ♂ ( ZMKU) .

Remarks. Non-fresh or pale-coloured specimens can be confused with B. gilveolella ( Treitschke, 1833) . Males are well distinguished by the antennae which have sinuses at the base of flagellum in B. imperialella ( Figs 34, 35 ).

The generic assignment of Bradyrrhoa imperialella is rather controversial. Being described in Nephopterix Hübner, 1825 , the species was later assigned to Sciota Hulst, 1888 and then to Bradyrrhoa Zeller, 1848 (Budaskin & Savchuk 2010a). Recently Leraut (2014: 296) placed the species into Phycita Curtis, 1828 , but his opinion was not accepted by subsequent authors ( Plant 2016; Sinev et al. 2019; Slamka 2019). The male genitalia of the species are characterized by four short cornuti in the adeagus and paired claster of small dense spine like cornuti on the wall of the aedeagus. Such set of curnuti is more characteristic for male genitalia of the genus Phycita rather than for those of Bradyrrhoa . The generic placement of B. imperialella should be clarified after discovery of female.

Biology. Mature and immature larvae were often observed in the petrophytic-steppe and mountain-xerophytic habitats in Kazantip and Karadah Nature Reserves as well as in Echkidah Mts. and Lisya buchta in Crimea. Larvae live in silken tubes among peduncles of Onosma polyphylla Ledeb. They feed by nibbling of green surface of stem and eating out of flower ovary. Pupation occurs in leaf-litter within a white semi-transparent silken coccon and for about 20 days ( Budashkin & Savchuk 2010a).

Distribution. North Macedonia, Greece, Turkey (as Armnenia), Russia: Siberia ( Leraut 2014) and W Caucasus region (Sinev et al. 2019); Bulgaria ( Plant 2016); Crimea ( Budashkin 2004).

Record from the “Kamiani mohyly” nature reserve (Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk regions) ( Bidzilya et al. 2001) is dubious and most likely should be attributed to B. gilveolella .

Figures

FIGURES 32–37. Bradyrrhoa spp. 32, 36. Adults, general view. 34, 35. Head, frontal view. 33, 37. Male genitalia. 32–34. B. imperialella, 35. B. gilveolella. 36, 37. B. confiniella. 32, 33. ♂, Crimea, prep. no. 181.19. 34. ♂, Crimea. 35. ♂, Crimea. 36, 37. ♂, Zaporizhzhia reg., prep. no. 182/19.