Hesperolyra van Nieukerken

van Nieukerken, Erik J., Doorenweerd, Camiel, Nishida, Kenji & Snyers, Chris, 2016, New taxa, including three new genera show uniqueness of Neotropical Nepticulidae (Lepidoptera), ZooKeys 628, pp. 1-63 : 35-39

Taxon classification Animalia Lepidoptera Nepticulidae

Hesperolyra van Nieukerken gen. n.

Fomoria molybditis group Puplesis et al. 2002b: 66.

Type species.

Fomoria diskusi Puplesis & Robinson, 2000: 43, by present designation.

Diagnosis.

There are no obvious external characters apart from the venation: broad forewing with a straight main vein with 4 branches, CuA absent, rather resembling Acalyptris , but no vestigial closed cell present and wings broader. The most obvious characters are in the male genitalia: bifurcate pseuduncus, deeply divided valva and long extended lyre-shaped transtilla. Female genitalia without reticulate signa, small bursa.

Description.

Adult (Figs 117-121). Small to large nepticulid moths, forewing length 1.8-4.0 mm. Head with collar comprising piliform scales. Antenna with 24-40 segments in male, 23-33 in female. Forewing variously patterned, no subdorsal reti naculum in male. Hindwing in male without costal bristles, no androconial scales observed. Forewing fold with group of hidden androconials in Hesperolyra diskusi (Figs 126, 127). Venation (Figs 115, 116): simplified, forewing rather broad, R separate from base, a straight main Rs+M, without closed cell, with 3 branches: Rs1+2, Rs3+4 and M; CuA absent (or fused), A thickened; Hindwing broad, with 3 or 4 visible veins, a bifurcate Rs+M, CuA and A. Tergum 8 with anal tufts.

Male genitalia. (Figs 121-125). Vinculum ring shaped, fused with tegumen; ventral plate expanded, very long, slightly excavated. Tegumen forming a bilobed pseuduncus. Uncus Y shaped. Gnathos with small central element. Valva complex, usually deeply divided, elongate to triangular, transtilla with enlarged transverse bar, forming a lyre-shaped anterior extension, comprising distinct but small sublateral processes. Various elaborate long spines either as part of valva or as ventral process (juxta). Phallus long, vesica often with many cornuti.

Female genitalia (Figs 129-136). T9 a pair of setose anal papillae; T8 broadly rounded, with some setae. Anterior apophyses slightly shorter than posterior ones. Vestibulum without sclerotisation; corpus bursae without signa, rather flimsy, a small folded accessory sac leading to a coiled ductus spermathecae with 2-7 convolutions.

Pupa (Figs 140-141). Frons in eclosion separated from scape. Abdominal tergites 2-8 with each ca 4 rows of spines.

Biology.

So far the host plant is only known for one species, Hesperolyra saopaulensis : Myrtaceae , on which the larva makes normal gallery mines (Figs 137-138).

Distribution.

Only known from the Neotropics: Belize, Brazil, Colombia and Ecuador.

Composition.

We recombine here the species previously placed in the Fomoria molybditis group: Hesperolyra diskusi (Puplesis & Robinson, 2000), comb. n., Hesperolyra molybditis (Zeller, 1877), comb. n., Hesperolyra repanda (Puplesis & Diškus, 2002), comb. n. and describe one new species, Hesperolyra saopaulensis van Nieukerken sp. n. One unnamed species also belongs here: Hesperolyra species 29122 ( Puplesis and Robinson 2000).

Etymology.

The name Hesperolyra is a combination of Hespero- from Hesperus (the evening star), referring to the occurrence in the western hemisphere, and lyra (lyre), referring to the lyre shaped transtilla, a common character for species where the male is known. The name is to be treated as feminine.

Remarks.

The present genus was recognised first in our molecular analysis by the new species Hesperolyra saopaulensis , that consistently grouped outside any known genus, often together with Neotrifurcula , but at a large distance. Since we did not have a male of Hesperolyra saopaulensis , a generic description seemed problematic, until we noticed similarity to the recently obtained DNA barcode of Fomoria diskusi and the unusual venation of both species, quite different from any other Fomoria . Fomoria diskusi was placed with some other species in the Fomoria molybditis group ( Puplesis et al. 2002b), here treated as a synonym of Hesperolyra . Puplesis and Robinson (2000) placed Hesperolyra molybditis and diskusi in Fomoria on the basis of superficial similarity of male genitalia, even though the venation is markedly different, resembling more that of Acalyptris . The authors even stated that "the unusually reduced wing venation lends additional support." The lack of apomorphies for Fomoria s. str. make assignment of any species to that genus difficult without molecular support, and even with eight genetic markers the support is not high ( Doorenweerd et al. 2016). After careful comparison we are convinced that the species in this group and Hesperolyra saopaulensis are congeneric. We selected Hesperolyra diskusi as type species, because it is the only species for which males and females are known. By this action, Fomoria tabulosa Puplesis & Diškus, 2002 remains the only known Neotropical species of Fomoria . Whether this indeed belongs to the clade to which the type species of Fomoria , Fomoria weaveri (Stainton, 1855), belongs, remains unclear, the genitalia are rather atypical and the venation has not been studied.