Ghatarbela, Yakovlev & Zolotuhin, 2021

Yakovlev, Roman V. & Zolotuhin, Vadim V., 2021, Revision of the family Metarbelidae (Lepidoptera) of the Oriental Region. II. Two monotypic genera - Ghatarbela gen. nov. and Micrarbela gen. nov. - from the Western Ghats and Sri Lanka biodiversity hotspot, Ecologica Montenegrina 42, pp. 103-108 : 104

Genus Ghatarbela gen. nov.

https://zoobank.org/ urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:44044A3E-1B17-4A85-8414-9F0619E35443

Type species (here designated): Ghatarbela bifidunca sp. nov.

Description. Male. Moths of medium size, with fore wing length in male ca. 15 mm and wing expanse ca. 30 mm. Antenna short (1/3 of fore wing length), bipectinate, piilifers twice longer than flagellum diameter. Fore wing with pale creamish ground color with yellowish tint, expressed dark brown discal spot as rather rectangular tuft of raised scales, poorly expressed spotted dark cream pattern which is condenced in postmedial spot in Cu zone and characteristic blackish row along dorsal margin. This row consists of broadened raised scales. Hind wing patternless pale yellow. Cilia as three rows of scales with alternate cream and brownish plots. Abdomen slender, pale cream, basally with protruding brown apically widened scales and with very long caudal bundle of cream hair-like, shorter widened blackish and longer widened brown scales. Thorax the same cover widened raised brown scales.

Male genitalia. Uncus completely split into two thin, long halves, apically slightly clavate; gnathos arms long with wide lamellar bases, narrowing distally, thin; gnathos small; valve short, apically semicircular, saccular edge sclerotized with small conical harpe; juxta semicircular, large; saccus not expressed; phallus short (twice shorter than valve), apically thick, curved in medium third, apically slightly narrowing, vesica without cornuti.

Female unknown so far.

Diagnosis. The new genus has the following apomorphic characters – wing pattern strongly modified from initially reticulate; presence of protruded scales through forewing and body and uncus is completely (up to the base) split into two halves. It can be closed with more primitive Squamura Heylaerts, 1890 as a sister genus but its exact position shall to be defined using genetic method and will be considered later.

Composition. Monotypic genus.

Distribution. Southern India (Western Ghats).

Etymology. The new genus is named after its typical habitat – Western Ghats.