Acalyptris auratilis Puplesis & Diškus, 2003

Stonis, Jonas R., Remeikis, Andrius, Diškus, Arūnas & Navickaitė, Asta, 2020, Documenting new and little known leaf-mining Nepticulidae from middle and southwestern areas of the Asian continent, Zootaxa 4881 (3), pp. 401-452 : 425

Acalyptris auratilis Puplesis & Diškus, 2003

( Figs 84 , 215–223 )

Acalyptris auratilis Puplesis & Diškus, 2003: 219 , 220.

Material examined. 3 ♂ (holotype and paratypes), Nepal, 70 km W of Kathmandu, Baikunthapuri , subtropical montane forest, 19, 20.iv.1995, R . Puplesis, genitalia slide nos AD0378 (holotype), AD0379 (paratype) ( ZIN, also see Remarks) ; 1 ♂, India, Uttarakhand, Dehradun Distr., Rishikesh , 30°08’13”N, 78°19’55”E, elevation ca. 450 m, at light, 09.viii.2010, A. Šimkevičiūtė, genitalia slide no. AG127 ( ZIN) .

Diagnosis. This species belongs to the Acalyptris platani species group. Acalyptris auratilis is the most similar and probably closely related to the Himalayan A. melanospila ( Meyrick, 1934) , A. nigripexus Puplesis & Diškus, 2003 , and A. brunipexus sp. nov. (described above).

Externally, males of A. auratilis differ from similar species of the A. platani group in the absence of androconia ( Fig. 84 ) ( A. melanospila has a basal patch of white androconia, A. nigripexus is with distinctly black androconia, and A. brunipexus possesses pale brown androconia of the hindwing).

Internally, in the male genitalia, the combination of unique-shaped ventral carinae ( Figs 221, 222 ), a large dor-sal lobe of phallus ( Fig. 217 ), a long, slender pseuduncus ( Fig. 220 ), small, scale-like cornuti in the phallus ( Figs 217, 223 ), and the unique shape of the proximal lobe of vinculum ( Figs 215, 219 ) distinguishes this species from the most similar A. melanospila , A. nigripexus , and A. brunipexus .

Male ( Fig. 84 ). Forewing length 2.0– 2.1 mm; wingspan 4.4–4.6 mm (n = 4). Described and illustrated by Puplesis & Diškus, 2003: 219, 220: figs 424, 480–483, 488, 491, 494.

Female. Unknown.

Bionomics. Host plant is unknown. Adults were collected at light in April and August. Otherwise, biology is unknown.

Distribution. Known from the subtropical forest of the western Himalaya: 70 km W of Kathmandu ( Fig. 1 : cHi) and Uttarakhand, Rishikesh ( Fig. 1 : wHi) (new distribution).

Remarks. We provide the first photographic documentation of the male genitalia ( Figs 217–221, 223 ), for the first time report on new distribution of the species in India ( Figs 215, 216 ). Additionally, the holotype and two paratypes, earlier deposited at LEU (formerly abbreviated as VPU) will be transferred to ZIN (see Material examined) because of the LEU closure.

Figures

FIGURES 81–86. Adults of Acalyptris spp. 81, A. noctilucus Rocienė & Stonis, sp. nov., male holotype; 82, A. brunipexus Stonis, Diškus & Remeikis, sp. nov., female paratype; 83, same, male holotype; 84, A. auratilis Puplesis & Diškus, specimen AG127; 85, A. nasutus Diškus & Navickaitė, sp. nov., female holotype; 86, same, forewing venation, slide AD479b (ZIN).

FIGURES 215–223. Male genitalia of Acalyptris auratilis Puplesis & Diškus. 215, genitalia slide no. AG127, capsule with phallus removed; 216, same, phallus; 217, holotype, genitalia slide no. AD0378, phallus; 218–220, same, capsule with phallus removed; 221, same, carinae; 222, same, after Puplesis & Diškus 2003; 223, paratype, genitalia slide no. AD0379, apex of phal- lus with scale-like cornuti (ZIN)

FIGURES 1–6. A geographical map (courtesy of T. Patterson, USA) and new host plants of Nepticulidae. 1, localities in this study; 2, 3, Ototropis elegans (DC.) H. Ohashi & K. Ohashi, Fabaceae, a host plant of Stigmella longa sp. nov.; 4, Viburnum cotinifolium D. Don., Adoxaceae, a host plant of Acalyptris nasutus sp. nov; 5, Ototropis sp., Fabaceae, a host plant of Stigmella pyramidata sp. nov.; 6, Spiraea canescens D. Don., Rosaceae, a host plant of Ectoedemia orbiculata sp. nov.