Sesamia libode Le Ru, 2024

Hévin, Noémie M. C., Kergoat, Gael J., Zilli, Alberto, Capdevielle-Dulac, Claire, Musyoka, Boaz K., Sezonlin, Michel, Conlong, Desmond, Van Den Berg, Johnnie, Ndemah, Rose, Le Gall, Philippe, Cugala, Domingos, Nyamukondiwa, Casper, Pallangyo, Beatrice, Njaku, Mohamedi, Goftishu, Muluken, Assefa, Yoseph, Kandonda, Onésime Mubenga, Bani, Grégoire, Molo, Richard, Chipabika, Gilson, Ong’amo, George, Clamens, Anne-Laure, Barbut, Jérôme & Le Ru, Bruno, 2024, Revisiting the taxonomy and molecular systematics of Sesamia stemborers (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae: Apameini: Sesamiina): updated classification and comparative evaluation of species delimitation methods, Arthropod Systematics & amp; Phylogeny 82, pp. 447-501 : 447-501

Sesamia libode Le Ru sp. nov.

Figures 13 A – D ; 14 A, D, G ; 15

Type material.

Holotype ♂, REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA, Eastern Cape Province, Libode , 30 ° 48 ′ 58 ″ S, 29 ° 16 ′ 27 ″ E, 1053 m a. s. l., III. 2015, ex larvae in stems of Miscanthus capensis Andersson , gen. Prep. LE RU Bruno / 803, (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) . — Paratypes: REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA: eight ♂, three ♀, Eastern Cape Province, Rustfontein , 30 ° 26 ′ 27 ″ S, 29 ° 10 ′ 37 ″ E, 1505 m a. s. l., XI. 2009, ex larvae in stems of Typha latifolia L., male gen. Prep. LE RU Bruno / 13, female gen. Prep. LE RU Bruno / 14, (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) ; eighteen ♂, nine ♀, Kwazulu-Natal Province, Glen Ive Sawhill , 30 ° 31 ′ 25 ″ S, 29 ° 43 ′ 39 ″ E, 1157 m a. s. l., XI. 2009, ex larvae in stems of Typha latifolia L., (B. Le Ru leg.) ( MNHN) .

Diagnosis.

(See also the identification key of nonagrioides subgroup, section 3.5. 2.). This species can be distinguished from the other known members of the nonagrioides subgroup by the combination of the following characters of the male and female genitalia: tegumen with large drooping peniculi; vinculum u-shaped at the outer margin with a large rounded saccus; juxta large and conical, the inferior plate produced into a blunted point, the sides pointed, the superior plate broad and short, gradually narrowed, bifid terminally; uncus with an apex large and truncated; phallus short and thick; vesica with a small semi-circular flat cornutus; ventrolateral plates of female segment A 8 large, weakly sclerotized, ovoid, the anterior side convex, at least twice as long than wide; ostium bursae large, flattened funnel-shaped, sclerotized, with blunt tip on each side; ductus bursae long and narrow, with a large posterior sclerotized area at least 3.6 times longer than wide.

Description.

(Fig. 13 A – D ). The general shape of the female forewing is more elongated than that of the male; wing patterns in both sexes. Antenna ochraceous, bipectinate in the male, filiform in the female, flagellum adorned dorsally with ochraceous scales in both sexes; palpus ochraceous; eyes dark brown. Head and thorax covered with long ochraceous hairs. Abdomen buff suffused with brown fuscous scales. Forelegs dark brown in males, otherwise ochraceous suffused with fuscous scales. Forewing ochraceous suffused with brown and fuscous scales; three more or less distinct dark brown spots, one antemedial, one at apex of cell and one postmedial; a more or less visible longitudinal ochraceous or brown fascia along lower margin of cell, partly within, partly without cell from base of cell to the subterminal line; one subterminal line with brown elongated markings on the veins; outer margin adorned with brown spots between the veins, fringe ochraceous more or less suffused with brown and fuscous scales, basal line of fringe buff. Hindwing white suffused with fuscous scales in costal and apical areas, four more or less visible brown elongated markings on the veins, fringe concolor (white), basal line of fringe buff. Underside of forewing light ochraceous, suffused with brown and fuscous scales in costa, apex and termen, much more in the postmedial area, fringe ochraceous suffused with fuscous scales, in males; underside of forewing light ochraceous slightly suffused with brown and fuscous scales in costa, apex and termen, fringe light ochraceous suffused with fuscous scales, in females. Underside of hindwing white suffused with brown scales in costal and apical areas, outer margin adorned with more or less visible brown spots between the veins, fringe concolor (white). — Forewing length: male 28–32 mm (x ̅ = 29.7 mm, N = 11); female 31–35 mm (x ̅ = 33.4 mm, N = 11). — Male genitalia (Fig. 14 A, D ). Tegumen with large drooping peniculi; vinculum u-shaped at the outer margin and w-shaped at the inner margin without indentation, with a large sized rounded saccus. Valve with sacculus and cucullus separate; costa short and narrow, heavily sclerotized, ending with a stout and short straight spine, with two apical teeth; sacculus heavily sclerotized rounded at base, a broad and short apical extension, curved inwards, club-shaped, bearing numerous short and stout spines; cucullus longer than sacculus, weakly sclerotized, slightly clavate at apex, with scattered and papillated hairs; juxta large and conical, the inferior plate produced into a blunted point, the sides pointed, the superior plate broad and short, gradually narrowed, bifid terminally; uncus angled, very stout, narrowed slightly towards the apex, apex large and truncated, tufted with long hairs on upper side; phallus short and thick, a bit curved in the middle; lamina ventralis with an elongate carinal crest, produced into paired lateral lobes; vesica with a small semi-circular flat cornutus. — Female genitalia (Fig. 14 G ). Apophyses anteriores with spatulate tips; ventrolateral plates of female segment A 8 large, weakly sclerotized, ovoid, the anterior side convex, at least twice as long than wide; ostium bursae flattened funnel-shaped, sclerotized, with blunt tip on each side; ductus bursae long and narrow with a large posterior sclerotized area at least 3.6 times longer than wide; corpus bursae pyriform, without signa; ovipositor lobes at least 2.6 times longer than wide with dorsal surface bearing numerous short and stout setae, the ventral side of each lobe slightly curved; apophyses posteriores more slender than apophyses anteriores.

Etymology.

Named after Libode, a small village in Eastern Cape Province in Republic of South Africa; treated as a noun in apposition.

Distribution.

Republic of South Africa. Known from three localities in Eastern Cape and Kwazulu-Natal Provinces only in ‘ East African coastal mosaic Tongaland-Pondoland’ (Mosaic # 16 c) and ‘ undifferentiated montane vegetation Afromontane’ (Mosaic # 19 a) vegetation mosaics ( White 1983) (Fig. 14 ) belonging to the Southern African bioregion (sensu Linder et al. 2012).

Ecology.

Larvae were collected from young stems and shoots of Miscanthus capensis Andersson ( Poaceae ) and Typha latifolia L. ( Typhaceae ) growing in wetlands inhabited by various Poales belonging to the following genera: Cyperus , Echinochloa , Phragmites Adans. , Setaria and Sporobolus .

Remarks.

Male gen. Prep. LE RU Bruno / 13 and female gen. Prep. LE RU Bruno / 14 were wrongly attributed to S. typhae .

Figures

Figure 13. Adults of the nonagrioides subgroup (S. libode sp. nov., S. roumeti, S. satauensis sp. nov.). S. libode sp. nov.: A male upper side; B male underside; C female upper side; D female underside; S. roumeti: E male upper side; F male underside; G female upper side; H female underside; S. satauensis sp. nov.: I male upper side; J male underside; K female upper side; L female underside. Scale bar = 9 mm.

Figure 14. Male and female genitalia of members of the nonagrioides subgroup; S. libode sp. nov.: A male apparatus; D phallus; G female apparatus; S. roumeti: B male apparatus; E phallus; H female apparatus; S. satauensis sp. nov.: C male apparatus; F phallus; I female apparatus. Scale bar = 1 mm for male apparati and 0.5 mm for phalli; 9 mm for female apparati.

Figure 15. Distribution map of sampled specimens of the nonagrioides subgroup.