Hyleina, Bartsch, Daniel, 2017

Bartsch, Daniel, 2017, Hyleina kaphetea, a new genus and species of clearwing moths from tropical Africa (Lepidoptera: Sesiidae: Sesiini), Zootaxa 4286 (3), pp. 425-430 : 426-427

Hyleina new genus

Type species: Hyleina kaphetea new sp., designated here.

Etymology. Ancient Greek: Hyle (= forest, shrubbery), gender is feminine.

Description. Head: small; eyes large, nearly same width as frons; haustellum very short, weakly sclerotized and in all probability non-functional; labial palpi rather long, regularly bent upwards, third palpomere straight, tip reaching base of antenna, first and third palpomeres equal in length, second palpomere somewhat longer with smooth scaling, first and second palpomeres ventrally long tufted, tufts distally tapering; frons smooth; antennae about half as long as forewing, clavate, serrate, ciliate, serration and ciliae distally tapering.

Thorax: legs long and narrow, hind legs longer than abdomen; predominantly smoothly scaled, except for foreleg, which has tufted scales on femur ventrally and tibia laterally as well as mid- and hind leg which have raised scales on tibia dorsally and distally. Wings narrow; discal cell of forewing with narrow, longitudinal scale line indicating position of median vein; wing venation ( Fig. 9 ): forewing with radial veins arising near cell apex, long common stalk of R4 and R5, origin of M1 and M2 approximated; hind wing with M2 arising from costal third of cross vein, short stalk of M3 and CuA1, reduced anal veins.

Abdomen: slender; basal segments slightly wasp-waisted, narrowest at segment two; anal tuft absent. Sternite 8 posteriorly with wide u-shaped emargination ( Fig. 8 c).

Male genitalia ( Figs 7–8 ): tegumen and uncus very slender, membranous joined together; uncus bilobed; gnathos bipartite. Valva short and broad, without crista sacculi; inner surface except for sub-ventral part barely covered with short, hair-like setae; apically with area of strongly sclerotized, thorn-like setae; dorsally with high specialized, long, distally extremely broad, multifurcate setae. Saccus present. Juxta very shortly protruded; manica except for ventral part densely covered with sclerotized teeth. Phallus short; coecum penis present; vesica slightly enlarged proximally.

Diagnosis. Within Sesiini Hyleina can be defined by the unique combination of the following characters:

(1) antennae rather short (distinctly longer in most Sesiini genera);

(2) basal part of abdomen wasp-waisted (absent in most Sesiini );

(3) discal cell of forewing with distinct longitudinal scale line indicating position of median vein (lacking or short and distally in most Sesiini );

(4) venation of forewing with approximated origin of radial veins including the long common stalk of R4 and R5 as well as approximated origin of M1 and M2; hind wing with short stalk of M3 and CuA1, and reduced anal veins ( Fig. 9 );

(5) male genitalia with tegumen-uncus-complex long and slender with unique, extremely long, bipartite gnathos (tegumen-uncus-complex usually broader and more compact, gnathos shorter and more compact, often asymmetric, rarely bipartite in other Sesiini genera);

(6) uncus ventro-laterally without strong sclerotized setae (present in most Sesiini );

(7) valva pentagonal, inner surface dorsally with extremely broad, multifurcate setae (valva straight in most other Sesiini genera; medially angled in Sesia Clerck, 1759 , setae of the valva simple or thorn-like in most Sesiini ).

There may be a likelihood of confusion of Hyleina with Sphecosesia Hampson, 1910 from the Oriental region and one species of Cyanosesia Gorbunov & Arita 1995 from the Australian region (see below). These three taxa have similar, extremely modified, multifurcate setae of the valva, which may be regarded as a synapomorphic character to show their relationship. This hypothesis needs further studies to be proved. Further common characters of Sphecosesia and Hyleina are the short, ciliate antennae and the wasp-like waist of the abdomen. However, Hyleina can be distinguished from Sphecosesia by the usually larger size, the reduced haustellum (developed in Sphecosesia ) and the approximated origin of some forewing veins (more regular in Sphecosesia ), in the male genitalia by the very different shapes of uncus (much larger and broader, laterally with multifurcate setae in Sphecosesia ), gnathos (short and simple in Sphecosesia ), and valva (longer and narrower, trapezoid with almost straight ventral margin in Sphecosesia ) (see Kallies & Arita 2004).

Cyanosesia leleji Gorbunov & Arita, 2016 from Sulawesi shows some striking similarities with Hyleina : the long and bipartite gnathos and the shape of the phallus, which lacks sclerotized processes. Hyleina can be distinguished from this species by the reduced haustellum (well developed in C. leleji ), the shape of the antenna (longer and narrower, not serrate in C. leleji ), the wasp-like waist of the abdomen (absent in C. leleji ), the absent anal tuft (present in C. leleji ); in the male genitalia by the smaller uncus, the symmetric gnathos (asymmetric in C. leleji ), and the very different shape of the valva with absent crista sacculi (longer and narrower, crista sacculi well developed in C. leleji ).

The authors of C. leleji point out that this species differs from all congeners in several details (coloration of legs and abdomen, forewings, multifurcate scale-like not simple bristle-like setae of the valva in male, long and narrow signum of corpus bursae in female) and may represent a separate group within the genus ( Gorbunov & Arita 1995). It differs further, as well as most other Sesiini species, from typical species of Cyanosesia by the distinctly longer forewing discal cell, with almost vertical cross-vein, located in the distal half of the wing (crossvein conspicuously oblique, in the middle of the wing in typical Cyanosesia ) and the normally proportioned hindwings (rather broad, apically shortened in typical Cyanosesia ); in the male genitalia by the somewhat triangular shape of the valva (elongated, pentagonal to trapezoid in typical Cyanosesia ), and the phallus with thorns or strong spines at tip of exo-phallus as well as at vesica (both without thorns or spines in typical Cyanosesia ). On the basis of these characters the generic assignment of C. leleji appears questionable. The species may well be misplaced and represent a separate group within the Sesiini (see Gorbunov & Arita 1995, 2016, Kallies & Arita 2004).

Distribution. Southern parts of tropical Africa.

Figures

FIGURE 9. Hyleina kaphetea new gen. & new sp., wing venation.

FIGURES 7 – 8. Hyleina kaphetea new gen. & new sp., ♂ paratypes, genitalia structures. b, phallus. c, terminal abdominal segments. 7. Tanzania, Kigoma Territory, Mukuyu Hills east of Kabogo. 8. Congo, Katanga, Lubumbashi. Scale 1 mm.