Elachista mus Parenti, 1981

Kaila, Lauri & Nupponen, Kari, 2018, A review of the Elachista subula Parenti species complex (Lepidoptera, Elachistidae), with descriptions of nine new Palearctic species, Zootaxa 4433 (3), pp. 401-433 : 412-413

Elachista mus Parenti, 1981

Figs. 11, 12 , 35, 36 , 54

Elachista mus Parenti, 1981: 51 .

Material examined. Type material: holotype ♂: Iran, Derbend , 25 km N Teheran, 2000 m, 7.–15.vi.1963, Kasy &

Vartian leg. (U. Parenti Prep. 1006, DNA sample 16678 Lepid. Phyl. (barcoding unsuccesful) ; NHMW). Other material: Kazakhstan: 47°43’28’’N 51°27’10’’E, 100 m, Terektikum Sands, 110 km N Aralsk Town, 15.v.2012, 1 ♀, K. Nupponen leg. (L. Kaila prep. 6142, DNA sample 25489 Lepid. Phyl.; Coll. Nupponen) ; 43°47’03’’N 68°03’15’’E, 540 m, Karatau Mts. , 60 km N Turkestan town, 11.v.2010, 1 ♂, K. Nupponen leg. (L. Kaila prep. 5285, DNA sample 15353 Lepid. Phyl.; Coll. Nupponen) ; 48°55’29’’N 58°18’49’’E, 300 m, 17 km NE Emba Vill. , 18.v.2012, 1 ♂, K. Nupponen leg. ( DNA sample 25490 Lepid. phyl.; MZH) ; 44°24’39’’N 68°40’07’’ same collecting data, 12.v.2010 3 ♂, L. Kaila prep. 5915, 6071, 6075 (Coll. Nupponen), same collecting data, 20.v.2012 1 ♂, L. Kaila prep. 6075 (Coll. Nupponen) ; 44°24’39’’N 68°40’07”E, 190 m, Muyunkum Sands , 40 km N Suzak settl., 4.v.2012 1 ♂, K. Nupponen leg. (L. Kaila prep. 6071; Coll. Nupponen) ; 48°55’29’’N 58°12’49’’E, 470–520 m, N. Mugozhary mts. , 45 km W. Altyndy vill., 8.v.2012, 1 ♂ 19.v.2012, 1 ♂, K. Nupponen leg. (L. Kaila prep. 5015, 5917, DNA samples 25484, 25485 Lepid. Phyl.; MZH, Coll. Nupponen) . Uzbekistan: Shamansaj , 140 km NW Shafrikana, 24.v.1968, 1 ♂, Falkovitsh leg. (L. Kaila prep. 5858; ZIN); Shamansaj, Kyzyl-kum, 20.v.1967, 1 ♂, Falkovitsh leg. (L. Kaila prep. 6119), 26.v.1970, 2 ♂, Falkovitsh leg. (L. Kaila prep. 5854, 5860; ZIN).

Diagnosis. E. mus is a unicolorous white species, externally similar to several other species in the E. subula species complex. The male genitalia are characterized by the narrow, elongate valva, the drop-shaped spinose knob of gnathos and the somewhat elongate, distally rounded juxta lobes. The female genitalia are characterized by the basally and dorsally sclerotized and tapered, acute-tipped papillae anales, and by a large, oval signum formed of a sclerotized plate that is covered by minute granules, and laterally bordered with small teeth. Both characters are similar to E. perona but differ from all other known females in the E. dispilella group. Rather, they are reminiscent of the females of species related to E. hedemanni (cf. Kaila 2012). Externally, the species related to E. hedemanni differ from those of the E. subula species complex as never having totally unicolorous forewing, nor discal or plical spots. A similar signum is found in E. perona . The female genitalia of E. mus and E. perona differ from each other as explained in the key.

Molecular characterization. The maximum intraspecific variation among the nine included specimens was 0.16 %. Of the species included the closest taxon in terms of similarity of barcodes is E. scalpra (distance 1.61 %).

Redescription. Forewing length 4–5.5 mm. Labial palpus straight, white, length equal to diameter of head. Head, neck tuft, thorax, scape and pedicel of antenna creamy white; scape with distinctive pecten formed of elongate, creamy white scales; two basal segments of flagellum white, flagellum otherwise brown. Fore- and midleg inwardly brownish grey, outwardly white, tarsal articles distally pale; hindleg pale grey, spurs somewhat darker grey, tibia and tarsus above grey with distally pale tibia and tarsal articles. Forewing unicolorous, chalky white, basal third of costa narrowly nearly black. Underside of forewing dark grey, in basal third two pale longitudinal lines, fringe white. Underside of hindwing pale grey, translucent, except on costal side where it is darker grey; fringe pale grey.

Male genitalia. Uncus lobe rounded, somewhat broader than long, sparsely covered by setae along distal and distolateral margins, lobes separated by narrow u-shaped incision, depth of incision between them 1/3 the length of uncus. Spinose knob of gnathos drop-shaped, length approximately 1.5x width of uncus lobe. Valva 4.5– 5x as long as wide in the widest point a little basal to middle. Valva parallel-sided. Cucullus indistinctly delineated, elongate. Digitate process 0.2–0.3x as long as valva, parallel-sided, distally rounded, distal 2/3 with setae. Juxta lobe approximately as long as digitate process; median plate of juxta nearly rounded, posteriorly with dorsally projected, curved lobe. Vinculum elongate, tapered, distally blunt. Phallus 0.5–0.4x as long as valva, slightly bent s-shaped, gradually tapered towards apex; 9x as long as broad at its broadest place at base, tapered into sclerotized, acute-tipped apex. Vesica with cornutus that consists of oval, indistinctly delineated, weakly sclerotized elongate plate with one or several small, blunt teeth; for variation in cornutus, see Parenti (1981).

Female genitalia. Papillae anales basally and dorsally sclerotized, with acute apex, dorsoventrally with Yshaped connecting sclerotization. Apophysis posterioris slender, straight, 2x as long as papilla analis. Apophysis anterioris basally broad and indistinctly delineated, about 2/ 3x as long as apophysis posterioris. Ostium bursae narrow, bordered with rounded sclerotization; antrum as broad as ostium bursae, sclerotized and tubular; ductus bursae narrow and tubular, with no wrinkled posterior dilation, slightly widened towards corpus bursae, about 2.5x length of apophysis posterioris; indistinctly incepted to corpus bursae. Corpus bursae oval-shaped, with large, oval signum that is granulose and laterally shortly spinose; length of signum about 1/3 of corpus bursae.

Biology. The species inhabits various kinds of steppes, semideserts and sand dune areas.

Distribution. Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia: Caucasus ( Sruoga et al. 2017), Uzbekistan. Parenti (1981, 1991) also mentions Afghanistan, Mongolia and Turkey. As this species has proven to have several close relatives, possibly having been confused with E. mus , these records should be verified.

Figures

FIGURES 9–12. Adults of Elachista spp. Scale 2 mm. 9. E. ameteria Kaila, sp. nov., ♂ holotype. 10. E. scalpra Kaila, sp. nov., ♂ holotype. 11. E. mus Parenti, ♂ holotype. 12. E. mus Parenti, ♀ (Kazakhstan, Terektikum sands).

FIGURES 35–36. Male genitalia of E. mus Parenti. Left: general image of genitalia, phallus in same scale. Right top: juxta and digitate process. Middle: cornutus as enlarged. Right bottom: phallus as enlarged. 35. Holotype (U. Parenti prep. 1006). 36. Kazakhstan: Emba river; L. Kaila prep. 6144.

FIGURES 53–54. Female genitalia of Elachista spp. 53. E. drepanella Kaila, sp. nov. Overview (Kazakhstan: Barsuki Desert; L. Kaila prep. 6109). 54. E. mus Parenti. Overview (Kazakhstan: Terektikum Sands, N. Aralsk Town).