Phyllonorycter caraganella (Ermolaev, 1986)

Kirichenko, Natalia, Triberti, Paolo & Lopez-Vaamonde, Carlos, 2019, New species of leaf-mining Phyllonorycter (LepidopteraGracillariidae) from Siberia feeding on Caragana (Fabaceae), ZooKeys 835, pp. 17-41 : 25-31

Phyllonorycter caraganella (Ermolaev, 1986) Figs 2C, 6, 7, 8, 9

Diagnosis.

Forewing bright yellow ochre, with a basal streak, a not angulated fascia in the median third and three costal and two dorsal strigulae, all markings clearly margined with dark colour. Male genitalia symmetrical with long thin valvae. Female genitalia with a rounded margin of sternum VII, signum consisting of an oval plate with two opposite spines not aligned horizontally.

Because of the symmetrical male genitalia, P. caraganella is close to P. fabaceaella (Kuznetzov, 1978) and P. kuznetzovi Ermolaev (Suppl. material 1: Table S1) but differs from the first by the presence of a large saccus ( Kuznetzov 1981) and from the second by a very different shape of phallus and sternum VIII ( Ermolaev 1982).

Material examined.

6♂, 2♀ 4 larvae (Figs 2C, 6). 1♂, Russia, Primorsky Krai, Glukhovka, vodorazdel, 43.74N, 132.13E, 68 m, ex. Caragana manshurica , 27.VII.2016, N Kirichenko leg., field ID NK-148-16-13A (♂) (SIF SB RAS); 2♂, 1♀, Primorsky Krai, Rakovka, forested area, 43.80N, 132.19E, 140 m, ex. C. manshurica , 27.VII.2016, N Kirichenko leg., NK-184-16-8A (♀) (MSNV), NK-184-16-9A (♂), NK-184-16-12A (♂), genitalia slide NK-184-16-12A♂ (SIF SB RAS); 1♂, 1♀, Primorskiy Krai, Rakovka, ex Caragana manshurica , 27.VII.2016, N Kirichenko leg., N° 137, NK-184-16-11° (♂), genitalia slide TRB4292♂, NK-184-16-3° (♀), genitalia slide TRB4295♀ (MSNV); 2♂, Primorsky Krai, Rakovka, forested area, 43.80N, 132.19E, 140 m, ex. C. manshurica , 27.VII.2016, N Kirichenko leg., NK-184-16-1A (♂) (sample ID NK526, process ID SIBLE015-17), NK-184-16-2A (♂) (NK527, SIBLE016-17); 2 larvae, same place, date and host plant, N Kirichenko leg., NK-184-16-1 (NK522, SIBLE011-17), NK-184-16-2 (NK523, SIBLE012-17); 2 larvae, Primorsky Krai, Glukhovka, vodorazdel, 43.74N, 132.13E, 68 m, C. manshurica , 27.VII.2016, N Kirichenko leg., NK-185-16-1 (NK524, SIBLE013-17), NK-185-16-2 (NK525, SIBLE014-17) (INRA).

Description.

Male and female. Alar expanse: 6.5-7.2 mm (Figs 2A, B, 7, 8).

Head. As in the previous species, dark scales on scape are not present.

Thorax (Fig. 2 A–B). Yellow ochre with three longitudinal white lines, venter white. Forewing yellow ochre, with a basal streak at basal one third, a fascia in the median third (straight or weakly angled) and three costal and two dorsal white strigulae, all the signs are clearly margined with dark brown; a subapical elliptical dark spot; cilia whitish. Hindwing pale grey, cilia pale ochreous grey. Legs mostly fuscous dorsally, white ventrally, fore and mid tarsi more or less annulated with brownish, hind tarsi white.

Abdomen. Sternum VIII rectangular, shorter than valva.

Male genitalia (Fig. 7). Tegumen long, pointed, no apical microsetae. Valvae symmetrical, thin, parallel-sided, slightly curved. Vinculum short, saccus pronounced, with a round apex. Phallus slender, with a small subapical spine, slightly longer than valva.

Female genitalia (Fig. 8 A–C) Papillae anales rather reduced, posterior apophyses slightly longer than the anterior one (Fig. 8A, C). Sterigma membranous; with a rounded margin of sternum VII; a rather large ostium bursae, antrum membranous, strongly folded in the conjunction with ductus. Ductus bursae thin, membranous, extended to the segment II. Bursa rounded with signum consisting of two opposite spines, not aligned horizontally, in the centre of a small sclerotized plate (Fig. 8B, C). Ductus spermathecae with efferent canal forming 30 coils of equal diameter.

Biology.

(Fig. 9). The mine is a whitish blotch on the leaflet underside. In contrast to P. ivani , the mine of P. caraganella often starts with a relatively long narrow, hardly widening, epidermal tunnel, that proceeds into a flat blotch mine (Fig. 9 B–D). The later mine is tentiform, with leaf margins contracted downwards, reminding of the mine of P. ivani (Fig. 8E). Tentiform blotch with 2-5 folds, most often occupying the whole leaflet (Fig. 9D). The larva primarily consumes the spongy parenchyma and later feeds on palisade parenchyma, gnawing rather large “windows” visible from the upper side of the leaflet (Fig. 9E). Pupation occurs in the mine. After adult emergence, pupal exuviae can be found in the corner of the mine close to leaflet base (Fig. 9F).

Phenology.

Two generations. In Russian Far East, vacated tentiform mines of the first generation and young mines (epidermial tunnels) of the second generation were found in the end of July 2016. It is unknown how the species hibernates.

Ecology and host plant range.

(Fig. 9A). The host plant is Caragana manshurica (syn. C. fruticosa (Pallas) Besser) ( Fabaceae ). This species is very similar to C. arborescens ( Koropachinsky and Vstovskaya 2012). The bushes of C. manshurica with P. caraganella mines were found in the canopy in the broadleaf forest in the southern part of Primorsky Krai.

Distribution.

Russia, Russian Far East: Khasansky District (Barabash) ( Ermolaev 1986), Ussurijsk District - Komarov Mountain-Taiga Station, village Gornotayezhnoe (SV Baryshnikova: personal communication), around the villages Glukhovka and Rakovka (present paper). In 2017, no mines of P. caraganella were found on Caragana spp. in the southern part of the Island Sakhalin (Russian Far East), nor could we find P. caraganella in Siberia during our extensive surveys in 2015-2017.

Remarks.

The holotype (♂) and paratypes (4♂ and 7♀) that, according to Ermolaev (1986), are being stored in the Zoological Institute, Russian Academy of Science (Saint Petersburg, Russia), are not located there (SV Baryshnikova: personal communication). For a note about VP Ermolaev’s research journey and the destiny of his gracillariid collections see Kirichenko et al. (2018b).