Paromphacodes spina Lindt, Tasane, Õunap & Viidalepp, 2017

Lindt, Aare, Tasane, Tõnis, Õunap, Erki & Viidalepp, Jaan, 2017, Five new species of the genus Paromphacodes (Lepidoptera: Geometridae: Geometrinae) from High Andes in Ecuador, Zootaxa 4303 (3), pp. 395-406 : 403-404

Paromphacodes spina Lindt, Tasane, Õunap & Viidalepp sp. nov.

(Figs 5, 9)

Holotype, ♂, Ecuador, [Azuay prov.], Loja, Ona, 18.iv.2007, 03°18'42"S, 79°08'09"W; (the holotype ID: TAMZ 0094296 ; DNA voucher 50a) (slide 208) (A. Lindt). The Holotype is deposited in the collection of EMNH, Tallinn. A visually similar specimen (1♂, Ecuador, Azuay Prov. , 5 km road La Paz-Ona, 3020 m, 3°21'50"S, 79°11'31"W, 06.ii.2012, Exp. R. Brechlin & V. Sinaev, BC ZSM Lep 59351) in the ZSM collection is not barcode sharing (A. Hausmann, pers. comm.) and not listed as paratype.

Diagnosis. P. spina has more suffused and less contrasting wing markings than P. alticola sp. nov., P. alpha sp. nov. and P. onae sp. nov. described above, differing considerably in male genitalia by the valve costa short and projecting a dorsal spine. Socii are long and broad. Superficially similar with P. summita sp. nov., differing in the genitalia structures (Figs 11 & 12) and DNA barcode data. Also differing from sympatric P. onae sp. nov. by smaller size and genetic data.

Description. Wing span 22 mm (Fig. 5). The frons is red-brown, the interantennal fillet white, the vertex green, a red-brown line between. The palpi are short, yellowish, just reaching the frons. The antennae are yellowish, shortpectinated, the pectinations about 1.2 times longer than the diameter of the shaft. The thorax is green dorsally, the abdomen is green anteriorly with a larger white spot encircled dark grey on the tergite A1, and there are smaller greenish white spots at the tergites A2 and A3. The forewing is green, ornamented by a small brown discal dot; the costal edge is lined in light brown. The postmedial row of tiny reddish brown spots appears curved inward near the costa, and the spot at the anal vein is shifted towards the tornus. The hindwing is greenish white, with a small green discal dot, a thin green marginal line and some small green spots on veins at the distal margin of the wing. The fringe of the forewing is red-brown basally, green distally, that of the hindwing is greenish, chequered with redbrownish near the tornus.

Male genitalia (Fig. 9): The uncus is rod-like, shorter than the broad and very long socii. The gnathos is a loop, the cochlear is curved and tapered to the tip. The valva is slender, parallel-sided, rounded distally. The costal plate is short, reaching mid-costa and projecting a long thorn which is longer than the width of the valva. The juxta is a small roundish plate and the saccus is short, rounded. The aedeagus is pointed distally, provided with an anellar plate. Both the tergite and sternite A8 have the posterior edge smooth, the sternite is short, its midrib triangular, reaching the anterior margin of the sternite. The latero-distal corners of the sternite A8 are sclerotized like small dark points. The posterior part of the tergite has two blotches of sclerotization. The shape of the sternite A8 is similar to that in P. summita sp. nov., described below.

Female and preimaginal stages unknown.

Biology. The holotype was collected above the timberline near Loja Ona, at 3280 m altitude.

Genetic data. Nearest neighbour on BOLD is Paromphacodes summita sp. nov. described below (KP2 minimum pairwise distance 10.0%).

Derivatio nominis. spina , with a prominent spine in the male genitalia.