Sattleria sophiae Timossi, 2014

Timossi, Giovanni & Ruzzier, Enrico, 2020, Description of the female of Sattleria sophiae Timossi, 2014 (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae), Zootaxa 4722 (5), pp. 491-494 : 492

Sattleria sophiae Timossi, 2014

Material: ♀, Italy, Trentino-Alto Adige, Trento, Pale di San Martino Natural Park, Rifugio Pedrotti 2581 m, 46°2679 N, 11°8409 E; 27/VII/2017, 22:00. Giovanni Timossi leg. and det .

Habitus ( Fig. 1a ): Body length 5.5 mm. Head integument covered with long white scales. Head scales partially covering base of haustellum in ventro-lateral view. Labial palp elongated, covered with white scales. Antenna dark brown, covered with dense, greyish-brown scales; scape greyish white ventrally. Thorax covered with greyish-brown scales, posteriorly oriented; patagium not visible; tegula brown, bearing white scales at the posterior apex. Wingspan 11.2 mm; forewing length 5.2 mm. Forewing elliptic with pointed apex; basal two-thirds covered with scales of same greyish brown as on thorax except for a longitudinal patch of black scales on the basal third and between veins 1A+2A and CuA; apical third darkened due to scattered black-brown scales; termen without cilia. Hind wing white, less than one third the length of forewing, lanceolate in shape, slender with sinuous inner margin to falcate apex.

Foreleg greyish brown; median and hind legs greyish white with darkened tarsomeres. Abdomen covered with whitegreyish and brown scales, all posteriorly oriented. Inner spur of metatibia about twice the length of outer one.

Genitalia ( Fig. 1b ): eighth segment dorsally membranous, sternite with small pockets at anterior margin; posterior apophysis about three times the length of the anterior ( Fig. 1c ); anterior apophysis with reduced and strongly sclerotized base, bearing a horn-shaped anterior process ( Fig. 1c ); ostium bursae large; antrum as long as anterior apophysis, irregularly sclerotized; ductus bursae short; corpus bursae oval, without signum ( Fig. 1b ). Papillae anales membranous ( Fig. 1d ).

Diagnosis. The reduced black scales on the forewing, with exception of the black basal fascia, makes S. sophiae at first glance easily distinguishable from all the other currently known congeners. However, due to the worn condition of this single female, this may be flawed. The distinctive black basal fascia of the forewing is only shared with a few other species, namely Sattleria basistrigella (Huemer, 1997) , S. styriaca Pitkin & Sattler, 1991 and S. dzieduszyckii (Nowicki, 1864) . The presence of a horn-shaped anterior process of the anterior apophysis of the female genitalia is a unique feature found only in S. sophiae . Since the existence of a cryptic species in sympatry with S. sophiae could not be excluded, DNA barcoding was used to match the female to known males. The comparison of LEASV340-19 sequence in BOLD showed a 99.85% similarity with S. sophiae . Distance analysis of the sequences between the female and two S. sophiae males confirms that it belongs to the aforementioned species: 0.153% between LEASV340-19 and LEATC054-13; 0.306 % between LEASV340-19 and PHLAH776-12.

Habitat and bionomics. Currently S. sophiae is known only from the type locality, in the eastern Dolomites ( Italy). The locus typicus is a rocky limestone plateau at an altitude of 2,500 m in the Pale di San Martino mountain range. The biology and early stages of this species are unknown. However, in analogy to other species of Sattleria (cf. Pitkin & Sattler 1991) it is likely that S. sophiae is associated with Silene sp. ( Caryophyllaceae ) and/or Saxifraga sp. ( Saxifragaceae ). Since the original description, more than 30 males have been collected using an 18-watt Wood’s light. Most males exhibited a peak flight activity after sunset following a drop in temperature, with flight activity decreasing after 22:00H. The flight activity of males appears not to be influenced by the presence or absence of wind. At the time of capture, the female was resting on a large limestone rock, at the bottom of one of the numerous crevices that occur in this kind of substrate. This hiding behavior has also been observed in another female of a currently unidentified species of Sattleria from the Marmolada massif. It is possible that this concealing strategy help females to remain accessible to males for mating while ensuring protection from sudden gusts of wind.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Sattleria sophiae Timossi, 2014, female: A. Dorsal habitus; B. Genitalia, general view; black arrow pointing at hornshaped anterior process; C. Detail of genitalia highlighting the sclerotized apophyses. D. Papillae anales.