Coscinia mariarosae Expósito, 1991

Macià, Ramon, Mally, Richard, Ylla, Josep, Gastón, Javier & Huertas, Manuel, 2019, Integrative revision of the Iberian species of Coscinia Hübner, [1819] sensu lato and Spiris Hübner, [1819], (Lepidoptera: Erebidae, Arctiinae), Zootaxa 4615 (3), pp. 401-449 : 418-420

Coscinia mariarosae Expósito, 1991

Original combination: Coscinia mariarosae Expósito, 1991 . SHILAP Revista de lepidopterología, 19 (73), 31–34.

LT. Serra d´Alfàbia, Mallorca, Balearic Islands ( Spain).

Material studied. 1♂ Coll de Reis , Nus de sa Corbata , Escorca (Mallorca), 674 m, 31SDE83, 7.X.2015, R. Macià leg. ; 1♀ Coll de Reis , Nus de sa Corbata , Escorca (Mallorca), 674 m, 31SDE83, 3.X.2016, R. Macià leg. ; 1♂ Puig de s´Aritjar , Serra d´Alfabia , Bunyola (Mallorca), 1025 m, 31SDD79, 3.X.2015, R. Macià leg. ; 1♀ Puig de s´Aritjar , Serra d´Alfabia , Bunyola (Mallorca), 1025 m, 31SDD79, 1.X.2016, R. Macià leg. ; 1♂ Ctra. Ma 10 Km. 42, 5, For- nalutx (Mallorca), 524 m, 31SDE70, 5.X.2016, R. Macià leg.

Diagnosis. Coscinia mariarosae is characterized by the silver-brown grey forewings, subbasal and antemedial lines strongly angled; hindwings uniformly brown grey. It has a certain resemblance to L. bifasciata , but it is darker in colour.

Description. Imago ( Figs 11–12 ). Average wingspan 36 mm (n = 15; 26–48 mm).

Genitalia ( Fig. 34 ). The male genitalia are characterised by a group of well-developed cornuti that surround the sclerotized plaque which is present in all the other species of the genus. This plate is elongate and narrow in C. mariarosae and it is triangular and wider in the other Coscinia species. In the female genitalia, the sclerotized wide plate that surrounds the bursa constricts it asymmetrically, close to one end; the process from which the ductus seminalis emerges is very thick and sclerotized, another clear difference from the other species of the genus.

Immature stages ( Fig. 48 ). The last instar larva measures 21–24 mm. Head capsule dark brown. Dorsal area very dark, extending to verruca SD1, with a white narrow central line; laterally, from SD1 to the prolegs, light yellow with dark spots; ventral surface light yellow to whitish, with blotchy greyish spots medially; verruca D1, D2, SD1 black; L1, L2, L3 yellowish; thoracic legs with the femur and the tibia straw-coloured, the tarsus and the nails dark; abdominal prolegs with 21 to 26 large nails. Pupae of both male and female erect, dark brown, the tips of the antennae not touching; those of the pterothecae touch along a straight line.

Molecular data. The three genetically investigated specimens differ by 0–0.43% from each other, with an average of 0.29% p-distance. Interspecific p-distances in specimens of Coscinia range from 6.91% to 9.50%, and both highest and lowest p-distances are with specimens of C. cribraria ( Table 3 ).

In the wingless gene, the three C. mariarosae specimens differ by 0–0.30% from each other, and by 1.19–1.79% from both C. cribraria and C. chrysocephala .

The monophyly of C. mariarosae is strongly supported (1.00 PP, 100% BS). In the strongly (1.00 PP) too moderately (82% BS) supported Coscinia monophylum, it is sister to the clade comprising C. cribraria and C. chrysocephala ( Fig. 62 ).

Biology. The biology of this species is still poorly known. The first observations suggested a univoltine cycle with a single generation from mid-September to October ( Macià et al. 2016). Recent observations indicate that it is at least bivoltine with a first generation from May to early June and a second from mid-September to early October. Both sexes are nocturnal and are attracted by artificial light. The species prefers calcareous, stony and sunny terrain at altitudes between 400–1200 m where a typical calcicole vegetation flourishes, rich in rosemary ( Rosmarinus officinalis ). It is possible that this is one of the food plants, as well as Plantago , Taraxacum and other low plants and grasses ( Macià et al. 2015, 2016).

Distribution ( Fig. 56 ). Endemic to the island of Mallorca where is restricted to the Serra de Tramontana.

Figures

FIGURE 34. C. mariarosae, male and female genitalia, gen. prep. 5730JG m. Coll de Reis, Nus de sa Corbata, Mallorca, Balears, (Spain), 5713JG f. Coll de Reis, Nus de sa Corbata, Mallorca, Balears, (Spain).

FIGURE 48. Immature state Coscinia mariarosae (picture MH).

FIGURE 56. Distribution map of C. mariarosae.

FIGURE 62. Phylogenetic tree (General Time Reversible model + Gamma distribution) obtained from Bayesian analysis of combined COI Barcode and wingless gene data of the Arctiinae specimens studied; numbers above branches are Posterior Probabilities ≥ 0.90, numbers below branches are Bootstrap values obtained from 1,000 Bootstrap replicates of a Maximum Likelihood analysis conducted with RaxML. Within the C. cribraria clade, the subspecies C. c. benderi, C. c. rippertii and C. c. ibicenca are marked in slightly darker green. The black vertical bars on the right mark BOLD BINs; the specimens of BIN ACE7017 are nested within BIN AAD9042. The scale bar (upper left) represents substitutions per nucleotide position.

FIGURES 9–18. 9. C. chrysocephala, male, Sierra Cabrera, Turre,Almería, (Spain) (coll. RMV); 10. C. chrysocephala, female, El Abalario, Huelva, (Spain) (coll. RMV); 11. C. mariarosae, male, Coll de Reis, Nus de sa Corbata, Escorca, Mallorca, Balears, (Spain) (coll. RMV); 12. C. mariarosae, female, Coll de Reis, Nus de sa Corbata, Escorca, Mallorca, Balears, (Spain) (coll. RMV); 13. S. libyssa caligans, male, Bronte, Etna, Sicilia, (Italy) (coll. RMV); 14. S. libyssa caligans, female, Bronte, Etna, Sicilia, (Italy) (coll. RMV); 15. S. libyssa liouvillei, male, Mischliffen, Middle Atlas, (Morocco) (coll. RMV); 16. S. libyssa liouvillei, female, Mischliffen, Middle Atlas, (Morocco) (coll. RMV); 17. S. romei, male, Val de Falcones, La Retuerta, Zaragoza, (Spain) (coll. RMV); 18. S. romei, female, Val de Falcones, La Retuerta, Zaragoza, (Spain) (coll. RMV).