Kiwaia (Empista) centrica, Bidzilya, Oleksiy & Li, Houhun, 2016

Bidzilya, Oleksiy & Li, Houhun, 2016, A review of the genus Kiwaia Philpott, 1930 (Lepidoptera, Gelechiidae) in the Palaearctic Region, Zootaxa 4098 (3), pp. 471-497 : 481-482

Kiwaia (Empista) centrica sp. n.

( Figs 14–16 , 42, 43 , 58, 59 )

Type material. CHINA: Holotype ♂, Badagongshan [29°41′N, 110°03′E], Sangzhi County, Hunan Province, 1250 m, 12.viii.2001, coll. Houhun Li & Xinpu Wang, gen. slide no. SYW05204 (NKU). Paratypes: 2♂, 1♀, same data as holotype but 13.viii.2001, gen. slide nos. SYW05224♂; L13001♀; 1♂, 1♀, Shanxi [35°24' N, 112°02'], 20.viii. 2012, 1445 m, gen. slide nos. L13067♂, OB120/13♀ (NKU).

Additional material examined. 1♀, Yanggashan, Wen County, Gansu Province, 1950 m, 4.vii.2001, coll. Houhun Li, Xinpu Wang, gen. slide no. L07037 (NKU).

Description. Adult ( Figs 14–16 ): Wingspan 14.0–14.5 mm. Head whitish, neck light brown to light grey; labial palpus upcurved, segment 2 black, outer and upper surface whitish, underside without groove, segment 3 slightly shorter than segment 2 and nearly as wide as the latter, black with whitish medial belt and white apex; antannae black; thorax light brown mottled with black; tegulae black; forewing covered with light grey, black tipped scales, darkest in costal part and getting lighter towards dosral margin, two poorly expressed black spots in the base of cell, one spot in the corner of cell, yellowish brown scales randomly spread over the wing but concentrated along dorsal margin, costal and tornal light brown spot nearly connected; cilia light brown, blacktipped; hindwing light grey.

Male genitalia ( Figs 42, 43 ): Uncus distinctly longer than broad, weakly narrowed towards rounded apex; gnathos slender, of equal width, sickle-shaped; tegumen prolonged, anteromedial emargination as broad as long, extending to about 2/5 length of tegumen; valvae of equal width, apex weakly dilated, tip strongly or moderately acute, extending over the top of uncus; sacculus 1/4–1/5 length of valva, of equal width, turned inwards; vincular process twice longer than broad, separated by V-shaped medial incision, posterior margin finely serrated, not extending the tip of sacculus; vinculum narrow, posterior margin with moderately deep medial emargination; saccus moderately narrow, tapered apically, extending beyond the top of pedunculus; caecum moderately swollen, distal part of phallus weakly narrowed towards apex with short lateral tip, apical arm broad, down curved, lamina well developed.

Female genitalia ( Figs 58, 59 ): Papilla analis ovate, covered with short setae; apophyses posteriores long and narrow, about four times longer than segmengt VIII; sternite VIII slightly longer than broad, subgenital plate narrow, parallel-sided, without modification, ventomedial depression with numerous microtrichia, anterior lobes digitate, well sclerotized, medially distinctly separated, extending beyond anterior margin of sternite VIII, ostium opening indistinct; apophyses anteriores slightly longer than segment VIII, slender, antrum twice shorter than length of ductus bursae; ductus bursae as long as apophyses anteriores, distinctly separated from large, globular corpus bursae; signum horn-shaped, basal plate rounded, distal portion narrow, weakly curved with a few small basal teeth.

Remarks. The species takes an intermediate position between more or less uniformely greyish black Kiwaiaspecies ( K. (E.) povolnyi sp. n., K. (E.) medogia sp. n. and K. (E.) yadongensis sp. n.) and species with distinctly lighter dorsal part of forewing ( K. (E.) septentrionala sp. n., K. (E.) nyingchiensis sp. n., K. (E.) montana sp. n.). The presence of distinct light brown costal and tornal spots in combination with light, whitish head may be considered as a characteristic feature of new species. The male genitalia most resemble those of K. (E.) septentrionala sp. n., but differ in broader vincular processes, shorter sacculus, more prolonged uncus and long valva that extends the top of uncus. The female genitalia can easily be recognized by the ventromedial depression that extending beyond anterior margin of sternite VIII, the narrow ductus bursae and large, globular corpus bursae.

The female (gen. slide no. L07037) from Gansu has not been included in the type series due to some

differences in the genitalia: broader colliculum and pyriform rather than globular corpus bursae. Biology. Host plant unknown. Adults have been collected in mid August at altitude of 1250 m. Distribution. China (Gansu, Hunan).

Etymology. The specific name is derived from the Latin centricus (central), in reference to distributed in central China.

Figures

FIGURES 11 – 20. Adults of Kiwaia (Empista) spp. 11, K. (E.) septentrionala sp. n., PT, ♀ (China: Shanxi); 12, K. (E.) septentrionala sp. n., PT, ♀ (China: Shanxi); 13, K. (E.) septentrionala sp. n., PT, ♂ (China: Gansu); 14, K. (E.) centrica sp. n., HT, ♂ (China: Hunan); 15, K. (E.) centrica sp. n., PT, ♀ (China: Hunan); 16, K. (E.) centrica sp. n., ♀ (China: Gansu); 17, K. (E.) spinosa (Povolný), HT, ♂ (Nepal); 18, K. (E.) montana sp. n., HT, ♂ (China: Xizang); 19, K. (E.) montana sp. n., PT, ♂ (China: Xizang); 20, K. (E.) medogia sp. n., HT, ♂ (China: Xizang).

FIGURES 42 – 47. Male genitalia of Kiwaia (Empista) spp. 42, K. (E.) centrica sp. n., HT (China: Hunan), slide no. SYW 05204; 43, K. (E.) centrica sp. n., PT (China: Hunan), slide no. SYW 05224; 44, K. (E.) spinosa (Povolný), HT (Nepal), slide Jp. 4833; 45, K. (E.) montana sp. n., HT (China: Xizang), slide no. L 07029; 46, K. (E.) montana sp. n., PT (China: Xizang), slide no. L 13017; 47 K. (E.) medogia sp. n., HT (China: Xizang), slide no. L 07038.

FIGURES 57 – 59. Female genitalia of Kiwaia (Empista) spp. 57, K. (E.) septentrionala sp. n., PT (China: Gansu), slide no. OB 118 / 13; 58, K. (E.) centrica sp. n., PT (China: Hunan), slide no. L 13001; 59, K. (E.) centrica sp. n., PT (China: Gansu), slide no. L 07037.