Spialia rosae Hernández-Roldán, DApporto, Dincă, Vicente & VilA, 2016, and 17 moth species new for the fauna of Portugal (Insecta: Lepidoptera)
Author
Marabuto, Eduardo
text
Arquivos Entomolóxicos
2022
2022-12-18
25
305
322
journal article
10.5281/zenodo.12812142
1989-6581
12812142
3.
Prays peregrina
Agassiz, 2007
—
Estorãos, Ponte de Lima,
Viana do Castelo
.
30 m
a.s.l.
MGRS
: 29TNG2926.
28.IX.2021
;
16.XII.2021
;
17.II.2022
;
07.III.2022
.
Ernesto GonÇalves
leg.,
Eduardo Marabuto
det.
Larvae
, pupae or adults
on
Ruta graveolens
. (
Figs. 1e, f, g
)
.
—
Gemunde, Maia,
Porto
.
MGRS
: 29TNF3069.
25.X.2021
. Carlos Silva obs. Adults
.
—
Árvore, Vila do Conde,
Porto
.
8 m
a.s.l.
MGRS
: 29TNF2175.
09.VII.2022
.
Luis P. da Silva
obs.
Adult
.
—
Verdemilho,
Aveiro
.
15 m
a.s.l.
MGRS
: 29TNE2996.
23.VII.2022
.
Eduardo Marabuto
leg.
Frass
and larval exuviae
on
R. graveolens
.
This enigmatic species was recently described from
England
where specimens were first but repeatedly collected in London from 2003 to 2007 (
Agassiz, 2007
). Later, it has been found in SE
England
as well (
Agassiz & Kiddie, 2016
) and in
2019 in
the Canary Islands (
Falck & Karsholt, 2019
). Whilst its origin is not yet precisely known, SE Asia and the Mediterranean have been suggested, because its closest relatives are Asiatic (
Agassiz, 2007
) and its local host-plant was discovered to be
R. chalepensis
and
R. graveolens
(
Plant, 2016
)
, widespread south-European species but also widely kept in gardens for their purportedly deterrent properties against insects and misfortune (evil eye).
These records are thus the first for
Portugal
, the Iberian Peninsula and the European mainland, of a species which now presents itself as provisionally an Atlanto-Mediterranean element. Its origin has been considered as cryptogenic in
López-Vaamonde
et al
. (2010)
, i.e., not known. Indeed, it is not yet known whether the current findings in
Portugal
represent its hitherto undiscovered native range, or the species is a recent colonist. A support for the latter hypothesis may come from the generalised finding of the species in the NW of
Portugal
and always under an anthropogenic context, exploiting only garden
R. graveolens
, even though there are other native rues widespread in
Portugal
. Perhaps rues are only secondary hosts from an original different
Rutaceae
, like
Citrus
spp.
, as has happened with some butterflies of the genus
Papilio
Linnaeus,
1758
in the Nearctic, chosing rues over native hosts (e.g.,
Ferris & Emmel, 1982
).
GLYPHIPTERIGIDAE