Description of Sphaleroptera orientana meridionalis subs. n. (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae: Cnephasiini) from the Pale di San Martino Mountain plateau (Dolomites, NE Italy)
Author
Timossi, Giovanni
0000-0003-1250-7274
World Biodiversity Association Onlus, c / o Museo Civico di Storia Naturale Lungadige, Porta Vittoria 9,37129 Verona, Italy. https: // orcid. org / 0000 - 0003 - 1250 - 7274
Author
Ruzzier, Enrico
Department of Science, University of Roma Tre, Rome, Italy. & NBFC, National Biodiversity Future Center, Palermo 90133, Italy.
text
Zootaxa
2023
2023-02-28
5249
1
1
11
http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5249.1.1
journal article
10.11646/zootaxa.5249.1.1
ccf56b01-f7a5-4e13-895b-a44621f00612
1175-5326
7685209
59E9BD70-A4DF-46DA-8C0A-134C929D8E8C
Sphaleroptera orientana meridionalis
ssp. nov.
Type material.
Holotype
: adult ♁,
Italy
,
Trento
,
PPPSM
,
Rifugio Pedrotti
46.2679
11.8409
,
2581 m
;
20.VIII.2019
: legit
Timossi G.
; genitalia slide number 1730.
Day
fly.
Paratype
: adult
♀
,
Italy
,
Trento
,
PPPSM
,
Rifugio Pedrotti
,
46.2679 N
,
11.8409 E
,
2581 m
;
20.VIII.2019
: legit
Timossi G.
; genitalia slide number 1950.
Attracted
to
UV
lights
.
Description.
Adult ♁ (
Fig. 1–2
). Head: frons and palpi dark grey with few scales with light grey ends, black antennae with little white innellation; legs black with few light grey scales, tarsi with white rings, spurs light grey. Abdomen grey. Forewing: wingspan
16.8 mm
, ground colour grey with few light grey, black and yellow scales. Forewing pattern (see
Razowski 2002
, page 9, fig. 6, 8): basal blotch and median fascia slate gray edged in black, subapical blotch and apical area confluent slate grey, fringe grey. Hindwing grey.
FIGURE 1
.
Sphaleroptera orientana meridionalis
sp. nov.
holotype, male, dorsal habitus.
FIGURE 2
.
Sphaleroptera orientana meridionalis
sp. nov.
holotype, labial palpus.
Male genitalia: elongated uncus (
Fig. 3A
), broad and elongated socius, slightly sclerotic gnathos, narrow tegumen, elongated pedunculus. Valva very broad basally, with a short terminal part (Fog. 3B); sacculus bilobed. Vinculum large; juxta pentagonal, with one incision at the posterior margin. Aedeagus sclerotized, gun-shaped (
Fig. 3C
), with protruding apical process bent at the distal end and passing through the stem: aedeagus is 116.604 µm: the length is taken following the indications of
Whitebread (2006)
.
FIGURE 3
.
Sphaleroptera orientana meridionalis
sp. nov.
holotype, male, genitalia slide number 1730. A) uncus; B) valva; C) aedeagus in lateral view; length 116.6 µm (blue line).
Adult
♀
(
Fig. 4–5
). Head: frons light grey, second segment of the palps dark grey externally for half length, third segment slate grey, black antennae with white bands; prothoracic and mesothoracic legs with tarsus and tibia light grey, tarsi black with white rings, metathoracic legs light grey. Abdomen grey with light bands. Forewing: wingspan
14.4 mm
, ground colour light grey, post basal fascia and median fascia dark grey, fringe dark and light grey. Hindwing white.
FIGURE 4
.
Sphaleroptera orientana meridionalis
sp. nov.
paratype, female, dorsal view.
FIGURE 5
.
Sphaleroptera orientana meridionalis
sp. nov.
paratype, labial palpus.
Female genitalia: (
Fig. 6
) ovipositor telescopic, short. Papillae anales flat, hairy; posterior apophyses about twice the anterior; Strongly sclerotic antrum, asymmetrical V-shaped, tubular, and slightly flared at the end, incised and with a cap-shaped protrusion; ductus burse short, ductus seminalis very close to the extremity of the antrum. Bursa about as long as the antrum without signum.
FIGURE 6
.
Sphaleroptera orientana meridionalis
sp. nov.
paratype, female genitalia
(
slide number 1952).
DNA barcoding and phylogenetic analysis
. The DNA barcoding resulted in a sequence of 630 bp deposited in GenBank as
Sphaleroptera
sp.
(ON721387).
The phylogenetic reconstruction, inclusive of
Sphaleroptera dentana
as outgroup, resulted in the consensus tree shown in
Fig. 7
. The topology of the whole tree is highly supported with
Sphaleroptera orientana meridionalis
forming a separate lineage in the respect of the
orientana-suborientana
cluster (bootstrap = 71%).
FIGURE 7
. Maximum Likelihood tree of
Sphaleroptera orientana
.
Both
S. orientana orientana
and
S. orientana meridionalis
, both with specimens from two different localities, show very low intraspecific variability with a genetic distance of 0.2% and 0.1% respectively.
Sphaleroptera orientana meridionalis
is equally divergent from the previously mentioned taxa, with a genetic distance of ~1.1%. Genetic distances among the three subspecies are summarised in
Table 1
.
TABLE 1.
Triangular matrix showing the genetic distances among
Sphaleroptera orientana
subspecies.
|
Sphaleroptera orientana
|
Sphaleroptera orientana
|
Sphaleroptera orientana
|
|
orientana
|
suborientana
|
meridionalis
|
|
Sphaleroptera
|
-
|
|
orientana
orientana
|
|
Sphaleroptera
|
0.0145 |
- |
|
orientana
suborientana
|
|
Sphaleroptera
|
0.0109 |
0.0105 |
- |
| orientana meridionalis |
Diagnosis.
The new
ssp. resembles
S. orientana suborientana
both in external appearance as well as in the male genitalia.
Sphaleroptera orientana meridionalis
in comparison with
Sphaleroptera orientana suborientana
is distinguished by the darker grey background colour of forewing, which bear a few grey–white scales, the darker palps, head, femurs and tarsi. In the male of
S. orientana meridionalis
the uncus is more elongated and the phallus is longer than that of
S. o.
orientana
and
S. o. suborientana
(see
Whitebread 2006
for comparison). The female of
S. o. meridionalis
is similar in the general appearance to that of
S. o.
orientana
,
but it can be clearly separated by the latter on the base of genitalia morphology: in
Sphaleroptera orientana orientana
the antrum is rounded, Ushaped (
Fig. 8A–B
) while in
S. orientana meridionalis
is markedly asymmetrical V-shaped (
Fig. 6
,
8C
). Moreover, the antrum of new subspecies is narrowed and incised at its proximal end, a unique feature when compared to the other
Sphaleroptera
species
(see
Whitebread 2006
, figure 8, pag. 191). The female of
S. o. suborientana
remains unknown.
FIGURE 8
. Comparison table of
Sphaleroptera orientana
female genitalia: A-B.
Sphaleroptera orientana orientana
from Austria (
Whitebread, 2006
; modified); C.
Sphaleroptera orientana meridionalis
sp. nov.
Etymology
. The new subspecies has the southernmost distribution among those known, hence the name
meridionalis
.
Biology
. Unknown. One generation observed. In the available literature (
Razowski 2002
,
Whitebread 2006
)
Sphaleroptera
are described as diurnal, but during the research the female of
S. o. meridionalis
was collected at night in the proximity of the light trap.
Habitat
. Habitats are rock formations on a karst limestone plateau with sparse vegetation at elevations of about
2500 m
cod. 8120: Calcareous and calcschist screes of the montane to alpine levels (
Thlaspietea rotundifolii
, cod. 8210: Calcareous rocky slopes with chasmophytic vegetation) (
Fig. 9
).
Conservation notes.
The
locus typicus
of
Sphaleroptera orientana meridionalis
is in the proximity of the Pedrotti refuge and close to the arrival station of the cable car connecting the area with San Martino di Castrozza (Trento Province, Trentino Alto Adige). Especially during summer, the whole area is subject to a significant influx of tourists, often associated with cultural and sporting events. Fortunately, the disturbance caused by tourists is still quite limited and localised above all thanks to the important extension of the plateau and the total lack of structures, with the exception of the refuge, which limit the usability of the environment. However, it cannot be excluded that an increase in the tourist load, combined with a reckless use of the area for recreational purposes, could threaten the survival of
S. orientana meridionalis
and other species present in the area, many of which are endemic. On the other hand, the global rise in temperatures may constitute a serious threat for this taxon which has a very low dispersal capacity due to the brachypterous females.