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Sesommata holocapna (Meyrick)

Comprehensive Description

provided by Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology
Sesommata holocapna (Meyrick)

Tinea holocapna Meyrick, 1931:414.—Clarke, 1970:96, pl. 48: figs. 4–4c.

Ceromitia pucarensis Pastrana, 1961:197 [misidentification, in part].

ADULT (Figures 401, 402).—Length of forewing: , 5–6.5 mm; , 6–7 mm. A relatively small moth with dark fuscous forewings in the male and a rounded mass of broad sex scales over the bases of Cu and A; forewings of female slightly lighter in color and often irrorated with white over distal half.

Head: Vestiture fuscous in male to buff in female. Antennae approximately 0.5–0.6 the length of forewing, 38–45-segmented; scape fuscous dorsally, mostly fuscous to occasionally cream ventrally, pecten consisting of 6–7 dark hairs; flagellum fuscous dorsally, cream ventrally. Maxillary palpi buff to cream. Labial palpi cream- white, apical segment with lateral-ventral surfaces fuscous; second segment with 8–12 fuscous to cream hairs laterally.

Thorax: Pronotum dark fuscous. Venter white to gray. Forewings dark fuscous in male, nearly black, with a rounded mass of broad sex scales over bases of Cu and A; outer dark scales often missing over mass thus exposing broad, white sex scales beneath; ventral side with an elongate patch of dull white sex scales extending parallel to basal third to one-half of Cu; forewings of female slightly lighter in color but nearly as dark as male, usually with a light scattering of white scales over distal half; fringe typically fuscous in both sexes. Hind wings fuscous, nearly as dark as forewings; basal half of costal area of male white, with an elongate white to cream hair pencil. Forelegs dark fuscous dorsally, cream to white ventrally; tarsal segments ringed with white, though indistinct in some specimens. Mid- legs similar to forelegs in color. Hind legs paler, brownish fuscous dorsally, with an elongate, grayish white hair pencil in male arising along tibia and equalling the tibia in length.

Abdomen: Dark fuscous dorsally, cream to white ventrally; male without lateral sex scales.

Male Genitalia: As shown in Figures 445–458. Uncus bilobed, lobes slender, widely separated by a distance much greater than their width. Gnathos a rather long, triangular plate bearing a dense cluster of short, stout spines at caudal apex. Vinculum-saccus broad, nearly twice as wide as long. Valvae broad at base, narrowing considerably toward apex; an elongate, digitate process arising subapically and directed mesally. Anellus with lateral arm relatively short, approximately equalling aedoeagus in length. Aedoeagus with a relatively broad apex possessing an irregularly serrated-lobed margin; vesica emerging from a ventral subapical opening at apical third.

Female Genitalia: As shown in Figure 560. Apex of ovipositor broad, 0.6–0.75 mm wide. Colliculum with thickened, folded, densely spiculated walls; spicules varying in shape (Figures 188–191) according to position within colliculum from circular with serrated margins to spinose. Corpus bursae densely covered internally with relatively broad, acute spicules; a single, irregularly circular signum present at anterior end of bursa. Spermatheca relatively short, approximately equalling total length of bursa copulatrix; utriculus relatively slender, with completely membranous, unspiculated walls.

MALE PUPA (Figures 194–196).—Length 6.7 mm; diameter 1.4 mm. Light brown in color. Vertex relatively smooth, with only a slight indented ridge laterally. One pair of setae present at vertex, one pair on frons between eyes, and two pairs of clypeal setae present. Mandible visible as a small trapezoidal sclerite below labrum. Sheaths for antennae and midlegs of approximately same length and extending almost to A4. Wings extending almost to A5. Venter of A3–6 with paired proleg scars. Spiracles well developed on A1–8. A single anterior row of short, stout spines present on tergites of A2–9 + 10; tabulation of abdominal spines as follow: A1 = 0; A2 = 10; A3 = 20; A4 = 16; A5 = 18; A6 = 17; A7 = 14; A8 = 14; A9 + 10 = 10. Dorsum of A9 + 10 also with one pair of larger, stout lateral spines and one pair of caudal spines.

TYPE.—Holotype (BMNH).

TYPE-LOCALITY.—Lake Correntoso, Rio Negro Prov., Argentina.

HOST.—Verbenaceae: Diostea juncea Miers.

FLIGHT PERIOD.—6 November to 11 January; univoltine.



DISTRIBUTION (Map 4).—This species occurs rather widely through the temperate, Valdivian forest region of southern Argentina and Chile and has been collected in the coastal mountains of Chile from Cauquenes Province south to Valdivia; in Argentina it has been found in montane Neuquen, Rio Negro, and Chubut Provinces, a distributional range closely approximating that of its host.

MATERIAL EXAMINED.—16 males and 9 females.

MAP 4.—Distribution of species of Sesommata.

ARGENTINA. Chubut Prov.: El Bolsó, Lago Puelo, 220 m, 1, 21 Nov 1978, E.S. Nielsen. Neuquen Prov.: Pucará, 1 [paratype of Ceromitia pucarensis Pastrana, misidentification], Dec 1956, J.A. Pastrana. Pucará, 650 m, Lago Lacar, 1, 28–29 Nov 1981, Nielsen & Karsholt. Rio Negro Prov.: Lake Correntoso, 1 (holotype), 18–25 Nov 1926. San Carlos de Bariloche, Colonia Suiza, 810 m, 1, 6 Nov, 1978; 2, 21 Nov 1978, E.S. Nielsen; same locality, 800 m, 1 with pupa, larva, 15 Sep 1981, reared from Diostea junceum; 1, 22–23 Nov 1981; 1, 23 Nov 1981; 1 24 Nov 1981; 1, 4 Dec 1981; 1, 21–22 Dec 1981, Nielsen & Karsholt.

CHILE. Cauquenes Prov.: Paso Garcia, 300 m, ∼23 km NW of Cauquenes, 1, 29–30 Nov 1981, D.R. Davis. Cautin Prov.: Fundo Chacamo, 600 m, 35 km NW of Nueva Imperial, 3, 1, 5–8 Dec 1981, D.R. Davis, sweeping & malaise traps. Fundo La Selva, 700 m, 48 km NW of Nueva Imperial, 1, 3, 9–11 Dec 1981, D.R. Davis, sweeping. Malleco Prov.: Near Los Gringos Camp, 1300 m, Nahuelbuta National Park, 1, 6–11 Jan 1982, D.R. Davis, sweeping. Valdivia Prov.: Rincon de la Piedra, 180 m, 20 km S of Valdivia, 1, 14 Nov 1981; 1, 15 Nov 1981, Nielsen & Karsholt.

Specimens deposited in ANIC, BMNH, MACN, MHNS, USNM, and ZMUC.
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bibliographic citation
Davis, Donald R. 1986. "A New Family of Monotrysian Moths from Austral South America (Lepidoptera: Palaephatidae), with a Phylogenetic Review of the Monotrysia." Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology. 1-202. https://doi.org/10.5479/si.00810282.434