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A new species of Agdistis Huebner, 1825 from Tajikistan (Pterophoridae) PDF

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Preview A new species of Agdistis Huebner, 1825 from Tajikistan (Pterophoridae)

Notalepid. 31(1): 65-68 65 A new species ofAgdistis Hübner, 1825 from Tajikistan (Pterophoridae) FlorianAltermatt FlorianAltermatt,Zoological Institute, UniversitätBasel,Vesalgasse 1,CH^051 Basel; e-mail: [email protected] Abstract. Agdistis tugai, sp. n., is described based on two females collected in south Tajikistan. The habitat is a so-called tugai forest that consists ofPopulus diversifolia Schrenk trees and tamarisk shrubs {Tamarix sp.)- The forest is surrounded by steppe. The adult and the female genitalia are illustrated. The type specimens will be deposited in the collection ofthe Natural History Museum ofBasel, Switzerland (Naturhistorisches MuseumBasel). Records forfive otherPterophoridae species fromTajikistan are also given. Introduction Members of the genus Agdistis Hübner [1825] occur in the whole Palaearctic and are especially found in coastal areas and in Central Asian steppes (Arenberger 1995). About 100 species of Agdistis are known to date (Gielis 2003). The knowledge on CentralAsianPterophoridaeis stillincomplete, buttheinformationregardingthegenus Agdistis was summarized by Arenberger (1995). Because some countries of the area can now be accessed more easily, their attraction increased and several descriptions of new species followed (e.g. AUpanah & Ustjuzhanin 2006; Arenberger 1995, 2002; Ustjuzhanin 2001; Zagulajev 1990, 1996). Here I describe a new species ofthe genus Agdistis found in southern Tajikistan, close to the Afghan border. The species can be recognizedeasily by the female genitalia. Itoccurs in the only remaining largePopulus diversifolia Schrenk (Salicaceae) forest at the confluence of the Vakhsh and Panj riv- ers. Agdistis tugai sp. n. (Figs 1-3) Material. Holotype 9, 'TJ [Tajikistan] Tigrovaya Balka Karalyevskaya Dacha E68° 23' 10" NaFI 5n.Ad3vl7ipt°iae.rr12ma40at'0ty7t0p'0eL."Fa,-reIP3la1der6ega.ptmoyFsl.pieAt:6le.td1/e7ri9.mn,vaitt'ihtT.e'J2,N0[0'HT7PaMajLriBFak.itsyItplaeeng].IATFgi.dgiArslottviesarmytaautgBta'ai,lAk'laHtIoeIlEromta6yt8pt°e924I'AIgd3ed5ti..s9tF"i.sAIlNttueg3ra7mi°atAIt1l'4t.'er2Tm9ha.et8t"h,o9l3o3It0dyeptme.I Description. Adult female (Fig. 1). Alar expanse 26 mm, forewing length 14.5 mm. Headwhitishtopale grey, frons creamy white withbrown scales leftandrightofbulge. Lapial palpus creamy white to greyish, posterior end ofeach segment with few brown scales. Antenna grey, proboscis well developed. Vertex creamy white to grey with few brown scales. Forewing notcleft, whitishto greyish white with brown scales, speckled. Central field homogenously grey and slightly darker than rest of wing. Four brown costal markings: two mostproximal markings well developed, two distal ones suffused and hardly visible. Four markings at dorsal margin of fold, 4^^ obliquely above 3'"^, sometimes also fused. Ciliamostly white, dark grey on dorsal edge. Hindwing greyish. Notalepidopterologica, 15.05.2008,ISSN0342-7536 66 Altermatt:Anew speciesofAgdistisHübner Figs 1-3.Agdististugaisp. n. 1. Holotype, female. Scale bar 10 mm. 2. Femalegenitaliaand7th stemite. Scale bar 1 mm. 3. Habitat: a tugai forest with Populus diversifolia trees and tamarisk shrubs (photo by T. Stalling). plain-coloured. All legs whitish with brown scales; distal end ofhindleg's tarsomere brown. Caudal end of7"" sternite deeply carved. Male. Unknown. Female genitalia (Fig. 2). Apophyses anteriores absent. Apophyses posteriores long and slender, about 1.8 times length of papillae anales. Anterior third of papillae Notalepid. 31(1): 65-68 67 anales conspicuously sclerotized.Antrumweakly sclerotized; caudal end (ostium) with two stub-shaped appendages fraying outatinneredge. Ductus bursae with weekly scle- rotized collar. Corpus bursae without sclerites. Diagnosis. Agdistis tugai sp. n. can be distinguished from most otherAgdistis species by the absence of anterior apophyses, the weakly sclerotized antrum (exceptional in this genus) and the deeply carved 7*'' stemite. Agdistis tugai has only stub-shaped ap- pendages on the antrum. The antrum ofA. tugai is somewhat similar to the antrum of A. mevlaniella Arenberger, 1972, but the latter species has pronounced apophyses an- teriores. The apophyses posteriores are relatively longer inA. tugai than in the recently described Agdistis karakalensis Zagulajev, 1990 (apophyses posteriores as long as pa- pillae anales) and Agdistis karabachica Zagulajev, 1990 (apophyses posteriores about 1.2 times the length ofpapillae anales). A Habitat. Populusdiversifolia forest inTigrovayaBalka. It is atypical riparian flood- plain forest known as "tugai" where bushes of Tamarix sp. (Tamaricaceae) are com- mon. Surroundedby steppe anddesertandcovering an areaofabout50 km^,Tigrovaya Balkaisthelargestremainingtugaiforest.Theforestedareaisofficiallyprotected (with the status ofa "Zapovednik") and lies close to a prohibited zone at the country border. Nevertheless, the forest is highly threatened by illegal logging and desertification. Distribution. The two available specimens were collected at two close-by sites in the TigrovayaBalkain southTajikistan. The sites are located about 15 km north-north-east of the confluence of the Vakhsh and Panj rivers. The species might also occur in the neighboring countries ofAfghanistan and Uzbekistan. Life history. Unknown. Etymology.Thenameistakenfromthehabitattypeatthetypelocality, whichisknown as a "tugai" forest. Faunistic remarks. I have collected one female of Agdistis mevlaniella Arenberger, one female of Agdistis tamaricis (Zeller), and one male of Crombrugghia distans (Zeller) at the same locality and date as the holotype. I have also collected one male ofMarasmarcha colossa Chapman and two females of Tabulaephorus maracandicus & Arenberger Buchsbaum at another location west of Dushanbe (Sharinav/Chotsch, E 68° 25' 10", N 38° 27' 56", 1800 m; 2.vii.2007). All individuals were collected at a light trap (12 W) during the first halfofthe night. Acknowledgements IthankRaffaelAyeforhissupportbefore,during,andafterthetripandThomasStalhngforaccompanying me during the light catches. ErnstArenberger provided important taxonomic remarks and made helpful commentsonthemanuscript.This workwasfinancedfrommy ownpurse. References Alipanah, H. & P. Ustjuzhanin 2006. Anew species, anew synonym, and new distribution records in the genusAgdistisHübner, 1825fromIran(Pterophoridae:Agdistinae).-Notalepidopterologica29(3/4): 177-184. 68 Altermatt:Anew speciesofAgdistisHübner Arenberger, E. 1995. Pterophoridae. -In: H. G. Amsel, F. Gregor & H. Reisser, MicrolepidopteraPalae- arcticaVol. 9.-GeorgFromme,Vienna, xxv+258pp., 153 pis. Arenberger, E. 2002. Eine neue Agdistis aus Zentralasien (Lepidoptera, Pterophoridae). - Carinthia 2: 607-614. Gielis,C. 2003.WorldCatalogueofInsects.Vol.4: Pterophoroidea&Alucitoidea(Lepidoptera).-Apollo Books, Stenstrup, 198 pp. Ustjuzhanin, P.Y. 2001. New species, distribution records and synonymies ofplume moths (Lepidoptera, Pterophoridae)fromthePalaearctic region. -Notalepidopterologica24(3): 11-32. Zagulajev,A. K. 1990. New species ofmoths (Lepidoptera: Tineidae, Incurvariidae, Brachodidae, Ptero- phoridae)ofthefaunaoftheUSSR. IV.-EntomologicheskoeObozrenie69(1): 102-117. Fig. 1-9. Zagulajev,A. K. 1996. New and little known species ofmoths (Lepidoptera: Psychidae,Tineidae, Ptero- phoridae,Alucitidae)ofthefaunaofRussiaandneighbouringterritories.-EntomologicheskoeOboz- renie75(1): 117-131.

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