Acta Zoologica Lituanica, 2008, Volumen 18, Numerus 3 ISSN 1392-1657

Redescription of Coptotriche pulverea (Walsingham) – an unusual species of the American Tischeriidae fauna (Insecta: )

Jonas Rimantas STONIS, Arūnas DIŠKUS, Virginijus SRUOGA

Department of Zoology, Vilnius Pedagogical University, Studentų 39, LT-08106 Vilnius, Lithuania. E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract. Dissection of the lectotype of Coptotriche pulverea (Walsingham), an unusual taxon in the Tischeriidae of the Americas (originally known from the Caribbean), highlighted the need for species redescription and illustration of the male genitalia. Study of additional material from the tropical forest in Belize revealed Terminalia amazonia (J. F. Gmel.) Exell (Combretaceae) as a host-plant for C. pul- verea and provided the extension of the geographical range for the species. C. pulverea most resembles C. forsteroniae Stonis and Diškus, 2008, which also occurs in Belize. However, C. pulverea differs from all other Coptotriche species in the combination of the extremely reduced, short tegumen and the highly derived bar-like vinculum. Key words: Lepidoptera, Tischeriidae, Coptotriche, America, Belize, West Indies

In t r o d u c t i o n rea (Walsingham, 1897), admirabilis (Braun, 1925), mediostriata (Braun, 1927), Coptotriche consan- The minute size of the adults, the concealed mining guinea (Braun, 1972), lucida (Braun, 1972), distincta life-style of the larvae (predominantly in leaves) and the (Braun, 1972), subnubila (Braun, 1972), simulata difficulty of rearing imagines are factors in the paucity of (Braun, 1972), discreta (Braun, 1972), arizonica knowledge of Tischeriidae. However, reviews on the Af- (Braun, 1972), perplexa (Braun, 1972), crataegifoliae rican (Puplesis & Diškus 2005) and Afrotropical fauna (Braun, 1972), agrimoniella (Braun, 1972), splen- (Lees & Stonis 2007) have been published recently. dida (Braun, 1972), insolita (Braun, 1972), confusa Dealing with the three genera of the American fauna, (Braun, 1972), inexpectata (Braun, 1972), amelanchie­ only two genera have been reviewed so far: ris (Braun, 1972), singularis Stonis and Diškus, 2008 Zeller, 1839 (Stonis & Diškus 2007) and Coptotriche and forsteroniae Stonis and Diškus, 2008. Most of these Walsingham, 1890 (Stonis & Diškus 2008). For a more species are known from the USA mainland, but a few detailed discussion of tischeriid biology, and come from tropical forest habitats of Central America phylogeny, and for the description of the third American (C. pulverea, singularis and forsteroniae) and the Carib- endemic genus (Astrotischeria) see Puplesis and Diškus bean (C. pulverea). There are still no data published on (2003). Information is also available at http://www. the distribution of Coptotriche in South America. life4diversity.com. In this paper, the lectotype of Tischeria pulverea Wal- American Coptotriche species are trophically associated singham, 1897 (currently Coptotriche pulverea) desig- with plants of five families and 12 genera: Fagaceae nated here is studied together with additional material (Quercus, Castanea), Rosaceae (Crataegus, Malus, from Central America. This is a taxon of particular Amelancher, Rubus, Rosa, Agrimonia, Fragaria), Eri- morphological and phylogenetical interest, which is caceae (Vaccinium), Combretaceae (Terminalia) and redescribed and illustrated here for the first time. Apocynaceae (Forsteronia). Currently, the American fauna of Coptotriche (syn. Emmetia Leraut, 1993) comprises 31 species: zelleriella (Clemens, 1859), Ma t e r i a l a n d m e t h o d s citrinipennella (Clemens, 1859), malifoliella (Cle­ mens, 1860), aenea (Frey & Boll, 1873), roseticola Genitalia were prepared following the method of Rob- (Frey & Boll, 1873), badiiella (Chambers, 1875), fus- inson (1976). After maceration of the abdomen in 10% comarginella (Chambers, 1875), purinosella (Cham- KOH and subsequent cleaning, the male genital capsule bers, 1875), castaneaeella (Chambers, 1875), concolor was removed. Morphological structures of the genitalia (Zeller, 1875), clemensella (Chambers, 1878), pulve- were studied and sketched from specimens in glycerol 165 Redescription of Coptotriche pulverea

before permanent mounting in Euparal. Other details tion posteriorly. Valva (317–387 µm), triangular from on methods and terminology are given in Puplesis and ventral view (Fig. 2A), broad and slightly curved from Diškus (2003). lateral view (Fig. 3B). Transtilla about 75–86 µm long, Redescription of the species is possible thanks to valu- sublateral processes short (tiny in the lectotype). Vin- able material collected by Dr Owen T. Lewis (University culum highly modified, partially reduced, in a form of of Oxford) at Las Cuevas Biological Station, Belize, in unusual transverse bar which remains very sclerotised 1987–1988. The lectotype of the species is deposited (Figs 2A, 3E). Anellus as a large, weakly visible mem- in the Natural History Museum, London (BMNH); the branous tube-like structure, in distal half covered with additional material from Belize is deposited in Vilnius numerous, but extremely tiny spines (2A). Aedeagus Pedagogical University (VPU). (378–435 µm) abruptly broadened into tulip-shaped apex, with two lateral clusters of tiny, weakly sclerotised thorn-like cornuti (Figs 2A, 3C). Re d e s c r i p t i o n o f Co p t o t r i c h e p u l v e r e a (Wa l - s i n g h a m )

Description. Male (Fig. 1).

1 mm Figure 1. Coptotriche pulverea; adult male.

Forewing length 2.2–2.5 mm. Wingspan 4.9–5.3 mm. 0.1 mm Head: palpi short, straight, whitish or cream (sometimes A yellowish); face cream to yellowish cream; frontal tuft B comprised of cream and grey brown slender lamellar Figure 2. Coptotriche pulverea; male genitalia, slide scales overlapping face; collar cream to yellowish No. 28831 BMNH, lectotype. A – genital capsule (ventral cream; antenna pale fuscous to cream brownish, with view); B – aedeagus (ventral view). extremely long piliform sensillae several times exceed- ing width of flagellum, but shortening at distal third of antenna. Thorax yellowish to cream, with irregularly Female unknown. distributed brown or fuscous scales; tegulae brown Distribution. The species was originally described and in basal part, but yellowish cream distally. Forewing known only from the Caribbean (USA: Virgin Is.), but pale yellowish brown, profusely sprinkled around all recently also collected in Central America (Belize, in margins (but especially along costa), with fuscous or secondary tropical forest habitat of the Chiquibul Forest brown scales; slight indications of dark dorsal mark Reserve and San Ignacio) (Fig. 4). present before tornus. Underside of forewing grey or Biology. Host-plant: Terminalia amazonia (J. F. Gmel.) pale brown. Cilia pale grey to fuscous. Hindwing very Exell (Combretaceae). Larvae hatch in March. Leaf- narrow (Fig. 1), grey or brown; its cilia from yellowish mines are blotch-like (but not preserved by collectors grey to brown, however, in old specimens may look with the reared specimens and therefore unknown in cream. Forelegs and midlegs fuscous, hindlegs yellow- detail). Adults fly in April. Otherwise unknown. ish grey. Abdomen pale grey on upperside, yellowish Diagnosis. This species most resembles Coptotriche cream on underside. forsteroniae Stonis and Diškus, 2008, which also oc- Male genitalia (Figs 2A, B, 3A–E). Capsule 290 µm. Un- curs in Belize. However, C. pulverella differs from cus with very large triangular lateral lobes (98–148 µm). C. forsteroniae in the highly derived bar-like vinculum Socii oval, with tiny setae. Tegumen broad (136–194 µm), (in C. forsteroniae the vinculum is triangular, with but very short (30–55 µm), with very deep oval excava- an anterior extension) and the gradually narrowed 166 Stonis J. R., Diškus A., Sruoga V.

larvae of C. forsteroniae mine the leaves of Forsteronia myriantha (Apocynaceae). C. pulverella differs from all other Coptotriche species in the combination of the extremely short tegumen (30–55 µm in the middle) and the transverse bar-like vinculum. Material examined. Lectotype: male, USA, West In- A dies, Virgin Is., St. Thomas, 30.iii.1894, Gudmann and Hedemann (Lord Walsingham collection), genitalia slide No. 28831 (BMNH) (also see Results). 1 male (not type), Belize, Cayo District, San Ignacio, secondary for- est, 17–18.iv.1998, in light trap, R. Puplesis and S. Hill (VPU). 1 male (not type), Belize, Cayo District, Chiq- B uibul Forest Reserve, Las Cuevas Biological Station, 3–16.iv.1998, light trap, R. Puplesis and S. Hill (VPU). 1 male (not type), the same locality, 13.iii.1998, leaf- mining larva on Terminalia amazonia (Combretaceae), O. T. Lewis, genitalia slide No. AD0292 (VPU).

Re s u l t s C D Originally, Coptotriche pulverea was described from the Caribbean by Lord Walsingham in 1897 on the basis of two specimens (according to the original descrip- tion, both specimens were reared from leaf-mining E larvae by Mr. Gudmann, however, the host-plant was not identified) (Walsingham 1897). The type series is deposited in the collection of the BMNH; however, only 0.1 mm the lectotype is currently available (the other specimen is missing). Figure 3. Coptotriche pulverea; male genitalia, slide Recent dissection of the lectotype of C. pulverea resulted No. AD0292 VPU. A – uncus and tegumen (ventral view); in the description of the male genitalia for the first time. B – valva (lateral view); C – aedeagus (ventral view); D – Study of additional material from the tropical forest of transtilla; E – vinculum. Belize revealed Terminalia amazonia (J. F. Gmel.) Ex- ell (Combretaceae) as a host-plant for C. pulverea and provided new data on the geographical distribution of the species. C. pulverea most resembles C. forsteroniae Stonis and Diškus, 2008, which also occurs in Belize and exhibits unusual male genitalia morphology.

Di s c u s s i o n

We postulate that within Coptotriche (Tischeriidae), Figure 4. Distribution map of Coptotriche pulverea with all C. pulverea and closely related C. forsteroniae rep- currently known localities: the Caribbean (Virgin Is.) and resent sister taxa of particular morphological and Central America (Belize). phylogenetical interest. At least two outstanding mor- phological characters of the male genitalia support the monophyly of the C. pulverea + C. forsteroniae tulip-shaped apex of the aedeagus (in C. forsteroniae lineage: 1) the strongly reduced tegumen and 2) the the aedeagus is distinctly rhomboid, even angular). reduced vinculum (synapomorphies 1 and 2 in Fig. 5). C. pulverella also differs from C. forsteroniae in the C. pulverea and C. forsteroniae are clearly separated. host-plant, Terminalia amazonia (Combretaceae); the Autapomorphies for C. forsteroniae: 3 – rhomboid (an- 167 Redescription of Coptotriche pulverea

gular) apical part of aedeagus; 4 – shortened transtilla thanks are extended to Lina Jasiukonytė (Lithuania) with extended sublate­ral processes; 5 – utilisation of for making some of the line drawings of the adults and Forsteronia myriantha (Apocynaceae) as a host-plant. genitalia (Figs 1, 2). This study was conducted as part Autapomorphies for C. pulverea: 6 – strongly modi- of the Neotropical Research Project of the Biosystema­ fied, bar-like vinculum; 7 – tulip-shaped apical part of tics Division of Vilnius Pedagogical University with aedeagus which slightly divides at apex; 8 – utilisation support from the Lithuanian State Science and Studies of Terminalia amazonia (Combretaceae) as a host-plant Foundation, Vilnius Pedagogical University Science (Fig. 5). Fund (Lithuania) and the Percy Sladen Memorial Fund (under administration of the Linnean Society of London) forsteroniae pulverea (Great Britain).

Re f e r e n c e s

Braun, A. F. 1925. Some undescribed Microlepidoptera and 5 8 notes on life histories. Transactions of the American Entomological Society 51 (1): 13–17. 4 7 Braun, A. F. 1927. Descriptions of new microlepidoptera. Transactions of the American Entomological Society 3 6 53 (3): 191–199. Braun, A. F. 1972. Tischeriidae of America North of Mexico (Microlepidoptera). Memoirs of the American Entomo- logical Society 28: 1–148. Chambers, V. T. 1875. Tineina of the Central United States. The Cincinnati Quarterly Journal of Science 2 (2): 97–121. Chambers, V. T. 1878. Art. III. – Descriptions of new Tineina from Texas, and others from more Northern localities. Bulletin of the United States Geological and Geographi- cal Survey of the Territories 4 (1): 79–106. 2 Clemens, M. D. 1859. Contributions to American Lepi- dopterology. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural 1 Sciences of Philadelphia 1859: 317–328. Clemens, M. D. 1860. Contributions to American Lepi- dopterology. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 12: 203–221. Figure 5. Cladogram of Coptotriche forsteroniae and C. pul- Frey, H. and Boll, J. 1873. Nordamerikanische Tineen. Ento- verea (for the apomorphies 1–8 see Discussion). mologischen Zeitung herausgegeben von dem entomolo- gischen Vereine zu Stettiner 34 (4–6): 201–224. Further phylogenetic and molecular studies, as well as Lees, D. C. and Stonis, J. R. 2007. The first record of more collections, of these two interesting species are Tischeriidae (Insecta: Lepidoptera) from Madagascar, required. with description of Coptotriche alavelona sp. n. and an updated distributional checklist of Afrotropical Tischeriidae. Zootaxa 1645: 35–45. Ac k n o w l e d g e m e n t s Puplesis,* R. and Diškus, A. 2003. The Nepticuloidea & (Lepidoptera) – a global review, with We are most grateful to Dr Owen T. Lewis and Simon strategic regional revisions. Kaunas: Lututė Publis- R. Hill for providing new tischeriid material collected in hers. Belize (Las Cuevas Biological Station) in 1997–1998. Puplesis,* R. and Diškus, A. 2005. Checklist of African Our thanks are also due to Dr David C. Lees and Tischeriidae (Insecta: Lepidoptera) with a redescrip- Mr. Kevin R. Tuck (Great Britain), Mr. Ole Karsholt tion of the formerly neglected Tischeria urticicolella (Denmark), and Dr Donald R. Davis (USA) for discus- from equatorial Africa. Zoological Science 22 (9): sion or (and) the loan of other tischeriid material. Special 1051–1055. 168 Stonis J. R., Diškus A., Sruoga V.

Robinson, G. S. 1976. The preparation of slides of Lepidop- Na u j i d u o m e n y s a p i e n e į p r a s t ą Am e r i k o s tera genitalia with special reference to the Microlepi- a t o g r ą ž ų f a u n o s šeriuotaūsių r ū š į Co p t o t - doptera. Entomologist’s Gazette 27: 127–132. r i c h e p u l v e r e a (Wa l s i n g h a m ) (In s e c t a , Le p i - Stonis, J. R. and Diškus, A. 2007. Description of Tischeria d o p t e r a , Ti s c h e r ii d a e ) gouaniae sp. n. from the tropical forest of Belize – an exotic new addition to the American fauna of Tischeria J. R. Stonis, A. Diškus, V. Sruoga (Insecta: Lepidoptera: Tischeriidae). Zoological Science 24 (12): 1286–1291. Sa n t r a u k a Stonis, J. R. and Diškus, A. 2008. Checklist of American Coptotriche (Insecta: Lepidoptera: Tischeriidae) with Ištyrus Coptotriche pulverea (Walsingham) tipinę me- descriptions of two new species from the tropical for- džiagą, surinktą Karibų salose, bet deponuotą Gamtos est of Belize (Central America). Zoological Science muziejuje Londone (D. Britanija) ir papildomą kolek- 25 (1): 99–106. cinę medžiagą, surinktą Belize (Centrinė Amerika), Walsingham, Lord. 1890. Steps towards a revision of pirmą kartą aprašomos šios, morfologiškai įdomios, Chambers’s index, with notes and descriptions of new šeriuotaūsių (Lepidoptera, Tischeriidae) rūšies geni- species. life 2 (10): 322–326. talinio aparato ypatybės. Pirmą kartą nurodomas mi- Walsingham, Lord. 1897. Revision of the West-Indian tybinis augalas (Terminalia amazonia, Combretaceae) Micro-Lepidoptera, with descriptions of new species. ir patikslinamas rūšies geografinis paplitimas. Taip pat Proceedings of the General Meetings for Scientific Busi- pirmą kartą pateikiama C. pulverea taksonominė dia- ness of the Zoological Society of London 1: 54–183. gnozė, pagal kurią naujai aprašoma rūšis yra giminiška Zeller, P. C. 1875. Beiträge zur Kenntniss der nordame- C. forsteroniae Stonis & Diškus, 2008, tačiau nuo kitų ricanischen Nachtfalter, besonders der Microlepido- genties rūšių C. pulverea skiriasi patino genitalinio apa­ pteren. Verhandlungen (der kaiserlich-königlichen) rato morfologiniais požymiais: labai didele tegumeno zoologisch – botanischen Gesellschaft in Wien 25: redukcija ir vinkulumo formos modifikacija. 207–360. Received: 16 June 2008 * – Stonis, J. R. formerly – Puplesis Accepted: 21 July 2008