Siccia bezborodovi, Spitsyn, 2025

Siccia bezborodovi View in CoL sp. nov.

https://zoobank.org/ urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:

Figs 1–2 View Figure 1 View Figure 2

Type material. Holotype male RMBH Sph 1394: Uganda, Western region , Rubanda district, Bwindi National Park, mountain tropical forest, 01°02'37"S, 29°46'30"E, 2290 m, 03–10.xii.2024, V. Spitsyn leg. GoogleMaps Paratypes 7♂ 1♀ RMBH Sph1392–Sph1393, Sph1395–Sph1399: the same data as in the holotype GoogleMaps .

Diagnosis. The new species is most similar to Siccia kasanka Volynkin, 2023 (the Siccia taprobanis species-group) from Zambia, but can be distinguished from it by the following features: (1) the forewing length is 12–13 mm (vs the forewing length 10. 5–11 mm in S. kasanka ); (2) three black spots are pronounced along the anal margin of the forewing (vs two in S. kasanka ); (3) the uncus is slightly shorter and noticeably dilated in the medial part; (4) the dorsal process of the cucullus is vestigial (vs the well-developed process in S. kasanka ); (5) the phallus is shorter and slightly wider than in S. kasanka ; (6) the postero-lateral part of the corpus bursae is larger, not sclerotized and without triangular protrusion, the distal helicoid section and its signum are less expressed (vs sclerotized postero-lateral part with triangular protrusion and well-expressed helicoid section with band-like signum in S. kasanka ). The new species is also externally similar to Siccia bwindi Volynkin, 2023 (the Siccia carinata species-group), occurring in close proximity to the type locality of Siccia bezborodovi sp. nov., but at a lower altitude ( 2,290 m in Siccia bezborodovi sp. nov. vs 1,700 m in S. bwindi ). However, the following features in Siccia bezborodovi sp. nov. can distinguish them: (1) the forewing pattern consists of significantly larger black spots; (2) the uncus is medially dilated; (3) the dorsal cucullar process is much smaller; (4) the phallus lacks the dorsal carinal process; (5) the vesica has one large long cornutus (vs the absence of it in S. bwindi ).

Description. Male morphology: Wingspan 23–26 mm, forewing length 12–13 mm (n = 7). Head white. Eye black-brown. Proboscis well-developed. Labial palpus black-grey, short (its length approximately one of eye diameter). Antenna bipectinate, grey-brown, with long branches. Thorax white, its dorsal surface with one large posterior and two anterior black spots. Patagium and tegula white. Fore- and middle-legs white-grey-black. Hind-legs white-grey. Upperside of forewing creamy-white with pattern consisting of large black spots: two basal, three antemedial, five medial, five postmedial irregular, and three distal. Underside of forewing creamy-white with distinct grey suffusion more expressed along costal margin; pattern identical to that of upperside, but having much lighter spots. Fringe of forewing white. Upperside of hindwing creamy-white, slightly darker in apical and anal areas. Underside of hindwing similar to upperside, but having grey suffusion along costal margin. Fringe of hindwing white-grey. Abdomen grey. Male genitalia: Uncus large, long, dilated medially, with claw-shaped tip. Tegumen V-shaped. Saccus U-shaped. Valva elongated. Cucullus with three processes: dorsal and ventral ones vestigial, medial one well-developed. Distal saccular process well-developed. Phallus wide, curved at apical part; vesica with one large long cornutus and fields of graniculi and spinules. Female morphology: Wingspan 26 mm, forewing length 13 mm (n = 1). Similar to male. Antenna ciliate. Female genitalia: Papilla analis relatively large, rectangular, covered with setae. Apophyses posterioris and apophyses anteriores relatively short. Ductus bursae wide, sclerotised. Corpus bursae with membranous postero-lateral and semispherical helicoid sections.

Etymology. The new species is dedicated to Vitaly G. Bezborodov (Blagoveshchensk, Russia), an expert in Scarabaeidae .

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Russian Ministry of Science and Higher Education (project No. FUUW-2023-0001).

References

Ivinskis, P. & Saldaitis, A. ( 2008) New data on tiger moths of the genus Siccia (Lepidoptera, Arctiidae) with description of two new species. Acta Zoologica Lituanica, 18 ( 4), 256–260.

https://doi.org/10.2478/v10043-008-0034-8

Volynkin, A.V. ( 2023) Contribution to the knowledge of the genus Siccia Walker (= Aemene Walker, syn. n.) in the Afrotropics with descriptions of seventy-three new species, three new subspecies, and a check-list of Asiatic taxa of the genus (Lepidoptera: Erebidae: Arctiinae: Lithosiini). Ecologica Montenegrina, 64, 1–184. https://doi.org/10.37828/em.2023.64.1

Volynkin, A.V., Müller, G.C., Prozorov, A.M. & Saldaitis, A. ( 2022) Two new peculiar species of the genus Siccia Walker from Mali and Ivory Coast (Lepidoptera: Erebidae: Arctiinae). Ecologica Montenegrina, 54, 44–52. https://dx.doi.org/10.37828/em.2022.54.6