Melanastera olgae, Serbina & Malenovský & Queiroz & Burckhardt, 2025

8 Melanastera olgae sp. nov.

( Figs 7C View FIGURE 7 , 8H View FIGURE 8 , 14H View FIGURE 14 , 22S–X View FIGURE 22 , 40A, B View FIGURE 40 )

Type material. Holotype ♂: Brazil: MATO GROSSO: 1 ♂, Sinop, Embrapa campus, S22.0085, W55.5828, 360 m, 30.viii.2013 (D.L. Queiroz) #571 ( UFPR; dry). GoogleMaps

Paratypes. Brazil: MATO GROSSO: 2 ♀, Lucas do Rio Verde , S13.2490, W56.0275, 400 m, 12.6.2016 (L.A. Pezzini) #794 ( NHMB; 70% ethanol; NMB-PSYLL0005792) GoogleMaps ; 31 ♂, 39 ♀, 40 immatures, 9 skins, same as holotype but ( BMNH, MHNG, MMBC, NHMB, UFPR, USNM; dry, slide, 70% ethanol; NMB-PSYLL0007703, NMB-PSYLL0007717 [LSMelolg-16], NMB-PSYLL0007718 [LSMelolg-16], NMB-PSYLL0007720, NMB-PSYLL0007721, NMB-PSYLL0007722, NMB-PSYLL0007723, NMB-PSYLL0007654, NMB-PSYLL0007668, NMB-PSYLL0007669, NMB-PSYLL0007670, NMB-PSYLL0007671, NMB-PSYLL0007672) ; 1 ♂, Sinop , S11.7477, W55.3668, 360 m, 5.iii.2014 (L.A. Pezzini & A.D.B. Sedano) #288( NHMB; 70% ethanol; NMB-PSYLL0005587) GoogleMaps ; 2 ♂, 2 ♀, same but S11.8662, W55.5186, 360 m, 25.viii.2012 (D.L. Queiroz) #336 ( NHMB; 70% ethanol; NMB-PSYLL0007715) GoogleMaps ; 32 ♂, 50 ♀, 20 immatures, 3 skins, same but Embrapa campus, S11.8675, W55.6526, 350 m, 28.viii.2013 (D.L. Queiroz) #566 ( MMBC, NHMB; 70% ethanol; NMB-PSYLL0007712) GoogleMaps ; 5 ♂, 4 ♀, 1 skin, same but S22.0071, W55.5776, 360 m, 30.viii.2013 (D.L. Queiroz) #572 ( NHMB; 70% ethanol; NMB-PSYLL0007714) GoogleMaps ; 2 ♂, 4 ♀, 3 immatures, same but S25.2346, W49.1059, 355 m, 27.ii.2015, Guatteria punctata (D.L. Queiroz) #680(5) ( NHMB; 70% ethanol; NMB-PSYLL0007716) GoogleMaps ; 1 ♀, Sorriso, Fazenda Mazzardo II, S11.8714, W55.5957, 390 m, 26.ii.2015 (D.L. Queiroz) #678(3) ( NHMB; 70% ethanol; NMB-PSYLL0007713) GoogleMaps ; 2 ♂, same but S12.4276, W55.7959, 350 m, 26.vii.2014 (T. Mazzardo) # P013 ( NHMB; dry; NMB-PSYLL00003016) GoogleMaps ; 1 ♂, 1 ♀, same but S12.4233, W55.8502, 400 m, 26.vii.2014 (T. Mazzardo) # P017 ( NHMB; dry; NMB-PSYLL00003029) GoogleMaps ; 1 ♀, same but S12.4253, W55.8505, 390 m, 26.vii.2014 (T. Mazzardo) # P021 ( NHMB; dry; NMB-PSYLL00003014) GoogleMaps ; 1 ♀, same but S12.4222, W55.8500, 390 m, 15.viii.2013 (T. Mazzaro) ( NHMB; 70% ethanol; NMB-PSYLL0007702) GoogleMaps .

Description. Adult. Coloration. Body ( Figs 7C View FIGURE 7 , 40B View FIGURE 40 ) dark brown. Antenna whitish, scape and pedicel and base of segment 3 brown, segments 3–8 with dark brown apices, segment 10 entirely dark brown. Forewing ( Fig. 14H View FIGURE 14 ) dark brown, membrane sometimes slightly paler in the middle of cells; claval suture light. Metacoxa brown, metafemur brown in basal half, yellowish in apical half; metatibia and metatarsus yellowish. Younger specimens with less expanded and intense dark colour.

Structure. Forewing ( Fig. 14H View FIGURE 14 ) semicoriaceous, strongly convex; oviform, widest in the middle, broadly, unevenly rounded apically; C+Sc curved in distal third; pterostigma long, slightly wider than cell r 1, evenly convex; Rs moderately and evenly curved; M straight, slightly shorter than M 1+2, slightly longer than M 3+4; Cu 1a weakly and evenly curved, ending distad of M fork; cell cu 1 short and narrowly triangular; surface spinules indistinct. Hindwing with 10–13 ungrouped costal setae. Metatibia bearing 7–8 grouped apical spurs, arranged as 3–4 + 4, anteriorly separated by 3–4 bristles.

Terminalia ( Fig. 22S–X View FIGURE 22 ). Male. Proctiger weakly produced posteriorly; densely covered with long setae in apical two thirds. Subgenital plate large, subtrapezoidal; dorsal margin mostly straight, downcurved in distal third, posterior margin slightly concave; with moderately long setae. Paramere shorter than proctiger; in lateral view, lamellar, anterior margin straight, slightly indented subapically, posterior margin bearing small lobe in basal half and evenly curved in apical fifth; paramere apex, in lateral view, broad, blunt, directed slightly anteriad, in dorsal view, apex long, narrow, subacute, directed inwards, laking a sclerotised tooth; both outer and inner faces with dense moderately long setae; posterior margin with long setae. Proximal segment of aedeagus with apical part strongly subdivided. Distal segment of aedeagus distinctly sinuate in basal half; ventral process situated slightly proximad of the middle of segment, shovel-like, in lateral view, with a narrow base, broadest at apical third, with narrow, claw-like apex strongly curved dorsad; in dorsal view, ventral process much broader than apical dilation and subtrapezoidal basally, with long, narrow, apically truncate median lobe arising from the base ventrally; apical dilation, in lateral view, long, narrow, with subparallel margins, slightly inflated apically, with narrowly rounded apex, base bearing a small membranous extension at dorsal margin, in dorsal view, apical dilation distinctly constricted medially; sclerotised end tube long, hardly sinuate.—Female terminalia cuneate, long; densely covered with setae. Dorsal margin of proctiger, in lateral view, weakly concave distal to circumanal ring, apex relatively straight, pointed; in dorsal view, apex narrowly rounded; circumanal ring, in dorsal view, distinctly cruciform. Subgenital plate slightly shorter than proctiger; in lateral view, pointed apically; in ventral view, apex narrowly rounded.

Fifth instar immature. Coloration. Light; antenna gradually becoming darker towards apex; cephalothoracic sclerite, wing pads, legs and caudal plate pale brown.

Structure. Eye with one short, simple ocular seta dorsally. Antennal segments with following numbers of pointed sectasetae: 1(0), 2(1), 3(0), 4(2), 5(0), 6(2), 7(1), 8(1), 9(0), 10(0). Forewing pad with five marginal pointed sectasetae; hindwing pad with two marginal pointed sectasetae; both pads lacking sectasetae dorsally. Metatibiotarsus very long; tarsal arolium broadly fan-shaped apically, 1.5–2.0 times as long as claws. Abdomen with three lateral pointed sectasetae on either side anterior to caudal plate. Caudal plate with anterior margin in distance of anterior margin of extra pore fields; on either side laterally, with 2+2 pointed sectasetae, in some specimens with one moderately large lanceolate seta associated with the posterior pair, and three pointed sectasetae subapically on either side of circumanal ring dorsally. Extra pore fields forming continuous outer and inner bands, consisting of small rounded patches; outer band relatively short medially, end pointing backwards. Circumanal ring small.

Host plant and biology. Guatteria punctata (Aubl.) R.A.Howard ( Annonaceae ). Immatures secrete long wax filaments. Adults were observed on the flowers of its host plant ( Fig. 40A, B View FIGURE 40 ) (D.L. Queiroz, pers. observation).

Distribution. Brazil (MT).

Derivation of name. Dedicated to Olga Yarmolik, mother of LS, for her support and unconditional love.

Comments. Melanastera olgae sp. nov. resembles the species of the amazonica -group ( M. amazonica sp. nov., M. cacantis sp. nov., M. francisi sp. nov., M. roraima sp. nov., M. tubuligera sp. nov. and M. xylopiae sp. nov.) in the broadly, unevenly rounded apex of the forewing with a broad pterostigma (PtL/PtW <4.0) and convex R 1, as well as details of the distal segment of aedeagus: ventral process bearing a distinct apico-median lobe, which is, in lateral view, claw-like and directed dorsad, and, in dorsal view, with narrow, truncate lobe; long apical dilation (short in M. amazonica ), and long sclerotised end tube (short in M. amazonica ). Melanastera olgae differs from these species in the relatively uniform dark body and forewing colour (versus variegated), the semicoriaceous, strongly convex forewing (versus semitransparent, flat); the indistinct microsculpture on the vertex (versus distinct); the long antenna (AL> 0.9 versus <0.8); the long metatibia (MT/HW> 0.8 versus <0.8).