Synemon kunama, Kallies & Edwards, 2025

Synemon kunama spec. nov. (Snowy Mountains Sun Moth)

( Figs 33 – 36 View FIGURES 33–36 , 43 View FIGURES 43–44 , 47 View FIGURES 45–48 , 82 View FIGURES 81-83 )

Synemon sp. ; Edwards 1994: 34, Edwards 2002: 64.

New species Zoobank registration: 3A39FE9E-2546-4960-8C28-3D9FE4BC6621

Material examined

Holotype: 1♂, “ 36.21S 148.35E, 2km W of Waste Point, Kosciusko Nat. Pk. , NSW, 1040 m, 2 Jan 2002, E.D. Edwards ” ( Figs 33, 34 View FIGURES 33–36 , ANIC) GoogleMaps . Paratypes: New South Wales: 1♂ “Kos 6 – 1 – 11, G.M. Goldfinch ” ( SAMA) ; 1♂ “Snowy R, G.M. Goldfinch ” ( SAMA) ; 2♂, 3♀, Kosciuszko N.P., 2km W of Wastepoint, 36°21’S 148°35’E, 1040m, 2.i.2002, E.D. Edwards ( Figs 35, 36 View FIGURES 33–36 , ANIC) GoogleMaps ; 8♂, 3♀, Kosciuszko N.P., 2.5km ESE of Headquarters, Sawpit Creek , 990m, 36°21’S, 148°35’E, 6.i.1988 ( 1♀), 8.i.1988 ( 4♂, 2♀), 3.i.1990 ( 3♂), E.D. Edwards (slides 11857, 11858, 11859, 11895) ( Figs 43 View FIGURES 43–44 , 47 View FIGURES 45–48 , ANIC) GoogleMaps ; 6♂, 2♀, Kosciuszko N.P., Wastepoint Rd , 1000m, 23 – 25.xii.2018, A. Kallies ( CAK) ; 2♀, 1km NE Jindabayne Dam , 36°26’S 148°38’E, 4. – 5.i.2010, A. Kallies & E.D. Edwards ( ANIC) GoogleMaps ; 1♂, Kosciuszko N.P., below Sawpit Ck. , 12.i.1974, H.J. Banks ( ANIC) ; 1♂, Jindabayne , 14.xii.2007, G. Kusef ( CAK) .

Description

Male ( holotype, Figs 33, 34 View FIGURES 33–36 ). Wingspan 38 mm. Head: vertex grey, thick piliform grey scales obscuring black lamellar scales, frons with dense pale brown piliform scales margined by dense white lamellar scales beside eyes, labial palpi very short, appressed to head, not reaching frons, white, haustellum vestigial, antenna grey above broadly annulated with white, white beneath, club brownish white with some grey scales dorsally, expanding abruptly, nudum 7 orange brown on anterior third of club, apiculus minute of a single annulus. Thorax: above dark grey of mixed dark grey piliform and black lamellar scales, two subdorsal rows of pale, almost white scales, beneath white, legs pale yellow or straw above, white beneath, epiphysis clothed in minute spinules, inserted at about half length of foretibia, spine-like, not reaching end of foretibia. Abdomen: dark grey above with distal half orange-brown, T2 – T4 with numerous long grey scales, beneath white.

Forewing: dark grey with markings of shining white or shining ash grey, whole wing dusted with ash grey scales, a broad white patch at end of cell, a broad band of markings from near apex to 1A+2A before tornus, markings made up of ellipses of dark grey between the veins and outlined both proximally and distally in white appearing as two series of lunate markings between the veins, this band broken between M3 and CuA1 by a large white streak and the ellipses below CuA1 displaced inwards, costa dark grey with white streaks between veins towards apex, two basal streaks between veins below cell and a small streak at base of cell ash grey, a narrow dark grey terminal line. Cilia dark grey. Underside with costa yellow, basal third of wing black irrorated with orange in base of cell, an orange spot at end of cell and black patch beyond, outer two thirds orange, a series of subapical brown spots between veins extending from R4 to M3, a narrow terminal line dark brown proximally and pale yellow distally. Cilia dark brown.

Hindwing: basal half of wing dark grey, brownish orange patch at end of cell, outer half of wing from tip of Rs to tornus brownish orange, the inner margin of this brownish orange band lunate, this band enclosing black spots between the veins from M1 to M3, two conspicuous black spots between CuA2 and 1A+2A, narrow terminal dark grey line, anal area dark brown at base becoming brownish orange towards tornus. Cilia dark grey. Underside with costa yellow orange, basal half of wing dark brown heavily dusted with yellow with a spot at end of cell orange yellow, outer half of wing orange yellow, with inner margin of orange yellow band slightly lunate, band with embedded subterminal bark brown spots between veins from Rs to M3 and from CuA2 to 1A+2A, a narrow terminal line dark brown proximally and brownish yellow distally. Cilia dark brown.

Genitalia ( Fig. 43 View FIGURES 43–44 ): Valva wide at the base, distinctly narrower towards the apex, apex extended and pointed upwards, with long simple setae, uncus wide and simple, with long setae; phallus very short, arched, phallobase very wide; vinculum with two short projections very close to each other.

Female ( paratype, Figs 35, 36 View FIGURES 33–36 ). Wingspan 40 mm. Similar to male on upperside, larger, forewing with white markings usually more extensive, hindwing with the orange spot near end of cell much larger and the dark brown spots in the brownish yellow band sometimes larger and extending between the veins from Rs to 1A+2A and almost forming a band. Underside forewing costa pale yellow at base and brown towards apex, remainder of forewing pale orange yellow, a pale-yellow spot at end of cell, a subterminal row of black spots from R4 to CuA1, a narrow terminal line brown. Cilia grey-white. Hindwing orange yellow, a trace of a pale-yellow spot at end of cell with some brown scales proximally and distally, a row of black spots between veins from Rs to M3 and from CuA1 to 1A+2A, a narrow black terminal line. Cilia grey-white.

Genitalia ( Fig. 47 View FIGURES 45–48 ): Ovipositor long, extendable and pointed, papillae anales covered in long setae, ductus bursae short and straight, corpus bursae ovoid and simple; apophyses posteriores long.

Diagnosis. Synemon kunama spec. nov. is similar to S. collecta in the forewing but the white bar at the end of the cell is more angled and one of the white subapical streaks is much more prominent than the others. The forewing of S. kunama spec. nov. is darker in the female and less extensively streaked than in S. collecta . In the hindwing of S. kunama spec. nov. the coloured spot at the end of the cell is much larger and the colour a richer reddish orange and the black spots in the coloured areas are more prominent. In the male genitalia, S. kunama spec. nov. differs from S. collecta by the longer and more slender apical extension of the valva and the shorter phallus with a wider phallobase. The ductus bursae is narrower and the corpus bursa extends beyond the tips of the apophyses, while the apophyses reach beyond the corpus bursae in S. collecta . Synemon kunama spec. nov. has a very restricted distribution where no other Synemon species occurs.

Variability. Very limited variability has been observed in this species.

Etymology. The name of this species derives from Kunama Namadgi, the name for the Snowy Mountains used by the local Ngarigo people.

Biology and distribution. Synemon kunama spec. nov. occurs in open areas in grassy woodlands at around 1000 m altitude where it has been observed between mid-December and early January. It is currently known only from a very small area around Jindabyne in and just outside Kosciuszko National Park ( Fig. 82 View FIGURES 81-83 ). It is important to study similar areas in southern New South Wales to map the full range of this species and understand its conservation status.

Conservation status. S. kunama spec. nov. is currently known only from a small range in the foothills of Mt Kosciuszko. It is likely that it has occurred or may still occur in remnant populations in open woodland at similar altitudes. However, much of the surrounding areas have been cleared extensively and are now used for grazing or pine plantations. Thus, given the extremely limited range of this species, it should be considered vulnerable.