Morophaga hahajimana Park, Yagi & Hirowatari, 2025

Morophaga hahajimana Park, Yagi & Hirowatari sp. nov.

Diagnosis.

The new species was found to be exteriorly similar to Morophaga choragella ([Denis & Schiffermüller], 1775), but it can be distinguished by the following characteristics: the anterior half of the basal 1 / 3 is brown in the forewing (only a small spot in M. choragella ); the gently concaved uncus, ventral margin of valva is not divided and has tough bristles basally, and the phallus has two or three lobate carinae in the male genitalia. The genitalia are similar to those of M. fasciculata and M. plana , but can be distinguished by the following characteristics: the shape of the valva is rectangular, without deep emargination in the male genitalia; the ostium is tighter and weakly concaved, and the ductus bursae is relatively short in the female genitalia.

Description.

Male (Figs 1 View Figures 1–4 , 2 View Figures 1–4 , 5 View Figures 5, 6 , 7 View Figure 7 ). Forewing length 9.7 mm, antennae length 5.3 mm in holotype, forewing length 6.0– 8.9 mm (n = 4), antennae length 4.3–5.3 mm (n = 3) in paratypes. Head ochreous white, vertex brown. Antenna ciliate, scape and pedicel ochreous white, anterior margin brown; flagellomere covered with ochreous white scales dorsally, and with more than 10 bristles ventrally. Labial palpus ochreous white, upwardly directed; outer surface of first and second palpomere dark brown; second palpomere densely with brown bristles at under side, and outer surface with 7–9 black bristles; outer surface of third palpomere with dark brown spot. Thorax and tegula ochreous; posterior half of tegula and posterior 1 / 3 of thorax ochreous white. Forewing venation with Sc, R 1–5, M 1–3 CuA 1–2, CuP, and 1 A + 2 A present; R 1 from basal 2 / 5 of cell, to apical 1 / 3 of costa; R 3 and R 4 stalked; R 5 reached to costal margin near apex; 1 A fused with 2 A from basal 1 / 3 to end. Forewing ground colour ochreous white, scattered with small brown dots, and brown to black spots; basal 1 / 3 with trapezoidal to rounded black triangle spot, not reaching dorsal margin; dark brown band elongated from apical 2 / 3 of costa to center of sub-marginal area; apical area with one large trapezoidal spot at costal margin near apex and 2–4 dots at termen, each spot sometimes connected to dark brown band; posterior margin broadly scattered with ochreous to brown scales; R 3 to M 3 veins with light brown scales; cilia line distinct, dark brown to ochreous; cilia black to ochreous white. Hindwing with all veins present, Sc + R 1 and Rs connected by irregularly right-angle vein near base. Hindwing trapezoidal, costal margin subapically concaved; ground colour ochreous grey, apex with one or two brown spots; each vein brown; marginal area fringed with brown scales; cilia ochreous white, apex and anterior margin with few brown scales. Abdomen covered with ochreous or brown scales. Segment VIII with coremata; sternite VIII broadly rectangular; coremata invaginated into shallow pouches at intersegmental membrane; anterior 1 / 3 of tergite VIII broad trapezoid, posterior 2 / 3 rectangular.

Male genitalia (Figs 8–11 View Figures 8–11 ). Vinculum fused with tegumen, forming a narrow ring. Saccus shield-shaped, strongly sclerotized. Uncus roughly covered with short setae; gently split and forming a pair of tongue shaped lobes. Gnathos absent. Subscaphium simple, a narrow ribbon shaped. Valva rounded rectangular, thickened plate, roughly covered with long bristles; apical half strongly sclerotized, densely with small spines, especially apicoventrally, basoventral 1 / 3 of inner surface with bunded tough hairs; dorsal margin almost straight, apex sharply curved toward ventral side; ventral margin slightly concaved at middle; small triangular lobe apically with four to six spines located at apical 1 / 3 of inner surface; valval apodeme strong, finger-shaped; basodorsally with membranous lobe elongate, densely hirsute. Juxta thin, sclerotized. Phallus elongated horn-shaped, basally broad and rounded, tapering toward apex; apical 1 / 3 with two or three lobate carinae dorsally; subzonal sheath about 1 / 6 length of phallus with a trapezoidal lobe ventrally; suprazonal sheath about 5 / 6 length of phallus with membrane dorsally; cornuti absent.

Female (Figs 3 View Figures 1–4 , 6 View Figures 5, 6 ). Forewing length 7.3–10.5 mm (n = 7), antennae length 4.2–6.0 mm (n = 3) in paratypes. Almost all same as male. But antennae filiform.

Female genitalia (Fig. 16 View Figures 16, 17 ). Ovipositor long, 1.6 × length of apophysis anterioris; apex with pair of roughly setose lobes. Sternite VIII trapezoidal, centre of posterior margin with pair of long setose, finger shaped lobes. Ostium located at centre of posterior margin of sternite VIII. Ductus bursae strongly sclerotized, tough cylindrical, 0.7 × length of corpus bursae, and with 5–6 wrinkles from posterior end to posterior 2 / 3. Corpus bursae elongated piriform. Signum absent.

Type material.

Holotype. ♂; [ JAPAN, Tokyo Met., Ogasawara Isls.] Mt. Funaki-yama, Hahajima Is. ; Host: white fungi; Host coll. on 17. iii. 2023; Emrg. on 27. iii. 2023; J.-H. Park leg.; genitalia slide no. JP-275; deposited in ELKU .

Paratypes. [Hahajima Is.] • 2 ♂; Mt. Sakaiga-take, Haha-jima Is., Ogasawara Vill. ; Host: white fungi with moss; Host coll. on 2023. vi. 17; Emrg. on 2023. vii. 1; J.-H. Park leg.; DNA sample JHP-193 ELKU • 1 ♀; Nishiura, Hahajima Is., Ogasawara-mura ; 174 m; 21. vi. 2022; S. Tomura leg.; DNA sample ELKU - I-L Bonin 000068; ELKU • 1 ♀; Nishiura, Hahajima Is., Ogasawara-mura ; 174 m; 21. vi. 2022; S. Yagi, T. Hirowatari, S. Tomura, M. Kimura leg.; genitalia slide no. JP-267; DNA sample ELKU - I-L Bonin 000069; ELKU • 2 ♀; Shinyûhigaoka, Hahajima Is., Ogasawara-Vill. ; 14. vi. 2023; LT; J.-H. Park leg.; ELKU • 2 ♀; Mt. Chôki-yama, Hahajima Is., Ogasawara-Vill. ; 15. vi. 2023; LT; J.-H. Park leg.; genitalia slide no. JP-269; ELKU • 1 ♀; Mt. Funaki-yama, Hahajima Is., Ogasawara-Vill. ; Host: white fungi; Host coll. on 17. iii. 2023; Emrg. on 24. iii. 2023; J.-H. Park leg.; ELKU • 2 ♂; Mt. Funaki-yama, Hahajima Is., Ogasawara-Vill. ; Host: white fungi; Host coll. on 17. iii. 2023; Emrg. on 27. iii. 2023; J.-H. Park leg.; genitalia slide no. JP-303; ELKU • 1 ♂; Mt. Funaki-yama, Hahajima Is., Ogasawara-Vill. ; Host: white fungi; Host coll. on 17. iii. 2023; Emrg. on 4. iv. 2023; J.-H. Park leg.; genitalia slide no. JP-046; wing slide no. JP-266; ELKU .

Biology.

Larvae bore into white fungi of the family Polyporaceae and fed on them (Figs 18 View Figures 18–23 , 20 View Figures 18–23 , 21 View Figures 18–23 ). Two male specimens also emerged from fungi occurring on the mossy bark on Mt. Sakai-dake (Fig. 19 View Figures 18–23 ), but the emerged adults were very small body sizes (Forewing length 6.0, 6.6 mm in Mt. Sakai-dake specimens (n = 2), 8.5, 8.9, 9.7 mm in other male specimens (n = 3 )). A few adults were collected in June by using light traps.

Distribution.

Japan (Haha-jima Is.).

DNA barcoding.

Three DNA barcodes from one male and two females were generated and deposited in the DDBJ (accession numbers): LC 832846 View Materials (male), LC 832847 View Materials , and LC 832848 View Materials (female). The result for the blast analysis on the Bold systems yielded no similar sequences and the best ID was “ no match ”. The intraspecific pairwise distances of this species were 0.15 % to 0.31 % (n = 3) (Table 2 View Table 2 ).

Etymology.

The species name is derived from the type locality (Hahajima Island). because the distribution of this species is restricted to Hahajima Island.

Remarks.

There were some variations seen in the forewing patterns of this species. It consists of an ochreous white ground colour, large brown to black dots, and scattered fuscous scales (Figs 1 View Figures 1–4 , 2 View Figures 1–4 , 22 View Figures 18–23 ). In one specimen, the scattered dark brown dots of the forewing were barely marked (Fig. 3 View Figures 1–4 ).