A revision of the Eudarcia glaseri-species group (Lepidoptera, Meessiidae) with description of two new species from Greece and Crimea

Abstract

The Eudarcia glaseri-species group is revised. Four species are recognized, two of which are described as new: E. ignorata, sp. n. (Greece) and E. saxatilis, sp. n. (Crimea). E. abchasicum (Zagulajev, 1979) status rev., bona sp. is recalled from synonymy of E. glaseri. Re-descriptions and an identification key for all four species are given. The hitherto unknown females of E. glaseri (Petersen, 1967) and E. armatum (Gaedike, 1985) are described.

Complete mitochondrial genome of Eudarcia gwangneungensis (Lepidoptera: Meessiidae)

“…Family Meessiidae consists of two genera, Eudarcia Clemens, 1860 and Bathroxena Meyrick, 1919(Regier et al 2015. The genus Eudarcia was established with the type species Eudarcia simulatricella Clemens, 1860 and currently includes 77 species (Bidzilya et al 2016;Budashkin and Bidzilya 2018). Recently, Roh and Byun (2019) report the family Meessiidae for the first time from Korea: three new species of the genus Eudarcia: E. gwangneungensis Roh and Byun, 2019, E. longiphalla Roh and Byun, 2019, and E. cornea Roh and Byun, 2019, plus one unrecorded species, E. orbiculidomus (Sakai and Saigusa 1999).…”

The Meessiidae (Lepidoptera: Tineoidea) of Korea

“…The family Meessiidae consisted of only 2 genera, Eudarcia Clemens, 1860 and Bathroxena Meyrick, 1919(Regier et al 2015. Regier et al (2015) diagnosed the family Meessiidae based on the following adult characters: small moths (wingspans 3-12 mm); forewing relatively slender and tapering, venation of hindwing reduced, male genitalia symmetrical, and the long oviscapt of female genitalia with posterior apophyses nearly 3 times longer than the anterior apophyses (Regier et al 2015;Bidzilya et al 2016).…”

“…The genus Eudarcia was based on the type species Eudarcia simulatricella Clemens, 1860 (Gaedike 2011(Gaedike , 2015. In total, 72 species of Eudarcia have been reported worldwide, and most of these (61 species) are distributed throughout the Palaearctic region (Bidzilya et al 2016). In Asia, 6 species have been reported currently (Sakai & Saigusa 1999;Xiao & Li 2009;Sakai 2013).…”

“…In Asia, 6 species have been reported currently (Sakai & Saigusa 1999;Xiao & Li 2009;Sakai 2013). Females of Eudarcia (8 species) are brachypterous, with degenerate forewings and more or less reduced hindwings (Bidzilya et al 2016). Members of the Eudarcia are known for the case-making habits of larvae.…”

“…Larvae build their cases by putting together small sand particles, and they feed on crustose lichens (Gaedike & Zerafa 2010;Regier et al 2015). The larvae are extremely specialized consumers of lichens, and first instars feed on unicellular algae (Zagulajev 1979;Henderickx 1995;Robinson 2009;Gaedike 2015;Bidzilya et al 2016). In addition, this genus inhabits open biotopes, and their larvae live within cases on vertical lichen-covered surfaces of single large stones, rocks, and artificial constructions.…”