Klaus Sattler

A brachypterous butterfly

Butterflies of the genus Redonda Adams & Bernard (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae: Satyrinae) are endemic to the Andes of Venezuela. They comprise a monophyletic group of five allopatric taxa, females of which show various degrees of wing reduction and ability to fly. The female of Redonda bordoni Viloria & Pyrcz sp. nov. appears to be brachypterous and incapable of sustained flight, a phenomenon previously unknown within the Rhopalocera.

A new brachypterous Xenomigia species (Lepidoptera: Notodontidae) from Venezuela

In Lepidoptera wing reduction is usually restricted to the females. We report a rare case of male brachyptery in the genus Xenomigia Warren, 1906 (Notodontidae: Dioptinae) from the high Andes of Venezuela. At the same time this is the first case of wing reduction in the family Notodontidae (Noctuoidea). The new species Xenomigia brachyptera sp. n. is described and the adult, male genitalia and other structures of the adult morphology are illustrated. Some aspects of wing reduction in Lepidoptera are discussed.

Two new species of the genus Deltophora Janse, 1950 (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae)

Two Chinese species of the genus Deltophora Janse (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae), both in obligate mutualism with the plant genus Phyllanthus L. (Phyllanthaceae), are newly described: Deltophora phyllanthicella Li et Sattler sp. n., from Hainan, a pollinator of its larval host Phyllanthus rheophyticus Gilbert et Li; Deltophora polliniferens Li et Sattler sp. n., from Guangdong, a pollinator of its larval host Phyllanthus cochinchinensis (Lour.) Spreng. The adults and the male and female genital structures of both species are described and illustrated. The presence of a fully developed 1st instar larva in the female abdomen of Deltophora phyllanthicella is recorded as the first such case in Gelechiidae.

The identity of Alucita parvella Fabricius, 1794 (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae)

The type-series of Alucita parvella Fabricius, 1794, has been examined. A lectotype is designated and the species is placed in the genus Taygete Chambers, 1873. Epithectis xylochroa Meyrick, 1926, is recognized as a new synonym of T. parvella.