Morphology and DNA barcode sequences were used to assess the taxonomic status of a micro-moth of the genus Ithome Chambers, 1875 (Lepidoptera, Cosmopterigidae, Chrysopeleiinae), whose larvae feed on inflorescences of Prosopis tamarugo Phil. (Fabaceae), a tree native to the Pampa del Tamarugal, Atacama Desert, northern Chile. As a result, Ithome tamarugensis Vargas, sp. nov. is described and illustrated. Its genitalia are remarkably similar to those of Ithome tiaynai Vargas, 2004 from coastal valleys of the Atacama Desert. However, the two species can be recognized by the shape of the phallus in males and the shape of the antrum and ductus bursae in females. The genetic distance between DNA barcodes of I. tamarugensis and I. tiaynai was 3.0–3.3% (K2P), and a maximum likelihood analysis indicated that they are in reciprocally monophyletic clusters, providing additional support for the heterospecific status suggested by morphology.
Stenoptilodes juanfernandicus Gielis, 1991 (Lepidoptera: Pterophoridae) was described from the Juan Fernandez Islands, Chile; it was subsequently recorded from the Galápagos Islands and mainland Ecuador. Its larva and pupa are described and illustrated for the first time with the aid of light and scanning electron microscopy. Descriptions are based on specimens collected as larvae displaying cryptic coloration feeding on inflorescences of Verbena hispida Ruiz & Pav. (Verbenaceae) in the Andes of northern Chile. Several differences were found with the larva and pupa of congeneric representatives, suggesting that immature morphology should be further explored to assess its value in the taxonomy and systematics of Stenoptilodes Zimmerman, 1958. Verbena hispida is the first host plant recorded for S. juanfernandicus, a finding that will be helpful to further explore different Neotropical environments to better characterize the geographic range of this plume moth.
Adult and immature stages of Atacamaptilia ambrosiavora Vargas & Espinoza-Donoso gen. et sp. nov. (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae: Acrocercopinae) from the Atacama Desert of northern Chile are described and illustrated. The Neotropical Atacamaptilia Vargas & Espinoza-Donoso gen. nov. resembles the Old World genera Melanocercops Kumata & Kuroko, 1988 and Phodoryctis Kumata & Kuroko, 1988 in wing venation. However, differences in genitalia morphology enable the recognition of Atacamaptilia Vargas & Espinoza-Donoso gen. nov. as a different genus. COI sequences support this delimitation, since it is not closely phylogenetically related to these genera. A divergence of 18% (Kimura 2-parameter model) of A. ambrosiavora Vargas & Espinoza-Donoso gen. et sp. nov. to its nearest neighbor Leucospilapteryx omissella (Stainton, 1848) was found. The larvae of A. ambrosiavora Vargas & Espinoza-Donoso gen. et sp. nov. mine leaves of Ambrosia cumanensis Kunth (Asteraceae).
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