Tsukiyamaia, a new genus of the tribe Baorini (Lepidoptera, Hesperiidae, Hesperiinae)

Zookeys. 2016 Jan 20:(555):37-55. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.555.6144. eCollection 2016.

Abstract

Skippers of the tribe Baorini are evidently a monophyletic group in the subfamily Hesperiinae. In this study, a new Baorini member Tsukiyamaia albimacula gen. n. et sp. n. is described from north Myanmar, southwest China and north Vietnam. Despite its peculiar and striking wing-pattern, this new genus has some important characters of Baorini, such as a broad and bifid uncus and a well-developed gnathos. Based on an analysis of male genitalia and the molecular phylogenies inferred from both mitochondrial and nuclear genes (28 taxa, total aligned length: 2968 bp), it is proposed that the genus Tsukiyamaia is closely related to the genus Polytremis, which has high species diversity in China. This study not only describes a new skipper but also highlights that Tsukiyamaia is important in clarifying phylogenetic relationship of Polytremis and its allies.

Keywords: EF-1α; Polytremis; cox1; cox2; new species.