A new Synersaga species from Cambodia (Lepidoptera, Lecithoceridae), with a world catalogue of the genus

Abstract A new species of the genus Synersaga Gozmány, Synersaga mondulkiriensis sp. n., is described from Cambodia. The genus is diagnosed, and a global catalogue for the genus is provided.


Introduction
The family Lecithoceridae (Lepidoptera, Gelechioidea) is characterized by the very long antenna, usually longer than the forewing, and the male genitalia with gnathos bent downwards or absent. These characters are useful to differentiate from other gelechioid-moths. With respect to Lecithoceridae biology, larvae are known to feed on dead plant materials. A few Australian species have been reported to be reared on leaf litters of eucalypt (Common 1996). Recently, Komai et al. (2011) reported that two species of Lecithocerinae (Homaloxestis myeloxesta Meyrick, 1932 andLecithocera thiodora (Meyrick, 1914)) and three species of Torodorinae (Athymoris martialis Meyrick, 1935, Deltoplastis apostatis (Meyrick, 1932, and Halolaguna sublaxata Gozmány, 1978) were reared from dead leaves of several unknown broadleaved trees in Japan. The family is mostly distributed in the Oriental and Australian Regions, around 1,200 described species (van Nieukerken et al. 2011).
Synersaga Gozmány, 1978 is a small genus belonging to the subfamily Lecithocerinae that comprises six species only in the Oriental Region: the type species, S. pseudocathara (Diakonoff, 1952) described from Myanmar, and five more species from East and Southeast Asia (Gozmány 1978;Park 2007Park , 2009Park et al. 2007). Herein a new species, S. mondulkiriensis sp. nov., is described from Cambodia. Moths have usually unicolorous forewing with yellowish-brown to dark-fuscous ground color.
The genus is allied to Lecithocera Herrich-Schäffer, 1853 and is defined by the combination of following characters: vein R 3 on the forewing is separate or connate and the male genitalia have the cucullus fairly elongated and usually expanded distally, and well-developed caudal processes of the juxta. On the other hand, for several species of Lecithocera known from Sri Lanka, which have male genitalia resembling Synersaga, e.g. L. capnaula Meyrick, 1911, L. haemylopsis (Meyrick, 1911, L. nubigena (Meyrick, 1911), L. paroena (Meyrick, 1906), and L. paroristis (Meyrick, 1911), the generic placement should be reconsidered by examining the forewing venation.

Material and methods
The present study is based on recent material collected by the authors in Cambodia, from the result of an entomological expedition to Cambodia by the Environmental Ministry, Korea. The wingspan is measured from the left wing apex to the right wing apex, including fringe. The color standard for the description of adults follows Kornerup and Wanscher (1978). Types are deposited in the University of Incheon, Korea (UIK) on indefinite loan from Cambodia. Abbreviations for museums: HMNH= Hungarian Museum of natural History, Budapest, Hungary; KNA= Korea National Arboretum, Pocheon, Korea; UIK= University of Incheon, Korea; OPU= Osaka Prefectural University, Osaka, Japan; NRS= Naturhistoriska Riksmuseet, Stockholm, Denmark.

taxonomic Accounts
Genus Synersaga Gozmány, 1978 http://species-id.net/wiki/Synersaga Synersaga Gozmány, 1978: 141;Wu, 1997: 174;Park et al., 2007: 206;Park, 2009 Note. Synersaga is characterized by the forewing characters: forewing slightly broader distally with round apex, evenly colored, with yellowish brown or blackish ground color; venation with R 3 free or connate with R 4+5 ; M 3 and CuA 2 short-stalked or connate. However, the forewing color patterns of the known species are very similar to each other and they can be differentiated from one another by the shape of the uncus and the caudal processes of the juxta in the male genitalia. The abdominal tergites are densely spinose, and the seventh tergite is uniquely specialized, produced laterally with a sclerotized anterior margin.

Diagnosis.
This new species is similar to S. pseudocathara from Myanmar, and S. kuni and S. nigriptera from Vietnam in the external and male genitalic characters. It can be distinguished from them by the shape of cucullus and the caudal processes of the juxta in the male genitalia. The caudal processes of the juxta of the new species are Figures 1-9. Synersaga mondulkiriensis sp. n., holotype 1 adult, holotype 2 head in dorsal view 3 labial palpus 4 male genitalia 5 close-up of juxta 6 aedeagus 7 close-up of cornuti 8 1 st -4 th abdominal segments 9 close-up of 6 th -8 th abdominal segments. Scale bar: 1 mm. similar to those of S. nigriptera, but longer and arched inwardly, and the distal portion of the cucullus is more or less clavate.
Description. Adult (Figures 1, 2, 3). Wingspan, 17-18 mm. Head and thorax dark fuscous dorsally. Antenna dark fuscous throughout, relatively thick. Second segment of labial palpus fairly thickened, dark fuscous on outer surface with orange white apex, orange white on inner surface; 3 rd segment slender, as long as 2 nd segment, orange white all around. Forewing covered with dark fuscous scales throughout; two blackish discal spots well developed: one in middle, the other larger one at end of cell; apex rounded; termen slightly concave medially; venation with R 1 arising from middle of cell; R 2 nearer to R 3 than R 1 at base; R 3 free; R 4 and R 5 stalked for basal 3/5 length; R 5 reaching just beyond apex; M 3 arising from half between M 2 and CuA 1+2 at base; CuA 1 and CuA 2 stalked for basal 1/5. Hindwing broader than forewing, pale brownish orange; apex more or less obtuse; termen sinuate; fringe concolorous, with narrow orange white basal line; venation with M 3 and CuA 1 short stalked. Hind tibia clothed with orange gray scales.
Male genitalia (Figures 4, 5, 6, 7). Uncus broad, short, obtuse, not exceeding basal stalk of gnathos, with small median lobe on caudal margin. Median process of gnathos strongly bent beyond middle, with acute apex. Valva broad basally, with triangular process near base on costa; costa gently concave; ventral margin gently arched outward in basal half; cucullus elongate, broadly expanded with round outer margin; dense long setae in basal half of cucullus, fairly setose beyond. Juxta with caudal processes long, gently arched inward, while the processes in S. nigriptera nearly straight, clavate. Aedeagus gently curved, shorter than valva+cucullus, with finely dentate along ventral and dorsal margins apically; cornuti consist of a series of numerous needle-like cornuti. Abdominal segments in Figures 8 and 9.
Distribution. Cambodia (Mondulkiri). Etymology. The species name is derived from the type locality.