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Corresponding author: Héctor A. Vargas ( lepvargas@gmail.com ) Academic editor: Kevin Keegan
© 2024 Héctor A. Vargas.
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Citation:
Vargas HA (2024) On Ypsolopha micromoths (Lepidoptera, Ypsolophidae) associated with Adesmia shrubs (Fabaceae) in the arid western slope of the central Andes. ZooKeys 1195: 131-138. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1195.116134
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Ypsolopha Latreille, 1796 (Lepidoptera, Ypsolophidae) is a genus comprised mostly of Holarctic micromoth species with a fairly broad range of larval hosts (e.g. Aceraceae, Rosaceae, and Fagaceae). The only previous record of herbivory on a representative of the South American genus Adesmia DC. (Fabaceae) was based on the discovery of Ypsolopha moltenii Vargas, 2018 larvae feeding on Adesmia verrucosa Meyen in the Andes of northern Chile. Further surveys revealed Adesmia atacamensis Phil. as another host for Y. moltenii, and Adesmia spinosissima Meyen as the single host of Ypsolopha sp. The genetic distance between DNA barcodes of the two micromoth species was 7.9–8.1% (K2P). These results suggest narrow host ranges for Adesmia-feeding Ypsolopha and highlight the need to further explore the taxonomic diversity of these micromoths in other South American environments.
Arid environments, DNA barcoding, oligophagy, phytophagous larvae, South America
The widespread and highly diverse micromoth genus Ypsolopha Latreille, 1796 (Lepidoptera, Yponomeutoidea, Ypsolophidae) includes more than 160 described species, most of which occur in the Nearctic and Palearctic regions (
The South American plant genus Adesmia DC. (Fabaceae) includes nearly 230 species classified in two subgenera, Adesmia and Acanthadesmia, and 45 series (
The distribution ranges of some members of the two subgenera of Adesmia overlap in northern Chile (
Surveys were performed near Murmuntani (18°20'43"S, 69°33'06"W), Socoroma (18°16'42"S, 69°34'15"W), Putre (18°13'01"S, 69°33'39"W) and Zapahuira (18°19'22"S, 69°35'18"W), at about 3400–3700 m elevation on the western slope of the Andes of the Parinacota Province of northern Chile between April 2018 and April 2022. This area has a tropical xeric climate, with seasonal rains concentrated mainly in summer (
Genomic DNA was extracted from adult legs or larvae using the QIAamp Fast DNA Tissue Kit (Qiagen). The primers LCO1490 and HCO2198 (
The surveys revealed larvae of Ypsolopha on A. atacamensis and A. spinosissima but not on D. p. chilensis, L. oreophilus, or S. b. arequipensis. Two females and two males of Y. moltenii were reared from the larvae collected on A. atacamensis, and two males of Ypsolopha sp. from the larvae collected on A. spinosissima (Figs
DNA barcodes were obtained from two females (BOLD Process IDs NCMIC005-23, NCMIC006-23) and two larvae (NCMIC008-23, NCMIC009-23) of Y. moltenii from A. atacamensis and A. verrucosa, respectively; one male (NCMIC007-23) of Ypsolopha sp.; and three larvae (NCMIC010-23, NCMIC011-23, NCMIC012-23) of Y. chicoi. Genetic divergence (K2P) between individuals of Y. moltenii collected on different plants was 0–0.3%. In contrast, genetic divergence of Y. moltenii was 7.9–8.1% from Ypsolopha sp. and 9.2–9.5% from Y. chicoi, while Ypsolopha sp. and Y. chicoi diverged by 5.9–6.1% (Fig.
Micromoths of the genus Ypsolopha Latreille, 1796 (Lepidoptera, Ypsolophidae) from the Andes of northern Chile, representing new host records of the South American genus Adesmia DC. (Fabaceae) 5 male of Ypsolopha moltenii Vargas, 2018 reared from larvae collected on Adesmia atacamensis Phil., dorsal view, abdomen removed 6 male of Ypsolopha sp. reared from larvae collected on Adesmia spinosissima Meyen, dorsal view, abdomen removed. Scale bar: 5 mm.
Neighbor-joining tree of DNA barcodes of the genus Ypsolopha Latreille, 1796 (Lepidoptera, Ypsolophidae) from the Andes of northern Chile. Stars and squares indicate specimens of Ypsolopha moltenii Vargas, 2018 collected on Adesmia atacamensis Meyen and Adesmia verrucosa Meyen (Fabaceae), respectively. Numbers near branches indicate bootstrap support (1,000 replicates).
Chile • 1 ♂; Parinacota, Socoroma; [adult emerged] May 2022; H.A. Vargas leg.; ex-larva; Muehlenbeckia fruticulosa; [larva collected] April 2022; [genitalia slide] HAV1687 • 2 ♀♀; same data as for preceding; [genitalia slides] HAV1685, HAV1686; all in IDEA.
Chile • 1 ♂; Parinacota, Putre; [adult emerged] May 2022; H.A. Vargas leg.; ex-larva; Adesmia verrucosa; [larva collected] April 2022; [genitalia slide] HAV1668 • 1♀; same data as for preceding; [genitalia slide] HAV1669 • 2 ♀♀; Zapahuira; [adult emerged] October 2021; H.A. Vargas leg.; ex-larva; Adesmia atacamensis; [larva collected] September 2021; [genitalia slides] HAV1670, HAV1684; [BOLD Process IDs] NCMIC005-23, NCMIC006-23 • 2 ♂♂; same locality as for preceding; [adult emerged] May 2018; ex-larva Adesmia atacamensis; [larva collected] April 2018; [genitalia slides] HAV1179, HAV1671; all in IDEA.
Chile • 2 ♂♂; Parinacota, Murmuntani; [adult emerged] May 2021; H.A. Vargas leg.; ex-larva; Adesmia spinosissima; [larva collected] April 2021; [genitalia slides] HAV1469, HAV1672; [BOLD Process ID] NCMIC007-23; all in IDEA.
Detailed knowledge of host ranges is essential to understand abundance and distribution patterns and to plan the conservation of phytophagous lepidopterans (
The low genetic divergence between Y. moltenii individuals collected on A. atacamensis or A. verrucosa is similar to conspecific distances previously recorded for Ypsolopha micromoths (
Ypsolopha sp. differs from Y. moltenii in morphology and host plant. The genetic divergence between Ypsolopha sp. and Y. moltenii is also greater than those reported between morphologically similar congeneric species (
The results of the present study suggest narrow host ranges for Adesmia-feeding Ypsolopha and highlight the need to explore further the taxonomic diversity of these micromoths in other areas inhabited by these plants.
I thank Mark Metz, Kevin Keegan, and an anonymous reviewer for comments and suggestions on a previous version of the manuscript, Wilson Huanca-Mamani for the use of facilities for DNA extraction, and Lafayette Eaton for checking the English. This study was supported by project UTA-MAYOR 9731–22.
The author has declared that no competing interests exist.
No ethical statement was reported.
This study was supported by Universidad de Tarapacá (Project UTA-MAYOR 9731-22).
The author solely contributed to this work.
Héctor A. Vargas https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5355-3157
All of the data that support the findings of this study are available in the main text.