Cosmopterix iocaste
Encyclopedia
Cosmopterix iocaste is a moth
of the Cosmopterigidae
family. It is known from Brazil
(Distrito Federal).
Adults have been recorded in February.
Male. Forewing length 3.5 mm. Head: frons shining pale brown with greenish and reddish and reflections, vertex and neck tufts brown with reddish gloss, medially and laterally lined white, collar brown; labial palpus first segment very short, pale brown, second segment three-quarters of the length of third, brown with white longitudinal lines laterally and ventrally, third segment white, lined brown laterally; scape dark brown with a white anterior line, white ventrally, antenna shining dark brown, a white line from base to two-thirds, in middle interrupted, followed towards apex by three dark brown segments, three white, two dark brown, two white, ten dark brown, eight white and one brown segment at apex. Thorax and tegulae brown with reddish gloss, thorax with a white median line, tegulae lined white inwardly. Legs: dark brown with reddish gloss, femur of midleg shining pale ochreous-grey, femur of hindleg shining pale ochreous, foreleg with a white line on tibia and tarsal segments, tibia of midleg with white oblique basal and medial lines and a white apical ring, tarsal segment one with a white lateral line from base on the outside and connected to an apical white dorsal spot, segment two and three dorsally white, segment five entirely white, tibia of hindleg as midleg, tarsal segment one with white basal and apical rings, segment two with a white apical ring, segments three and four white dorsally, segment five entirely white, spurs white, ventrally ochreous-grey. Forewing brown with golden gloss, three white lines in the basal area, a subcostal from base to one-quarter, slightly bending from costa, a short and straight medial above fold in the middle of the basal area, a slightly shorter subdorsal below fold, slightly further from base than the medial, sometimes a few white scales on the costa just before the transverse fascia and on dorsum beyond base, a yellow transverse fascia beyond the middle with a small apical protrusion, bordered at the inner edge by two pale golden metallic tubercular subcostal and dorsal spots, the subcostal spot edged by a small patch of blackish brown scales on the outside, the dorsal spot slightly further from base than the subcostal, bordered at the outer edge by two similarly coloured costal and dorsal spots, the dorsal spot twice as large as the costal, all spots with greenish and purplish reflections, a white costal streak from the outer costal spot, a shining white, bluish tinged, apical line from the distal half of the apical area to apex, cilia brown around apex, paler towards dorsum. Hindwing shining greyish brown, cilia brownish. Underside: forewing shining brown, the white apical line distinctly visible in the apical cilia, hindwing shining greyish brown in costal half, grey in dorsal half. Abdomen dorsally brown, ventrally dark greyish brown, in the middle shining yellowish white, segments broadly banded shining yellowish white posteriorly, anal tuft yellowish white.
, a moon of Jupiter
. To be treated as a noun in apposition.
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...
of the Cosmopterigidae
Cosmopterigidae
Cosmopterigidae is a family of insects in the Lepidoptera order. These are small moths with narrow wings whose tiny larvae feed internally on the leaves, seeds, stems, etc of their host plants. There are about 1,500 described species...
family. It is known from Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
(Distrito Federal).
Adults have been recorded in February.
Description
- See glossaryGlossary of Lepidopteran termsThis glossary describes the terms used in the formal descriptions of insect species, jargon used mostly by professionals or entomologist....
for terms used
Male. Forewing length 3.5 mm. Head: frons shining pale brown with greenish and reddish and reflections, vertex and neck tufts brown with reddish gloss, medially and laterally lined white, collar brown; labial palpus first segment very short, pale brown, second segment three-quarters of the length of third, brown with white longitudinal lines laterally and ventrally, third segment white, lined brown laterally; scape dark brown with a white anterior line, white ventrally, antenna shining dark brown, a white line from base to two-thirds, in middle interrupted, followed towards apex by three dark brown segments, three white, two dark brown, two white, ten dark brown, eight white and one brown segment at apex. Thorax and tegulae brown with reddish gloss, thorax with a white median line, tegulae lined white inwardly. Legs: dark brown with reddish gloss, femur of midleg shining pale ochreous-grey, femur of hindleg shining pale ochreous, foreleg with a white line on tibia and tarsal segments, tibia of midleg with white oblique basal and medial lines and a white apical ring, tarsal segment one with a white lateral line from base on the outside and connected to an apical white dorsal spot, segment two and three dorsally white, segment five entirely white, tibia of hindleg as midleg, tarsal segment one with white basal and apical rings, segment two with a white apical ring, segments three and four white dorsally, segment five entirely white, spurs white, ventrally ochreous-grey. Forewing brown with golden gloss, three white lines in the basal area, a subcostal from base to one-quarter, slightly bending from costa, a short and straight medial above fold in the middle of the basal area, a slightly shorter subdorsal below fold, slightly further from base than the medial, sometimes a few white scales on the costa just before the transverse fascia and on dorsum beyond base, a yellow transverse fascia beyond the middle with a small apical protrusion, bordered at the inner edge by two pale golden metallic tubercular subcostal and dorsal spots, the subcostal spot edged by a small patch of blackish brown scales on the outside, the dorsal spot slightly further from base than the subcostal, bordered at the outer edge by two similarly coloured costal and dorsal spots, the dorsal spot twice as large as the costal, all spots with greenish and purplish reflections, a white costal streak from the outer costal spot, a shining white, bluish tinged, apical line from the distal half of the apical area to apex, cilia brown around apex, paler towards dorsum. Hindwing shining greyish brown, cilia brownish. Underside: forewing shining brown, the white apical line distinctly visible in the apical cilia, hindwing shining greyish brown in costal half, grey in dorsal half. Abdomen dorsally brown, ventrally dark greyish brown, in the middle shining yellowish white, segments broadly banded shining yellowish white posteriorly, anal tuft yellowish white.
Etymology
The species is named after IocasteIocaste (moon)
Iocaste , also known as ', is a retrograde irregular satellite of Jupiter. It was discovered by a team of astronomers from the University of Hawaii led by Scott S...
, a moon of Jupiter
Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with mass one-thousandth that of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all the other planets in our Solar System combined. Jupiter is classified as a gas giant along with Saturn,...
. To be treated as a noun in apposition.