03059nas a2200241   4500008004100000245017300041210006900214260003600283300001000319520214900329653001502478653001902493653001002512653001602522653001702538653001602555653001402571653001702585100002102602700002802623700002802651856013802679       2014                        eng d00aFirst discovery of leaf-mining Nepticulidae and Tischeriidae (Lepidoptera) associated with the Chilean endemic genus <i>Podanthus </i>Lag. (Asteraceae) as a host-plant.0 aFirst discovery of leafmining Nepticulidae and Tischeriidae Lepi  aVilniusbEdukologija Publishers  a30-313 aIn total, 121 genera and 863 species of Asteraceae are native to Chile (Moreira-Muñoz & Muñoz-Schick,2007; Moreira-Muñoz, 2011). Podanthus Lag. is an endemic genus of Asteraceae (Asteroideae, Heliantheae)occurring in central Mediterranean Chile. No leaf-mining Nepticulidae or Tischeriidae have ever beenrecorded on Podanthus (Puplesis & Robinson, 2000; Stonis, 2014). Studies of reared material collected bythe first author from Chile (Region Metropolitana de Santiago, Rio Clarillo) resulted in the discovery ofone new species of Stigmella (Nepticulidae) and one previously poorly-known species Astrotischeria chileiPuplesis & Diškus, 2003 (Tischeriidae) (Fig. 1).The new nepticulid species belongs to the Stigmella salicis group and clearly differs from all other speciesof the group by shape and number of cornuti in the phallus. The new species is a leaf-miner on Podanthusovatifolius Lag. After the ‘Formula of Evaluation of Abundance and Occurrence of Leaf-miners’ (seeStonis et al., 2012: 52–54; Stonis et al., unpublished), the new leaf-miner on Podanthus ovatifolius is not rarein central Chile: limited in distribution but abundant (more than 20 leaf-mines recorded at a single site).In the original description of A. chilei (see Puplesis & Diškus, 2003) the ink drawings and photographsof the male genitalia are very accurate but neither females nor trophical relationships of the species wereknown or described. New material allowed a redescription of A. chilei, with the first photographic documentationof the leaf-mines and female genitalia (Stonis et al., in prep.). Astrotischeria chilei differs from allother known Astrotischeria in the dorsal lobe of the valva which is narrowed in distal half but in the ventralview always appears broad; the host-plant (Podanthus ovatifolius) also makes this species distinctive. Larvaemine leaves in April producing specific blotch mines. After the ‘Formula of Evaluation of Abundanceand Occurrence of Leaf-miners’ (Stonis et al., 2012; Stonis et al., unpublished), A. chilei is common in centralChile: limited in distribution, but extremely abundant mining.DiskusStonis201410aAsteraceae10aAstrotischeria10aChile10aLepidoptera10aNepticulidae10aNew species10aStigmella10aTischeriidae1 aDiškus, Arūnas1 aStonis, Jonas, Rimantas1 aStonis, Jonas, Rimantas  uhttps://nepticuloidea.myspecies.info/content/first-discovery-leaf-mining-nepticulidae-and-tischeriidae-lepidoptera-associated-chilean02083nas a2200217   4500008004100000245008800041210006900129260003600198300001100234520133300245653001101578653001601589653001401605653001701619653001201636100002101648700002101669700002801690700002801718856011901746       2014                        eng d00aWhat is new and most interesting about the Nepticulidae of the Crimea and Lithuania0 aWhat is new and most interesting about the Nepticulidae of the C  aVilniusbEdukologija Publishers  a96-1173 aDue to the active destruction of landscapes as well as frequent fragmentation of habitats, global biodiversityis undergoing rapid decline. The increasing concern of the world’s scientific community about the biodiversitycrisis stimulated researchers to more actively inventorize the Earth’s main biomes (Stonis, 2010;Navickaitė et al., 2011b).The object of our research is one of the most primitive (and from this point of view, one of the mostinteresting) taxonomic groups of the Lepidoptera order (Nepticuloidea: Nepticulidae) comprising 850 speciesand 16 genera: Pectinivalva, Roscidotoga, Simplimorpha, Enteucha, Mononeura, Areticulata, Stigmella,Bohemannia, Ectoedemia, Fomoria, Acalyptris, Parafomoria, Trifurcula, Glaucolepis, Etainia and Varius(the classification of Nepticulidae follows Puplesis, 1994; Puplesis & Robinson, 2000, and Puplesis & Diškus,2003). The majority of these genera are widely distributed throughout many continents; they includethe world‘s smallest Microlepidoptera, which are characterized not only by their archaic morphology butalso, as plant-miners, are greatly specialized. One of the most prominent characteristics of Nepticulidae,their mining within the green tissue of plants, presents an issue which is interesting and important for ecology(Stonis, 2010; Diškus & Stonis, 2012).10aCrimea10aLepidoptera10aLithuania10aNepticulidae10aUkraine1 aNavickaite, Asta1 aDiškus, Arūnas1 aStonis, Jonas, Rimantas1 aStonis, Jonas, Rimantas  uhttps://nepticuloidea.myspecies.info/content/what-new-and-most-interesting-about-nepticulidae-crimea-and-lithuania03674nas a2200241   4500008004100000245015100041210006900192260003600261300001000297520276800307653001203075653002203087653001503109653001603124653001403140653001703154100002203171700002803193700002103221700002203242700002803264856014003292       2014                        eng d00aThe first photographic documentation and new data on <i>Enteucha guajavae </i>(Lepidoptera, Nepticulidae), a pest of guava from equatorial America0 afirst photographic documentation and new data on iEnteucha guaja  aVilniusbEdukologija Publishers  a65-743 aPygmy moths (Nepticulidae) are economically important because these insects are often recognized as pestsor potential pests (dozens of species have been listed as pests of cultivated plants, see Kuznetzov & Puplesis,1994). This article deals with a previously poorly known leaf-miner of Enteucha Meyrick, a pest of guava.The common guava (Psidium guajava, Myrtaceae) (or guayaba in Spanish) is one of the most popularfruit trees (particularly in Latin America). The guava is widely cultivated in tropical and subtropicalregions around the world, although it is native to the Neotropics (Central America and probably morewidespread). It is an evergreen small tree or shrub, which florishes in a moist tropical environment but cantolerate drought conditions.The small genus Enteucha, belonging to the plant-mining (predominantly leaf-mining) family Nepticulidae,includes several described species, the majority of which are known from the Neotropics: E. cyanochloraMeyrick, 1915; E. gilvafascia (Davis, 1978); E. hilli Puplesis & Robinson, 2000; E. contracoloreaPuplesis & Robinson, 2000; E. terricula Puplesis & Robinson, 2000; E. snaddoni Puplesis & Robinson, 2000;E. acuta Puplesis & Diškus, 2002; and E. guajavae Puplesis & Diškus, 2002 (Puplesis & Robinson, 2000;Puplesis et al., 2002b). Although the biology and host-plants of most of the species are still unknown, thelatter species – E. guajavae – was described from reared material as a monophagous leaf-miner on Psidiumguajava (Puplesis et al., 2002a). To date this is only guava-feeding species among Nepticulidae; however,after the species first discovery in 2001, no more data on E. guajavae have been published or collected. Ourrecent searches for plant-mining larvae on Psidium guajava in Bucay (a type locality of E. guajavae) andother localities of central Ecuador, Colombia, Guatemala, and Mexico have brought no results (except fora few empty old leaf-mines observed at the type locality in March–April 2005 and 2007). This could bebecause our searches were either too sporadic (seldom and unfocused) , or because of the restricted distributionsof the species.A recent business trip to La Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja (southern Ecuador), undertaken inFebruary 2014 by the first two authors, has resulted in the rediscovery of E. guajavae and revealed new dataon the species biology, distribution and female morphology.In the original description of the species (see Puplesis et al., 2002a), the ink drawings of the genitaliaare quite accurate but they did not show all details of the female genitalia or leaf-mines. Here, on the basisof new material, we present a re-description of E. guajavae, with the first photographic documentation ofthe leaf-mines, adults, and genitalia.10aEcuador10aEnteucha guajavae10ahost plant10aLepidoptera10aMyrtaceae10aNepticulidae1 aRemeikis, Andrius1 aStonis, Jonas, Rimantas1 aDiškus, Arūnas1 aDavis, Donald, R.1 aStonis, Jonas, Rimantas  uhttps://nepticuloidea.myspecies.info/content/first-photographic-documentation-and-new-data-ienteucha-guajavae-ilepidoptera-nepticulidae01692nas a2200205   4500008004100000245007200041210006900113260003600182300001000218520098300228653001601211653001201227653001701239100002801256700002101284700002201305700002101327700002801348856011001376       2014                        eng d00aStudy methods of Nepticulidae: micro-mounts of genitalia structures0 aStudy methods of Nepticulidae micromounts of genitalia structure  aVilniusbEdukologija Publishers  a32-353 aIn the studies on Lepidoptera, in particular Nepticulidae, description of external characters is often insufficientand mounts of genitalia have to be prepared. Nepticulidae species diagnostics most often relieson the characters of male (sometimes on the characters of female) genitalia (Fig. 2), which compared withother morphological structures are distinguished by high specificity (Puplesis & Robinson, 2000; Puplesis& Diškus, 2003). Reliable species identification and descriptions of Nepticulidae are impossible without theexamination of genital structures (Diškus & Stonis, 2012). It was noticed that the male genitalia charactersof Nepticulidae vary little and specific at the level of both species or higher taxonomic rank (Šimkevičiūtėet al., 2010; Navickaitė et al., 2011; Stonis et al., 2012b). The shape of valva, transtilla, vinculum, uncus, gnathos,phallus (especially including cornuti on vesica) are essential diagnostic characters of Nepticulidaespecies.10aLepidoptera10aMethods10aNepticulidae1 aStonis, Jonas, Rimantas1 aDiškus, Arūnas1 aRemeikis, Andrius1 aNavickaite, Asta1 aStonis, Jonas, Rimantas  uhttps://nepticuloidea.myspecies.info/content/study-methods-nepticulidae-micro-mounts-genitalia-structures