New species of “giant” plume moths of the genus Platyptilia (Lepidoptera, Pterophoridae) from Uganda

. This paper describes two new species of plume moths from the group of the so-called “giant” Platyptilia Hubner, 1825: Platyptilia ﬂ etcheri Ustjuzhanin & Kovtunovich sp. nov. and P. stanleyi Ustjuzhanin & Kovtunovich sp. nov. Both species were collected in the Rwenzori Mountains in Uganda and Rwanda, respectively. Platyptilia stanleyi Ustjuzhanin & Kovtunovich sp. nov. exceeds all the known African species of Pterophoridae in its wingspan of 49 mm.


Material and methods
This paper is based on material from the Natural History Museum, London, UK (BMNH). Holotypes and paratypes of the new species are stored in BMNH, and two paratypes of Platyptilia fl etcheri Ustjuzhanin & Kovtunovich sp. nov. are stored in the collections of P. Ustjuzhanin and V. Kovtunovich (CUK, Novosibirsk and Moscow, Russia). The preparation of genitalia is necessary for the identifi cation of Pterophoridae. The dissection was performed with standard methods.

Description
EXTERNAL CHARACTERS. Wingspan 38-40 mm (holotype: 40 mm). Head, thorax and tegulae brown-grey. Labial palpi straight, brown, three times as long as than eye diameter; third segment narrowed at tip and bent down. Antennae thin, brown. Fore wings brown-grey. Costal margin signifi cantly darker than medial area. Two brown spots near wing base. Two fuzzy brown spots not reaching cleft. First lobe with yellowish longitudinal stri pes, apical part tapered. Second lobe pale-grey with dusting of brown scales in form of shapeless brushstrokes. Fringe pale grey inside cleft, brown-grey at outer wing margin, darkbrown in basal part. Hind wings unicolorous, pale grey. Third lobe fringe with well defi ned black hairs at outer margin, most intensively expressed in basal part. Abdomen grey, rather long. Hind legs long, pale-brown, noticeably darkened at base of spurs. MALE GENITALIA. Valves symmetrical. Аpex isolated and drawn downwards. Sacculus wide in basal part, then narrowing and slightly widened in distal part. Tegumen bilobed. Uncus narrow, slightly curved, tapered at apex. Juxta narrow, arched. Anellus arms long, wide in basal part, strongly narrowed and slightly bent inward in distal part. Saccus with proximate wedge-like outer edge and with triangular process from above, at its inner side. Phallus curved in centre, bluntly rounded, basal process straight, equal to length of coecum. Vesica with thin spinous cornutus in distal part of phallus. FEMALE GENITALIA. Papillae anales oval, narrow. Apophyses posteriores thin, long, three times longer than papillae anales. Apophyses anteriores also long, slightly shorter than posteriores ones, with small, spinous process in distal part. Ostium fl at. Antrum wide, its length twice the length of papillae anales. Ductus bursae narrow, 1.5 times longer than antrum, with thin sclerite in middle part. Ductus seminalis near junction with bursa copulatrix. Bursa copulatrix large, oval, with two short, straight signa tapered to apices.

Remarks
The new species is characterized by the bright variation in the color of the wings. Half of the 11 type specimens have melanistic color. The species inhabits the mountainous areas of 1980-3210 m above sea level.

Flight period
July, October-January. in the shape of the phallus and uncus, but clearly differs from it by the short and wide anellus arms and the fold on the inner side of the sacculus.

Etymology
The species is named after the famous British traveler, journalist and explorer of Africa, Henry Morton Stanley, the fi rst European who visited the Rwenzori Mountains in 1876.

Description
Male EXTERNAL CHARACTERS. Wingspan 49 mm. Thorax and tegulae brown-grey, head noticeably paler. Labial palpi straight, twice as long as eye diameter; third segment narrowed at top and bent down. Antennae thin, brown. Fore wings brown. Medial area slightly clarifi ed. Dark brown spot in middle part of fi rst quarter of wing. Two other spots (poorly expressed and slightly fuzzy) near cleft. First lobe dark brown in apical part. Second lobe signifi cantly darker than basic wing color. Fringe inside cleft brown-grey; grey at outer margin of wing, with bunches of dark brown cilia. Hind wings unicolorous, pale grey. Third lobe fringe with well expressed black cilia at outer margin, from middle of wing to base of lobe. Abdomen brown. Hind legs long, brown, with portions of dark scales at base of spurs and in distal part.
Figs 5-6. Platyptilia stanleyi Ustjuzhanin & Kovtunovich sp. nov., holotype, ♂ (BMNH 21803). 5. Adult, habitus. 6. Male genitalia. MALE GENITALIA. Valves symmetrical. Аpex isolated and slightly tapered. Sacculus wide in basal and middle part; distal part signifi cantly narrowed. Fold on inner side of sacculus. Tegumen bilobed. Uncus narrow, rather long, slightly widened in middle part and tapered at apex. Anellus arms short, wide, tapered only at apex. Saccus with proximate wedge-like outer edge and with triangular process from above, on its inner side. Phallus short, curved in center and rounded at base; basal process long, equal to length of coecum. Vesica with thin, needle-shaped cornutus in distal part of phallus.

Female
Unknown.

Distribution
Uganda.

Flight period
July.