Emesis (Mandania) mandela Grishin

Zhang, Jing, Cong, Qian, Shen, Jinhui, Song, Leina & Grishin, Nick V., 2025, Update to: Advancing butterfly systematics through genomic analysis, The Taxonomic Report of the International Lepidoptera Survey 12 (6), pp. 1-36 : 7

Emesis (Mandania) mandela Grishin , new species

http://zoobank.org/ E971DCB7-6DA1-48D6-BF19-C1E866DE2226 ( Figs. 2 part, 4a)

Definition and diagnosis. Genomic analysis reveals that a specimen from Venezuela ( Fig. 4a ) is sister to Emesis (Mandania) mantunga Grishin, 2025 (type locality in Ecuador: Tungurahua) ( Fig. 4b ), but is genetically differentiated at the species level ( Fig. 2 ); e.g., their COI barcodes differ by 1.7% (11 bp, which is large for this species group ( Zhang et al. 2024, 2025b)), and, therefore, it represents a new species. This new species differs from its relatives by males with paler wing color, which is rich, reddishorange, similar in tone to burnt orange or rust. The ventral side of wings is yellower with a narrower and more weakly expressed postdiscal band of crescents but a crisper discal band; and the hindwing is more elongated towards the tornus, with a straighter outer margin. Due to its cryptic nature and unexplored individual variation, this species is best identified by DNA, with diagnostic base pairs in the nuclear genome: cne670.2.5:C84T, cne670.2.5:A102T, cne7425.1.3:A90G, cne7425.1.3:C111T, cne5229.9.3:T279A, cne22806.1.1:C183C (not T), cne22806.1.1:G184G (not A), cne22806.1.1:A198A (not T), cne5064.6.3:C75C (not T), cne5064.6.3:T80T (not A); and the COI barcode: T367C, T400C, A412G, T532C.

Barcode sequence of the holotype. Sample NVG-24033B06, GenBank PV892284, 658 base pairs: AACATTATATTTTATTTTTGGAATTTGAGCAGGAATAGTTGGAACTTCACTAAGATTATTAATTCGAATAGAATTAGGAACTTCAGGATCATTAATTGGTGATGATCAAATTTATAATACT ATTGTTACAGCTCATGCTTTTATTATAATTTTTTTTATAGTTATACCTATTATAATTGGAGGATTTGGAAATTGATTAGTACCATTAATACTAGGAGCTCCAGATATAGCTTTTCCACGAA TAAATAATATAAGATTTTGACTTTTACCTCCATCTTTAATTTTATTAATTTCAAGAAGAATTGTAGAAAATGGAGCAGGAACAGGATGAACAGTGTACCCCCCACTTTCTTCTAATATTGC TCACGGAGGTTCTTCCGTAGATTTAGCTATTTTTTCCTTACATTTAGCGGGAATTTCCTCAATTTTAGGTGCAATTAACTTTATTACTACTATTATTAATATACGAATTAATAATATATCA TTTGATCAAATACCTTTATTTGTTTGATCTGTAGGAATTACAGCTCTCCTATTATTATTATCTTTACCTGTTTTAGCTGGAGCTATTACTATATTATTAACAGATCGAAATTTAAATACAT CATTCTTTGATCCTGCTGGTGGTGGTGATCCTATTTTATATCAACATTTATTT

Type material. Holotype: ♂ deposited in the Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin, Germany ( MFNB), illustrated in Fig. 4a , bears the following five printed rectangular labels (text in italics handwritten), four white: [Pto Cabello | Hahnel], [Coll. | Staudinger], [DNA sample ID: | NVG-24033B06 | c/o Nick V. Grishin], [{QR Code} MfN URI | http://coll.mfn- | berlin.de/u/ | 09f2f9], and one red [HOLOTYPE ♂ | Emesis (Mandania) | mandela Grishin ].

Type locality. Venezuela: Carabobo, Puerto Cabello.

Etymology. The name is a fusion given to this relative of mand [ana from Venezu] ela, and is treated as a noun in apposition.

Distribution. Currently known only from the holotype collected in coastal Venezuela.

Comment. This new species is the third Emesis (Mandania) species we recorded in Venezuela, in addition to Emesis (Mandania) mandana (Cramer, 1780) (type locality in Suriname) and Emesis (Mandania) mandora Grishin, 2024 (type locality in Ecuador: Santo Domingo) ( Fig. 2 yellow highlight).

Additional records of Emesis (Mandania) mantunga Grishin, 2025

Through expanded genomic sequencing ( Fig. 2 ), we found three more specimens of Emesis (Mandania) mantunga Grishin, 2025 (type locality Ecuador: Tungurahua Province, Topo; originally described from five males), including the first confirmed female (NVG-25013E02, Ecuador: Napo Province, Puerto Misahuallí , 6-Nov-1983, D. & J. Jenkins [ MGCL], Fig. 4c ), an additional male from eastern Ecuador (NVG-24033A11, Pastaza Province, Sarayacu, old, R. Haensch S., Stichel collection number 3282 [ MFNB]), and extend the distribution of this species to the eastern slopes of the Andes in northern Peru (♂ NVG-24033A10, San Martín Department, Tarapoto, old, Stichel collection number 4338 [ MFNB]).

Figures

Fig. 2. Phylogenetic trees of Emesis (Mandania) species constructed from protein-coding regions in: a) the nuclear genome (autosomes), based on 826,947 positions, and b) the mitochondrial genome. Different species are colored differently: E. mandaca (violet), E. furor A. Butler and H. Druce, 1872 (olive), E. mandora (blue), E. manduza (brown), E. mandana (green), E. mandarina sp. n. (magenta), E. mandela sp. n. (orange), E. mantunga (cyan), and E. russula Stichel, 1910 (black). Labels of specimens from Venezuela are highlighted in yellow in (a).

Fig. 4. Specimens of Emesis (Mandania) in dorsal (left) and ventral (right) views, data in text or below: a) E. mandela sp. n. holotype ♂ NVG-24033B06 from Venezuela and b–c) E. mantunga from Ecuador: b) holotype ♂ NVG- 24092B10 Tungurahua, Topo, 18-20-Jun-1990, I. A. Villafuerte leg. [MGCL] and c) the first confirmed ♀ NVG-25013E02.