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Cosmopterix clemensella Stainton, 1860
Cosmopteryx clemensella Stainton, 1860: 434. Lectotype ? (here designated): United States: [Pennsylvania?], Clemens’ Coll., Mus. Am. Ent. Soc., Philadelphia 1872, 36048; gen. slide BM 29950 (BMNH) [examined].
Cosmopterix hermodora Meyrick, 1919: 282. Lectotype 1? (designated by J.F.G. Clarke, 1965) (in capsule): Canada: Toronto, 5.vii.[19]16, Parish; gen. slide JFGC 9417 (synonymised by Hodges, 1962) (BMNH) [examined].
Material examined.― 4?, 1/, 4 specimens (sex not stated). United States: 1? (without abdomen), same data as lectotype (BMNH). 2?, 1/, Michigan, Cass Co., Westrate Farm, 31.vii.2004, leg. Vargo; gen. slide JCK 6110 (MSUC). 1/, No data; gen. slide USNM 3918 (USNM). Canada: 4 specimens without abdomens, same data as lectotype C. hermodora (BMNH).
Diagnosis.― The forewing with the outer dorsal spot four times as large as the outer costal spot, the very short medial line in combination with the dorsally yellow-ochreous abdomen are characteristic.
Description.― Male, female. Forewing length 4.9 mm. Head: frons shining pale silvery grey with greenish and reddish reflections; vertex and neck tufts shining dark greyish brown with reddish gloss, laterally and medially lined white, collar shining dark greyish brown with reddish gloss; labial palpus first segment very short, ochreous-white, second segment three-quarters of the length of third, greyish brown with white longitudinal lines laterally and ventrally, third segment white, laterally with brown lines; scape dorsally dark greyish brown with a white anterior line, ventrally white, antenna shining dark brown with an interrupted white line from base to beyond one-half, a short section at base often uninterrupted, followed towards apex by approximately ten dark brown segments, nine white, ten dark brown and seven white segments at apex. Thorax and tegulae shining dark greyish brown with reddish gloss, thorax with a white medial line and tegulae lined white inwardly. Legs: shining dark brown with reddish gloss, femora of midleg and hindleg shining pale ochreous-grey, foreleg with a white line on tibia and tarsal segments one to three and five, tibiae of midleg and hindleg with white oblique basal and medial lines and white apical rings, midleg with tarsal segment one to three with white apical rings, segment five entirely white, hindleg with tarsal segments dorsally white and ochreous apical rings, segment five entirely white, spurs dark brown ventrally, dorsally white. Forewing shining dark greyish brown with reddish gloss, three silvery white lines in the basal area, a subcostal from base to one-quarter, slightly bending from costa distally, a very short but thick medial above fold, ending at the distal end of the subcostal, a subdorsal, twice as long as the medial but narrower, starting just before the distal end of the medial, a yellow transverse fascia beyond the middle, narrowed towards dorsum and with a narrow and dorsally bent apical protrusion, bordered at the inner edge by a tubercular silver metallic fascia with greenish reflection, not reaching costa and with a blackish spot subcostally on outside, bordered at the outer edge by two tubercular silver metallic costal and dorsal spots with greenish reflection, the dorsal spot about four times as large as the costal and more towards base, both silver metallic spots irregularly lined dark greyish brown on the inside, a short white costal streak from the costal spot, a shining white apical line from the apical protrusion to apex, cilia dark greyish brown, paler towards dorsum. Hindwing shining pale brownish grey, cilia greyish brown. Underside: forewing shining greyish brown, hindwing shining greyish brown. Abdomen dorsally yellow-ochreous, laterally shining pale grey with greenish reflection, ventrally shining white, anal tuft yellowish white (fig. 32).
Male genitalia. Right brachium of uncus short and stout with a large triangular apical part, gradually tapering distally, apex lengthened, narrow and rounded, left branchium less than one half the length of right one, gradually tapering, apex rounded. Valvae with upper margin strongly concave, lower margin slightly concave, caudal margin straight. Anellus lobes large, slightly bent in middle and strongly widening in apical half, apex blunt. Aedeagus with bulbous part wide bottle-shaped, strongly narrowing distally to about one-third of width, basal part short, about one-third of length of bulbous part, lateral lobes large and rounded distally (fig. 133).
Female genitalia. Posterior edge of sternite VII concave with a convex section in middle, this convex middle section shallowly concave in middle. Sterigma very large, broad, tapering at both ends, strongest anteriorly, ostium bursae round with two small and round protrusions laterally and a crescent-shaped sclerotization ventrally. Ductus bursae about two-thirds of length of corpus bursae and with an inner sclerite where it enters the latter. Corpus bursae long and elongate, signa as two round plates with a central vertical rim (fig. 214).
Biology.― Host plant: Carex species (Cyperaceae). The larva is a leaf miner. The adult flies from mid-May to early August (Hodges, 1978).
Distribution.― Canada: Manitoba, Ontario; USA: from Maine to the mountains of southern North Carolina, but most commonly in New York and Ohio (Hodges, 1978) (fig. 274).
Remarks.― Stainton received from Clemens a series of six specimens of Cosmo-pterix gemmiferella recently described by him. However, two specimens belonged to another, undescribed, species. These two specimens were described by Stainton (1860) as Cosmopterix clemensella, named after its collector. Both specimens have no locality label. Hodges (1962) gives the type locality as: Pennsylvania?, the state were Clemens lived. Stainton did not designate a holotype, therefore the specimen with abdomen has been designated here as the lectotype. All material described as Cosmopterix hermodora is in a very bad state.