Mount Cameroon, SW Cameroon, has already been described as a unique hotspot of the many-plumed moth (Lepidoptera, Alucitidae), with their local diversity unrivalled in the entire Afrotropics. We confirm its importance with description of seven new species: Alucita bakweri Ustjuzhanin & Kovtunovich, sp. nov., Alucita jana Ustjuzhanin & Kovtunovich, sp. nov., Alucita bakingili Ustjuzhanin & Kovtunovich, sp. nov., Alucita tatjana Ustjuzhanin & Kovtunovich, sp. nov., Alucita zuza Ustjuzhanin & Kovtunovich, sp. nov., Alucita deja Ustjuzhanin & Kovtunovich, sp. nov., and Alucita bokwango Ustjuzhanin & Kovtunovich, sp. nov. These descriptions have raised the known local diversity of many-plumed moth species on Mount Cameroon to 22, i.e., over a quarter of the known Afrotropical biodiversity of this group. This study also emphasises the great conservation importance of the area.

Altai State University Lenina 61 Barnaul RU 656049 Russia

Biological Institute Tomsk State University Lenina Prospekt 36 Tomsk 634050 Russia

Department of Ecology Faculty of Science Charles University Viničná 7 CZ 12844 Prague Czech Republic

Faculty of Science University of South Bohemia Branišovská 1760 CZ 37005 České Budějovice Czech Republic

Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia 48 Moika Emb Saint Petersburg 191186 Russia

Institute of Entomology Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences Branišovská 31 CZ 37005 České Budějovice Czech Republic

Institute of Silviculture and Forest Protection University of Sopron Bajcsy Zsilinszky u 4 H 9945 Sopron Hungary

Moscow Society of Nature Explorers Bolshaya Nikitskaya 2 Moscow RU 125009 Russia

Zobrazit více v PubMed

Ballesteros-Mejia L, Kitching IJ, Jetz W, Nagel P, Beck J. (2013) Mapping the biodiversity of tropical insects: species richness and inventory completeness of African sphingid moths. Global Ecology and Biogeography 22: 586–595. 10.1111/geb.12039 DOI

De Prins J, De Prins W. (2019) AfroMoths. Online database of Afrotropical moth species (Lepidoptera). Available from: http://www.afromoths.net [Accessed 20 November 2019]

Delabye S, Maicher V, Sáfián Sz, Potocký P, Mertens JEJ, Przybyłowicz Ł, Murkwe M, Kobe IN, Fokam EB, Janeček Š, Tropek R. (2020) First records of 31 species of butterflies and moths (Lepidoptera) in Cameroon, with remarks on their elevational ranges. Biodiversity Data Journal 8: e50543. 10.3897/BDJ.8.e50543 PubMed DOI PMC

Larsen TB. (2005) Butterflies of West Africa. Apollo Books, Stenstrup, 865 pp.

Maicher V, Sáfián Sz, Ishmeal KN, Murkwe M, Kimbeng TJ, Janeček Š, Tropek R. (2016) Two Genera and Nineteen Species of Fruit-Feeding Erebid Moths (Lepidoptera: Erebidae) Recorded in Cameroon for the First Time. Entomological News 126: 64–70. 10.3157/021.126.0108 DOI

Maicher V, Sáfián Sz, Murkwe M, Przybyłowicz Ł, Janeček Š, Fokam EB, Pyrcz T, Tropek R. (2018) Flying between raindrops: Strong seasonal turnover of several Lepidoptera groups in lowland rainforests of Mount Cameroon. Ecology and Evolution 8: 1–12. 10.1002/ece3.4704 PubMed DOI PMC

Maicher V, Sáfián Sz, Murkwe M, Delabye S, Przybyłowicz Ł, Potocký P, Kobe IN, Janeček Š, Mertens JEJ, Fokam EB, Pyrcz T, Doležal J, Altman J, Hořák D, Fiedler K., Tropek R. (2019) Seasonal shifts of biodiversity patterns and species’ elevation ranges of butterflies and moths along a complete rain forest elevational gradient on Mount Cameroon. Journal of Biogeography. 10.1111/jbi.13740 DOI

Przybyłowicz Ł. (2013) Review of subgenus Compsochromia Kiriakoff 1953 (Lepidoptera: Erebidae: Arctiinae, genus Balacra) with identification keys and description of a new species from Cameroon. Annales de la Société entomologique de France 49: 53–60. 10.1080/00379271.2013.763459 DOI

Przybyłowicz Ł, Maicher V, László GM, Sáfián Sz, Tropek R. (2019) Amerila (Lepidoptera: Erebidae: Arctiinae) of Cameroon with morphological remarks on male and female genitalia. Zootaxa 4674: 283–295. 10.11646/zootaxa.4674.2.8 PubMed DOI

Sáfián Sz, Tropek R. (2016) Two new butterfly species (Lepidoptera: Rhopalocera) from Mount Cameroon, Gulf of Guinea Highlands, Cameroon. Zootaxa 4150: 123–132. 10.11646/zootaxa.4150.2.2 PubMed DOI

Sáfián Sz, Belcastro C, Tropek R. (2019) Two new species in the genus Andronymus Holland, 1896 (Lepidoptera, Hesperiidae). Zootaxa 4624: 108–120. 10.11646/zootaxa.4624.1.7 PubMed DOI

Ustjuzhanin P, Kovtunovich V. (2016) The Alucitidae (Lepidoptera) of Malawi with descriptions of five new species. Zootaxa 4126: 533–547. 10.11646/zootaxa.4126.4.5 PubMed DOI

Ustjuzhanin P, Kovtunovich V, Sáfián Sz, Maicher V, Tropek R. (2018) A newly discovered biodiversity hotspot of many-plumed moths in the Mount Cameroon area: first report on species diversity, with description of nine new species (Lepidoptera, Alucitidae). ZooKeys 777: 119–139. 10.3897/zookeys.777.24729 PubMed DOI PMC

Yakovlev RV, Sáfián Sz. (2016) Geraldocossus gen. nov. (Lepidoptera, Cossidae) from Mount Cameroon (West Africa). Zootaxa 4114: 595–599. 10.11646/zootaxa.4114.5.8 PubMed DOI

Plume moths (Lepidoptera, Pterophoridae) of a recently discovered lepidopteran diversity hotspot in the Mount Cameroon area, with descriptions of four new species

Magnifying the hotspot: descriptions of nine new species of many-plumed moths (Lepidoptera, Alucitidae), with an identification key to all species known from Cameroon

Effects of disturbances by forest elephants on diversity of trees and insects in tropical rainforests on Mount Cameroon