New leaf-mining Nepticulidae (Lepidoptera): potential pests of aromatic Lamiaceae plants from equatorial Andes

Members of the Lamiaceae, or mint family, are used worldwide for medicinal, culinary and/or magical-religious purposes, as well in pesticides and ornamental plants. Very little is known about nepticulids, pygmy moths, leaf miners but they may be an important component South American diversity potential pests economically-important species family. In this paper, four new leaf-mining Nepticulidae described from equatorial Andes Ecuador: S. mentholica Diškus & Stonis, sp. nov., Stigmella aromatica odora feeding on Minthostachys mollis (Benth.) Griseb., tomentosella Clinopodium tomentosum (Kunth) Govaerts. It hypothesized that host-plant distribution ranges can provide clues to these newly discovered, trophically specialized miners. The mines, adults, genitalia illustrated with photographs.