Husseyella diffidens (Drake & Harris, 1933)

Canejo, Rafael P. R., Melo, Alan Lane De & Rodrigues, Higor D. D., 2023, Gerromorpha (Insecta: Hemiptera: Heteroptera) from the state of Rio Grande do Norte, northeastern Brazil, including a new synonymy, Zootaxa 5357 (2), pp. 151-185 : 163

Husseyella diffidens (Drake & Harris, 1933)

( Figs. 3A , 8A–C )

Microvelia diffidentis Drake & Harris, 1933a: 52–53 (original description).

Husseyella diffidens: Herring 1955: 23 (changed combination, epithet emendation).

Identification. Our specimens were identified based on the shape of the female abdomen. In H. diffidens , the lateral margin of the abdomen is convex or almost straight, especially on laterotergites V–VII ( Fig. 8C ); whereas in H. halophila Drake, 1958 , the only congener occurring in Brazil, the lateral margin is slightly sinuous and the laterotergites are more reflected ( Rodrigues et al. 2021c: page 131, Fig. 81). Husseyella turmalis (Drake & Harris, 1933) , the third species of the genus, can also be differentiated from H. diffidens and H. halophila by the female abdomen, which has the posterior angle of laterotergite VII produced and spinose, whereas in the other two species this angle is at most right-angled and sometimes acute, but not produced ( Fig. 8C ) ( Drake & Harris 1933a; Drake 1958).

Material examined. All specimens apterous. BRAZIL, Rio Grande do Norte: Tabatinga, lago ao lado do condomínio Mar de Tabatinga , 6°03’59.5”S, 35°06’00.4”W, 20-IX-2019, R . P. R. Canejo, A.L. Melo leg. (8♂, 4♀ CEAAVF) ; Canguaretama , manguezal, 6°24’13.7”S, 35°08’03.8”W, 31-X-2020, R . P. R. Canejo leg. (4♂, 5♀ CEAAVF) ; Extremoz , CTA - manguezal, 5°40’42.6”S, 35°14’28.2”W, 22-X-2022, R .P. R. Canejo leg. (15♂, 31♀ CEAAVF) .

Figures

FIGURE 3. (A–B) Distribution records for species of Gerromorpha in state of Rio Grande do Norte, northeastern Brazil.

FIGURE 8. Species of Gerromorpha from state of Rio Grande do Norte. (A–C) Husseyella diffidens, (A) dorsal and (B) ventral views of apterous male, (C) dorsal view of apterous female. (D–F) Microvelia longipes, (D) dorsal and (E) ventral views of macropterous male, (F) dorsal view of macropterous female. (G–I) Microvelia venustatis, (G) dorsal and (H) ventral views of apterous male, (I) dorsal view of apterous female. Scale bars = 1.00 mm.