Tectocoris HAHN 1834

Gerry Cassis & Loren Vanags, 2006, Jewel Bugs of Australia (Insecta, Heteroptera, Scutelleridae), Denisia 19, pp. 275-398 : 381-384

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 10.5281/zenodo.12996779
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.13715254
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/0380878F-FFD5-FFF0-FDAB-F956C722FEA2
treatment provided by	Luisschmitz
scientific name	Tectocoris HAHN 1834
status

Treatment

Tectocoris HAHN 1834 ( Figs 1f View Fig , 2 View Fig g-i, 45, 46, 47, 48)

Tectocoris HAHN 1834: 33 (gen. nov.); DALLAS 1851: 3 (description); STÅL 1865: 33 (key); MAYR 1866: 17 (list); STÅL 1873: 11 (list); LETHIERRY & SEVERIN 1893: 19 (catalogue); SCHOUTEDEN 1904: 19 (description); KIRKALDY 1909: 306 (catalogue); MCDONALD & CASSIS 1984: 568 (list); CASSIS & GROSS 2002: 600 (catalogue)

Type species: Tetyra cyanipes FABRICIUS 1803 (= Cimex diopHtHalmus THUNBERG 1783 ), monotypy

Diagnosis: Tectocoris is recognised by the following combination of characters: large, elongate-ovoid body ( Figs 1f View Fig , 45a,b View Fig ); head elongate ( Fig. 46a View Fig ); anterolateral margins of pronotum strongly divergent posteriorly ( Figs 1f View Fig , 45a,b View Fig ); posterior margin of pronotum excavate ( Figs 1f View Fig , 45a,b View Fig ); anterior margin of proepisternum entire ( Fig. 46b View Fig ); external efferent system of metathoracic glands reduced, linear ( Fig. 46d View Fig ); mesepimeron without evaporative areas ( Fig. 46d View Fig ); abdominal SIII-SIV sulcate; males with androconial glands on abdominal SIV-VI ( Figs 2 View Fig g-I, 45c); male SVIII visible ( Fig. 46e View Fig ); parameres strongly hooked ( Fig. 47b View Fig ); aedeagus with three conjunctival appendages ( Figs 47c,d View Fig ); CAI medially fused ( Figs 47c,d View Fig ); ductus seminis proximalis bounded by ligamentary tubule ( Figs 47c,d View Fig ); ejaculatory apparatus box-like ( Fig. 47c View Fig ), heavily sclerotized; spermathecal reservoir greatly enlarged, oval; and, spermathecal pump minute.

Description: Body elongate-ovoid ( Figs 1f View Fig , 45a,b View Fig ); aposematic colouration, often sexually dimorphic ( Figs 1f View Fig , 45a,b View Fig ), females mostly oranges, dorsum often with iridescent green or blue markings ( Figs 1f View Fig , 45a,b View Fig ), males ranging from uniformly orange to mostly iridescent green or blue, with orange markings ( Figs 1f View Fig , 45a,b View Fig ); dorsum densely punctulate ( Figs 1f View Fig , 45a,b View Fig ); body nearly glabrous ( Figs 1f View Fig , 45a,b View Fig ). Head: elongate, little longer than wide, porrect, weakly convex ( Fig. 46a View Fig ); lateral margins of jugae rectilinear, carinate in profile ( Fig. 46a View Fig ); clypeus extending beyond jugae ( Fig. 46a View Fig ); bucculae elongate, margins low ( Fig. 46a View Fig ); eyes small. Pronotum: callosite region and disc co-planar, without transverse furrow ( Figs 1f View Fig , 45a,b View Fig ); anterolateral margins strongly divergent, weakly sinuate, explanate ( Figs 1f View Fig , 45a,b View Fig ), carinate in profile ( Fig. 46b View Fig ); humeral angles angulate ( Figs 1f View Fig , 45a,b View Fig ); posterior margin excavate ( Figs 1f View Fig , 45a,b View Fig ). Scutellum: strongly convex; strongly declivent beyond midpoint ( Figs 1f View Fig , 45a,b View Fig ); lateral margins convex ( Figs 1f View Fig , 45a,b View Fig ); base of corium and clavus visible ( Figs 1f View Fig , 45a,b View Fig ); tip of membrane wing visible ( Figs 1f View Fig , 45a,b View Fig ). Hemelytra: exocorium expanded ( Figs 1f View Fig , 45a,b View Fig ). Thoracic Pleura: anterior edge of proepisternum linear, explanate ( Fig. 46c View Fig ); external efferent system of metathoracic glands greatly reduced, ostiole minute, peritreme as linear sulcation ( Fig. 46d View Fig ); evaporative areas reduced, not extending to mesepimeron ( Fig. 46d View Fig ). Thoracic Sterna: prosternum depressed ( Fig. 46c View Fig ); mesosternum weakly impressed, laterally striate; metasternum flat. Pregenital Abdomen: laterally rounded, posterior angles weakly acuminate ( Fig. 45c View Fig ); abdominal SIII-SIV medially sulcate, housing labium; males with androconial glands present sublaterally on SIV-VI ( Figs 2 View Fig g-i, 45c); male SVIII visible, strongly overlapping posterior margin of pygophore ( Fig. 46e View Fig ). Male Genitalia: posterior region of pygophore visible, margin notched medially ( Figs 46e,f View Fig , 47a View Fig ); genital opening broad, densely setose ( Figs 46e,f View Fig , 47a View Fig ); parameres with arcuate, broad stem, densely setose, crown strongly hooked ( Fig. 47b View Fig ); aedeagus large; phallotheca sub-cylindrical, without processes ( Figs 47c,d View Fig ); ductus seminis proximalis narrow, bounded by ligamentary-derived membraneous tubule ( Figs 47c,d View Fig ); CAI large, lobe-like, without sclerotization ( Figs 47c,d View Fig ); CAII membraneous lobe, with short, acute lobal sclerite (Figs 47c,d); CAIII large, membraneous, medially sclerotized, fused basally, with subapical sclerotized thorn-like process (Figs 47c,d); vesica moderate size, subequal to uninflated CAII, S-shaped (Figs 47c,d). Female Terminalia: paratergites VIII moderate size, triangular, medially not con-tiguous in ventral view; paratergites IX small suboval, medially separated; gonocoxae I moderate size, subelliptoid, medially con-tiguous. Spermatheca: fecundation canal moderate size; reservoir large, oval, membra-neous; spermathecal pump minute, with flanges vestigial, pump oval with acute apex.

Diversity and distribution: Tectocoris is a monotypic genus which is known primarily from the Melanesian and Australian subregions of the Australian zoogeographic region, as well as Indonesia.

Included species:

T. diopHtHalmus (THUNBERG 1783) Australia, Indonesia, New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Tonga, Vanuatu

Remarks: The taxonomic history of this genus and species is convoluted, owing in part to the extreme colour variability found. This species has been placed in a number of genera with varying specific epithets and subspecies. A list of these synonyms can be found in CASSIS & GROSS (2002) and above. SCHOUTEDEN (1904) and KIRKALDY (1909) placed the insect in the tribe Scutel-lerini with other members of the current subfamily Scutellerinae . MCDONALD (1961, 1963b) also placed it within the tribe Scutellerini , but proposed that it occupies a taxonomic position of its own. KUMAR (1965) placed the species in the tribe Pachycorinae , a group otherwise absent from the Australian continent.