Callitricola pullabooka, Symonds & Cassis, 2018

Symonds, Celia L. & Cassis, Gerasimos, 2018, Systematics And Analysis Of The Radiation Of Orthotylini Plant Bugs Associated With Callitroid Conifers In Australia: Description Of Five New Genera And 32 New Species (Heteroptera: Miridae: Orthotylinae), Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2018 (422), pp. 1-229 : 129-130

Callitricola pullabooka , new species

Figures 13 , 38–40 , 48 ; map 3

DIAGNOSIS: Defined by the following characters: small size; forewing membrane veins green; pygophore dorsal margin with medial tumescence, one left lateral tergal process arising from tergal plate, tergal process broad serrate comb; left paramere with narrow apex with weakly recurved hook; right paramere base short, apex curved inward forming slightly pointed flange, subapical dorsal margin round, small spinelike serrations on apical flange and subapical dorsal margin; phallotheca with large right basal tumescence and lobe on right dorsal margin; aedeagus with PES fully enclosing secondary gonopore, with perpendicular directed or strongly downturned left branch; DES2 unbranched; DES1 bifurcate, with both branches elongate, subequal; female laIRL wider at apex and curved inward distally, base with two lobes—one round and spiniferous, one with acutely pointed apex and only margins serrate; mIRL moderately elongate, three-quarters length of laIRL, subrectangular, margin only serrate.

DESCRIPTION: Male: Small size, body length 3.20–3.51 mm, pronotal width 0.84–0.97 mm.

COLORATION: Bleached by ethanol preservation; forewing membrane light brown, veins retaining slight green tint, bleeding to membrane surrounding veins (fig. 13). VESTITURE: Dorsum with moderately dense distribution of pale simple setae. STRUCTURE: Head: Antennae, AI subequal to vertex width, AII 1.2× pronotal width; labium medium length, extending to metacoxae. Hemelytra: Cuneus and major cell moderately elongate, major membrane vein straight (fig. 13). GENITALIA: Pygophore: Dorsal margin of genital opening straight, medial tumescence at margin, one sclerotized tergal process positioned left lateral arising from tergal plate, tergal process, broad, serrate comb shape (figs. 38A, 39F, 40A); ventral margin convex medially, phalloguide with small, slightly sclerotized lobe at base of right paramere articulation (figs. 38A, 40B). Left paramere: Apophysis tapering apically, apex narrow with weakly recurved hook (figs. 38B, 40B). Right paramere: Base short; paramere round in lateral view; apex curved inward forming small, slightly pointed flange (fig. 40B), margin with small spinelike serrations; subapical dorsal margin round with small spinelike serrations; mesiolateral surface excavated, concave (fig. 38C). Phallotheca: Dorsal opening large, distal to medial; round distally; large subapical ventral tumescence; large right lateral basal tumescence (figs. 38A, 40A, B). Aedeagus: Spicule arrangement (fig. 38): PES with tubular base entire and wholly sheathing secondary gonopore, opening medially through which apex of secondary gonopore protrudes, distal portion of PES left lateral to secondary gonopore (fig. 38F, G, 40E), DES2 left lateral to PES (fig. 40E), DES1 left dorsolateral to DES2 (fig. 40C, D); bases of all spicules originating adjacently at base of secondary gonopore; DES2 and DES1 flattened at base (rather than tubular); all spicules subequal in length; PES bifurcate medially, branches elongate, distally serrate, left branch either perpendicular (fig. 38F, G) or strongly downturned (fig. 40D); DES2 unbranched, distally serrate (figs. 38G, 40D); DES1, bifurcate in distal half, branches subequal in length and distally serrate, basal keel (DESk) short (figs. 38G, 40C).

Female: GENITALIA: Interramal lobes (fig. 48): mIRL partially joined to laIRL at base; laIRL wider at apex and curved inward distally, base with one spiniferous lobe and one subtriangular lobe with serrate margins only; mIRL moderately elongate, three-quarters length of laIRL, subrectangular, margin serrate.

ETYMOLOGY: Named after the type locality, Pullabooka State Forest, in New South Wales. Noun in apposition.

HOST PLANT: Known from Callitris glaucophylla (table 2).

HOLOTYPE: AUSTRALIA: New South Wales: Pullabooka State Forest , 33.82444 ° S 147.81361 ° E, 05 Nov 1998, AM Terr. Ecol. Dept., Callitris glaucophylla , 1♂ ( AMNH _ PBI 00016294 ) ( AM).

PARATYPES: AUSTRALIA: New South Wales: Euglo South State Forest, 33.53 ° S 147.27861 ° E, 08 Dec 1998, AM Terr. Ecol. Dept., Callitris glaucophylla , 2♂ ( AMNH _PBI 00016301, 00016302), 1♀ ( AMNH _PBI 00016304) ( AM), 1♀ ( AMNH _PBI 00005829) ( UNSW). Euglo South State Forest, 33.505 ° S 147.22972 ° E, 09 Dec 1998, AM Terr. Ecol. Dept., Callitris glaucophylla , 1♂ ( AMNH _PBI 00016303) ( AM). Murda State Forest, 33.06972 ° S 147.13527 ° E, 09 Feb 1999, AM Terr. Ecol. Dept., Callitris glaucophylla , 1♂ ( AMNH _PBI 00016300) ( AM). Murda State Forest, 33.01916 ° S 147.28583 ° E, 11 Feb 1999, AM Terr. Ecol. Dept., Callitris glaucophylla , 4♂ ( AMNH _PBI 00016295–00016298) ( AM), 1♂ ( AMNH _PBI 00016299) ( UNSW). Murda State Forest, 33.0175 ° S 147.26611 ° E, 11 Feb 1999, AM Terr. Ecol. Dept., Callitris glaucophylla , 4♂ ( AMNH _PBI 00016286, 00016287, 00016291, 00016292) ( AM). Pullabooka State Forest, 33.84111 ° S 147.81027 ° E, 05 Nov 1998, AM Terr. Ecol. Dept., Callitris glaucophylla , 1♂ ( AMNH _PBI 00016293) ( AM).

DISTRIBUTION: Known from seven localities in close proximity in central New South Wales on the southwestern slopes of the Great Divid- ing Range (map 3). Cooccurs with four other species (table 2) including C. cordylina , which is also known only from this region (map 2).

REMARKS: Callitricola pullabooka is closely related to the Western Australian species C. tatarnici , but can be distinguished from it by the smaller size; slightly more bulbous eyes; the basal tumescence on the right dorsal margin of the phallotheca large, and the lobe on the right dorsal margin smaller (cf. figs. 38E and 42F); the right paramere slightly less excavated (cf. figs. 38C and 42C); PES not as narrow having few serrations on the distal half (cf. figs. 38G and 42H); the female laIRL having adjacent basal lobes, of equal size, with one round and spiniferous and the other acute with serrations restricted to the inner only (cf. fig. 48); and the mIRL only three-quarters the length of the laIRL (cf. fig. 48). See alsoremarks for C. tatarnici and C. wiradjuri .

No females of this species were measured, and dried female specimens cannot be distinguished from the cooccurring species, C. wiradjuri .

Figures

FIG. 13. Callitricola species, dorsal habitus photographs of males. Scale bar = 1 mm.

FIG. 38. Male genitalia of Callitricola pullabooka. A. Pygophore, left lateral. B. Left paramere, ventral. C. Right paramere, left lateral. D. Phallotheca, right lateral. E. Aedeagus, right lateral. F. Aedeagus, left lateral. G. Phallotheca, dorsal. Scale bars = 0.1 mm.

FIG. 39. External morphology of Callitricola pullabooka, male. A. Head, dorsal, scale bar = 30 µm. B. Head, lateral, scale bar = 30 µm.C. Head and pronotum, dorsal, scale bar = 100 µm. D. Meso- and metathorax, scale bar = 30 µm. E. Metathoracic scent gland, scale bar = 10 µm. F. Pygophore, dorsal, scale bar = 30 µm.

FIG. 40. Male genitalic morphology of Callitricola pullabooka. A. Pygophore, left lateral. B. Pygophore, ventral. C. Aedeagus, left dorsolateral. D. Aedeagus, ventral. E. Aedeagus, left lateral. Scale bars = 30 µm.

FIG. 48. Callitricola female genitalia: right interramal lobes of species, posterior wall of C. graciliphila, dorsal. Scale bar = 0.1 mm.