Solonaima nielseni, Erbe, Petra & Hoch, Hannelore, 2004

Erbe, Petra & Hoch, Hannelore, 2004, Two new species of the Australian planthopper genus Solonaima Kirkaldy (Hemiptera: Fulgoromorpha: Cixiidae), Zootaxa 536, pp. 1-7 : 2-4

Solonaima nielseni n.sp.

( Figs 1–4 , 6–11 )

Type material. Holotype­male: 7mls. West of Rosebank, NSW, 4.March 1965, M.S. Upton, in ANIC; Paratypes — 1 male: Lamington National Park, Queensland, 28. Jan.–3. Feb. 1963, G. Monteith, in U.Q.I.C.; 1 female: same data as holotype.

Description. Body generally dark brown. Tegmen translucent, with dark brown markings along distal and proximal crossveins and inner apical cell, pterostigma distinct. Total length. Holotype: 7.8 mm; male paratype: 7.7 mm; female paratype: 9.1 mm.

Head. Anterior portion of vertex nearly pentagonal, about as long in midline as basally wide. Frons twice as long as maximum width, with median carina sharply ridged; area of frons concave. Post­ and anteclypeus together only slightly shorter than frons. Second antennal segment about 3 times as long as first.

Thorax. Pronotum about as long as anterior portion of vertex, and 1.4 times as wide as maximum width of head. Mesonotum in midline about 9.3 times the length of pronotum. Basal tarsal segment of hind leg with 7, second tarsal segment with 6 to 7 apical teeth. Tegmen about 2.4 times as long as maximally wide. Longitudinal veins inconspiciously papillate.

Male genitalia. Genital segment in lateral aspect relatively broad with laterodorsal margins rounded. Anal segment in dorsal aspect nearly ovate, distal part broadened and slightly bent ventrad. Parameres slender, apically dilated, with dorsal tip acute and directed cephalad. Basal part of aedeagus with laterally on each side with a short terete spine directed caudad. Basal part of aedeagus with dorsal portion differentiated into a subapical ear­shaped lobe and a more acute process, both forming a groove through which a long and slender, terete spine which arises subapically on the right side of the aedeagal basis, is lead to the left side. Distal part of aedeagus bispinose, with both spines arising at mid­length of membraneous distal part: the longer spine in repose curved basoventrad, the shorter one curved dorsobasad. Distal part of aedeagus apically granulate.

Female genitalia: as in other congeners with complete ensiform ovipositor and median dorsoventral division of wax­secreting area of the 9th tergite (see Hoch & Howarth 1989). Etymology. Named in honor of the late Ebbe Schmidt Nielsen, former director of the Australian National Insect Collection, CSIRO, Canberra.

Distribution. Known from localities in Queensland and New South Wales, the species expands the range of the genus to NSW.

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 3. Solonaima nielseni n. sp., head. 1, dorsal aspect; 2, ventral aspect; 3, lateral aspect (holotype). Scale bar 0.5 mm.

FIGURE 4. Solonaima nielseni n. sp., tegmen (holotype). Scale bar 5 mm. FIGURE 5. Solonaima monteithia n. sp., tegmen (holotype). Scale bar 5 mm.

FIGURES 6 – 11. Solonaima nielseni n. sp., male genitalia (holotype). 6, genital segment, left lateral aspect; 7, left paramere, lateral aspect; 8, same, dorsal aspect; 9, anal segment, left lateral aspect; 10, aedeagus, left lateral aspect; 11, same, right lateral aspect. Scale bars 0.1 mm.