Saica meridionalis Fracker & Bruner, 1924

María, Valentina Castro-Huertas & Melo, María Cecilia, 2024, Saica Amyot & Serville, 1843 (Reduviidae, Emesinae, Saicini): taxonomic revision and phylogenetic analysis with morphological characters, Zoosystema 46 (32), pp. 813-845 : 828

Saica meridionalis Fracker & Bruner, 1924

( Figs 3E, F ; 6J ; 8 )

Saica meridionalis Fracker & Bruner, 1924: 164 [descript.]. — Maldonado Capriles 1990: 479 [cat.]. — Gil-Santana & Marques 2005: 405 [cit.]. — Castro-Huertas & Melo 2023: 6 [phylogenetic analyses].

MATERIAL EXAMINED. — Holotype. Brazil • ♀; Amazonas : Manaos; 15.XI.1919; Flores; USNM 51735 (high-resolution image).

OTHER MATERIAL EXAMINED. — Colombia • 1 ♀; Santander: La Belleza; Ver. Los Naranjos ; 21.III.1997; H. Marin; UNAB. Guyane • 1 ♀; CSG Kourou; 16.X.2007; coll. JMB • 1♀; Delanglade: La Victoire; 5.VI.1997; B. Hermier; coll. JMB • 1♀; Mt des singes ; 26.VIII.1996; Vesco J.P. réc.; coll. JMB .

DIAGNOSIS. — Forewing with three closed cells, posterior margin of abdominal tergite 7 in females with a pair of caudolateral spiniform protruding processes ( Fig. 3E ), apex of the gonoplac rounded ( Fig. 6J ).

DISTRIBUTION. — Brazil (Amazonas) ( Maldonado Capriles 1990). First records for Colombia and French Guiana ( Fig. 8 ).

REDESCRIPTION

Female

Macropterous. Measurements in Table 2 .

Coloration ( Fig. 3 E-F). Head: Reddish to brownish. Scapus dark brown with reddish on basal and apical regions. All labial segments reddish. Thorax: Reddish, apex of the spines slightly dark red to yellowish. Procoxal cavity red, procoxa and protrochanter reddish, profemur dark brown with basal and apical regions reddish, protibia dark brown with basal portion reddish and apical portion pale brown, protarsus yellowish; meso- and metalegs similar to proleg except by the meso- and metatibiae dark brown with the base reddish. Forewing yellowish with veins and pterostigma reddish to yellowish apically. Abdomen: Entirely reddish.

Structure. Thorax ( Fig. 3F ): Humeral angle spines nearly two or three times longer than their base. Mesonotal spine straight, three times longer than its base. Protuberance of scutellum with its apex slightly concave, conspicuously concave posteriorly, lateral margins slightly expanded in caudal view. Metanotal spine straight, nearly 0.5 times the length of mesonotal spine. Forewing with three closed cells, apex of outer discal cell extending as far as apex of pterostigma. Abdomen: Abdominal tergite 2 not conspicuously narrower than the other abdominal tergites. Posterolateral angles of tergite 7 with a pair of spines. Genitalia: Tergite 9 nearly oval. Apex of gonoplac entire, with external margins rounded ( Fig. 6J ).

Male Macropterous. Male specimens were not examined here; but the original description referred to a male paratype as very similar to the female holotype [male genitalia not described or illustrated]. Forewing with three closed discal cells, membrane just reaching apex of abdomen in both sexes.

REMARKS

Saica meridionalis is similar to S. apicalis , as both species have three closed cells on the forewing; nevertheless, S. meridionalis shows longer humeral angle spines, the females have the protruding processes on the posterolateral angles of the abdominal segment 7, and the apex of the gonoplac is rounded. Unfortunately, the posteromedial process of the pygophore was not described in the original description, and the male paratype was not found for this study.

Figures

FIG. 3. — Saica Amyot & Serville, 1843 species, habitus: A, B, S. fuscipes Stål, 1862 female holotype, NHMW: dorsal (A); lateral (B); C, D, S. lativentris Villiers, 1943: male, dorsal (C); male, lateral (D); E, F, S. meridionalis Fracker & Bruner, 1924: female, dorsal (E); female, lateral (F); G, H, S. ochracea Distant, 1902, male holotype, BMNH: dorsal (G); lateral (H); I, L, S. recurvata (Fabricius, 1803) male dorsal (I); male, lateral (J); K, female, dorsal; L, female, lateral. Scale bars: 2 mm.

FIG. 6. — Saica Amyot & Serville, 1843, male and female genitalia, phallus, dorsal view (A‒G): A, S. apicalis Osborn & Drake, 1915; B, S. erubescens Champion, 1898; C, S. lativentris Villiers,1943; D, S. recurvata (Fabricius, 1803); E, S. rubripes Champion, 1898; F, S. tibialis Stål, 1862; G, S. tupackatari n. sp.; bursa copulatrix ventral view (H‒M); H, S. apicalis; I, S. erubescens Champion, 1898; J, S. meridionalis Fracker & Bruner, 1924; K, S. recurvata; L, S. rubripes Champion, 1898; M, S. tibialis Stål, 1862. Abbreviations: apt, arms of articulatory apparatus; bc, bursa copulatrix; bpb, basal plate bridge; dps, dorsal phallotecal sclerite; ese, elongate sclerites of endosome; gap8, gonapophysis 8; gcx8, gonocoxa 8; gpl, gonoplac.

FIG. 8. — Distributional map of Saica Amyot & Serville, 1843 species. Saica meridionalis Fracker & Bruner, 1924, S. ochracea Distant, 1902, S. recurvata (Fabricius, 1803), S. rubripes Champion, 1898, S. subinermis Hussey, 1953, S. tibialis Stål, 1862, and S. tupackatari n. sp. Empty circles, distributional information from examined material, circles with a dot, distributional information from the literature.