Wallabicoris, Schuh & P. Pedraza, 2010

Schuh, R. T. & P. Pedraza, 2010, Wallabicoris, New Genus (Hemiptera: Miridae: Phylinae: Phylini) From Australia, With The Description Of 37 New Species And An Analysis Of Host Associations, Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2010 (338), pp. 1-118 : 13-18

Wallabicoris , new genus

TYPE SPECIES: Wallabicoris ozothamni , new species.

DIAGNOSIS: Recognized by the relatively large size and robust body form, and by the structural details of the male and female genitalia: endosoma with a deep subproximal bend, but never forming a coil, the heavier (primary) strap terminating in an acute apex extending well beyond the secondary gonopore, a narrow (secondary), sometimes bifurcating or incomplete, strap connecting proximal end of secondary gonopore with body of endosoma; phallotheca L-shaped, apical portion about same length as basal portion, always with broad transparent ‘‘window’’ extending over apical half of posterior surface; left paramere variously developed, frequently greatly elongate, always rowboat shaped and with an elongate posterior process and a sclerotized, triangular anterior process; right paramere weakly to conspicuously elongate, sometimes nearly parallel sided, apically with a short fingerlike process. Overall appearance similar to many Plagiognathus Fieber species ( Schuh, 2001: figs. 5–14); coloration often pale to yellow, sometimes with a few to many distinct red spots on a pale background (pls. 1–5). Narrow secondary strap of endosoma (e.g., figs 1–7) similar to that found in Xiphoides Eyles and Schuh (2003) from New Zealand and an undescribed myrmecomorphic taxon from northwestern Argentina. Partial narrow secondary strap also found in an undescribed Australian taxon near Xiphoides used as an outgroup in the present phylogenetic analysis, but endosoma always forming a distinct coil in Xiphoides and the last taxon and the right paramere in those taxa always with a conspicuous, long, fingerlike process apically ( Eyles and Schuh, 2003: figs. 186, 189, 198, 201). Australian taxon near Xiphoides with a variously shaped projection arising from the endosoma at the distal end of the secondary gonopore.

DESCRIPTION: Male: Body elongate, ovate to parallel sided, total length 3.65–6.67. COLORATION (pls. 1–5): Often pale to yellow, sometimes with a few to many distinct red spots on a pale background, rarely with solid areas of red and green. SURFACE AND VESTITURE (figs. 8B, 14B, 20B, 24C, 31B, 35B, 39B, 41B, 47B): Dorsum smooth, at most weakly shining, usually with reclining simple setae matching background coloration; dorsum, with or without some sericeous or woolly setae, sometimes with black bristlelike setae, especially on pronotum. STRUCTURE: Head (pls. 1–5; figs. 8A, 14A, 20A, 24A, 27A, 31A, 35A, 39A, 41A, 47A): Frequently transverse and barely projecting beyond anterior margin of eye; sometimes elongate and weakly to moderately projecting beyond eye when viewed from above; in lateral view eyes occupying 0.60%–0.85% of height of head. Labium: Elongate, slender, extending from base of abdomen to well onto pygophore. Antennae: Segment 1 short, constricted basally, segment 2 elongate, slender and parallel sided, segments 3 and 4 about one-half diameter of segment 2. Thorax: Pronotum ranging from nearly flat to strongly sloping anteriorly; metathoracic scent gland evaporatory area typical of Phylinae (figs. 8C, 14C, 20C, 24B, 27B, 31C, 35C, 39C, 41C, 47C). Legs: Claws elongate, slender, not significantly broadened at base, smoothly curving to sharply angulate; pulvilli moderately fleshy, covering from one-third to one-half of ventral surface of claw; parempodia setiform (figs. 8D, 20D, 24D, 27C, 31D, 35D, 39D, 41D, 47D). Abdomen (figs. 8E, 14D, 24F, 31E): Broad basally, weakly tapering toward pygophore. GENITALIA (e.g., figs. 1–7): Pygophore: Weakly elongate, deep, not tapered toward apex (figs. 14E, 20E, 27E, 35E, 39E, 41E, 47E). Endosoma: With a deep subproxial bend, but never forming a coil, the broader (primary) strap (fig. 1) terminating in an acute apex extending well beyond the secondary gonopore, a slender (secondary), sometimes bifurcating or incomplete strap (fig. 1) connecting proximal end of secondary gonopore with the body of endosoma. Phallotheca: L-shaped, apical portion about same length as basal portion, always with a broad transparent ‘‘window’’ on posterior surface (fig. 1) extending from basal region to near apex. Left Paramere: Variously developed, frequently greatly elongate, always rowboat shaped and with an elongate posterior process and a sclerotized, triangular anterior process; base of posterior process sometimes conspicuously elevated above level of paramere body. Right Paramere: Weakly to conspicuously elongate, sometimes nearly parallel sided, apically with a short fingerlike process.

Female: Elongate ovoid, usually more distinctly so than male, total length 3.71– 5.70 (pls. 1–5). COLORATION: As in male. SURFACE AND VESTITURE: As in male. STRUCTURE: Head: Eyes smaller than in male, interocular distance greater; in lateral view eyes occupying a smaller proportion of height of head than in male. Labium: As in male. Antennae: Segment 2 elongate, more slender than in male, slightly increasing in diameter distally. Thorax: As in male. GEN- ITALIA (fig. 33): Posterior wall folded longitudinally on either side of midline, elevated and bearing projections posteriorly (fig. 33), as part of longitudinal folding of wall; posterior wall with distinct outpocketing (swelling) posterolaterally. Vestibular sclerites moderately sclerotized, moderately elongate, exit folded back toward entrance. Sclerotized rings widely separated, weakly infolded laterally.

ETYMOLOGY: A fanciful name derived from wallaby, the widespread Australian marsupial, and the Greek coris, ‘‘bug.’’ Originally coined as a manuscript name by the late J.C.M. Carvalho, who applied it to a small sample of specimens as part of his studies of the Australia Miridae with the late Gordon F. Gross, in the early 1980s.

HOSTS: Known to breed primarily on the plant families Asteraceae , Lamiaceae , and Rhamnaceae , based on the collection of adult and nymphal specimens. Evidence for breeding also exists for plants in the families Boraginaceae , Fabaceae , Sterculiaceae , and Thymelaeaceae , but for lesser numbers of Wallabicoris spp.

DISTRIBUTION (maps 1–4): Broadly distributed on the southern half of the Australian continent, but with the preponderance of known species recorded from the floristically rich southwest.

DISCUSSION: Characters Supporting the Monophyly of Wallabicoris : Wallabicoris spp. are large to very large within the context of Australian Phylinae and their external morphology is therefore relatively easy to study. It is the male and female genitalia, however, that allow for recognition of a monophyletic group. Whereas the male genitalia are relatively simple, they do possess features distinctive within the Phylinae . They also share some features with other taxa from Australia, New Zealand, and Argentina. Most of the structural features discussed below may be found in a similar form in taxa other than Wallabicoris . Nonetheless, taken together these characters present a strong argument for the monophyly of the genus.

Form of narrow secondary strap of endosoma: A narrow (secondary) endosomal strap is seen in Wallabicoris (fig. 1), Xiphoides from New Zealand, six species of an undescribed genus near Xiphoides (Weirauch and Schuh, in press) from southernmost Australia, and an undescribed myrmecomorphic taxon from northwestern Argentina (Weirauch and Schuh, in press). This narrow strap is almost always long in Wallabicoris , usually with a submedial undulation (e.g., figs. 1–6), although more rarely it is bifurcating (fig. 7) or incomplete (fig. 36). The strap in Xiphoides is also long, but never has the submedial undulation or other modifications, and extends beyond the proximal end of the gonopore rather than being attached to it. The myrmecomorphic Argentine species is structurally similar to many Wallabicoris spp. , in that the secondary strap is complete and attached proximally to the secondary gonopore, although it lacks the medial undulation. In the undescribed Australian group near Xiphoides the distance between the origin of the strap and the secondary gonopore is much shorter and never with an undulation or bifurcation; also there is a long gonopore sclerite ( Stonedahl, 1990).

Coiling of the endosoma: All Wallabicoris spp. have a strong U-shaped bend in the proximal section of the endosoma (e.g., figs. 1–7). In other genera that might be thought to show a relationship on the basis of the narrow secondary strap, the most similar form of the endsoma is found in the undescribed myrmecomorphic taxon from Argentina mentioned above; in the other previously mentioned taxa from Australia and New Zealand the endosoma always forms a single coil ( Eyles and Schuh, 2003: fig. 201), a condition never seen in Wallabicoris .

Phallotheca: Wallabicoris spp. always have a transparent ‘‘window’’ in the phallotheca (e.g., figs. 1–7). This condition is seen in other taxa with the narrow secondary strap only in the undescribed myrmecomorphic taxon from Argentina. The phallotheca in some Xiphoides sp. has a fingerlike projection on the dorsal surface ( Eyles and Schuh, 2003: fig. 200), a feature not generally found in taxa of Phylinae outside the Pilophorini ( Schuh, 1984) , although see Bisulcopsallus Schuh , Ceratopsallus Schuh , and Stictopsallus Schuh in the North American Phymatopsallus group ( Schuh, 2006b).

Left paramere: The left paramere is sometimes much more elongate in Wallabicoris spp. than in most other Phylinae , a feature that can be appreciated in undissected specimens by observing the distance the paramere projects beyond the margin of the pygophore (figs. 7, 9, 27F, 28). The attribute is not unique to the group, however, as is evident from the examination of Moiseevichia leyserae Schuh from South Africa ( Schuh, 2006a: figs. 3, 12), which has a greatly elongate left paramere. There appears to be no single structural detail in the left paramere that can be used to diagnose Wallabicoris .

Right paramere: The right paramere is likewise devoid of characteristics obviously distinctive to Wallabicoris . It is usually conspicuously elongate, sometimes parallel sided over much of its length (e.g., figs. 1–7), and appearing flattened (fig. 41F), features seen in a similar form in members of the Phymatopsallus group from North America ( Schuh, 2006b) and in Moiseevichia . Nonetheless, Xiphoides and the undescribed taxon near Xiphoides have a right paramere of a very different conformation from that of Wallabicoris , with a broadly ovoid body and a strongly attenuated fingerlike apical process (e.g., Eyles and Schuh, 2003: figs. 170, 179, 186).

Posterior wall of female: Our still-limited survey of female genitalia in the Phylinae , and more particularly the Australian Phylinae , suggests that aspects of the structural details seen in the posterior wall in Wallabicoris may be distinctive to the group of Australian genera. Our comments on these— and other female genitalic structures—are based on dissections of the following species: W. ozothamni , W. pinocchii , W. pityrodii , W. pultenaei (fig. 33), W. spyridii , and W. waitzii and a number of yet to be described taxa. Schuh (1974) pointed out that the Pilophorini uniquely possess an evagination dorsally along the posterior margin of the posterior wall, a feature that he treated as synapomorphic for the group. Outside of Australia, current knowledge of female genitalic struc- tures suggests that the posterior wall is simple, although it may be ornamented with fields of spicules and may have embedded in it variously developed interramal sclerites. Nonetheless, as shown by Weirauch (2007), the posterior wall in some Australian Phylinae , especially Exocarpocoris Weirauch , may be more elaborately ornamented. In Wallabicoris the posterior wall is folded longitudinally on either side of the midline and bears projections posteriorly (fig. 33). These structures are in some ways reminiscent of the dorsal lobes of the interramal sclerites ( Forero, 2008: fig. 8; K structures of Slater, 1950; interramal lobes of Schwartz, 2004) seen in the Orthotylini (see also Schaffner and Schwartz, 2008: fig. 19). The resemblance of these structures in the two groups would appear to be superficial, however, as the dorsal lobes in the Orthotylini , according to Forero (2008) and Schaffner and Schwartz, 2008), result from a medial evagination on the posterior margin of the interramal sclerites, whereas in Wallabicoris , and at least some other Australian Phylinae , they arise from longitudinal folding of the wall. In addition to the longitudinal folds, the posterior wall also exhibits distinct outpocketing posterolaterally (fig. 33).

Vestibular sclerites in female: It is now well known that many genera of Phylinae possess heavily sclerotized, and sometimes morphologically elaborate, vestibular sclerites (e.g., Henry and Schuh, 1979; Wyniger, 2006; Pluot-Sigwalt and Matocq, 2006; Schuh, 2006b). These sclerites (what M.D. Schwartz [personal commun.] believes to be elaborately modified internal invaginations of the left first gonapophysis) are moderately sclerotized and usually moderately elongate in Wallabicoris (fig. 33), as might be predicted by the length of the endosoma, if indeed the lengths of the endosoma and the vestibular sclerites are correlated, as suggested by Pluot and Matocq (2006). It is not clear that there are any unique aspects of structure in the vesitubular sclerites in Wallabicoris .

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