Maoripsocus tahunensis, Schmidt & New, 2008

Schmidt, Evan R. & New, Timothy R., 2008, The Psocoptera (Insecta) of Tasmania, Australia, Memoirs of Museum Victoria 65, pp. 71-152 : 94

Maoripsocus tahunensis sp. nov.

Figures 52–56

Material examined. Holotype: Tasmania, Franklin – Gordon Wild Rivers National Park, Tahune Lake , 7 Mar 1988.

Description of female. Coloration (after ca 4 years in alcohol). Head brown with the following dark brown: broad band dorsal to eyes extending across centre of vertex, centripetal margins of ocelli, central region of frons, postclypeal striae, antenna and narrow band from antennal socket half way around ventral margin of eye. Eyes black. Fore wing (fig. 52) brown with hyaline patches. Hind wing (fig. 53) with brown tinge. Thorax dark brown, sutural lines nearly black. Legs brown except pale trochanters and dark brown claws. Abdomen dorsally pale mauve, cream ventrally. Terminal segments brown.

Morphology. IO:D = 4.2. Clypeal shelf intermediate in development. Basal flagellar segment bent. Labrum: stylets small, spiculate; distal sensilla 5 in all, internal sclerotisation present. Lacinia broad, flat, expanded preapically on one side with apical denticles. Postclypeal striae not quite reaching anterior margin. In basal half of fore wing, setae on veins in 2 ranks: cu 2 setose; setae on membrane basally in cell M 3, in cell cu 2 and at apex of cell cu 1 (the latter in one wing only). On one fore wing vein M 3 absent and areola postica joined to media by cross-vein. Spur-vein from pterostigma present. Mesothoracic precoxal suture absent. Presence of abdominal adhesive vesicles not known. Epiproct setose, apical fifth not sclerotised and bearing 3 small setae on posterior margin. Paraproct setose with oval field of 17 trichobothria. Subgenital plate (fig. 54) with transverse posterior margin, pigmented band with pair of anteriorly diverging arms. Gonapophyses (fig. 55) with external valve remnant as one or two setae. Spermatheca (fig. 56) with long glandular area, sac large and sclerotised.

Dimensions. B 2.2, FW 2.68, HW 2.2, F 0.63, T 1.04, t

1

0.292, t 2 0.126, rt 2.3:1, ct 0,0, f 1 0.474, f 2 0.308.

Male. Unknown.

Remarks. This species is similar to species of Kodamaius Okamoto in possessing setae on the fore wing membrane, a pterostigmal spur-vein, long setae on the basal veins in 2 ranks and vein cu 2 strongly setose. In M. tahunensis veins rs and m of the fore wing are fused for a short distance, in Kodamaius they are joined by a cross-vein.

Only a single specimen of this species is known, and until further material can be studied it is presently retained in Maoripsocus .

Etymology. Referring to the type locality, Tahune Lake.

Figures

Figures 52-56. Maoripsocus tahunensis. Female: 52, fore wing; 53, hind wing; 54, subgenital plate; 55, gonapophyses; 56, spermathecal sac. Figures 52, 53 and 55 and 56 to common scales.