Isometopus vanharteni, Akingbohungbe, A. E., 2006

Akingbohungbe, A. E., 2006, New species of Isometopinae (Hemiptera: Miridae) from Yemen with a new name for Isometopus longirostris Akingbohungbe from Sudan, Zootaxa 1210, pp. 27-38 : 30-32

Isometopus vanharteni sp. nov.

Description

Male. Length 2.32; maximum width across hemelytra 1.36. Head width across vertex 0.46; dorsal length 0.10; facial length 0.44; facial width 0.66. Anterior interocular space 0.18; posterior space 0.46. Dorsal width of eye 0.14; maximum width 0.24; height 0.30. Height of gena 0.06. Ocellus width 0.06; interocellar space 0.06. Maximum width of pronotum 1.24; median length 0.40. Scutellum length 0.66; width 0.60. Cuneus length 0.48; width 0.34. Rostrum 1.08. Antennae I 0.10; II 0.52; III 0.34; IV 0.10.

Ovate (figure 2). Head strongly vertical, from above 4.6x as broad as long; in front somewhat ovoid (figure 3), about 1.5x as broad as high. Vertex dark­red to black, sparsely finely punctate. Frons at base dark brown with reddish tinge, distinctly punctate; apex yellow­brown, coarsely rugose punctate, tumid convex with margin sharply carinate and sinuately convex. Entire head disk pubescent with upturned golden yellow short reclining hairs. Tylus dark reddish, depressed medially so base together with juga appearing as three pale tubercle­like prominences beneath frontal hood. Lora dark­red, strongly laterally compressed. Eyes deep red, weakly emarginate behind ocelli. Ocelli large, translucent, rather protuberant; each about equal in width to interocellar space. Occiput, postgena broadly exposed, translucent. Antennae mostly dark­red; tip and rather broad median band on ventral surface of segment II, basal and apical extremities of III, pale. I about half as thick as long; II slightly narrowed towards middle with base and apex about 1.6x as thick as I; III and IV fusiform. II, III and IV pubescent with reddish brown hairs either shorter than or as long as segment thickness. Rostrum generally dark­red, ventral surface of segment I at base, entire base of IV pale; reaching as far back as third abdominal sternite.

Pronotum about 3x as broad as long, convexly raised at base, inclined forwards with sides rather strongly sloping laterad; lateral margins explanate, pale hyaline; posterior margin deeply bisinuate. Mesoscutum, scutellum concolourous dark­red to black with pronotal disk, tip of scutellum pale yellow.

Hemelytra with clavus, base of corium together with narrow ental band adjoining claval suture dark­red to black; embolium, cuneus and remainder of corium reddish brown with a median somewhat triangular patch on corium much paler. Membrane smoky, glabrous, biareolate.

Dorsum generally shiny; distinctly punctate, transversely rugose on pronotal disk, mesoscutum, scutellum and clavus; embolium and cuneus impunctate. Pronotal disk dense with reclining golden yellow somewhat sericeous, and semi­reclining reddish­brown hairs. Mesoscutum, scutellum and clavus similarly pubescent with semi­reclining and semi­erect reddish­brown hairs. Embolium, cuneus and corium dense with semi­erect reddish­brown hairs intermixed with erect and semi­erect dark­red bristles.

Thoracic venter generally dark reddish­brown; prosternum, propleura pale yellowbrown with reddish tinge, mesosternum dark­red to black. Propleura coarsely rugose punctate, episternum more finely so. Abdomen with only segments II and III present, sternites dark reddish­brown with pale lateral extremities. Coxae dark reddish­brown to dark­red; trochanteral segment I pale hyaline on forecoxae, otherwise reddish­brown. Other leg units missing.

Female. Unknown.

Comments

This new species shows affinity with Isometopus nigritulus Akingbohungbe known from Cyprus. However it differs from that species in several respects. The frons at the level of the ventral margin of the eyes in the new species lacks the ivory­white transverse stripes separated by distinct grooves which are distinctive features of I. nigritutlus . The interocellar space in the latter is 1.5x as broad as each ocellus whereas in the new species, the ocelli are as broad as the interocellar space. Besides, the dorsum in the new species has extensive reddish­brown and pale areas in contrast to the rather uniformly piceous to black colouration in I. nigritulus . The holotype which was the only specimen available for study, has the abdomen and the legs excluding the coxae missing. It is nonetheless quite distinctive. The species is named in honour of its collector for his efforts in advancing our knowledge on the isometopine fauna of the Middle East.

HOLOTYPE: male, Yemen, Sana’a 12 km NW Manakhah, 3 July to 21 August, 2001, van Harten (LC).