Belminus costaricensis Herrer, Lent & Wygodzinsky

Sandoval-Ruiz, César Antonio, Cervantesperedo, Luis, Mendoza-Palmero, Fredy Severo & Ibáñez-Bernal, Sergio, 2012, The Triatominae (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Reduviidae) of Veracruz, Mexico: geographic distribution, taxonomic redescriptions, and a key, Zootaxa 3487, pp. 1-23 : 4-5

Belminus costaricensis Herrer, Lent & Wygodzinsky

( Fig. 2 ).

Belminus costaricensis Herrer, Lent & Wygodzinsky 1954 , p. 95, figs. 42–48; Type locality: Costa Rica, Esparta.

Diagnosis. Adult body length 8–10mm, males generally smaller than females. Body surface granulose, ground color black. Head longer than wide and slightly longer than pronotum. Posterior margin of first rostral segment reaching level of middle of eye, first segment longer than second. Thorax with scutellum excavate on disc, somewhat compressed dorsoventrally and sulcate dorsally along middle. Hemelytra black in ground color, membrane with five yellowish spots, one at base of each vein, one at apex of corium and one adjacent to apex of corium. Hind femur, with two spine-like processes, mid and hind femora with only one. Abdomen with posterior fourth of each connexival segment yellowish or reddish ( Lent & Wygodzinsky 1979).

Distribution. Costa Rica, Mexico (Veracruz) ( Zárate & Zárate 1985, Galvão et al. 2003).

Records in Veracruz. Municipality of San Andrés Tuxtla, Estación de Biología Tropical “Los Tuxtlas. ”

Comments. In Mexico, B. costaricensis has been recorded only by one male and one nymph collected by C. R. Beutelspacher from a bromeliad in the Tropical Biology Station of Los Tuxtlas (Instituto de Biología, UNAM) ( Lent & Wygodzinsky 1979, Zárate & Zárate 1985). Belminus costaricensis has no medical importance, as it shows low infection rates with T. cruzi in nature, apparently is not abundant, has preference for wild environments, and has been considered as a transitional group between predatory and hematophagous habits ( Schofield 1998, Sandoval et al. 2000, 2004). Mexican specimens were not seen by us.

Material examined. 1 Ƥ: Costa Rica, Limón, Río Sardinas 10m R. N. F. S. Barra de Colorado, 1992-9-1, IBUNAM: CNIN:HEM-sn1123. H. Brailovsky det.

Figures

FIGURES 2 – 5. Triatomine species known to occur in Veracruz, Mexico: 2) Belminus costaricensis (female from Costa Rica, El Limón, IBUNAM); 3) Eratyrus cuspidatus (male from Veracruz, “ Los Tuxtlas, ” IBUNAM); 4) Meccus pallidipennis (female from Veracruz, “ Los Tuxtlas, ” IBUNAM); 5) Triatoma barberi (female from Mexico, Jalisco, Guadalajara, IBUNAM). Photographs by C. A. Sandoval – Ruiz.