Micracanthia ornatula ( Reuter, 1881 )

Polhemus, John T. & Polhemus, Dan A., 2012, Guide To The Aquatic Heteroptera Of Singapore And Peninsular Malaysia. Viii. Leptopodomorpha, Families Saldidae, Leptopodidae, And Omaniidae, Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 60 (2), pp. 329-341 : 339-340

Micracanthia ornatula ( Reuter, 1881)

( Fig. 21 )

Salda ornatula Reuter, 1881: 160

Acanthia ornatula: Reuter, 1895: 17

Saldula ornatula: Drake & Hoberlandt, 1951: 9

Micracanthia ornatula: J. Polhemus & D. Polhemus, 1999: 19

Salda dixoni Distant, 1904: 405 ; syn. by Drake & Hottes, 1950: 177

Material examined. — SINGAPORE: 1 male, Nee Soon Swamp forest , 15 May 1992, coll. unknown ( ZRC) . MALAYSIA: Johor: 1 female, swamp forest stream 27 km SW of Mersing , 14 Aug.1985, CL 2058, coll. D. A. & J. T . Polhemus ( JTPC) .

Extralimital material examined. — EAST TIMOR, Dili Dist.: 3 males, 1 female, Tasitolu wetland complex, W. of Dili, middle lake, sea level, 8°33'43"S, 125°30'29"E, water temp. 32°C., salinity 75 ppt., 1 Sep.2004, 1130–1200 hours., CL 7310, coll. D. A. Polhemus ( USNM, BPBM) . NEW CALEDONIA: 1 male, Yaoué , drying streambed, between small boulders near dry section, 12 Dec.1965, B. M. 1966-1, collector unknown ( JTPC) . JAPAN, Fukuoka Pref.: 2 females, Kyûshû, Fukuoka, Chikuzen , 7 Jun.1929, coll. Esaki & Hori ( JTPC) . RÉUNION, Saint-Pierre : 3 males, 7 females, Cilaos [1200 m.], 17 Nov.1990, coll. E. Heiss ( JTPC) . MADAGASCAR, Tananarive Prov. : 2 males, 1 female, Tananarive, waterfall and seeps nr. Queen’s Palace, 1310 m, 24 Oct.1986, CL 2233, coll. J. T. & D. A. Polhemus ( JTPC) . SIERRA LEONE, Kono Dist. : 1 male, Sefadu [Kono], stream, 8 Jan.1946, coll. G. A. Walton ( JTPC) . BURKINA FASO (=UPPER VOLTA), Centre Region : 1 male, 1 female, Onagadougou, Sep.1936, coll. Skulina ( JTPC) . KENYA, Rift Valley Prov.: 1 female, Lake Baringa , 3 Feb.1980, CL 1662, coll. J. T. Polhemus ( JTPC) . PAKISTAN, Sindh Prov.: 2 females, West Pakistan, Karachi, 5 mi. before Korangi Creek , no date, coll. A. Hamid ( JTPC) .

Diagnosis. — Male length 2.90–3.20, maximum width (across hemelytra) 1.30–1.50; female length 3.50–3.60, maximum width (across hemelytra) 1.40–1.60. Head, pronotum and scutellum black; hemelytra black, broadly marked with dark yellow patches on outer corium external to vein R + M, and with smaller dark yellow spots on inner corium and posterior end of clavus; wing membrane pale translucent fumate, veins contrastingly dark; antennae with segment I yellowish brown, segments II–IV darker brown; legs pale yellow basally, becoming pale brown distally.

Distribution. — Originally described from northern Africa (Nubia) by Reuter (1881), and widespread in the Eastern Hemisphere. Recorded by Schuh et al. (1987) from South Africa, Angola, Tanzania, Sudan, Egypt, Mongolia, India, Ceylon, Burma, and the Philippines, with further records provided by J. Polhemus & D. Polhemus (1999) from Oman, Saudi Arabia, China, Taiwan, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Borneo, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and Australia. We now provide the first records for Singapore and Peninsular Malaysia, East Timor, New Caledonia, Japan, Madagascar, Reunion, Sierra Leone, Upper Volta, Kenya, and Pakistan.

Discussion. — Recognised by its small size (less than 4 mm in both sexes) and predominantly dark colouration, with the head and thorax uniformly rugose, punctate and dull. The records given above for Singapore and Malaysia are the first for this species in those countries, but are not unexpected given the very wide range of this small, highly dispersive species. For a more detailed treatment of the complex synonymy of Salda dixoni under this species see Schuh et al. (1987: 339).

Ecological notes. — Dover (1929) noted of this species (as Salda dixoni ): “Mr. Pendlebury took this species in some numbers at the edges of small pools in a mangrove swamp at Telok Kemang in Port Dickson, Negri Sembilan …”, thus documenting the ability of this adaptable species to utilize both freshwater and saline habitats.

Figures

Fig. 21. Micracanthia ornatula, dorsal habitus.Specimen from East Timor, Tasitolu wetland complex, west of Dili, CL 7310.