Rhagovelia sophiae, Zettel & Laciny, 2021

Zettel, Herbert & Laciny, Alice, 2021, New species of the Rhagovelia orientalis species group (Hemiptera: Heteroptera Veliidae), Zootaxa 4942 (2), pp. 219-228 : 221-223

Rhagovelia sophiae sp.n.

( Figs. 1, 2 , 7, 8, 13, 16 , 19, 22, 23, 26 )

Type material: Holotype (apterous male, PNM), Philippines, Catanduanes Island, W of Virac, Santo Domingo , Pajo River area , 10.III.1999, leg. Zettel (199) . Paratypes ( NHMW, UPLB, PNM, ZCW, NMPC, ZRC): 14 apterous males, 12 apterous females, 3 macropterous males (2 dealate), 3 macropterous females (2 dealate), same locality data; 4 apterous males, 2 apterous females, Catanduanes Island, W of Bato, Maribini Falls , 6.III.1999, leg. H. Zettel (194) ; 8 apterous males, 21 apterous females, 1 macropterous female (dealate), Catanduanes Island, E San Andres , 11–12.III.1999, leg. H. Zettel (200) ; 13 apterous males, 9 apterous females, 2 macropterous female (1 dealate), Catanduanes Island, E of San Andres, below Lu Yong Cave , 12.IV.2000, leg. H. Zettel (254).

Description of apterous male: Measurements (holotype and range of holotype and 11 paratypes): Body length 2.71 (2.59–2.80); maximum width (at metapleura) 1.19 (1.16–1.21). Head length 0.31 (0.30–0.34), width 0.73 (0.71–0.77); minimum eye distance 0.20 (0.19–0.22). Lengths of antennomeres, I 0.66, II 0.39, III 0.46, IV 0.43. Pronotum length 0.76 (0.74–0.80), width 1.08 (1.00–1.10). Lengths of leg segments: profemur 0.87, protibia 0.92, protarsus 0.05 + 0.23, mesofemur 1.36, mesotibia 1.06, mesotarsus 0.06 + 0.50 + 0.64, metafemur 1.18, metatibia 1.29, metatarsus 0.03 + 0.05 + 0.27.

Colour ( Fig. 1 ): Head, thorax, and abdomen black; pronotum with transverse orange mark near anterior margin; distal parts of all acetabula yellowish. Antenna black, basal fourth (or slightly more) of antennomere 1 yellow. Legs chiefly black, femora often with weak bluish or greenish shimmer; pro- and metacoxae yellow; pro- and metatrochanters yellow, apically often infuscated; base of profemur yellow, but on dorsal surface, close to flexor side, with black stripe that reaches base.

Pilosity: Body dorsally with short, gray, appressed hair layer and (except disc of pronotum) with posteriaddirected, long, black setae. Venter of thorax and abdomen with dispersed, short, yellowish pilosity and yellowish setae; sternum 7 with three longitudinal stripes of relatively long, yellowish, posteriad-directed setae. Ventral surface without black spiculae. Antennomeres 1 and 2, femora and tibiae with several long, black setae.

Structures: Juga not flattened, shiny. Pronotum much longer than head, usually completely covering mesonotum; in some specimens mesonotum visible in middle as a narrow stripe. Metafemur ( Fig. 7 ) moderately slender, ca. 3.6–4.1× (in holotype 4.0×) as long as wide, on flexor side with one distal row consisting of 6–9 teeth (in holotype, right and left, 6 and 8 teeth). Metatibia straight, on flexor side with fine tooth-like structures over entire length, with long apical tooth. Pregenital segments of abdomen relatively wide. All mediotergites matte. In holotype, fifth mediotergite 4.0× as wide as long; seventh mediotergite 1.9× as long as sixth and 1.0× as long as wide at anterior margin. Sterna without long median carina; medial areas of sterna 4–6 flat. Sternum 7 ( Fig. 19 ) with low median carina, areas lateral of carina slightly concave. Segment 8 small, subcylindrical, with short ventrobasal median carina.

Genital segments small and weakly modified. Pygophore subovate. Proctiger ( Fig. 13 ) with well-developed lateral lobes, sclerotized part approximately as long as wide. Paramere ( Fig. 16 ) small, strongly curved, with large lobe on basal part, distal part curved, in apical part straight and narrowed towards acute apex.

Description of apterous female: Measurements (n = 12): Body length 2.75–3.03; maximum width (at metapleura) 1.28–1.39. Head length 0.30–0.34, width 0.75–0.79; minimum eye distance 0.20–0.22. Pronotum length 0.75–0.83, width 1.08–1.17.

Colour ( Fig. 2 ) as in male.

Pilosity on head and thorax similar to that of male, but setae strongly reduced on abdomen. Mesal half of laterotergites bare, lateral half with short, dense pilosity. Mediotergites 1–3 with short pilosity and long black setae; mediotergites 4–5 bare or with scattered short pilosity; mediotergites 6 and anterior part of mediotergite 7 only with short pilosity or with very few longer hairs. Mediotergite 7 posteriorly with a distinct fringe of long, oblique black hairs. Mediotergite 8 densely pilose, with long, posterolaterad-directed, black hairs along lateral margins, longest in posterior half. Dorsal margin of gonocoxa 1 with moderately long, black pilosity. Sterna without long pilosity; sternum 7 at ventral part with a layer of appressed yellowish hair. Posterior corner of connexival margin with small tuft of black hairs.

Structural characteristics: Head and thorax as in male. Metafemur ( Fig. 8 ) more slender than that of male, ca. 4.3–4.5× as long as wide, on flexor side with distal row consisting of 1–6 teeth. Abdomen moderately modified ( Figs. 2 , 22 ), moderately narrowed at segments 5–8. Connexival margins more strongly converging at segment 5 than on other segments. In most specimens, sterna 4–7 partly visible in dorsal aspect. Mediotergites 1–3 convex, 4–5 flat or slightly concave, 6–7 slightly convex, 8 flat. Fifth mediotergite 3.0× as wide as long; seventh mediotergite 1.6× as long as sixth and 1.1× as long as wide at anterior margin. Hind margin of mediotergite 7 straight to weakly convex; mediotergite 8 squared. Proctiger small, narrow, directed posteriad. Medial areas of sterna 4–6 flat to shallowly impressed, 7 convex. Posterior corner of sternum 7 ( Fig. 26 ) subrectangular or slightly acute, not strongly protruded. Gonocoxa 1 with ventral outline straight in lateral view.

Description of macropterous male: Measurements (n = 3): Body length (measured without wings) 2.75–2.80; maximum width (at pronotum) 1.30–1.35. Head length 0.30–0.31, width 0.74–0.75; minimum eye distance 0.20– 0.21. Pronotum length 1.12–1.15.

Colour and pilosity similar to apterous morph, except pilosity much reduced on mediotergites. Wings uniformly blackish-brown.

Structures: Pronotum much enlarged, as typical for alate morphs. Wings surpassing apex of body. Forewing with three closed cells, distal one reaching apical third of wing; in dealate specimens broken at base. Abdominal carinae short, reaching posterior half of mediotergite 2. Mediotergites 6 and 7 with small shiny areas in middle. Metafemur 4.1–4.3× as long as wide, with 6–9 teeth in distal row.

Description of macropterous female: Measurements (n = 6): Body length (measured without wings) 2.93– 2.98; maximum width (at pronotum) 1.33–1.42. Head length 0.29–0.32, width 0.75–0.79; minimum eye distance 0.20–0.21. Pronotum length 1.13–1.22.

Characteristics as in apterous female or macropterous male, respectively. Wings as in winged male. Metafemur 4.5–4.8× as long as wide, with 3–6 teeth in distal row. Connexival margins ( Fig. 23 ) at most slightly convex, almost straight converging, anteriorly slightly more than posteriorly. Posterior mediotergites wider than in apterous morph. Pilosity absent from mediotergites 1–3, on mediotergite 7 reduced, without distinct hair fringe. Mediotergites (6–) 7–8 medially with narrow shiny area.

Comparative notes: This species belongs to the R. philippina subgroup ( Tab. 1 ) that hitherto contained three species, all from Luzon Island ( Zettel 2014). Rhagovelia bicolana , which inhabits the areas of Luzon closest to Catanduanes, is most similar; the two species share a similar pilosity on abdominal segments 6–8 of female. However, the abdomen of the female of R. sophiae sp.n. is distinctly wider, most easily recognized in the dimensions of mediotergite 5 (width/length = 2.4 in R. bicolana , 3.0 in R. sophiae sp.n.). Males can be distinguished by the shape of the distal part of the paramere, which is wider and only apically narrowed in R. bicolana .

Etymology: This species is named after the senior author’s second daughter.

Distribution: Catanduanes.

Figures

FIGURES 1–4. Habitus of apterous morphs of (1, 2) Rhagovelia sophiae sp.n., male (1) and female (2); (3, 4) Rhagovelia masbatensis sp.n., male (3) and female (4).

FIGURES 7–18. (7–12) Metafemora of Rhagovelia sophiae sp.n., male (7) and female (8); R. masbatensis sp.n., male (9) and female (10), and R. orientaliformis sp.n., male (11) and female (12). (13–15) Proctiger of male of (13) R. sophiae sp.n., (14) R. masbatensis sp.n., and (15) R. orientaliformis sp.n. (16–18) Left paramere of male of (16) R. sophiae sp.n., (17) R. masbatensis sp.n., and (18) R. orientaliformis sp.n. (18a: perpendicular view on distal part and apex). Pilosity omitted in Figs. 7–15.

FIGURES 19–28. (19–21) Abdominal venter of male, ventrolateral view, of (19) Rhagovelia sophiae sp.n., (20) R. masbatensis sp.n., and (21) R. orientaliformis sp.n. (22–25) Posterior part of abdomen of females, dorsal view, of (22) R. sophiae sp.n. (apterous morph), (23) R. sophiae sp.n. (dealate morph), (24) R. masbatensis sp.n. (apterous morph), and (25) R. orientaliformis sp.n. (apterous morph). Posterior part of abdomen of apterous females, lateral view, of (26) R. sophiae sp.n., (27) R. masbatensis sp.n., and (28) R. orientaliformis sp.n.