Ademula austrina Wygodzinsky

Tatarnic, Nikolai J., Wall, Michael A. & Cassis, Gerasimos, 2011, A systematic revision of the Australian ploiarioline thread-legged assassin bugs (Hemiptera: Reduviidae: Emesinae), Zootaxa 2762, pp. 1-30 : 5

Ademula austrina Wygodzinsky

Figs. 1 A–E, 2

Ademula austrina Wygodzinsky 1956: 210 , figs 117–120

Material examined. AUSTRALIA: Queensland: 1 Ψ, 1 ɗ, Cairns, NQ, May 1994, A235/94; 5 Ψ, 7 ɗ, Centenary Lakes, Cairns, 16.9o S 145.7o E, Dec 1988, Zoo Dept. Univ. Cant. N.Z. (QM). Northern Territory: sex unknown, Adelaide River, 13.2o S 131.1o E, 29 May 1988, Zoo. Dept. Univ. Cant. N.Z. (QM)

Diagnosis. Diagnosed by the following combination of characters: head and thorax with long setae present; vermiform fenestrations absent within dark markings of forewings ( Figs. 1 A, B); body length ca. 5.6 mm

Distribution. This species is known from northern Australia (fig. 2).

Remarks. Ademula austrina is the only species of Ademula known from Australia (Wygodzinsky 1965). Prior to this study A. austrina was only known from the type specimen. Over the course of this study we found many specimens of Australian Ademula that perfectly match the type of A. austrina with the exclusion of wing pattern (see Wygodzinsky 1966: 340, Fig. 102B). These specimens all have a pale stramineous ground colour, but vary greatly in the intensity of pigmentation on the wings, legs, and antennae. Pale representatives, though infrequent, are similar to Wygodzinsky’s description of the type and overlap with the known distribution of A. austrina . These specimens (see material examined) are currently placed in A. austrina . Variation in forewing colouration is illustrated in Figure 1 .

Wygodzinsky (1966) was struck by the uniqueness of A. austrina due to the lacing “vermiform fenestrations” of its forewings. Most A. austrina material seen by the authors will key to A. reticulata McAtee and Malloch using Wygozinsky’s mongraph (1966).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Ademula austrina. A. Forewing of dark specimens. B. Forewing of pale specimens. C. Hindleg. D. Head and prothorax (colouration not shown). E. Foreleg.