Culex (Melanoconion) hutchingsae Talaga, 2022

Talaga, Stanislas & Gendrin, Mathilde, 2022, Three new species of Culex (Melanoconion) (Diptera: Culicidae) from French Guiana based on morphological and molecular data, Zootaxa 5205 (2), pp. 177-189 : 181-183

Culex (Melanoconion) hutchingsae Talaga , n. sp.

Zoobank LSID: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:359A3B9D-819C-4BA0-86C7-AC3E46513ECC

BIN: BOLD:AEE6759.

Culex (Melanoconion) coppenamensis Form 2 (in part) of Sallum & Hutchings (2003) (illustration of gonostylus, species distribution).

Male. Habitus not examined. Genitalia ( Fig. 3A‒G ): Tergum VIII with a shallow V-shaped emargination separating the 2 lateral lobes, with longer setae forming a lateral concentrated setal group. Tergum IX with 2 distinct lobes, shape as shown in Fig. 3F , bearing 33‒35 setae, outer basal setae clearly longer than the others. Gonocoxite globose, outer margin convex, inner margin nearly straight; ventrolateral setae strongly developed; ventromesal surface with small, scattered setae from base to level of distal division of subapical lobe; lateral surface with a well-developed patch of long setae (lsp) at level of subapical lobe, setae longer ventrally; proximal part of ventrolateral surface with numerous scales. Subapical lobe clearly divided into 2 divisions. Proximal division moderately long, columnar, not clearly divided into 2 arms, proximal arm conspicuously shorter than distal arm, each arm bearing 1 long, robust, sinuous, apically hooked seta (setae a and b), both setae equivalent in length and width; a patch of short setae inserted mesally at base of distal surface. Distal division subdivided into inner and outer arms; inner arm with 2 apical setae, 1 long hooked seta (h) and 1 shorter, narrow, saber-like seta (s) inserted in a small tubercle at base of seta h, both h and s arise from separate tubercles at proximal side, 3 or 4 subapical setae, 1 long, wide, apically curved saberlike seta (s) and 3 indistinct, narrow, appressed flattened setae (f) inserted in small tubercles at base of seta s; outer arm long, nearly straight with 1 foliform seta (l) at apex, seta l strongly enlarged, almost symmetrical, striate at base with a well-developed basal expansion. Gonostylus short, strong, with a patch of long spicules at midlength on dorsal surface, distal 0.5 widened and abruptly tapering to apex in lateral view, bearing a conspicuous subapical crest on ventral side restricted to widest part; gonostylar claw long, leaf-like, 2 setae on dorsal side before gonostylar claw, distal seta slightly larger and longer than proximal seta. Phallosome with lateral plates and aedeagal sclerites equivalent in length; aedeagal sclerite narrow, curved in lateral view with anterior margin thickened and sclerotized, narrowly fused to base of lateral plate; distal part of lateral plate with median, sternal and tergal processes; apical median process conical with apex produced into a point tergad, tergal margin of apical process concave; apical sternal process short, somewhat hook-like, pointed, curved laterally; apical tergal process elongate, shorter than apical median process, pointed and directed dorsolaterally; base of lateral plate with short tergal process; aedeagal sclerite not connected by dorsal aedeagal bridge. Proctiger elongate; paraproct narrowed distally, expanded basally, crown a row of about 14 or 15 short simple blades. Cercal sclerite long and narrow with 2 or 3 cercal setae. Basal plate and paramere as figured. Tergum X somewhat rectangular in outline, rounded at apex.

Etymology. This species is dedicated to Rosa Sá Gomes Hutchings for her valuable work on the diversity of mosquitoes in the Brazilian Amazon (e.g. Hutchings et al. 2005, 2010, 2013, 2018, 2020), and particularly on species allied to Culex coppenamensis Bonne-Wepster & Bonne, 1920 , published in Sallum & Hutchings (2003) and Hutchings & Sallum (2008).

Bionomics. Very little is known about the bionomics of Cx. hutchingsae . Immature stages were collected among roots and dead leaves at the edge of a large ground pool in rainforest ( Fig. 5A ). Water was highly brown-coloured with dissolved plant substances, acidic (pH = 5.9), moderately warm (26.4°C) and with a conductivity of 390 µS/ cm. Immature stages of Cx. hutchingsae were collected together with Anopheles (Anopheles) punctimacula Dyar & Knab, 1906a , Cx. (Mel.) rabelloi Forattini & Sallum, 1987 and Cx. (Mel.) serratimarge Root, 1927b.

Distribution. Culex hutchingsae is known from the type locality and Gare Tigre, French Guiana ( Fig. 1A ). The latter is located at 45 km north-northeast from the type locality, but this area has been flooded since 1994 following the construction of the Petit Saut dam. Specimens of Cx. hutchingsae collected at Gare Tigre on 30 October 1945 were initially identified as Cx. coppenamensis by Floch (1946) and Floch & Abonnenc (1947). More recently, they were regarded as Cx. coppenamensis Form 2 by Sallum & Hutchings (2003) and as Cx. coppenamensis by Talaga et al. (2021).

Type material. Holotype: Adult male in 96% ethanol with dissected genitalia mounted on a microscope slide and associated pupal and larval exuviae in 70% ethanol (specimen numbers ST1#01727, BOLD: FGMOS2912- 22 ), FRENCH GUIANA: Montagnes de la Trinité, Mare Aya (53.41445° W, 4.60289° N, 120 m above sea level), 5-XI-2020, S. Talaga, IPG . Paratypes: Two individualized adult males in 96% ethanol with dissected genitalia mounted on separate microscope slides and individualized associated pupal exuviae in 70% ethanol (specimen numbers ST1#01729, BOLD: FGMOS2914-22 and ST1#01734, BOLD: FGMOS2919-22 ), same collection data as the holotype, IPG .

Other material examined. One male genitalia mounted on a microscope slide (IPG1#00639) and associated pupal and larval exuviae mounted on a separate microscope slide (IPG1#00603), original specimen number N°817 (17A), FRENCH GUIANA: Gare Tigre, 30-X-45, E. Abonnenc, IPG.

Figures

FIGURE 1. A, Map showing the distribution of Culex (Melanoconion) sallumae n. sp. (red star), Cx. (Mel.) hutchingsae n. sp. (green dots) and Cx. (Mel.) lucackermanni n. sp. (yellow triangle) in French Guiana; B, Maximum Likelihood (ML) tree of the COI barcodes obtained from the type specimens of the three new species. Bootstrap support values under 500 replications are indicated near nodes. The specimen number, species name and Barcode Index Number (BIN) provided by the Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLD) are indicated for each barcode sequence.

FIGURE 3. Male genitalia of Culex (Melanoconion) hutchingsae n. sp. A, Gonocoxopodite, lateral aspect; B, gonocoxopodite, mesal aspect; C, paraproct, tergum X and basal plate, lateral views; D, paramere, lateral view; E, lateral plate and aedeagal sclerite, lateral views; F, tergum IX; G, tergum VIII. AeS, aedeagal sclerite; BP, basal plate; dSL, distal division of subapical lobe; Gc, gonocoxite; GC, gonostylar claw; Gs, gonostylus; LP, lateral plate; lsp, lateral setal patch; Ppr, paraproct; pSL, proximal division of subapical lobe; X-Te, tergum X.

FIGURE 5. Aquatic habitats of (A) Culex (Melanoconion) hutchingsae n. sp. and (B) Cx. (Mel.) lucackermanni n. sp. in the Réserve Naturelle Nationale de La Trinité, French Guiana.