Peniculimiris meniscus Yasunaga & Duwal

Yasunaga, Tomohide & Duwal, Ram Keshari, 2016, A unique new genus and species of the phyline plant bug tribe Hallodapini from the Philippines and Thailand (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Miridae: Phylinae: Hallodapini), Zootaxa 4173 (3), pp. 251-258 : 254-257

Peniculimiris meniscus Yasunaga & Duwal , n. sp.

( Figs. 1 A–D, 2–4)

Diagnosis. Recognized by distinctive characters mentioned in the generic diagnosis; these unique characters enable the present new species to be distinguished from other hallodapines. At first sight similar to a certain member of Leucophoropterini (e.g., Arafuramiris Schuh , Gulacapsus Schuh , Waterhouseana Carvalho : see Menard & Schuh, 2011) as well as to some Pilophorus species of Pilophorini ; distinguished easily from any of them by yellow, crescent mark on scutellum that is furnished with a bundle of brush-like, stiff setae.

Description. Surface and vestiture: Dorsal surface, including head and thoracic pleura, generally matte, with uniformly distributed, silky, reclining setae. Coloration: Body generally dark brown. Antenna brown; segment I with two reddish brown stripes; segments III and IV dark brown; apical 1/3 of segment III creamy white. Labium shiny reddish brown; apical half of segment IV darkened. Pronotum weakly shining; collar tinged with silver-gray; mesoscutum and anterior 1/4 of scutellum shiny chestnut brown; median scutellum with a creamy white, crescent mark, just posterior to which a bundle of blackish setae are present; pleura dark brown; mesepisternum shiny castaneous ventrally; ostiolar peritreme creamy yellow. Hemelytron including membrane dark brown; inner margin of clavus narrowly silver-gray; setae on posterior clavus and posterior inner part of corium golden-brown. All coxae creamy white; procoxa partly tinged with red; leg dark brown; basal 1/3−1/2 of each femur creamy white; apex of each tibia and all tarsi brown. Abdomen fuscous; pygophore shiny, dark reddish brown. Structure: As mentioned in generic description.

Measurements. ♂ / ♀: Total body length 3.43/ 3.58 length from apex of clypeus to cuneal fracture 2.70/ 2.77; width of head across eyes 0.76/ 0.71; head height 0.71/ 0.75; width of vertex 0.26/ 0.33; lengths of antennal segments I −IV 0.37, 1.08, 0.74, 0.40/ 0.37, 1.05, 0.61, 0.39; mesal length of pronotum 0.61/ 0.67; basal width of pronotum 0.93/ 0.97; maximum width across hemelytron 1.11/ 1.21; and length of metafemur, tibia and tarsus 0.98, 1.59, 0.31/ 1.10, 1.63, 0.33.

Etymology. From Greek, meniskos (= crescent moon), referring to a noticeable, crescent mark on the scutellum of this new species; an adjective.

Biology. Unknown; two known individuals were both attracted to light in September.

Distribution. Philippines (Palawan), Thailand (Nakhon Ratchasima).

Holotype: Ƌ, PHILIPPINES: Palawan Island, Trident Mines , 500m near Narra (9.25, 118.33), light trap, 5 Sep 1985, M. Tomokuni ( AMNH _PBI 00380442) ( NSMT) .

Paratype. THAILAND: Nakhon Ratchasima Prov., Wang Nam Khieo, Sakaerat Environmental Research Station, Sakaerat Biosphere Reserve , 14˚30'27”N, 101˚55'39”E, 410 m alt., light trap, 25 Sep 2013, T. Yasunaga, 1♀ ( AMNH _PBI 00380441) ( TYCN).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Habitus images of Peniculimiris meniscus, a female from Thailand (AMNH _ PBI 00380441) (A − D), and assumed hallodapine relatives, Clapmarius thailandana Schuh (E) and Acrorrhinium tritonion Yasunaga, Yamada & Artchawakom (F).