Amorphicolinae Burckhardt, Ouvrard & Percy, 2021

Percy, Diana M., 2025, A new psyllid genus from Taiwan, Danieliana gen. nov. (Hemiptera: Psylloidea: Psyllidae), Zootaxa 5727 (1), pp. 101-112 : 102-103

Subfamily Amorphicolinae Burckhardt, Ouvrard & Percy, 2021

Comment. Burckhardt et al. (2021) erected a new subfamily, Amorphicolinae , for the genus Amorphicola based on the clade grouping and phylogenetic topology of the mitogenome analyses of Percy et al. (2018). The new genus described here was also included in the phylogenetic analyses of Percy et al. (2018), but the genus was not described at the time of the revised classification and the definition of subfamily Amorphicolinae was based solely on Amorphicola . Here, the subfamily definition is broadened to reflect characteristics of both genera in Amorphicolinae , as follows:

Adult. Amorphicola and Danieliana share head characteristics as described in Burckhardt et al. (2021) except the antenna length which is 1–1.5x head width in Amorphicola and longer, 1.5–1.6x head width, in Danieliana ; in addition, there are differences in the relative lengths of the antennal segments which are either with segment 3 longer than segments 7 or 8 (in Amorphicola ) or segment 3 shorter than segment 7, and segments 4–6 and 8 subequal (in Danieliana ). Thorax and leg characters are as described in Burckhardt et al. (2021), except metatibia is either without (in Amorphicola ) or with a small genual spine (in Danieliana ), and metatibia apex either bearing 4 irregularly spaced, sclerotised, apical spurs (in Amorphicola ) or 5 grouped (1+3+1) sclerotised apical spurs (in Danieliana ). Forewing and hindwing as described in Burckhardt et al. (2021). Male proctiger as described in Burckhardt et al. (2021); paramere complex, in profile either axe or hammer-shaped with several sclerotised peg setae on the inner face (in Amorphicola ) or long and sinuous with many long, extended setae on the inner face (in Danieliana ).

Fifth instar immature. As described in Burckhardt et al. (2021).

Systematics. The majority of adult and all immature characteristics for Amorphicolinae given in Burckhardt et al. (2021) are shared by Amorphicola and Danieliana . The main shared characteristics are in the general structure of the adult head, thorax, legs, male proctiger, and elongate male subgenital plate, and in the immature structure and chaetotaxy. The main differences between the genera being antenna length, relative lengths of antennal segments, size of forewing cells cu 1 and m 1, presence/absence of a genual spine on metatibia and number of sclerotised apical metatibial spurs, and the shape of the paramere. Some of the morphological characters of Danieliana that differentiate it from Amorphicola , suggest an affiliation with Ciriacreminae Enderlein, 1910 (see comment under generic description below), particularly the genus Isogonoceraia Tuthill, 1964 , which includes two species in South America ( White & Hodkinson 1980; Burckhardt & Queiroz 2012) and one in Micronesia ( Tuthill 1964). Isogonoceraia is also the only member of Ciriacreminae known to have caesalpinoid legume (referring to Caesalpinieae and Cassieae clades of Fabaceae ) host plants ( Ouvrard 2022), which is the same host plant group as Danieliana . Characteristics shared between some members of Amorphicolinae and Ciriacreminae may reflect shared ancestry (e.g., in the root of subfamilies Amorphicolinae , Ciriacreminae and Psyllinae Latreille, 1807), as the two subfamilies are phylogenetically close, or they may be homoplasious and converged in the two groups.