Pycnoderes quadrimaculatus Guérin-Menèville, 1857

Alvarez-Zapata, Alejandra, Ferreira, Paulo S. F. & Serna, Francisco, 2022, A taxonomic synopsis of the Eccritotarsini (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Miridae Bryocorinae) of Colombia, Zootaxa 5178 (2), pp. 101-151 : 138-139

Pycnoderes quadrimaculatus Guérin-Menèville, 1857

( Figs. 36 , 75–76 )

Pycnoderes quadrimaculatus Guérin-Menèville, 1857: 404 (original description).

Material examined. BRAZIL. Goiás: 1 ♂ 3♀, Paraguaçu (Carvalho) ( MNRJ) .

Diagnosis. Head in dorsal view and pronotum black. Antennal segments I and II white. Embolium dark brown to black with a sub-basal and sub-apical white spot. Fore and middle femora white. Posterior femur white with black apex. Body length 2.50–3.65 mm ( Ferreira & Henry 2011; Guérin-Menèville1857). Right paramere ( Fig. 75 ) with basal process short and slightly curved; body elongate and thick with bifurcate protuberance before sensory lobe; sensory lobe small, inconspicuous, located at the base of apical process; apical process elongate with apex truncate. Left paramere ( Fig. 76 ) with basal process short, slightly curved; body flattened and wide, sub-triangular; sensory lobe absent; apical process curved at base towards the body, apex bent and truncate.

Associated plants. Amaranthus sp. (Amaranthaceae) ( Ferreira et al. 2001), Zantedeschia aethiopica (L.) Spreng. ( Araceae ) ( Nogueira et al. 2019), Lactuca sativa L. ( Asteraceae ), Brassica rapa L. ( Brassicaceae ) ( USDA 1941), Ipomoea sp. (Convolvulaceae) ( Hernández & Henry 2010), Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai (Cucurbitaceae) ( Wehrle 1935), Cucumis dipsaceus Ehrenb. Ex Spach (Cucurbitaceae) ( Zimmerman 1948), Cucumis melo L. ( Cucurbitaceae ) ( Wehrle 1935), Cucurbita maxima Duchesne (Cucurbitaceae) ( Ferreira et al. 2001), Cucurbita pepo L. (Cucurbitacae), Cucurbita “sativus” ( Cucurbitaceae ) ( Hernández & Henry 2010), Phaseolus vulgaris L. ( Fabaceae ) ( Ferreira et al. 2001), Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp. ( Fabaceae ) ( Nogueira et al. 2019), Carya illinoinensis (Wangenh.) K. Koch (Juglandaceae) ( Life 2019), Saccharum spp. (Poaceae) ( Salazar et al. 2017) and Portulaca sp. (Portulacaceae) ( Zimmerman 1948).

Distribution. Argentina ( Carpintero & Carvalho 1993) , Brazil ( Carvalho & Afonso 1977), Costa Rica ( Hemp & Konrad 2000), Cuba ( Guérin-Menèville 1857), Dominican Republic ( Carvalho 1951a), Guatemala ( Carvalho & Afonso 1977), Honduras ( Carvalho 1951a), Mexico, ( Van Duzze 1917), Panama ( Carvalho & Afonso 1977), Peru ( Carvalho 1991; Carvalho & Ferreira 1972), Surinam ( Carvalho & Rosas 1965), U.S.A. ( Uhler 1894a; Zimmerman 1948), Venezuela ( Cazorla-Perfetti & Morales-Moreno 2019), West Indies ( Van Duzze 1917; Uhler 1894a).— Colombia (Nariño, Putumayo) ( Carvalho & Afonso 1977).

Comments. Crowe (1953) and Fennah (1947) described P. quadrimaculatus as “a major pest of cucurbits”. This species is commonly known as “squash capsid”, “bean capsid”, and “melon bug”, among others. Several methods have been used to control it, including the parasitoid chalcid wasps Anagrus yawi Fullaway 1944 and A. nigriventis Girault, 1911 (Mymaridae) ; fungus Entomophthora sphaerosperma Fresenius and the assassin bug Zelus renardii Kolenati, 1857 (Reduviidae) ( Zimmerman 1948; Triapitsyn 1997).

P. quadrimaculatus thrives in dry weather, is attracted to light ( Zimmerman 1948), and is easily found in sandy places of North America ( Uhler 1894a). In addition, it is attracted to cantharidin, which is secreted by blister beetles ( Young 1984; Hemp & Konrad 2000).

We have fourty-five specimens belonging to this genus, we could not place to species. which we couldn’t place to species. The genus is in need of revision.

Figures

FIGURES 31–42. Dorsal habitus. 31. Pachyneurhymenus pallidolimbatus. 32. Pachypoda major. 33. Parafurius discifer. 34. Pycnoderes atratus. 35. Pycnoderes incurvus. 36. Pycnoderes quadrimaculatus. 37. Spartacus. 38. Stictolophus. 39. Sysinas pallidipes. 40. Tenthecoris balloui. 41. Tenthecoris colombiensis. 42. Tenthecoris exitiosus. Scale bars 1 mm.

FIGURES 71–82. Parameres. 71–72. Right and left parameres of Pycnoderes atratus. 73–74. Right and left parameres of Pycnoderes incurvus. 75–76. Right and left parameres of Pycnoderes quadrimaculatus. 77–78. Right and left parameres of Sysinas pallidipes. 79–80. Right and left parameres of Tenthecoris balloui. 81–82. Right and left parameres of Tenthecoris exitiosus. Scale bars 0.1 mm.