Emesopsis putshkovi, Popov, Yuri A. & Chłond, Dominik, 2015

Popov, Yuri A. & Chłond, Dominik, 2015, The first fossil record of the Emesinae genus Emesopsis Uhler (Hemiptera: Heteroptera, Reduviidae) from Eocene Baltic amber, Zootaxa 4039 (4), pp. 566-574 : 568

Emesopsis putshkovi sp. nov.

( Figs 1 , 4 , 6)

Material examined. Holotype, male, Nr. 1612-3; light yellow and small-sized piece of amber (15 x 9.8 mm) of almost rectangular shape, which is embedded into an artificial resin (18 x 14 mm) by W.H. Hoffeins.

Description. Male: Length from apices of hemelytra to apex of head ca. 6mm; maximum length of hemelytra 4.3mm. General coloration straw yellow to brown, with brownish vittae and stripes ( Fig. 4 ). Head, pronotum, metanotum and abdomen dark brown. Anterior and posterior lobes of head unicolorous dark brown. First antennal segment with one distinct subbasal brownish ring. Posterior lobe of pronotum distinct with one moderately wide median longitudinal stramineous stripe. Hemelytra stramineous, with brownish ambiguous large spot at base of discal cell, longitudinal stripe along basal part of median vein ( Fig. 1 ). Scutellum, metanotum and spines dark. Fore legs generally stramineous; coxae mostly dark brown, femora with three wide (subbasal, medial and apical) brown rings ( Figs 1 , 6), tibia at apical part brown, tarsi light yellowish; femora of mid legs and hind legs with four moderately wide (subbasal, median, sub median and apical) brown rings ( Fig. 1 ); tibia of hind legs with one distinct subbasal ring. Abdomen entirely brown.

Head as shown in Figure 1 . Post ocular lobes rather convex, with a triangle-shaped depression narrowing to back; antennae (only segments 1 and 2 preserved) clothed with distinctive adpressed, very short and dense setae, the 2nd segment longest, almost 1.5x longer than segment one. Pronotum as in Fig. 1 . Surface of disc weakly rough and bare; total length of pronotum 3.4x as long as anterior lobe, and 1.4x as posterior lobe, posterior lobe ca. 2.0x as long as anterior lobe; posterior lobe as broad as head width including eyes; anterior corners of pronotum with poorly developed and hardly visible rounded tubercles. Scutellum moderately transversal, 1.5x as wide as long, subtriangular, rounded apically, with a long and slender, weakly tilted backward spine. Spine of metanotum slender and takes up horizontal position. Fore legs slender; femur 2.1x as long as coxa and ca. 1.3x as long as tibia; femur with two series of numerous, very short spines; tibia with numerous small adjoining spines ( Figs 1 , 6); tibia of mid leg ca. 1.45x as long as femur; apex of hind femora weakly thickened. Hemelytra smooth, distance from apex of pterostigma to tip of wing 1.2x as long as distance from apex of pterostigma to insertion of M; a small basal cell near inner anterior angle of discal cell 4x as long as width; discal cell quite long, 2.8x as long as width and moderately narrowed apically; apical branch of M beyond apex of discal cell reaching wing tip with a bifurcate branch directed toward apex of wing.

Measurements. Holotype, male: Length of body from apex of hemelytra 5.9, width 1.1; length of head 0.55, length of anterior 0.275 and posterior 0.275 lobes, width 0.75; dorsal width of eye 0.25, width of vertex 0.25, antennal segments I:II:III:IV= 3.2:4.5:?:?, rostral segments I:II:III= 0.275: 0.175: 0.225; total length of pronotum 0.85, length of anterior lobe 0.3, length of posterior lobe 0.6, width 0.425 (ant.) and 0.75 (post.); length of hemelytra 4.3, width 1.05, length of discal cell 2.1, width 0.75; foreleg: length of coxa 0.85, femur 1.8, tibia 1.4, tarsus 0.25 (0.05+0.2): mid leg: length of femur 3.1, tibia 4.5, tarsus 0.25; hind leg: length of femur 4.0, tibia 7.5, tarsus 0.2 (0.05+0.15).

Etymology. It is a great pleasure to dedicate this exciting taxon to our friend Pavel Putshkov (Kiev), renowned Ukrainian heteropterologist and one of the main leading specialists on taxonomy of the family Reduviidae .

Remarks. This species is only most similar to C. similis sp. nov. but clearly differentiated by the rather convex post ocular lobe of the head, the configuration of the anterior pronotal lobe, the varying length and width ratio of the anterior and the posterior lobes of the pronotum, the hardly developed tubercles of anterior pronotal angles, narrower (1.5x) transversal scutellum, a shorter (ca. 3x as long as wide) discal cell, and also the completely dark coloration of the head, the number and location of stripes on the pronotum, the large spot at the base of the discal cell and the longitudinal stripe along the basal part of the median vein and pattern of the hemelytra, and also the different coloration of the fore coxa, the scutellum, the metanotum, and the spines.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Emesopsis putshkovi Popov & Chłond sp. nov., dorsal habitus.

FIGURE 4. Emesopsis putshkovi Popov & Chłond sp. nov., dorsal habitus.