Polymerus (Polymerus) pekinensis Horváth, 1901

Gapon, D. A., 2014, Revision of the genus Polymerus (Heteroptera: Miridae) in the Eastern Hemisphere. Part 1: Subgenera Polymerus, Pachycentrum subgen. nov. and new genus Dichelocentrum gen. nov., Zootaxa 3787 (1), pp. 1-87 : 34-37

6. Polymerus (Polymerus) pekinensis Horváth, 1901

( Figs 2 F ; 3 E, F ; 4 F, G ; 11 ; 16 C, D ; 40 G–I )

Polymerus pekinensis Horváth, 1901: 267 .

Poeciloscytus funestus Reuter, 1906: 48 , syn. nov.

Material examined. Russia: Republic of Buryatia: Igumenskiy I., junction of Dzhida and Selenga Rivs. , 10 Aug. 1928 (Luk’yanovich), 1 female *; Primorskiy Terr. “Ussuriyskiy Terr.”., Vinogradovka Settlm , 24 July 1929 (Kiritschenko), 1 male *; Suchan [Partizansk], summit of Makar’evskiy ridge, 10 July 1926 (Rostovykh), 1 female ; Frolovka Settlm., Suchan [Partizanskaya] Riv. , 4 July 1926 (Mordvilko), 1 female, (Rostovykh) , 1 male *; Kedrovaya Pad’ nature reserve, near Barab. [ashevka], 25–26 July 1926 (N. Kuznetsov ), 2 females *; [Ussuriyskiy] nature reserve, Kondratenkovo Settlm., Suputinka Riv., tributary of Suyfun Riv. , 22 July 1932 (Richter), 1 female ( ZISP) . China: Peiping [Beijing], Summer Palace, China , 24 May 1935 (Zhenzhurist), 2 males *; Sichuan: Tashuiwan-“ Luygupin ”, 2 Sept. 1893 (Potanin), “ Polymerus pekinensis Horv. forte [Reuter's handwriting]”, 1 male *; Tatsienlu , 14 July 1893 (Potanin), “Poecyloscytus funestus Reut. n. sp. Typ. [Reuter's handwriting]”, 1 male (lectotype of Poe. funestus ) ; “Fubyankho” Riv. , “Fubyan-Shindyan”, 5 Aug. 1893 (Potanin), 1 male *, 1 female * (paralectotypes of Poe. funestus ); “Syaochzhinkho” Riv. , “Pan’sham-Singen”, 27 July 1893 (Potanin), 2 females (paralectotypes of Poe. funestus ) ( ZISP) . Japan: Kunitachi , 17 June 1936 (Zhenzhurist), 2 females ( ZISP) . Democratic People's Republic of Korea: North Pyongan, Chenchzhu , 11, 12 July 1950 (Borkhsenius), 1 male *, 1 female * ( ZISP) . Vietnam: Vinh-phuc Prov., Tam-dao , secondary mountain rain forest, 11–13 May 1975 (L. Medvedev, Dang Dap), 1 female ( ZISP).

Diagnosis. Recognised by the follow combination of characters: second antennal segment dark brown, in females sometimes with light brown ring at middle, frons with diagonal alternating shiny and matte thin strips, body surface matt, covered with golden or silvery, slightly thickened setae, femora black or black-brown, with one or two yellow rings or spots before apices, tibiae apically darkened, tibial spines dark brown, anterior corner of corium at most with little vague dirty yellow patch, cuneus black, with yellow apex and narrow stripe or spot at base. Males distinguished by posterior right lobe of vesica with apical sclerite, with weakly sclerotised, narrow basal sclerite and with moderately long longitudinal carina surrounded by field of sclerotization, and by supragonoporal area of sclerotization broken into two or three separate sclerites. Females distinguished by relatively short gynatrial dorsal sac, short medial lobe with wide base and ventral wall without sclerite, by openings of interramal lobes with dorsal margins elevated medially.

Redescription. Vestiture and colouration ( Fig. 40 G–I ). Body surface matt, frons with diagonal alternating shiny and matte thin strips. Usually body entirely covered with silvery, slightly thickened setae but in some specimens these setae goldish on dorsal surface. First antennal segment yellowish or light brown, often with brown longitudinal spot on inferior surface, sometimes extending on lateral and superior sides. Second antennal segment dark brown, darker at its apex, in females sometimes with light brown ring in middle. Third and fourth segments brown. Posterior margin of corium with narrow yellow strip or without it. Margins of coxal cavities of prothorax with narrow yellow strips. Xyphus of prothorax entirely black. Femora black or black-brown, with one or two yellow rings or spots before their apices. Tibiae yellow or brown yellow, their proximal half with two rather wide blackish rings. Proximal ring slightly shorter than distal one, extending on knee. Apices of tibiae blackish. Setae on tibiae dark brown. Anterior corner of corium sometimes with small and vague yellowish-brown spot. Cuneus black, with yellow apex and narrow stripe or spot at base. Abdomen entirely black.

One studied female from Vietnam with only one proximal dark ring at tibiae. This specimen also with brownish-yellow base of costal infoldings of hemelytra, narrow strip at base of exocorium, small vague spots on sides of abdomen base and posterior corners of several last ventrines.

Right paramere ( Fig. 2 F ) with cylindrical body.

Left paramere hypophysis with almost straight superior margin before apeх and very slightly convex inferior margin from lateral view. Apex of hypophysis in superior view rather wide and slightly curved. Carina at superior margin of internal wall of hypophysis low, slightly visible from external view ( Figs 3 E, F ; 4 F, G ).

Vesica ( Fig. 11 ) very similar to those of two previous species. Both parts of spiculose plate with denticles. Vestige of anterior spicule before and above anterior right bladder very small. Anterior and inferior branches of anterior left lobe wide and very short, left branch rather long, wide, rounded apically. Inferior branch of posterior left lobe with small elongated apical sclerite. Right part of supragonoporal area of sclerotization separated and looks like short denticulate band lying above anterior right bladder. Left part as in two previous species, its anterior branch in form of oval denticulate field, sometimes separated from posterior branch. Apex of posterior right lobe not curved upwards, with small pointed apical sclerite covered with microtrichia. Longitudinal carina and basal sclerite on posterior right lobe slightly longer than in P. holosericeus but shorter than in P. russatus sp. nov. Longitudinal carina surrounded by narrow field of sclerotization. Basal sclerite weakly sclerotised, rather narrow.

Gynatrium ( Fig. 16 C, D ). Anterior vestibular sclerites narrowing posteriad. Anterior margin of ventral labiate plate with incision wider than in two previous species. Edging of round sclerites thinner than in two previous species. Triangular sclerites on external margins of ring sclerites large. Medial prominences of posterior margin of tectal sclerites shorter than in two previous species, narrowly spaced, with subparallel internal margins. Dorsal sac elongated anteriad medially. Membrane of gynatrial roof on each side of medial oviduct forms pair of large sacciform protrusions. Transverse membranous fold of gynatrial roof not deep. Medial lobe short, very wide in basal part, without sclerite on ventral wall. Dorsal margin of interramal sclerite with triangular prominence in middle and slightly concave lateral parts. Dorsal margins of openings of interramal lobes elevated medially. Anterior walls of interramal lobes heavily sclerotised, with acute medial angles.

Taxonomic notes. Poeciloscytus funestus was described by Reuter in 1906 on the basis of material collected by G. Potanin in Sichuan, Hsifan Mountains. In the original descriptions Reuter compared this species with Poe. palustris ( Reuter, 1905) but not with P. pekinensis , mentioned in the same paper in the genus Polymerus . Comparison of the descriptions of these species from Reuter’s paper indicates that he means the following differences of Poe. funestus from P. pekinensis : dorsal and ventral surfaces of body covered with goldish easily removed setae; posterior margin of corium with thin yellow line from internal apex to external one; margin of cuneus yellow from base till apex; membrane dark brown, veins dirty-straw with transparent edgings, sometimes brachial vein dark; antennae black, their first segment entirely or at inferior surface yellowish; femora pitch-black with straw ring or spots at inferior surfaces before apices; tibiae yellow, their bases and apices with rather broad rings, occasionally decreasing in approximately basal third basal third, hind femora this place weakly black [basi et apice sat late annuloque interdum deficiente fere in tertia basali parte, tibiarum posticarum supra hanc posito nigrofuscis] (vs. characters of P. pekinensis : body covered dorsally and ventrally with white easily removed [in the original description ( Horváth, 1901): body covered with silvery flattened setae, but hemelytra with coppercoloured setae!]; apical margin of corium in external part and apex of cuneus whitish-yellow or dirty straw; membrane with black-brown cells and with terracotta veins, brachial vein proximally blackish, spot near apex of cuneus transparent; basal and apical ends of second antennal segment broadly black-brown, one-third of its base terracotta; femora until their apices black, fore femora with two rings before apices, hind femora with more or less distinct yellowish ring; tibiae whitish-yellow, basal half of them black, fore tibiae in the basal quarter narrowly yellow, apices of tibiae broadly brown).

Reuter (1906) did not list differences between genera Poeciloscytus and Polymerus but gave comparative diagnoses in his book “ Hemiptera Gymnocerata Europae ” (1896). According to these diagnoses Poeciloscytus differs from Polymerus in the rather prominent clypeus separated from frons, in pronotum with at least pale band on its basal margin, in parallel margins of hemelytra, in elongated, triangular cuneus and in gradually curved claws. (vs. clypeus slightly prominent, pronotum entirely black, lateral margins of hemelytra slightly (in males) or strongly widened (in females), cuneus usually slightly longer than its basal width and straight claws in Polymerus ).

After study of the entire type series of Poe. funestus and some specimens of P. pekinensis I found only the following difference between them. In Poe. funestus body entirely covered with goldish thickened setae, second antennal segment without light brown ring in middle, anterior margin of cuneus with yellowish stripe extending to its interior corner, or at least the latter yellowish (vs. body usually entirely covered with silvery thickened setae but in some specimens all such setae or only dorsal ones goldish, second antennal segment in females often with yellow or brownish-yellow ring in middle, anterior margin of cuneus usually black, but in specimen from Sichuan it with yellow stripe extending mediad, whereas cuneus of a specimen from Beijing with small yellow spot at internal corner). Males in the type series of Poe. funestus are distinctly greater than the males of P. pekinensis studied by me.

All the structural characters listed above and also characters of male ( Figs 3 E, F ; 4 F, G ; 11 ) and female terminalia are uniform or lie within the common range of variability in both discussed species. Therefore I consider Poeciloscytus funestus as the junior synonym of Polymerus pekinensis .

Distribution (Figs 17; 18). China (Central, Northern, Northeastern, Southeastern and Southwestern Territories), Japan, North and South Korea, Russia (Far East). New record for Vietnam.

Notes on distribution. Geographical data on the labels of specimens collected by Potanin in Sichuan in 1893 are very obscure. Perhaps he was writing down names of localities that he visited according to words of natives and their pronunciation or according to old maps. Komarov (1928) published all Potanin’s travel notes. I have matched the old locality names from these notes with modern geographic maps, and this has allowed me to clarify the part of Potanin’s route between July 10 and August 22 where specimens of Poe. funestus were collected. Potanin was recording dates according to the Julian calendar, but dates on the labels of the type series of Poe. funestus refer to the Gregorian calendar. Dates by the latter style and mentioned local names from Potanin’s travel notes are following: 10 July: “Opp. Rumi-tshzhan-gu s. Romi-chango, 22 jul” [Danba = Rongzhag]; 20 July: “p. Schinjdjanj-tzzy, 1 aug.” [Xiandianzi]; 26 July: “p. Lanj-che-kou, 7 aug.” [Lianghekou]; 5 Aug.: “opp. Tzza-gu-tin s. Lifanj-fu s. Li-fan-ting”, 17 aug.” [Lixian = Li-Fan = Lihsen = Tsaku]; 14 Aug.: “opp. Mao-tshzhou, 26 aug” [Maoxian]; 22 Aug.: “opp. Anj-sjanj, 3 sept.” [Anxian].

Figures

FIGURE 2. Right and left parameres of Polymerus species. A–G, right paramere; H–J, left paramere. A, H–J, P. carpathicus; B, P. nigrita; C, P. unciniger sp. nov.; D, P. holosericeus; E, P. russatus sp. nov.; F, P. pekinensis; G, P. amurensis. Left (H), posterior (I) and right (J) view. Scale bare: 0.14 mm.

FIGURE 3. Left paramere of Polymerus, left view. A, P. nigrita; B, P. unciniger sp. nov.; C, P. holosericeus; D, P. russatus sp. nov.; E, P. pekinensis; F, paratype of Poeciloscytus funestus; G. P. amurensis. Scale bare: 0.14 mm.

FIGURE 4. Left paramere of Polymerus, superior view. A, P. carpathicus; B, P. nigrita; C, P. unciniger sp. nov.; D, P. holosericeus; E, P. russatus sp. nov.; F, P. pekinensis; G, paratype of Poeciloscytus funestus; H. P. amurensis. Scale bare: 0.14 mm.

FIGURE 11. Vesica of Polymerus species. A–C, vesica of P. pekinensis; D, E, vesica of paratype of Poeciloscytus funestus. Right (A, D), superior (B, E) and anterior (C) view. all—anterior left lobe; arb—anterior right bladder; bab –baso-apical sclerotised band; bs—basal sclerite of posterior right lobe; lc—longitudinal carina of posterior right lobe; ms—medial spicule; pb—posterior bladder; pll—posterior left lobe; ppll—postposterior left lobe; prl—posterior right lobe; ps—posterior spicule; sgas—supragonoporal area of sclerotisation; sp—spinulose plate; sps—superio-posterior spicule. Scale bare: 0.25 mm.

FIGURE 16. Inner female genitalia of Polymerus species. A, B, Polymerus holosericeus; C, D, P. pekinensis; E, F, P. amurensis. Gynatrium from dorsal view (A, C, E), posterior wall of gynatrium from ventral view (B, D, F). Scale bare: 0.25 mm.

FIGURE 40. Polymerus species, habitus. A, P. (Pachycentrum) carpathicus, male; B, P. (Pachycentrum) nigrita, female; C, P. (Pachycentrum) unciniger sp. nov., male; D, P. (s. str.) holosericeus, female; E, P. (s. str.) russatus sp. nov., male; F, P. (s. str.) russatus sp. nov., female; G, P. (s. str.) pekinensis; H, holotype of Poeciloscytus funestus, male; I, paratype of Poeciloscytus funestus, female; J, Polymerus (s. str.) amurensis, female.