Scirtetellus shanxiensis Liu, Xue et Liu, 2024

Liu, Yu-Xin, Xue, Huai-Jun & Liu, Guo-Qing, 2024, Two new species of the brachypterous Scirtetellus (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Miridae) from China, Zootaxa 5497 (2), pp. 244-254 : 249

Scirtetellus shanxiensis Liu, Xue et Liu , sp. nov.

( Figs 1C–D , 3 )

Diagnosis. Recognized by the following combination of characters: relatively medium size (male 2.75–2.91, female 3.42–3.57); head black, with district yellow pattern; pronotum and hemelytron uniformly dark ( Fig.1C–D ); aedeagus with two spicules, right sclerite long and curved, left sclerite complex, shown in the figure 3 D–E.

The new species is most similar to S. medvedevae Konstantinov, 2013 in the coloration and body proportions. S. shanxiensis clearly differs from S. medvedevae in smaller body sizes and the shape of aedeagal spicules which one is long and unforked, the other one is divided into multiple forks while both spicules of S. medvedevae are unforked.

Description. Male: Brachypterous, relatively medium size, total length 2.75–2.91. COLORATION ( Fig. 1C ): Dorsum, thoracic pleura, venter, and appendages black; head black with yellow patten, basal two-thirds of mandibular and maxillary plates, and uneven stripes along eyes on vertex, frons and genae, sometimes with yellow at the edge of connexivum. SURFACE AND VESTITURE: Dorsum and venter smooth, head except vertex distinctly polished, shining, abdomen weakly shining. Entire dorsum with dense, adpressed, silvery, moderately flattened scalelike setae; genital capsule and all appendages with dense, erect, distinctly long, dark simple setae. STRUCTURE: Body 3.06–3.46 × as long as basal width of pronotum. Head: vertical, of nearly equal height and width; vertex flat; eyes relatively small, vertex between inner margins of eyes 1.57–1.62 × as wide as eye; almost round in lateral; antennal fossa located at a distance from ventral margin of eye; antennal segments cylindrical, first segment 1.21–1.32 × as long as pronotum; labium stout, always reaching and slightly surpassing hind coxa. Thorax: pronotum trapeziform, 1.79–2.09 × as wide as length, 0.88–1.00 × as wide as head, with rounded anterior angles, anterior margin slightly convex while posterior margin concave; calli large, raised; mesonotum invisible; scutellum all black, width is longer than length; claval commissural margin is shorter than length of scutellum. Abdomen: Oval, gradually expanding at middle; connexivum upturned. GENITALIA: parameres of typical Halticini shape ( Fig. 3A–B ), right paramere is larger than left one, with apex flat and concave, basal elongated and narrow, bearing blunt tubercle ( Fig. 3 B'); left paramere sickle-shaped, curving, with two small cones ( Fig. 3 A'); phallotheca ( Fig. 3C ) with membranous ventral wall, apically dentated and equipped with pair of subapical, rounded, sclerotized outgrowths at sides; aedeagus with two spicules, right sclerite long and curved, left sclerite complex, divided into multiple forks, we will name them Parts a–d; Part a elongated, wider at the apex than at the base, Part b curved in a C-shape with teeth on the inner side, Part c and Part d extended at right angles, shown in the figure 3D–E.

Female: COLORATION ( Fig. 1D ): Like male, dorsum, thoracic pleura, venter, and appendages black; head black, with district yellow pattern; SURFACE AND VESTITURE: Similar to male. STRUCTURE: Body larger than male, total length 3.42–3.57, 3.56–3.94 ×as long as basal width of pronotum. Head: vertical, vertex between inner margins of eyes 1.72–1.89 × as wide as eye; antennal segments cylindrical, first segment 1.18–1.27 × as long as pronotum; labium stout, always reaching and slightly surpassing hind coxa. Thorax: Pronotum 1.98–2.13 × as wide as length, 0.86–0.91 × as wide as head. Abdomen: much wider medially than male, almost equal in length and width.

Etymology. It is named after the location of the type specimen. Noun in apposition.

Type Material. Holotype: male, China, Shanxi province, Ningwu country, Luya mountain , 38.92°N, 111.84°E, alt. 2760m, 24 Jul 2011, Kai Dang leg. ( NKUM) . Paratypes: 7 females, 4 males same data as holotype ( NKUM) .

DNA Barcoding. COI sequences from S. shanxiensis have been deposited in GenBank, with the following accession numbers: male (PP933751); female (PP933750).

Distribution. Shanxi province of China.

Measurements (mm) of Scirtetellus qinghaiensis sp. nov. and Scirtetellus shanxiensis sp. nov. are shown in Table 1 .

Figures

FIGURE 1. Habitus views of S. qinghaiensis sp. nov. (A) female; (B) male and S. shanxiensis sp. nov. (C) female; (D) male.

FIGURE 3. Genitalia of S. shanxiensis sp. nov. (A) left paramere; (A’) top view of left paramere; (B) right paramere; (B’) top view of right paramere; (C) aedeagus in ventral views; (D–E) endosoma with detached phallotheca in two different views; (a–d) parts of left sclerite.