Phyllhermannia bandabanda, Colloff, 2011

Colloff, Matthew J., 2011, 2770, Zootaxa 2770, pp. 1-60 : 10-12

Phyllhermannia bandabanda sp. nov.

( Figs. 4, 5, 34b)

Dimensions. Holotype female length 826 µm breadth 460 µm. Paratype male length 734 µm breadth 383 µm. Ratio of length of prodorsum to total length: 0.28 (holotype).

Female. Prodorsum: rostrum without inverted V-shaped ridge; rostral seta (ro) 18 µm, setiform, curved, smooth ( Fig. 4a). Lamellar seta (le) 36 µm, curved, smooth, on squat, conical tubercle on lateral margin of prodorsum; with complete transverse lamellar ridge. With well-developed, curved lateral ridge extending between base of lamellar seta and acetabulum of leg I, connecting with medially-curving anterior exobothridial ridge. Surface of prodorsum porose, with faint striae laterally; smooth medially. Interlamellar setae (in) 46 µm, phylliform, finely barbed apically, on shallow inverted V-shaped interbothridial ridge. Bothridial seta (bs) elongate, 117 µm, evenly thick, apex tapering, rounded, smooth. Exobothridial seta (ex) 28 µm long. Interbothridial region densely and strongly porose, divided medially by non-porose region with small, sparsely-distributed tubercles. Median condyles present.

Notogaster: ratio of length to breadth 1.3. Dorsosejugal suture crenellated. With network of minute tubercles: narrow lines between median file of setae, median and lateral files; transverse line between bases of setae c 2 ( Fig. 4a). Rest of notogaster finely wrinkled in contoured series of sub-parallel lines following circumference of notogaster. Setae elongated, narrow, phylliform each with a basal stalk, barbed along anterior part ( Fig. 4c). Apices of setae c 1, c 2 and d 1 overlapping bases of setae c 2, c 3 and d 2 respectively. Setae of p series slightly shorter (56–64 µm) than others (75-92 µm). Setae of c series all directed posteriorly or posteriolaterally, evenly spaced. Distance between bases of setae c 1 about 0.7 × that between c 1 and c 2 and 0.4 × that between bases of d 1. Distance between d 2 1.2 × that between d 1; distance between e 1 1.4 × that between f 1. Lyrifissurae im slightly acute.

Coxisternum: Lateral margins of rostrum smooth. Lateral margins of epimeres II and IV tuberculate; posteriolateral margin of epimere I spur-shaped ( Fig. 4b). Anterior sternal apodeme crenellated. Apodeme III transverse, smooth, with median U-shaped ridge. Only anterior part of epimere III porose. Posterior margin of epimere IV with line of well-developed, posteriorly-directed tubercles, opposed by faint ridge of tubercles anterior of genital plate. Epimere IV without sclerotised projection laterally. Epimeral setal formula 3-1-3-5. Setae 1a, 3a and 4b short, subequal (ca. 20–25 µm); 1b, 1c, 2a, 3b and 4a longer (ca. 30–43 µm). Lateral seta 3c long (92 µm); setae on epimeral plate III on median part of plate. Setae 4c and 4e subequal (103 µm), 4d slightly longer (128 µm), setae of epimeral plate IV on posterior half of plate.

Anogenital region: Genital plates surrounded by wrinkled, ridged cuticle ( Fig. 4b). Each genital plate 139 µm long, 68 µm broad with six spinose setae in median file; g 1 slightly longer (32 µm) than others (19–25 µm), displaced slightly laterally. With three longer setae in lateral file, anteriolateral seta (g 4) longer (46 µm) than others (32 µm). Aggenital setae subequal in length to median genital setae. Pre-anal organ rounded. Each anal plate 181 µm long, 53 µm broad, with two short (21 µm) setae on central part of plate. Adanal setae subequal in length (45 µm).

Legs: Femur I 129 µm long, with well-developed lateral projection proximally; medial projection absent ( Fig. 34b). Cuticle with faint, sparse alveoli. Setae d, l ' and l " curved, sharply pointed, smooth, broadened basally; seta l " shortest (21 µm) then d (27 µm); l ' longest (48 µm).

Tritonymph. length 694, breadth 393. Prodorsum: Rostrum acute, rostral seta (ro) smooth, thin, curved, 12 µm long ( Fig. 5a). Lamellar seta 22 µm long, setiform, smooth, on squat, conical tubercle on lateral margin of prodorsum; with complete transverse lamellar ridge. Region between lamellar setae and shallow inverted V-shaped interbothridial ridge porose, wrinkled laterally. Interlamellar setae (in) 25 µm, phylliform with basal stalk, pointed and finely barbed apically. Bothridial seta (bs) elongate, 107 µm long, evenly thick, apex tapering, pointed, smooth. Interbothridial region with semicircular plaques, divided by densely porose median region bounded laterally by parallel ridges. Posterior region of prodorsum strongly porose.

Gastronotic region: Length 508 µm. Ecdysial cleavage lines δ s and δ t present and well-developed; δ t extending laterally between e 1 and e 2. With pattern of irregular, broadly-spaced plications with alternating punctate and non-punctate cuticle, extending posteriorly as far as δ t. Medial plications transverse, lateral ones longitudinal ( Fig. 5a). With 8–10 plications between setae c 1 and d 1. Region between d 1 and d 2 trapezoid, wrinkled, lacking plications. Notogastral setae phylliform with basal stalk, pointed and finely barbed apically. Setae f 1 on prominent, rounded tubercles. Region posterior of δ t porose, not plicate, wrinkled laterally and posteriorly. Caudal margin of notogaster acutely incised lateral of e 2; concave between f 2 and h 1; h 1 and h 2 borne on prominent lobe.

Ventral region: Lateral margins of epimeres I tuberculate ( Fig. 5b). Apodeme III transverse, tubercles absent; with median U-shaped ridge. Posterior margin of epimere IV faint, lacking tubercles. Epimeral setal formula 3-1-2- 4. Ventral plications running diagonally and longitudinally; transversely lateral of anal plates. Genital plate with four setiform setae in median file and three longer setae in lateral file; anteriolateral seta longer than others. Aggenital setae subequal in length to posteriolateral genital setae. Anal setae short, on central and anterior part of plate. Adanal setae subequal in length. Region lateral and posterior of anal plates wrinkled.

Material examined. Holotype female, paratype male, ANIC 672 . Moss under Nothofagus moorei, Mt Banda Banda , 42 km WSW of Kempsey, New South Wales, coll. K. R. Pullen , 5.ii.1980 . Holotype and paratypes deposited in the Australian National Insect Collection, CSIRO Ecosystem Sciences, Canberra .

Etymology. This species is named after its type locality, Mount Banda Banda, central New South Wales.

Remarks. Phyllhermannia bandabanda can be differentiated from other member of the genus based on the following combination of characters: 1) the complete transverse lamellar ridge; 2) the porose anterior prodorsum, with faint ridges; 3) the narrow, elongated, phylliform notogastral setae with barbs apically;4) the crenellated anteriomedial margin of the notogaster; 5) the wrinkled microsculpture of the notogaster with a network of lines of minute tubercles between the files of setae; 6) the overlapping notogastral setae of the c and d series; 7) the epimeral setae 1a, 2a, 4a and 4b relatively long, subequal; 8) with epimeral seta 4d the longest of the lateral series; 9) the very long genital seta g 4; 10) the dorsal and lateral setae of femur I curved, sharply pointed, smooth and broadened basally.

The association of the tritonymph with the adult is based on their presence in the same sample, the identical morphology of the rostral, lamellar and notogastral setae and the wrinkled cuticle of the prodorsum between the lamellar and interlamellar setae and the caudal region of the notogaster.

Phyllhermannia bandabanda shares with P. hunti sp. nov. the general shape of the notogastral setae, though in the former species they are narrower, slightly shorter and the barbs are larger and more apical; seta 4d slightly longer than 4c or 4e; the crenellated anteriomedial margin of the notogaster, the smooth, pointed bothridial seta and the presence of notogastral wrinkles, although in the latter species these are arranged in a pattern of discrete transverse longitudinal and transverse lines around the bases of the median files of setae. Other differences include the lamellar seta of P. bandabanda is thin, smooth and setiform and there is a complete translamellar ridge, whereas seta le of P. hunti is phylliform and barbed and the translamellar ridge is incomplete. The lateral margins of the prodorsum between setae le and in in latter species are not expanded and ridged as they are in the former. The dorsal and lateral setae of femur I are barbed in P. hunti rather than smooth.