Erysivena majori, Symonds & Cassis, 2018

Symonds, Celia L. & Cassis, Gerasimos, 2018, Systematics And Analysis Of The Radiation Of Orthotylini Plant Bugs Associated With Callitroid Conifers In Australia: Description Of Five New Genera And 32 New Species (Heteroptera: Miridae: Orthotylinae), Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2018 (422), pp. 1-229 : 180-182

Erysivena majori , new species

Figures 14 , 62 , 74 ; map 4

DIAGNOSIS: Defined by the following characters: moderately small size; head weakly enlarged anteriorly; eyes large; labium extends to mesocoxae; cuneus tip and forewing membrane veins red; pygophore with two serrate tergal processes positioned left lateral and far right lateral; far right lateral tergal process linear, with expanded basal lobe; left lateral tergal process subrectangular, curved downward and pointed distally; left paramere strongly expanded, subtriangular, sensory lobe broad with short light-brown setae, apophysis moderately elongate, apex hooked; right paramere hammer shaped, with expanded subapical dorsal lobe, apex elongate, broad, and flattened; phallotheca opening small and round; aedeagus with PES simple, with elongate medial process, distally serrate with straight apex; DES2 bifurcate medially; DES1 simple, unbranched, curved downward distally, medially and distally serrate; female mIRL two-thirds height of laIRL, expanded and serrate distally; laIRL straight and uniform width, with large spiniferous basal lobe.

DESCRIPTION: Male: Relatively small to midsized, elongate, body length 3.20–3.56 mm, pronotal with 0.84–1.03 mm. COLORATION: Dorsum yellowish green, faded; cuneus tip red; forewing membrane light gray-brown with darker patches laterally and in major cell, membrane veins red with color confined to vein, subcuneal clear spot large (fig. 14). VESTITURE: Dorsum with moderately dense distribution of pale (cream) simple setae. STRUCTURE: Head: Weakly expanded anteriorly; eyes large, extending well beyond anterolateral angle of pronotum; antennae with AI subequal to vertex width, AII 1.2× pronotal width; labium medium length, extending to mesocoxae. Hemelytra: Cuneus and major cell of membrane moderately elongate, major membrane vein slightly rounded, membrane elongate (fig. 14). GENITALIA: Pygophore: Dorsal margin of genital opening strongly concave, asymmetrically; two sclerotized tergal processes, positioned left and far right lateral of midline; left tergal process subrectangular, apex pointed and acutely curved downward, distally serrate; far right tergal process linear, with expanded lobed base, distally serrate; ventral margin of genital opening slightly convex on left side; phalloguide sclerotized and round ventrad to right paramere articulation, with serrate lateral margin (fig. 62A). Left paramere: Strongly expanded medially, subtriangular; sensory lobe broad, round; sensory lobe with light-brown, bristlelike setae; apophysis moderately elongate, inner margin with two small spines subapically; apex hooked (fig. 62B). Right paramere: Hammer shaped; medial flange on inner lateral margin, greatly reduced, directed downward; subapical dorsal margin with expanded lobe; apex expanded, strongly curved, with flattened distal edge; toothlike spines present on subapical lobe and in two rows on inner and outer margin along apex; lightbrown, short, bristlelike setae on apex (fig. 62C). Phallotheca: Dorsal opening small, closed medially; round distally, without small point at apex; basal margin of opening round; small subapical tumescence on ventral surface (fig. 62). Aedeagus: Spicule arrangement (fig. 62): PES ventral to and partially sheathing secondary gonopore, DES2 left dorsolateral to PES, DES1 lateral to DES2, base of PES distad to base of secondary gonopore (fig. 62E); PES simple, with elongate medial process which is sometimes distally serrate and projected perpendicular to spicule or downward, apex serrate, acuminate, and straight; DES2 bifurcate medially, branches equal length and narrow, distally serrate, left branch bent perpendicular to base, right branch distally projected, with row of subbasal serrations on right side; DES1 simple, medially weakly expanded and serrate along inner margin, distally strongly curved downward and acuminate, distal margins serrate, basal keel (DESk) elongate (fig. 62E).

Female: Subequal size to male, body length 3.14–3.41 mm, 0.89–1.04 mm. GENITALIA: IRS posterior margin convex. Interramal lobes (fig. 74): mIRL entirely separated from laIRL; laIRL straight, linear, uniform width, base with large spiniferous lobe; mIRL two-thirds height of laIRL, subrectangular, distally expanded, and serrate.

ETYMOLOGY: Named after ecologist Richard Major in recognition of his work at the Australian Museum, on the insect assemblages found on Callitris glaucophylla in fragmented woodlands of southeastern Australia, from which seven callitroid-inhabiting Orthotylini species (including this species) were found.

HOST PLANT: Known from Callitris glaucophylla (table 2).

HOLOTYPE: AUSTRALIA: New South Wales: 2.9 km W of Nyngan, 31.55001 ° S 147.1553 ° E, 202 m, 18 Oct 2001, Cassis, Silveira, Wall , Callitris glaucophylla , det. RBG Sydney NSW658275, 1♂ ( AMNH _ PBI 00016233 ) ( AM).

PARATYPES: AUSTRALIA: New South Wales: 2.9 km W of Nyngan, 31.55001 ° S 147.1553 ° E, 202 m, 18 Oct 2001, Cassis, Silveira, Wall, Callitris glaucophylla , det. RBG Sydney NSW658275, 2♂ ( AMNH _PBI 00016234, 00016235), 1♀ ( AMNH _PBI 00016237) ( AM). 43.5 km S of Tamworth, on New England Hwy, 31.44702 ° S 150.87102 ° E, 674 m, 10 Jan 2005, G. Cassis, Callitris glaucophylla , 1♂ ( AMNH _PBI 00016246), 4♀ ( AMNH _PBI 00016248– 00016251) ( AM), 1♂ ( AMNH _PBI 00016245), 1♀ ( AMNH _PBI 00016247) ( UNSW). Near Backyamma State Forest, 33.30638 ° S 148.21611 ° E, 10 Apr 1999, AM Terr. Ecol. Dept., Callitris glaucophylla , 1♂ ( AMNH _PBI 00016242), 2♀ (A M N H_PBI 0 0 0 1 6 2 4 3, 0 0 0 1 6 2 4 4) ( AM). Queensland: 5.9 km E of Mitchell, 26.48726 ° S 148.0361 ° E, 380 m, 31 Oct 1998, Schuh, Cassis, Silveira, Callitris glaucophylla , det. RBG Sydney NSW427493, 4♀ ( AMNH _PBI 00016238–00016241) ( AM), 3♂ ( AMNH _PBI 00000154, 00000159, 00000165), 2♀ ( AMNH _ PBI 00000177, 00000182) ( AMNH).

OTHER SPECIMENS EXAMINED: AUSTRA- LIA: New South Wales: 2.9 km W of Nyngan, 31.55001 ° S 147.1553 ° E, 202 m, 18 Oct 2001, Cassis, Silveira, Wall, Callitris glaucophylla , det. RBG Sydney NSW658275, 1♀ (AMNH_PBI 00016236) (AM).

DISTRIBUTION: Moderately broad inland distribution from four localities, from southern Queensland to central New South Wales, on the western slopes of the Great Dividing Range and on the Great Dividing Range in northern New South Wales (map 4). Collected with Avititerra xerophila and Callitricola wiradjuri (table 2).

REMARKS: Erysivena majori is closely related to E. bundjalung , E. mareeba , and E. molloy . It is distinguished from E. bundjalung and E. mareeba by the following characters (cf. figs. 62, 50, 65): the sensory lobe of the left paramere broad and rounded (cf. swollen); PES with an elongate medial process (cf. PES with a short threadlike process in E. bundjalung and E. mareeba ); and dorsal opening of the phallotheca round (cf. elongate and constricted distally and basally acute. see fig. 50D). DES2 of E. majori is similar to E. mareeba , but differs from that in E. bundjalung by being bifurcate medially, rather than more distally bifurcate, and by the absence of a distinct row of toothlike serrations on the inner margin, proximal to bifurcation point (fig. 50E, F), and presence instead of more subbasal marginal serrations (62E). The DES1 spicule is more strongly down curved in E. majori than in E. mareeba (cf. figs. 62E and 64E, 65E).

Figures

FIG. 14. Erysivena species, dorsal habitus photographs of males. Scale bar = 1 mm.

FIG. 62. Male genitalia of Erysivena majori. A. Pygophore, dorsal. B. Left paramere, ventral. C. Right paramere, left lateral. E. Phallotheca, right lateral. D. Aedeagus, right lateral. Scale bars = 0.1 mm.

FIG. 74. Erysivena female genitalia: right interramal lobes of species, posterior wall of E. schuhi, dorsal. Scale bar = 0.1 mm.