Penthimia maculosa Distant, 2018

Shobharani, M., Viraktamath, C. A. & Webb, M. D., 2018, Review of the leafhopper genus Penthimia Germar (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae: Deltocephalinae) from the Indian subcontinent with description of seven new species, Zootaxa 4369 (1), pp. 1-45 : 12

Penthimia maculosa Distant stat. nov.

Figs 21–22 , 47, 120–126, 240–243.

Penthimia maculosa Distant, 1908: 244 –245.

Black. Crown with two to six reddish-brown spots between eyes or more reddish brown marking, sometimes two very obscure spots on posterior margin (lectotype). Scutellum with dark brown spot on lateral margins and spot at apex.

Male genitalia. Caudal margin of pygofer rounded with sparse thick setae on caudo-dorsal margin and small setae on ventral region. Subgenital plates broadly rounded at base, narrowing towards apex, with long thin setae. Connective with stem more than twice longer than arms. Style apical process strongly hook-like, distal half of style basad of apical process covered with hair-like setae. Aedeagus simple, broad at base, curved caudo-dorsally, apex obliquely truncate in lateral view, dorsal apodeme and preatrium not well developed; gonopore apical.

Length. Male: 5.6mm. Female 5.4mm.

Type material examined. MYANMAR: Lectotype ♂ P. maculosa (here designated): ‘Myitta (Doherty) [handwritten]’ . Paralectotypes: 1♀, (same data as lectotype); 1♀, ‘ Bombay, Dixon’ ; 1♀, ‘ Margherita 864 4,’; 1♀, ‘ Mergue’; 1♂, 2♀, 1 abdomen missing, Mussoorie, 7000’, 20–24.vi.05, Brunetti. Ind. Mus. All BMNH. See also Remarks for identity of paralectotypes.

Other material examined. INDIA: 1♂, no data, Distant collection ( BMNH) ; 2♂, Yedashe, 9.iii.1918, A. G. R. Coll, R-8240 (NPC); West Bengal: 1♀, Sukna, 1.ix.1981. C. A. Viraktamath ( UASB) .

Remarks. This species was described from an unknown number of specimens (syntypic) with the following data: ‘Mussoorie (Brunetti, Ind. Mus.); Bombay (Dixon); Calcutta (Ind. Mus.). Assam; Margherita (Ind. Mus.). Tenasserim; Myitta (Doherty). Mergui (Coll. Dist.).’

The examined paralectotypes of this species (see above) comprise a mixture of species which is reflected in Distant’s description of the colour variation of the pronotum. Included are one male, two females and one (abdomen missing) from Mussoorie (Brunetti, Indian Museum), belonging to the P. compacta complex; one small dark female from Mergue (Distant coll.) of uncertain identity and the following tentatively placed: one female of P. attenuata from Margheritta (Distant coll.) and one female of P. compacta complex from Bombay (Dixon), see under relevant species. We therefore consider it prudent to designate the male from Myitta as the lectotype thereby removing Distant’s synonymy of the species with P. scapularis , (of the P. compacta complex) thus avoiding the need to describe a new species for the paralectotypes from Myitta.

P. maculosa can be distinguished from other species of Penthimia based on its moderately large size, female with variable reddish brown spots on the vertex and sometimes pronotum and in the male by the strongly hooked style apex, lateral margin of the subgenital plate being broadly rounded at the base and shape of the aedeagus.

Figures

FIGURES 14–26. Habitus of species of Penthimia. 14–17.P.ereba, colour variation in female; 18. P. fraterna Distant, female topotype, dorsal view; 19–20. Female P. funebris Distant, dorsal and lateral view. 21–22. Female P. maculosa Distant, dorsal and lateral view; 23–24. Holotype male P. meghalayensis, dorsal and lateral view. 25–26. Female P. mudononensis Distant, dorsal and lateral view.