Penthimia rufopunctata de Motschulsky

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 : 17

Penthimia rufopunctata de Motschulsky , revised placement.

Figs 192–200 .

Penthimia rufopunctata de Motschulsky 1863: 94 .

Neodartus rufopunctatus (Motschulsky) : Distant 1908: 247.

Black; pronotum with posterior margin edged with orange-brown; forewings with orange-brown spots.

Length Male 3.3–3.5mm

Male genitalia. Subgenital plate trapezoidal with outer marginal angle obtuse and conically rounded apex. Style with preapical lobe well developed, apical apophysis short, fingerlike, slightly curved laterally. Connective short dorsal apodeme, shaft curved dorsally and then anteriorly narrowed towards apex, with large gonopore on ventral margin. somewhat Y-shaped, with platelike stem about as long as wide, arms short. Aedeagus with well developed but

Material examined. See Remarks.

Remarks. This species was described from an unknown number of specimens from Sri Lanka with the data “Des Montagnes Nura-Ellia et Patannas”. In ZMSU among the Motschulsky collection from Sri Lanka, there are two male specimens (now cleaned and photographed, Figs 199–200 , by Dmitri Tishechkin, pers. comm.) that agree with the original description of P. rufopunctata but with barely discernable labels. One male ( Fig. 199 ) bears a red rectangular label with yellow circle bearing ‘type’ which is hardly possible to make out ( Fig. 198 ) and the other with similar label but without the inscription ‘type’ belonging to the same species (Dmitri Ticheshkin, pers. comm.). Dr. Tishechkin informs that “The color of spots on forewings is difficult to distinguish against black abdomen.....the spots on the hind margin are semitransparent greyish, and more proximal spots are reddish brown”. The specimen with type label has been dissected and the male genitalia photographed ( Figs 192–197 ). Externally and in the male genitalia this species is similar to P. neoattenuata but the aedeagus has a much larger gonopore and thinner aedeagal shaft in lateral view. The specimen from Sri Lanka identified by Distant (1908) as this species (BMNH) belongs to Neodartus .

Figures

FIGURES192–202. Motschulsky’s species of Penthimia. 192–200.P.rufopunctata. 192.Valve, ventral view; 193. Subgenital plate, ventral view; 194. Style, dorsal view; 195. Connective, dorsal view; 196. Aedeagus, lateral view; 197. Aedeagus, posterodorsal view; 198. Label data on the type; 199. Type male dorsal view; 200. Topotype male, dorsal view. 201–202. P. melanocephala. 201, Female dorsal view; 202. Female ventral view.