Slaterocoris breviatus (Knight, 1938)

Schwartz, Michael D., 2011, Revision And Phylogenetic Analysis Of The North American Genus Slaterocoris Wagner With New Synonymy, The Description Of Five New Species And A New Genus From Mexico, And A Review Of The Genus Scalponotatus Kelton (Heteroptera: Miridae: Orthotylinae), Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2011 (354), pp. 1-290 : 129-130

Slaterocoris breviatus species group

DIAGNOSIS: Among those species with a large right paramere, the members of this species group are distinguished by the radial arrangement of the apical spines of this paramere (figs. 30C–G, 32I–O, 33I–L, 34H, I, 35G–I, 38, 39I, J), the long tergal process with short opposing apical spines (figs. 30J, 32E, 33D, 34G, 35D, 39F) the strongly compressed left lateral surface of the phallotheca (figs. 35C, 39E), and the sparse, short dorsal vestiture (pl. 4D, Q). COLORATION: Black except for the apex or slightly variable apical portion of femora pale yellow, tibiae sometimes pale yellow to yellowish orange with black apex; tarsomeres I and II pale in contrast to black tarsomere III; antennal segment I sometimes pale with black base, segment II with variable pale regions basally or medially; female with more extensive pale coloration on appendages than male. VESTITURE: Sparsely distributed, reclining, short, brown simple setae (pl. 4D, Q). DORSAL SCULPTURATION: Frons faintly striate to rugose or slightly punctate; corium with moderately large, discrete punctures merging with rugosity near claval suture (fig. 36B). STRUCTURE: Length of antennal segment II greater than head width; sexually dimorphic body shape—male, ovoid, costal margin arcuate, width across hemelytra widest at level even with apex of clavus and with costal margin of female considerably more arcuate than male with wider hemelytra, somewhat pear shaped in dorsal view (pls. 1–3). MALE GENITALIA: Pygophore: Tergal process moderately long, usually with two small apical points (figs. 30J, 32E, 33D, 34G, 35D, 39F). Phallotheca: Distal portion abruptly and deeply notched on left dorsolateral surface (figs. 35C, 39E). Endosomal spicule: Dorsal lobe unequally bifurcate, lateral ramus large, with variable structure and marginal serration, medial ramus smaller, narrow with smooth margins (figs. 30A, B, 32A–D, 35A, B), medial ramus sometimes absent (fig. 30B); ventral lobe with long, recurved distal portion usually reaching to base of dorsal lobe of endosomal spicule, apical region variable in length and with marginal serration; ventral lobe sometimes thickened at recurved bend in medial region (figs. 33A– C, 34A–C, 39A–D). Right paramere: Large; apical region with radial arrangement, with small or large spines; subapical region constricted; basal lobe broad basally (figs. 30C–G, 32I–O, 33I–L, 34H, I, 35G–I, 38, 39I, J). Left paramere: Distal portion longer than basal portion; apex rounded with distal portion long in S. atritibialis (fig. 30H, I), S. pallidicornis (fig. 33F, G), S. stygicus (figs. 37C, 39G, H), or in S. breviatus with short, bent distal portion (fig. 32F, G); apex pointed on ventral side with distal portion long in pallipes (fig. 34E, F), S. solidaginis (fig. 35E, F). FEMALE GENITALIA: First gonapophyses: Right overlapping left, in ventral view (fig. 40A, B). Left first gonapophyses: Dorsal surface protuberant, apex roughly confluent with distal portion. Vestibulum, anteroventral margin of anterior wall: Sclerotized medially, and sclerotized to lateral margins of bursa copulatrix. Ventral labiate plate: Strongly produced, base wide, triangular. Interramal sclerite: Dorsomedial region tumid anteriorly, ventromedial region overlapping ventromedial plate. Interramal lobe: Dorsal or basal insertion usually with membranous attachment; dorsomedial margin not produced as lobe; ventral projection short with concave anterior surface (fig. 40C, D).

DISCUSSION: Widely distributed in northern, eastern, and central North America as well as the north and central mountain west. One species has an exclusively eastern coastal distribution and one is strictly Californian. The predominant hosts are species of Solidago , with Baccharis sp. the exclusive host of one species, S. pallidus .

The apical portion of the right paramere in this species group is unique. The spines are grouped tightly at their base and fan out distally in a radial arrangement. The number of apical spines is greatly variable in this group. In S. pallipes and S. stygicus , the apical spines are long. Slaterocoris atritibialis , S. pallidicornis , and S. solidaginis have similar apical spine structure, being shorter than those in S. pallipes and S. stygicus . Additionally, the apical spines of S. pallidicornis are mostly on the same plane with the apicalmost spine the longest; in S. atritibialis and S. solidaginis the apicalmost spine is shorter and placed somewhat more medially than in S. atritibialis . In S. breviatus the apical spines are all of equal length and are the shortest in the species group.

Some genitalic features used to diagnosis this species group are found in two species of the punctatus group. The tergal process of S. tanydexios also has two apical points, albeit of large size (23-2), and the ventral lobe of the endosomal spicule is wide subapically (33-1) and short distally (34-2). Also the broad basal lobe (44-2) of the right paramere also occurs in S. clavatus . Both S. clavatus and S. tanydexios have a protuberant dorsal surface of the first gonapophyses (55-1); otherwise, this feature is found only in breviatus group.