Pratigi aristeui, Gil-Santana & Oliveira & Unesp & Fcfar, 2016

Gil-Santana, Hélcio R. & Oliveira, Jader de, 2016, Pratigi aristeui, a new Neotropical genus and species of Stenopodainae (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Reduviidae), Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae (suppl.) 56 (2), pp. 491-506 : 494-500

Pratigi aristeui sp. nov.

( Figs 1–14 )

Type locality. Brazil, state of Bahia, municipality of Ituberá, locality of Pratigi .

Type material. HOLOTYPE: ♁, BRAZIL: BAHIA state: ITUBERÁ municipality, Pratigi locality / 05.vi.2011 // light trap around “piaçava” [= Attalea funifera Martius ] trees // Pratigi aristeui Gil-Santana & Oliveira // Holotype [red label] ( MNRJ).

Diagnosis. General coloration brownish to black or reddish brown, with pale, stramineous markings ( Fig. 1 ); other features as in generic diagnosis.

Description. Male ( Figs 1–14 ). Measurements (mm): Total length 14.2; head: total length (excluding collum) 2.0; maximum width across eyes 1.9; anteocular length 0.8; postocular length 0.5; interocular space 0.8; length of antennal segments: I – 1.8; II – 2.1; III – 0.3; IV – 0.5; length of labial segments: II [first visible] – 1.0; III – 0.6; IV – 0.6. Thorax: pronotum: length 2.9; width at posterior margin 3.2; scutellum: length 1.5; width at base 1.3. Legs: fore femur: length 3.4; maximum width 1.0; fore tibia 4.0; fore tarsus (without claws) 0.6; mid femur: length 3.1; maximum width 0.3; mid tibia 3.5; mid tarsus: absent; hind femur: length 5.0; maximum width 0.3; hind tibia 5.0; hind tarsus (without claws) 0.8. Abdomen: length 8.2; maximum width 4.5.

Coloration. General coloration brownish to black or reddish brown, with pale, stramineous markings ( Fig. 1 ).

Head ( Figs 1–3 ) blackish dorsally, with reddish to red-brownish portions: clypeus, mandibular plates and a small triangular area posterior to them; two pairs of longitudinal stripes, the longer pair running laterally to ocelli from lateral acute protuberance to posterior margin of head, and the shorter pair beginning at antennal insertion and convergent to meet transverse sulcus, which is blackish. Antennal segments I and II mostly reddish-brown dorsally, with apices and small irregular markings on segment I darkened; segment I blackish ventrally, with extreme base clearer, reddish; segment II brownish black ventrally, with irregular pale markings in subbasal and submedian portions; segments III and IV brownish. Gula brownish. Labium brownish, with ventral midline reddish to reddish brown. Collum blackish.

Thorax ( Figs 1–3 ) mostly brownish. Pronotum with lateral margins paler and stramineous; fore lobe mostly blackish, anterior collar red-brownish. Scutellum brownish to brownish black, with apex of process somewhat paler. Propleura with three longitudinal, moderately thin, weakly dark stripes; meso- and metapleura with three longitudinal, parallel, faint, blackish stripes. Mesosternum with a pair of lateral, blackish, shiny stripes somewhat larger towards posterior border.

Legs: coxae blackish; trochanters blackish, with apices and lateral portions of mid and hind pairs brownish. Femora and tibiae brownish, with blackish, scattered markings. Fore femora with lateral surfaces mostly brownish, while dorsal and ventral surfaces being predominantly blackish; three longitudinal, subparallel, glabrous, blackish, shiny lines on dorsal surface, the lateral lines much wider at base, becoming as thin as the median line toward apical portion; on ventral surface, a blackish glabrous line, somewhat wider in midportion; these dorsal and ventral lines ending near apex of femur; conspicuous apiciventral processes blackish in inferior portion and testaceous in superior portion. Mid and hind femora with longitudinal, blackish, glabrous lines, which are variably interrupted, but somewhat wider in apical portion; each femur possesses a line on its dorsal surface; two on posterolateral surface, one on mid-anterolateral surface, and an incomplete line at ventral midline, the latter present in distal portion of the segment. All femora blackish in apicomedial portion, dorsally, and on ventral margin between the setigerous tubercles.Apicoventral setigerous processes of mid and hind femora completely blackish.Apices of all tibiae darkened to blackish. Tarsi brownish; claws red-brownish.

Hemelytra brownish to brownish black, with many stramineous spots or irregular markings, including a larger marking over median portion of M vein and its adjacent portion on corium and more numerous, regularly subrounded spots on membrane ( Fig. 1 ).

Abdomen brownish, with ill-defined, scattered, minute, stramineous spots; somewhat darker areas present on approximately lateral midportion of each sternite. Connexivum brownish with subdistal pale marking on each segment; last segment somewhat pale in midportion of posterior margin. Spiracles pale.

Vestiture. Integument mostly covered with short, rounded tubercles, each tubercle with a short, pale, apical, scale-like seta (setigerous tubercles) ( Fig. 5 ). Setigerous tubercles on head and legs with a somewhat larger base.

Head mostly covered with setigerous tubercles, which have a somewhat even larger base in postocular part, ventrolaterally, where a ramose setigerous process is present ( Figs 2–4 ). Glabrous areas on head: transverse sulcus, a pair of divergent thin stripes (similar to a “V”) from midpoint of interocular sulcus to space between antennal insertion and mandibular plates ( Fig. 2 ), ocelli, gula and collum. Antennal segment I covered with setigerous tubercles dorsally and laterally; ventrally with very numerous, erect, whitish setae, forming a somewhat dense pubescence ( Figs 2–3 ); similar pubescence covering basal three-quarters of segment II ventrally and on one side, laterally; on the opposite side, laterally, a longitudinal row of about fifteen stiff, stouter, darkened to blackish setae similar in length to those of thin whitish setae in each portion (i.e. longer in proximal two-thirds and shorter in distal third); dorsal surface of basal three-quarters of segment II covered with setigerous tubercles; segment II distally (where it is curved and thinner) covered with whitish pubescence, in which, however, thin setae are half to a third shorter. Antennal segments III and IV covered with a pubescence of thin, whitish, short, decumbent setae ( Figs 2–3 ) and with a few scattered, longer and darker, erect setae. Labial segments II and III with several setigerous tubercles ventrally; a pair of stiff, erect setae present near apex of segment III, ventrally; segment IV with several erect, moderately short to somewhat longer setae.

Thorax covered by setigerous tubercles. Pronotum ( Figs 1–2 ): a regular row of setigerous tubercles laterally; glabrous and shiny areas on fore lobe: small area on median portion of anterolateral angles; glabrous, somewhat straight to curved linear areas among sinuate linear ridges of setigerous tubercles and between the more external ridges and lateral margin of fore lobe. Longitudinal sulcus on meso- and metapleura glabrous on anterior two-thirds of the former and almost completely on the latter. Mesosternum with a somewhat large, glabrous, shiny stripe on lateral border.

Legs, except tarsi, covered with setigerous tubercles. Trochanters with a pair of small glabrous areas, ventrally. All femora with an apical pair of conspicuous setigerous processes, ventrally, which are conspicuously larger on fore femora ( Fig. 5 ) and short and progressively smaller in mid and hind femora; terminal seta longer and somewhat narrower in the processes of mid and hind femora. Two or three simple, erect, whitish, thin setae on base of all tibiae, ventrally ( Fig. 5 ). Distal two-thirds of ventral surface of fore tibiae with very short, curved, thin, simple setae; mid and hind tibiae with somewhat longer setae on distal half, which become more numerous towards apex ventrally.All tibiae with an apical cluster of golden-reddish stiff setae ventrally. Blackish lines on femora and lateral longitudinal furrows on tibiae, glabrous. Fore and hind tarsi (mid tarsi absent) without setigerous tubercles, covered with moderately long and stiff darkened setae, more numerous on ventral surface of first tarsomere, forming a cluster similar to those of the apices of the tibiae.

Hemelytra: corium with scattered, sparse setigerous tubercles, somewhat more numerous over costal, radial and median veins; inner portion of distal half of corium and all the membrane glabrous.

Abdomen: setigerous tubercles somewhat more numerous on posterolateral angles of connexivum. Fusiform, subcircular or subtriangular, small glabrous, somewhat shiny spots present on sternites III–VII, laterally; at each side of sternite, a pair of them lying just posterior to the intersegmental suture and the other spot lies near the median portion of each side ( Fig. 10 ).

Structure. Integument mostly dull and rugose in the portions in which there are setigerous tubercles; it is smooth with minute punctures in the glabrous areas of the head, thorax and sternites.

Head as long as wide, shorter than pronotum; anteocular portion approximately 1.5 times longer than postocular. Eyes very large ( Figs 1–4 ), laterally prominent ( Figs 1–2 ); on ventral surface of head the eyes are very close to each other ( Fig. 3 ). Interocellar distance slightly shorter than twice the width of each ocellus. Length of labial segment II slightly less than twice as long as each of the subsequent segments, which are the same in length to each other.

Thorax ( Figs 1–3 ): fore lobe of pronotum with sinuate linear ridges of setigerous tubercles and narrow and somewhat shiny and glabrous linear areas among them.

Legs: fore trochanters with a pair of small shallow elevations ventrally. Fore femora more than thrice as thick as mid and hind femora; in lateral view, the dorsal rim is semicircular and the ventral rim is somewhat straight; the latter medially armed with four spiny rounded tubercles; three of the latter situated at about the basal half and the fourth approximately in mid portion of distal half. All femora armed ventrally with an apical pair of curved, conspicuous, setigerous processes, which are conspicuously larger on fore femora ( Fig. 5 ), these are succeeded by processes of decreasing length in mid and hind femora.

Hemelytra not reaching tip of abdomen ( Fig. 1 ), ending approximately 0.5 mm from posterior margin.

Abdomen: integument of the exposed portion of last tergite with some transverse and somewhat undulating subparallel furrows. Intersegmental furrows between sternites III–VII with very shallow canaliculae in median half of each furrow. Last segment truncated and somewhat curved at posterior margin and notched in middle posteriorly ( Fig. 10 ). Genital capsule at a distance from posterior margin of abdomen, situated somewhat parallel to the connexival border ( Fig. 10 ). Posterior margin of sternite VIII sinuous medially ( Fig. 10 ).

External genitalia ( Figs 6–14 ). Pygophore and parameres brownish. Exposed portion of pygophore concave ( Fig. 10 ), covered with setigerous tubercles with scale-like setae; integument dull, with very thin, shallow, subparallel, transverse furrows; posterior margin with a very small, median, rounded notch. Anterior and posterior apertures of pygophore separated by a membranous bridge ( Fig. 11 ). Dorsolateral margin of pygophore, between the membranous bridge and insertions of parameres, with numerous, variably long, erect setae ( Fig. 11 ). Median process of pygophore ( Figs 11–12 ) only visible in dorsal view, directed upwards, situated just below paramere apices, subtriangular, with adjacent sparse erect setae. Paramere apices close in resting position ( Fig. 11 ); in ventral view only the posterior margins of their apices are visible ( Fig. 10 ); parameres ( Figs 11, 13 ) symmetrical, strongly curved in midportion, with a sclerotized blunt process on internal surface; covered with scale-like setae on the exposed surface and apical half, which are somewhat more numerous in apical third; on inner surface, scattered, straight, moderately short to moderately long, erect, thin setae present in apical two-thirds, which are somewhat more numerous below the subapical prominence. Phallus ( Figs 6–9 , 14 ): articulatory apparatus short, longer than wide, with very short basal bridge and basal arms ( Fig. 6 ). Pedicel slightly longer than articulatory apparatus, moderately curved in lateral view, enlarged in basal portion ( Figs 7–8 , 14 ). Dorsal phallothecal plate trapezoid, somewhat sclerotized, with a pair of suboval basal expansions, laterally ( Figs 7–8 ). Struts consisting of a pair of elongated arms, more widely separated at base, joined subdistally and distally; subcylindrical in approximately basal two-thirds and somewhat enlarged towards apices, which are rounded ( Figs 7–8 ). Endosoma wall smooth and very wrinkled ( Fig. 9 ). Endosoma somewhat more sclerotized in middle portion, with a median pair of very feebly sclerotized, straight, parallel processes not reaching apex; another sclerotized, irregular thickenings, without forming a clear process, in approximately distal half ( Fig. 9 ).

Etymology. The new species is named after the entomologist João Aristeu da Rosa, to honour his significant contributions to the study of Triatominae , the notorious vectors of Chagas’ disease.

Distribution. Brazil (Bahia).

Figures

Figs 1–5. Pratigi aristeui gen. & sp. nov., male holotype. 1 – dorsal view (scale bar = 4.0 mm); 2 – head and anterior lobe of pronotum, dorsal view (scale bar = 2.0 mm); 3 – head, prothorax and part of mesosternum, ventral view. (scale bar = 2.0 mm); 4 – head (schematic), lateral view; 5 – fore leg, apex of femur and basal portion of tibia, lateral view. Abbreviations: csp – conspicuous setigerous process, es – erect seta, sls – scale-like seta.

Figs 6–9.Pratigi aristeui gen. & sp. nov., male genitalia, dorsal view. 6 – articulatory apparatus; 7–8 – pedicel and apical portion of phallus (7 – apical portion of phallus including dorsal phallothecal sclerite, struts and endosoma; 8 – the same without endosoma); 9 – endosoma, the arrows point to the sclerotized irregular thickenings.

Figs 10–14. Pratigi aristeui gen. & sp. nov., male holotype. 10 – apical portion of abdomen, ventral view; 11 – pygophore and parameres, dorsal view; 12 – median process of pygophore, anterior view; 13 – right paramere; 14 – phallus, lateral view.