Coridromius prolixipenis, Tatarnic & Cassis, 2008

Tatarnic, N. J. & Cassis, G., 2008, Revision Of The Plant Bug Genus Coridromius Signoret (Insecta: Heteroptera: Miridae), Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2008 (315), pp. 1-95 : 77-78

Coridromius prolixipenis , new species Figures 5, 6, 15M–P, map 8

HOLOTYPE: Male: PAPUA NEW GUIN- EA: East New Britain: Baining Mountains, Raunsepna, 4.433 ° S 151.783 ° E, 800–1000 m, 17 Nov 1979, W.C. Gagne ( AMNH _PBI 00041550) Homalanthus sp. (Euphorbiaceae) ( BPBM type# 16732) ( BPBM).

DIAGNOSIS: Relatively large species distinguished by the following characters: unilobed proepisternum; dark brown coloration; impunctate pronotum; extremely long and thin left paramere. C. prolixipenis is similar to hermosus in structure and facial coloration, but the male genital capsule and left paramere are clearly distinct. The overall dark coloration resembles that of nigrus and thalame , but in nigrus the head and legs are all black, while thalame lacks the dark apical annulation on AII. Only drepanopenis has a left paramere as long and thin as prolixipenis , but the latter lacks pronotal punctation and is much darker in coloration.

DESCRIPTION: COLORATION (figs. 5, 6): Head: Mostly dark brown above frontoclypeal suture, yellow below; frons without vittae; ocular margins and posterior margin of vertex yellow, with faint brown mark medially; gena, maxillary and mandibular plates yellow; clypeus and buccula light brown; labrum brown; labium light yellowbrown, becoming darker apically. Antenna: AI dark brown; AII yellow-brown, with darker brown annulation; AIII and AIV dark brown. Thorax: Pronotal collar brown, becoming more orange posteriorly; pronotum dark brown, posterior margin faintly orange; thoracic pleura dark brown; mesoscutum and scutellum dark brown. Hemelytra: Dark brown. Legs: Procoxa yellow, forelegs missing from specimen; mesocoxa and trochanter dark brown, basal 2/3 of mesofemora yellow, apical third dark brown, tibia dark brown; metafemur dark brown, without diagonal stripes on outer margin; all tarsi yellow. Abdomen: Uniformly dark brown; left paramere yellow. SURFACE AND VESTITURE (figs. 5, 6): Head smooth, glossy and impunctate; pronotum, propleuron, metepimeron, scutellum, and hemelytra impunctate; head and dorsum sparsely clothed in short, white, decumbent setae, most setae knocked off holotype specimen. STRUCTURE (figs. 5, 6): Head: Wide; frons only weakly tumescent medially; posterior margin of head nearly flat. Thorax: Pronotum broad, weakly convex, anterior and anterolateral margins slightly upturned, submarginal region of humeral angles weakly excavate, posterior margin thinly carinate, weakly cleft medially; proepisternum uni- lobed; posterior margin of metepimeron extended in the form of a long, triangular lobe; metanotum not prominent and flared. Hemelytra: Costal margin thin and flared over its entire length and weakly sinuate. Legs: Metatibial spines short and thin. Abdomen: When viewed laterally, posterior margin of abdominal sternite II not distinctly angular. MALE GENITALIA (fig. 15M–P): Right paramere triangular (fig. 15O–P); left paramere long, very thin, and curved, slightly twisted along its axis (fig. 15M), extending over the edge of the pygophore (fig. 15N); fold on left of pygophore forming a shallow groove (fig. 15N). FEMALE PARGENITA- LIA: Female unknown.

ETYMOLOGY: Derived from Latin prolix (‘‘long’’) and penis, the name prolixipenis refers to the extremely long left paramere of the male.

HOST: Collected on an unidentified species of Homalanthus (Euphorbiaceae) .

DISTRIBUTION: Found in the Baining Mountains, East New Britain, Papua New Guinea (map 8).