Coridromius minusculus Carvalho, 1987

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 : 65-67

Coridromius minusculus Carvalho Figures 5, 6, 12M–O, map 8

Coridromius minusculus Carvalho, 1987: 62–63 .

DIAGNOSIS: Distinguished by the following combination of characters: small size; bilobed proepisternum; apex of scutellum somewhat swollen and rounded; mottled coloration; AI pale with basal dark brown annulation; AII with dark brown postmedial annulation; right paramere with sharp, triangular spicule; left paramere thin and scythelike with gutter open its entire length. The female of minusculus is not known.

REDESCRIPTION: COLORATION figs. 5, 6): Head: Mottled light orange-brown and whitish yellow; with faint light brown vittae; depressions on vertex dark brown; clypeus whitish yellow with two irregular dark brown stripes; mandibular and maxillary plates whitish yellow, becoming dark brown along posterior margins; gena yellow; buccula whitish yellow, dark brown basally; labrum dark orange-brown, labium light orangebrown, darkened apically. Antenna: AI whitish yellow with dark brown annulation near base, AII light orange-brown with whitish subapical band followed by dark brown apical annulation, AIII and AIV dark brown with yellow bases. Thorax: Pronotal collar whitish yellow; pronotum whitish yellow with mottled orange-brown punc- tures, darkest around callar region, with two small dark brown markings along anterior behind eyes; with indistinct pale medial stripe; margins without pale piping; mesoscutum orange-brown; scutellum whitish yellow with mottled orange-brown punctures, apex pale; thoracic pleura dark orange-brown, whitish yellow along caudal margins; proepisternal lobes whitish yellow. Hemelytra: Mostly orange-brown, anterior portion of clavus slightly darker, becoming paler at commissure; corium with faint darker brown patches, becoming paler at apex; embolium with broad whitish-yellow subbasal and apical spots; cuneus light orange-brown, pale at apex; membrane brown, with pale veins bounded by irregular darker brown markings. Legs: Mostly whitish yellow with brown markings; coxae whitish yellow; pro- and mesofemora with broad, subapical irregular brown markings, bothria whitish yellow; metafemur laterally with four or five irregular diagonal brown stripes basally, becoming blotchy and indistinct apically, irregular whitish-yellow patch anterodorsally, ventrally with dark brown patch below stripes, apical lateral depressions orange-brown, bothria whitish yellow; all tibiae whitish yellow with irregular dark brown markings; metatibial spines dark brown. Abdomen: Light orange-brown, posterior margin of sternite II dark orangebrown. SURFACE AND VESTITURE (figs. 5, 6): Irregular depressions on head with deep punctures, somewhat coalescing; pronotum and propleuron deeply, irregularly punctate; scutellum deeply, irregularly rugulopunctate, impunctate along midline; metepimeron and hemelytra impunctate; clothed in long white setae. STRUCTURE (figs. 5, 6): Head: Highly contoured, frons strongly tumescent, bounded by irregular depressions and three minor swellings laterally and posteriorly; foveae adjacent to eyes deep, posterior margin of vertex medially rounded, not carinate; gena swollen; mandibular plate tumescent. Thorax: Pronotum broad and somewhat elongate, posteriorly rounded, steeply declivent, anterolateral margins weakly carinate; submarginal region of humeral angles strongly excavate; posterior of disc steeply declivent; posterior margin weakly medially cleft; callar region weakly devel- oped; proepisternum bilobed; posterior margin of metepimeron truncate; metanotum prominent and flared; scutellum somewhat flattened, apex somewhat rounded. Hemelytra: Costal margin evenly rounded over its entire length. Legs: Metatibial spines long and thick. Abdomen: Posterolateral margin of abdominal sternite II not sharply angular. MALE GENITALIA (fig. 12M–O): Right paramere rounded with a long, spined apophysis (fig. 12N–O); left paramere scytheshaped, slightly twisted along its axis, laterally compressed at base, thin apically, gutter open over entire length (fig. 12M); margin of pygophore with long mesal suture, ventral apical process present and long. FEMALE PARAGENITALIA: Female unknown.

REMARKS: Similar to chinensis , confusus , and punctatus (see remarks for chinensis above). Although the name refers to this species’ diminutive size, given the amount of size variation we have seen in other species, we cannot be certain that minusculus is truly considerably smaller than other species.

HOST: One specimen has been collected from the family Cyperaceae , but we suspect that this represents a sitting record, as no other Coridromius species appear to feed on monocots (but see table 2 for another record on Cyperaceae ).

DISTRIBUTION: Found in New Guinea (map 8).

HOLOTYPE: Male: INDONESIA: Papua: Boden , 11 km SE Oberfaren, 1.96666 ° S 138.73333 ° E, 1000 m, 7–17 Jul 1959, T.C. Maa, ( AMNH _ PBI 00042152 ) ( BPBM).

OTHER SPECIMENS EXAMINED: PAPUA NEW GUINEA: Morobe: Bulolo Gorge, 7.19999 ° S 146.64999 ° E, 1100 m, 15 Nov 1981, J.L. Gressitt, ( Cyperaceae ), 13 ( AMNH _PBI 00042147) ( BPBM).