Willowsia shiae Pan, Zhang, & Chen, 2006

Mandal, Pritha, Mandal, Guru Pada, Suman, Kusumendra Kumar & Bhattacharya, Kaushik Kumar, 2024, Two new species and one new record of Willowsia Shoebotham, 1917 (Collembola: Entomobryidae) from the Eastern Himalayan region of India, European Journal of Taxonomy 935, pp. 101-121 : 115-118

Willowsia shiae Pan, Zhang, & Chen, 2006

Figs 7–9 , Tables 1–2

Material examined

INDIA – Arunachal Pradesh • 1 ♀ (on slide), 48 specs in alcohol; West Kameng, Dirang ; 27°23.383′ N, 92°11.464′ E, 5645 ft a.s.l., 25 Mar. 2023; G.P. Mandal leg.; reg no. 3382/H14; NZC • 1 ♀ (on slide), 5 specs in alcohol; West Kameng, Melonkgang bridge ; 27°23.668′ N, 92°09.676′ E, 5950 ft a.s.l.; 25 Mar. 2023; G.P. Mandal leg.; reg no. 3383/H14; NZC • 1 ♀ (on slide), 14 specs in alcohol; West Kameng, Brokpublang ; 27°13.588′ N, 92°24.413′ E; 5314 ft a.s.l., 26 Mar. 2023; P. Mandal leg.; reg no. 3384/H14; NZC • 1 ♀ (on slide), 20 specs in alcohol; West Kameng, near Kevin waterfall ; 27°13.627′ N, 92°24.505′ E, 5335 ft a.s.l.; 26 Mar. 2023; K.K. Suman leg.; reg no. 3385/H14; NZC .

Diagnosis

Average adult body length 1.8–2.4 mm. General body colour pale straw yellow, blue pigment patches scattered all over body, Abd. III–V almost completely pigmented, rest of segments become darker at lateral edges, head with diffused pigment; antennae and legs evenly pigmented ( Fig. 7A–B ). Scales spinulate type ( Fig. 8A ), present on body, antennae, ventral side of manubrium. Legs without scales. Antennal segment ratio as I: II: III: IV = 1: 2: 1.3–1.9: 2–3.4. Ant. IV with bilobed apical bulb. Ant. III organ with two rod-like sense organ. Head with five antennal (An), four median (M 1 –M 4), eight sutural (S 0 –S 6, S 4i, S 5i) setae ( Fig. 8B ). Blunt and conical labral papilla without setae; labral setae formula as 4/4, 5, 4, prelabral setae ciliate, others smooth ( Fig. 8C ). Labial triangle with five finely ciliated and five smooth setae. Lateral process of labial palp not reaching the base ( Fig. 8D ). Dorsal chaetotaxy of Th. II as shown in the Fig. 8E with two medio-median (m2), four medio-lateral (m4, m4i, m4p, m5), 19 posterior mac and two sens. Th. III with 16 median, eight lateral mac and two sens ( Fig. 8E ). Unguis with one outer, paired inner and one unpaired teeth. Unguiculus lanceolate with a serreted edge. Tenent hair with a clavate tip and slightly larger than unguis in length. Trochanteral organ with 37–40 smooth spiny setae ( Fig. 8F ). Dorsal mac position as shown in Fig. 9 . Abd. I with 4 mac (m2–m4, m4i) and one sens, M3 arch of Abd. II with four setae (m3, m3ep, m3e, m3ea), inner area with one seta (a3), m5 present and two sens. Abd. III three central (a2–a3, m3) and five lateral setae (am6, pm6, p6, m7a, p7), three sens present. Abd. IV with nine dorso-central (A3–A4, A6, B3–B6, Sm, Si),12–16 lateral setae and 6 S-setae. Ventral tube with 5+5 anterior large and other small ciliated setae, 5+5 smooth and 12–14 ciliated setae on lateral flap, posterior side with 1+1 smooth setae. Tenaculum quadridented. Length ratio of manubrium: dens as 1:1.26; dens uncrenulated part: mucro as 1.4: 1. Mucro bidented with a basal spine.

Remarks

Most of the characters of the Indian specimens of W. shiae are similar as per the description of Pan et al. (2006); however, we have found that there are differences between them in dorsal head chaetotaxy; Th. II with two mac in Gr. I (T 1 in Fig. 8E ), three mac in Gr. II (T 2 in Fig. 8E ) and four mac in the p1 row of Th. II, p5 also present. Two sens present in each Th. segment. We have also named the mac of Th. II–III and Abd. I–IV following Zhang et al. (2019). Collected from the leaf litter of pine and other trees of tropical alpine forest.

Figures

Fig. 7. Willowsia shiae Pan, Zhang & Chen, 2006, ♀ (reg. no. 3382/H14). Scale bars = 500 µm.

Fig. 8. Willowsia shiae Pan, Zhang & Chen, 2006, ♀ (reg. no. 3385/H14). A. Scales. B. Dorsal head chaetotaxy (left side). C. Labrum. D. Lateral processes of labial palp (right side). E. Dorsal chaetotaxy of Th II–III. F. Trochanteral organ. Scale bars: A = 20 μm; B, E = 100 μm; C, F = 50 μm; D = 25 μm.

Fig. 9. Willowsia shiae Pan, Zhang & Chen, 2006, ♀ (reg. no. 3384/H14). Abd. I– Abd. IV chaetotaxy. Scale bar = 200 μm.