Bubaces Distant, 1893

Brailovsky, Harry & Barrera, Ernesto, 2020, Review of the genus Bubaces (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Rhyparochromidae Lethaeini) with descriptions of three new species, new distributional records, and key to species, Zootaxa 4767 (2), pp. 244-256 : 245-246

Bubaces Distant

Bubaces Distant, 1893: 409 .

Type species: Bubaces castaneus Distant 1893 . Monobasic.

Redescription. Body elongate, surface strongly shining, glabrous or pronotal disk, clavus and corium clothed with long upstanding hairs. Head. Dorsally impunctate and ventrally impunctate or with few scattered punctures; wider than long, non-declivent; vertex flat or slightly convex; juga carinate; preocular area elongate; eyes large, protuberant; ocelli absent or close to eyes; antennal segments I-IV clothed with short decumbent pubescence; antennal segment I exceeding tylus by more than half is length; dorsum with two iridesent spots, one on either side of midline; each spot consists of a series of parallel ridges; ventrally slightly swollen; rostrum elongate, reaching posterior border of metacoxae or extending to abdominal sternite IV or anterior border of abdominal sternite VI; rostral segment I short, extending just beyond level of middle eye or exceeding base of head. Thorax. Pronotum wider than long, trapeziform, narrowing anteriorly and bilobed into anterior and posterior lobes with shallow transverse constricted impresion, not deeply incised; anterior pronotal lobe almost flat, with prominent punctate collar, set off from remainder of pronotum by an incised groove; collar broadening slightly mesally; anterolateral margins emarginate, sinuate; pronotal trichobothrium present anteriorly on lateral pronotal margin; humeral angles rounded; calli flat, impunctate; posterior pronotal lobe with shallow punctures; pronotal trichobothrium removed from the anterolateral corner of pronotum, placed instead on lateral margin about 1/3 to 1/2 along the length of the anterior lobe. Metathoracic scent gland peritremes sexually dimorphic, broad, raised above pleural surfaces. Male. Each ostiolar peritreme with apex broadly recurved, or with very wide curvature resembling a “question mark”( Fig. 13 ). Female. Each ostiolar peritreme elongate, shaped like a broad “S”, slightly recurved anteriorly, ending in a blunt tip ( Fig. 14 ); evaporative areas each covering all of mesoepimeron but not extending dorsally along junction with metapleuron. Legs. Fore femora not incrassate, not much more swollen than midlle and hind femora, each armed ventrally with one short, stout, subdistal spine; femora with or without tubercles; all tibiae sparsely spined. Scutellum. Longer than wide; punctate mesally and laterally, with V-shaped impunctate elevated area. Hemelytra. In macropterous forms, reaching apex or extending beyond apex of last abdominal segment; in submacropterous (coleopteroid type) form reaching posterior border of abdominal segment VI; each clavus with two regular rows of punctures, with an irregular (single proximally, double distally) row between them; coria irregularly punctate, except row of punctures parallel to claval-corium suture uniformily alineate; hemelytral membranas each with four distinct veins, without cross veins. Abdomen. Sparsely clothed beneath with short, decumbent hairs, or with fine, longer hairs. Male genitalia. Genital capsule with small tooth along anterior margin of dorsal opening (hard to see). Paramere. Inner and outer surface almost at same level and apically blunt; body wide (Figs. 15–22).

Differential diagnosis. Bubaces is related to Xestocoris Van Duzee by having the dorsal surface of body strongly shiny, pronotum trapeziform, narrowing anteriorly, head basally with two iridescent spots, one on either side of midline, and fore femora slightly incrassate. In Xestocoris , the body dorsally is densely clothed with long hairs, and the eyes have two long, forward-curving setae. In Bubaces , the body dorsally is glabrous or clothed with a few long, scattered hairs, and the eyes lack the two long, forward-curving setae.

At peesent, Bubaces includs five described species, all confined to the Neotropics, ranging from Mexico to Argentina, and including the West Indies: B. castaneus Distant 1893 , B. convergens Brailovsky 1981 , B. enatus Brailovsky 1981 , B. heissi O’Donnell 2006 , and B. uhleri ( Distant 1901) .

Brailovsky (1981) divided the genus into two group of species. The “ castaneus ” group contains species which are longer than 4.70 mm., the ocelli are present, the rostrum is longer, reaching onto abdominal sternite IV and sometimes to the posterior border of sternite VI, and rostral segment I exceeding beyond the base of the head. Included in this group are the following species: B. castaneus , B. convergens , and B. heissi . In the “ uhleri ” group, the species are shorter than 4.20 mm., the ocelli are absent, the rostrum is shorter, reaching only to the posterior border of the metasternum, and rostral segment I extend just beyond the level of middle of the eye. This group Includes B. enatus , and B. uhleri .

Key to the species of Bubaces

1 Body shorter than 4.30 mm; ocelli absent; rostrum shorter, reaching posterior border of metasternum; rostral segment I reaching middle third of eye.................................................................................... 2

- Body longer than 4.70 mm; ocelli present; rostrum extending beyond posterior border of metacoxae; rostral segment I exceeding base of head...................................................................................... 3

2 Coria each with circular, pale yellowish, subapical spot; femora tuberculate; hemelytra submacropterous, with membranes reaching posterior third of abdominal segment VI ( Figs. 7 , 12 ).............................. .. B. uhleri ( Distant, 1901)

- Coria without circular, yellow subapical spots; femora not tuberculate; hemelytra macropterous, with membranes reaching posterior border of last abdominal segment ( Fig. 3 )..................................... B. enatus Brailovsky, 1981

3 Apex of each male ostiolar peritremes rounded, tightly recurved back upon itself; female ostiolar peritremes strongly bent................................................................................. B. heissi O’Donnell, 2006 *

- Apex of each male ostiolar peritremes wide open, resembling a “question mark”; female ostiolar peritremes not strongly bent ................................................................................................... 4

4 Each clavus and corium glabrous ( Fig. 8 )...................................................................5

- Each clavus and corium clothed with long, erect hairs ( Fig. 11 )..................................................6

5 Coria each without circular yellow to creamy yellow subapical spots ( Figs. 1 , 8 )............... B. castaneus Distant, 1893

- Coria each with a prominent circular yellow to creamy yellow subapical spots ( Fig. 4 , 10 )........... B. gloriosus sp. nov.

6 Coria without circular yellow to creamy yellow subapical spots ( Figs.5 , 11 ).................... .. B. occidentalis sp. nov.

- Coria each with a prominent circular yellow to creamy yellow subapical spots.................................... 7

7 Rostrum long, reaching posterior border of abdominal sternite V or anterior border of VI ( Fig. 6 )...... .. B. rostralis sp. nov.

- Rostrum shorter, reaching middle third of abdominal sternite IV ( Figs.2 , 9 )............... B. convergens Brailovsky, 1981

*Based on the original description.

Figures

FIGURES 13–14. Metathoracic scent gland peritreme of Bubaces occidentalis sp. nov. 13, male. 14, female. FIGURES 15–22. Parameres of Bubaces spp. 15–16, B. castaneus Distant. 17–18, B. gloriosus sp. nov. 19–20, B. occidentalis sp. nov. 21–22, B. rostralis sp. nov.

FIGURES 1–7. Dorsal view of Bubaces spp. 1, B. castaneus Distant (female). 2, B. convergens Brailovsky (male). 3, B. enatus Brailovsky (female). 4, B. gloriosus sp. nov. (female). 5, B. occidentalis sp. nov. (male). 6, B. rostralis sp. nov. (male). 7, B. uhleri (Distant) (male).

FIGURES 8–12. Lateral view of Bubaces spp. 8, B. castaneus Distant (female). 9, B. convergens Brailovsky (male). 10, B. gloriosus sp. nov. (female). 11, B. occidentalis sp. nov. (male). 12, B. uhleri (Distant) (male).