Myrsidea rubica Kounek and Sychra

Kounek, Filip, Sychra, Oldrich, Capek, Miroslav, Lipkova, Alexandra & Literak, Ivan, 2011, Chewing lice of the genus Myrsidea (Phthiraptera: Menoponidae) from the Cardinalidae, Emberizidae, Fringillidae and Thraupidae (Aves: Passeriformes) from Costa Rica, with descriptions of four new species, Zootaxa 3032, pp. 1-16 : 12-13

Myrsidea rubica Kounek and Sychra sp. nov.

( Figs. 10–12 )

Type host. Habia rubica (Vieillot) —Red-crowned Ant-Tanager

Female (n = 4). This species belongs to the fusca species group (sensu Price and Dalgleish 2006). Length of head seta 10, 0.045–0.050; seta 11, 0.115–0.120; ratio10/11, 0.38–0.43. Gula with 4–5 setae on each side. Metasternal plate with 6 setae, metanotum not enlarged with almost straight posterior margin, with only 6 marginal setae.

Abdomen with tergite I largest with strongly convex posterior margin, II–IV with slight mediopestrior convexity ( Fig. 10 ). Tergal setae, with median gap in each row: I, 6–7; II, 15–16; III, 17–18; IV, 18–19; V, 18–22; VI, 18– 20; VII, 14–17; VIII, 8–10. Postspiracular setae extremely long (0.45–0.55) on II, IV and VIII; long (0.28–0.39) on I, III and VII and short (0.15–0.19) on V and VI. Sternal setae: II, 4 in each aster, 18 marginal between asters, 6–9 anterior; III, 27–29; IV, 34–42; V, 38–39; VI, 26–28; VII, 12–15; VIII–IX, 18–21; without medioanterior setae. Dimensions: TW, 0.45–0.49; HL, 0.31–0.32; PW, 0.27–0.30; MW, 0.40–0.45; AW, 0.53–0.59; TL, 1.38–1.51; ANW, 0.22.

Male (n = 2). Length of head seta 10, 0.040; seta 11, 0.100–0.105; ratio10/11, 0.38–0.40. Metasternal plate with 5–7 setae, metanotum with only 6 marginal setae. Tergal setae, with median gap in each row: I, 14; II, 18; III, 20; IV, 17–18; V, 17–19; VI, 15–18; VII, 12–13; VIII, 6–7. Postspiracular setae extremely long (0.45–0.47) on II, IV and VIII; long (0.23–0.30) on I, III and VII and short (0.14–0.16) on V and VI. Sternal setae: II, 4 in each aster, 15 marginal between asters, 6 anterior ( Fig. 11 ); III, 24–27; IV, 28–29; V, 29–31; VI, 24–25; VII, 13–14; VIII, 6–7; without medioanterior setae. Genital sac sclerite slender with very small subapical projection on each side ( Fig. 12 ). Dimensions: TW, 0.41–0.42; HL, 0.28–0.29; PW, 0.25; MW, 0.35–0.36; AW, 0.42–0.44; TL, 1.20–1.21; GW, 0.10; GL, 0.39; GSL, 0.07–0.09.

Type material. Female holotype (O.Sychra CR103), ex Habia rubica (Cardinalidae) , COSTA RICA: Rincon de la Vieja National Park, Sector Santa Maria, Sendero del Padre (10°46’N, 85°18’N; 800m), 20 August 2009, Sychra and Literak leg. Paratypes: 1 female and 2 males with the same data as holotype (O.Sychra CR103–104). Deposited in INBio. Other specimens deposited in MZM.

Remarks. This is the second species of Myrsidea from Habia rubica . It conspicuously differs from M. laciniaesternata Eichler, 1956 described from the same host from Bolivia and Trinidad and Tobago ( Eichler 1956; Price and Dalgleish 2006) by having a non-enlarged metanotum and a median gap in each row of tergal setae.

The female of M. rubica sp. nov. is characterized by following characteristics: (1) metanotum not enlarged with almost straight posterior margin; (2) well-developed median gap in the rows of tergal setae; and (3) tergite I much enlarged, especially in relation to other tergites, with strongly convex posterior margin and with not>7 setae. These characteristics place M. rubica sp. nov. very close to M. fusca Carriker, 1903 from Ramphocelus passerini (Thraupidae) and M. fuscicaudae Price and Dalgleish, 2006 from Habia fuscicauda (Cardinalidae) . The male of M. rubica sp. nov. is characterized by following features: (1) genital sac sclerite with only very small subapical projection on each side and (2) large number of setae on tergites (especially tergite III with at least 19 setae and tergite V with at least 17 setae). These characteristics place M. rubica sp. nov. very closely only to M. fuscicaudae —male of M. fusca has genital sac sclerite with slight apical indentation and distinct subapical lateral projections (see Fig. 9 ). Both sexes of M. rubica sp. nov. can easily be separated from both aforementioned species by metanotal margin with only 6 setae (female of M. fusca and M. fuscicaudae has 12–16 and 19 metanotal setae, respectively; male of M. fusca and M. fuscicaudae has 12–16 and 14–15 metanotal setae, respectively).

Etymology. The species name is derived from the specific name of the type host.

Figures

FIGURES 7 – 12. 7 – 9. Myrsidea roubalovae sp. nov. 7, Female (dorsal side on the left, ventral side on the right). 8, Male sternite II. 9, Male genital sac sclerite. 10 – 12. Myrsidea rubica sp. nov. 10, Female (dorsal side on the left, ventral side on the right). 11, Male sternite II. 12, Male genital sac sclerite. Scales 0.50 mm (Figs. 7, 10), 0.10 mm (Figs. 8, 11), 0.05 mm (Figs. 9, 12).