Phytocoris (Compsocerocoris) hyrcaniaensis, Zamani & Hosseini, 2019

Zamani, Mozhgan & Hosseini, Reza, 2019, Two new species of the genus Phytocoris (Hemiptera: Miridae), with a revised identification key to species of the subgenus Compsocerocoris found in Iran, Zootaxa 4648 (1), pp. 130-140 : 134-138

Phytocoris (Compsocerocoris) hyrcaniaensis sp. nov.

( Figs 1 , 3 , 4 ; Table 1 )

Type material: HOLOTYPE: Male, IRAN, GUILAN PROVINCE: Talabon (36°75´N 50°30´E, 1279 m), M. Zamani, sweeping. 7.VII.2017 . PARATYPES: 8♂, same information as holotype. The holotype and paratypes are deposited in the insect collection of the Natural History Museum of the University of Guilan ( UGNHM), Rasht , Iran. One paratype will be deposited at the Hayk-Mirzayans Insect Museum ( HMIM) in Iranian Research Institute of Plant Protection ( IRIPP), Tehran, Iran .

Diagnosis: The new species is recognized by the following combination of characters: body stramineous with dark brown markings, length 5 – 5.5 mm; eyes very large; ocular index 1.2–1.3; 1 st antennomere 1.13–1.26x and 2 nd antennomere 2.3–2.7x longer than head width, 2 nd antennomere 1.66–1.85x longer than posterior width of pronotum; labium surpassing metacoxa, pygophore without tubercle; left paramere somewhat T-shaped, sensory lobe dentate, apophysis twisted; right paramere dorsally dentate, apophysis small and sclerotized; spiculum boat shaped.

Description. Male. Colouration: body stramineous with dark brown markings. Head: whitish to stramineous; vertex sometimes with small faint reddish spots; frons laterally with transverse reddish arcs; distal half of clypeus almost dark brown to blackish; baccula, mandibular and maxillary plates with a transverse dark brown marking. Eyes: mostly black. Antenna: first antennomere whitish mottled with dark brown markings; second antennomere light brown, proximally whitish, distally dark brown; third antennomere dark brown, proximally whitish; fourth antennomere dark brown ( Figs 1B, D ). Labium: stramineous, last segment blackish. Thorax: stramineous to light brown; collar with a pair of large reddish brown markings; callosite region sometimes with irregular small reddish brown spots; in some paratypes pronotum sometimes with 3–4 brown markings, posteriorly with transverse undulating dark brown stripe, posterior margin stramineous; mesoscutum stramineous, medially with pair of small brown markings. Scutellum: entirely stramineous. Thoracic pleura: whitish; mesoepisternum dark brown; metapleuron dark brown ( Fig. 1D ). Hemelytra: stramineous to light brown, outer part of clavus and inter part of corium mottled with dark brown markings; distal end of embolium dark brown; inner margin of cuneus with two dark brown markings, its apex dark brown; membrane stramineous, mottled with brownish spots. Legs: stramineous; fore and mesofemora mottled with dark brown markings, metafemora proximally whitish, reminder mostly dark brown mottled with whitish spots (in some paratypes mottled with intermix of dark brown and whitish spots); tibiae mottled with dark brown markings, foretibia distally black; tarsi almost dark brown. Abdomen: stramineous, mottled with fin reddish spots, sublaterally with dark brown markings, pygophore dark brown, posterodorsally stramineous.

Vestiture: covered with mixture of adpressed whitish and blackish setae. Head: vertex with adpressed whitish and a few blackish setae, setae on gula semierect. Antenna: first antennomere with adpressed black setae along with a few whitish bristle-like setae; second to fourth antennomeres with small adpressed whitish setae. Thorax: setae on collar semierect. Legs: femora with mixture distribution of adpressed whitish and blackish setae along with a few trichobotria; tibia with adpressed black setae along with long brown spines; tarsi with adpressed whitish setae. Abdomen: covered with adpressed whitish setae.

Texture: impunctate. Head: frons with several shallow transverse furrows interrupted in middle, in some specimens indistinct; depression between frons and clypeus shallow.

Structure: body length 5–5.5 mm, small and parallel side. Head: width across the eyes 0.96–1.03 mm; interocular distance 0.38 mm; gula moderately short; baccula narrow. Eyes: very large, elongated oval, occupying more than two-thirds of head capsule in lateral view, contiguous to anterior margin of pronotum, oriented vertically, width of eye 0.29–0.32 mm; ocular index 1.2–1.3. Antenna: margin of fossula spong touching margin of eyes; antenna slightly longer than body length; first antennomere long, length 1.16–1.21 mm, 1.13–1.23x head width, 3–3.1x interocular distance; second antennomere length 2.4–2.63 mm, 2.3–2.7x head width, 1.66–1.85x posterior width of pronotum; third antennomere length 1.19–1.28 mm; fourth antennomere length 1.14 mm. Labium: apex surpassing metacoxa, sometimes reaching pygophore; labrum extending middle of first labial segment. Pronotum: trapezoidal; collar almost broad, length 0.09–0.11 mm, anterior width 0.59–0.61 mm, delimited by straight suture; calli indistinct; length of pronotum (dorsal view) 0.61–0.71 mm, posterior width 1.37–1.44 mm; posterior margin of pronotum straight; humeral angles rounded; mesoscutum broadly exposed. Scutellum: almost flat, length 0.57–0.61 mm, anterior width 0.66–0.68 mm. Hemelytra: claval commissure almost 2x longer than scutellum; R+M distinct, reaching cuneal fracture; medial fracture distinct, reaching middle of corial length; embolium narrow; costal margin straight; cuneus triangular, 1.6–1.8x longer than basal width, 1.4x longer than scutellum. Legs: coxa contiguous; fore and mesofemora straight, metafemora longer and medially expanded; foretibia 1.3x longer than combined head and pronotum length; tarsal segments linear; first tarsomere shorter than other segments, second and third tarsomeres subequal in length; parampodia lamellate; claw rounded; pulvilli narrow.

Male Genitalia: pygophore without tubercle; left paramere T-shaped, exposed from ventral view, sensory lobe strongly developed, marginally dentate (two median teeth stronger and larger, reminder small), apically with a slender, upward, marginally dentate process, apophysis gracile and twisted ( Figs 3A, B ); right paramere sinuate, dorsally dentate, apophysis small and sclerotized ( Figs 3C, D ); endosoma with membrane lobe and a single spiculum, membrane lobe with finely dentate area, spiculum boat shaped, elongated, large and stout; secondary gonopore large, rounded, placed medially; ductus seminis sclerotized, broad, tubular and short, without distinct coils ( Figs 3E, F ).

Female: unknown.

Etymology: The species name is derived from “Hyrcanian forest” an ancient biogeographical region located in the south of the Caspian Sea, from where the holotype and paratypes were collected.

Collection circumstances. The species was collected on herbaceous plants in hilly slope.

Distribution. Iran (Guilan province).

Differential diagnosis: Based on boat-shaped spiculum, the new species belongs to the dashtanus group of the subgenus Compsocerocoris . Phytocoris hyrcaniaensis sp. nov. resembles Ph. moestus Reuter, 1903 , but it is easily distinguished by its male genitalia. In Ph. moestus sensory lobe of left paramere is well developed, narrow and edentate, without process, right paramere edentate and apophysis of left paramere is broader and almost straight ( Fig. 5N ), ocular index 0.98–1.06, and 2 nd antennal segment/posterior margin of pronotum, 1.94–2.1 (see Linnavuori 1999).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Habitus photographs of dry-preserved specimens (male).A, C: Phytocoris (Compsocerocoris) amardus sp. nov.; B, D, Phytocoris (Compsocoris) hyrcaniaensis sp. nov.; A, B, dorsal view; C, D, lateral view. Scale= 1 mm.

FIGURE 3. Male genitalia of Phytocoris (Compsocerocoris) hyrcaniaensis sp. nov. A, B, left paramere, different views; C, D, right paramere, different views; E, F, endosoma, different views. Scale= 0.1 mm.

FIGURE 4. Head in lateral view, and tibia. A, C, D, Phytocoris (Compsocerocoris) amardus sp. nov. B, E, F, Phytocoris (Compsocerocoris) hyrcaniaensis sp. nov. C and E middle tibia, D and F fore tibia. Scale= 1 mm.

FIGURE 5. A, B, Ph. monocerus Linnavuori, 1999; C–E, Ph. stysi Linnavuori, 2008; F–H, Ph. dentistylus Linnavuori, 1999; I, Ph. falcatus Reuter, 1903; J, K, Ph. amygdali Linnavuori, 1999; L, Ph. bavanus Linnavuori, 2009; M, Ph. thisbe Linnavuori, 1999; N, Ph. moestus Reuter, 1903; O, P, Ph. mirzanus Linnavuori, 2006; Q, R, Ph. minabanus Linnavuori, 1999; S, Ph. darakiensis Hosseini & Mohammadi, 2019; T, Ph. paghmanus Reuter, 1903; U, Ph. strigilifer Linnavuori, 1965; V, Ph. sahragardi Linnavuori, 2006; W, Ph. hoberlandti Linnavuori, 1999; X, Y, Ph. arakhne Linnavuori, 1999. B, pygophore; E, G, K, N, P, R, X, left paramere; A, H, O, Q, S, Y, a part of endosoma and spiculum; C, F, right paramere; D, I, J, L, M, T, U, V, W, spiculum (after Linnavuori 1999, 2006, 2008, 2009; Hosseini & Mohammadi 2019).