Tetraleurodes, Cockerell, 1902

Martin, Jon H., 2005, Whiteflies of Belize (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) Part 2 - a review of the subfamily Aleyrodinae Westwood, Zootaxa 1098 (1), pp. 1-116 : 50-51

TETRALEURODES Cockerell

Aleyrodes (Tetraleurodes) Cockerell 1902: 283 . Type species Aleyrodes (Tetraleurodes) perileuca

Cockerell, 1902, by original designation. Tetraleurodes Cockerell ; as full genus, Quaintance & Baker: 1914: 107–108. Mexicaleyrodes Sampson & Drews, 1941: 166–167 . Type species Mexicaleyrodes contigua by

monotypy syn. nov.

DIAGNOSIS AND COMMENTS. As interpreted here, Tetraleurodes comprises species (Figs 53–59, 117–124) with the following combination of characters: cuticle dark brown to black (at least in New World species), usually requiring bleaching for examination on slides; margin regularly toothed, usually with tooth­base glands, teeth not modified at thoracic tracheal openings at margin; submargin (which is often almost vertical in its natural position) separated from dorsal disc by a distinct margin­concentric fold; submargin sculptured by fine ridges/furrows running mesad from margin; longitudinal moulting suture reaches margin or submarginal fold; transverse moulting sutures may terminate at, before, or beyond submarginal fold; abdominal segment VII not, or slightly, reduced medially; eighth abdominal and caudal setae present; variable combinations of submedian cephalic and thoracic setae present; first abdominal setae absent; vasiform orifice subcordate, usually elevated posterolaterally, fully occupied by operculum which obscures lingula; caudal furrow absent. In life, puparia often secrete peripheral white wax but without such secretion dorsally.

Tetraleurodes is a large and polyphyletic assemblage of species, with 66 available species names indicated in the index of the BMNH collection. Although the type species was described from the USA, the 20 species included by Quaintance & Baker (1914) were from five geographical regions and it now includes taxa from almost worldwide. Tetraleurodes is somewhat better defined than Aleurotrachelus , which was also originally proposed to accommodate New World species.

Nakahara (1995) reviewed species of Tetraleurodes , predominantly those occurring in the USA, covering several of the species here recorded from Belize. From the results of the present study, Tetraleurodes is the most speciose genus in Belize, with seven described and 17 undescribed species examined. One undescribed species from avocado ( Persea , Lauraceae ) is illustrated (Fig. 124).