Mendozamiris chiquillanes Carpintero & Chérot, 2014

Carpintero, Diego Leonardo & Chérot, Frédéric, 2014, A new genus and species of Mirini from Argentina (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Miridae), Zootaxa 3774 (4), pp. 395-400 : 396-399

Mendozamiris chiquillanes Carpintero & Chérot , n. sp.

( Figs. 1–15 )

Holotype: ♂: ARGENTINA: Arg(entina): Mendoza RN 145, Malargüe D(epartemen)t, nr Portezuelo del Viento, 1580 m., 10.xii.2011 / 35°49.275’S, 70° 03.412’ W. Dellapé leg. (IADIZA).

Paratypes: 8 ♂, 8 ♀: same data as for holotype (including FC n°s 6216-6219) ( MACN, MLP, IADI); 12 ♂ 18 ♀, same data, but collected by T. Henry, on Adesmia volkmanni (Fabaceae) ( USNM); 1 ♂: Arg(entina): Mendoza, RP 186, Malargüe Dept, SE Pt Gentile, Prov. Res. El Payén, 1950 m., 11.xii.2011, Dellapé leg. / 35° 57.026’S, 69° 24.783’W. (FC n° 6220); 1 ♀: Arg(entina): Mendoza, RP 186, Malargüe Dept, near Pt Gentile, Pr. Res. El Payén, 1900 m., 11.xii.2011, Dellapé leg. / 35° 55.768’S, 69° 25.655’W. (FC n° 6221). 1 ♀: Arg(entina): Mendoza, RP 220, Malargüe Dept, 14km W El Sosneado, 1900 m., 9.xii.2011, Dellapé leg. / 34° 57.338’S, 69° 41.551’W. ( MACN); 1 ♂ 4 ♀ same data, but collected by T. Henry, on Fabiana denudata patagonica (Asteraceae) ( USNM); 1 ♂: Arg(entina): Mendoza, RP 220, San Rafael Dept, Western El Sosneado, 2050m, 9.xii.2011, T. Henry / 34º 54.449’ S –69º 50. 167’ W, on Anarthrophyllum rigidum (Asteraceae) ( USNM); 1 ♀: Arg(entina): Mendoza, RN 40, Malargüe Dept., 55km South of Malargüe, 1700m, 10.xii.2011, T. Henry / 35º 08.625’ S – 69º 40.757’ W, on an Asteraceae . ( USNM); 2 ♂ 5 ♀: Arg(entina): Mendoza, RP 186, Malargüe Dept., 30km SE ├ with RN 40, (SE Pto. Carapacho, Res. Prov. Laguna de Llancanelo), 1950m, 11.xii.2011, T. Henry / 35º 50.564’ S – 69º 30.325’ W, on Fabiana denudata patagonica ( USNM).

Diagnosis. As in generic diagnosis.

Description (Male). Measurements from paratype FC n° 6216 preserved to ISNB. Total length (dorsal view, from apex of tylus to apex of hemelytra): 5.5, total width of hemelytra: 2.05, eyes width: 0.35, vertex width: 0.45, length of antennal segment I: 1.0, II: 2.1, III: ~1.15, IV: ~0.80, pronotal length (in middle, including the collar): 0.9, pronotal width (between the humeral angles): 1.8, scutellum length (in middle, including mesoscutum): 0.95, scutellum width: 0.85, cuneus length (outer margin): 1.1, cuneus width: 0.7.

Head practically glabrous. Clypeus yellowish, sometimes with red brown to orange submedial stripes. Mandibular and maxillary plates yellowish with brown patches, devoid of tubercle. Frons yellowish, rounded, obliquely striate, grooves narrow, shallow, yellowish to red brown. Vertex slightly sulcate medially, not carinate, yellowish to whitish. Eyes contiguous to pronotal collar, yellowish with grey ommatidia and short, erect setae. First antennal segment thick, yellowish with red to dark brown elongated marks and white, stiff, erect setae. Second antennal segment narrower than first, cylindrical, brownish (sometimes with a yellow basal ring), with some elongate, erect, white setae (three times the wide of segment) and very short, semierect to prostrate, white setae. Third and fourth segments dark brown, with similar pilosity. Labium yellowish brown to apically dark brown. Thorax. Pronotal collar yellow, narrowly striate transversally, not punctate, submedially with two red brown M-like stripes, laterally with two other black stripes, continuing on pronotal lateral sides, reaching beyond posterior margin of callosities. Pronotal callosities rounded, not punctate, medially separated by a transversally striate area, reaching pronotal lateral margins, with sparse, very short, prostrate white setae. Pronotal disk slightly shining, roughly punctate, punctures superficial, shallow but relatively wide, yellowish with dark red brown patches and sparse, short, suberect setae. Mesoscutum uncovered, yellowish with small red brown spots. Scutellum rounded, medially elevated, height in lateral view superior or practically equal to height of posterior margin of pronotal disk, surface not punctate, narrowly striate laterally, yellowish with a pair of lateral dark brown stripes and several wide red brown patches submedially. Meso- and metapleura yellow to red brown and dark brown to black, evaporatory area yellow slightly tinged with orange dorsally. Legs. Femora and tibiae yellowish with dark red brown stripes and rings, metafemora with suberect to erect setae, metatibia with erect to suberect white spines and short, prostrate to suberect setae. Tarsal segments dark brown, claw red brown. Hemelytra yellowish roughly punctate, with superficial, shallow, relatively narrow punctures. Clavus and corium with numerous small brown spots and with very short, relatively stiff, prostrate or semi erected, white and black setae, exocorium with wider red brown patches. Cuneus relatively elongate, yellow tinged with orange to red, apex red brown to red, with the same pilosity as hemelytra. Membrane elongate, yellowish with red brown spots and patches, veins yellow. Abdomen yellowish with variable red brown stripes on each pleura, connexivium dark brown.

Genitalia. Left paramere ( Fig. 9 ) sickle-like, devoid of secondary or tertiary lobes and apophysis, sensory lobe bearing some short setae. Right paramere ( Fig. 10 ) stout, posteriorly translucent, primary apophysis hooked. Endophallus ( Fig. 11 ) devoid of ACH and true spiculum, including two toothed sclerites, one elongated and slightly curved (Pa1), other helicoid (Pa2, detail in Fig. 12 ). Ductus seminis (Ds) wide and elongated. Secondary gonopore (G2) wide, devoid of sclerite.

Description (Female). Measurements from paratype FC n° 6217 preserved to ISNB. Total length (dorsal view): 5.5, total width of hemelytra: 2.3, eyes width: 0.25, vertex width: 0.5, length of antennal segment I: 1.0, II: 2.0, III: lost, IV: lost, pronotal length (in middle, including the collar): 0.75, pronotal width (between the humeral angles): 1.5, scutellum length (in middle, including mesoscutum): 0.75, scutellum width: 0.70, cuneus length (maximal length of the oval): 0.65, cuneus width: 0.5.

Similar to male but slightly smaller (except for total length and total width), darker and brachypterous, grooves of frons red brown to dark brown, pronotum bell-shaped, lateral margins strongly concave, callosities rounded, pronotal disk and hemelytra with wider dark brown patches, exocorium strongly convex. Cuneus tilted, oval, ivory white (except apex red brown), membrane reduced to a translucent area.

Genitalia. Anterior sac wide, with a pair of glands ( Fig. 13 , Ga). Parieto-vaginal rings ( Fig. 14 , Ap) wide, totally separated, margins slightly convex to practically straight. Dorso labiate plate (DLP) reinforced anteriorly by a complex sclerite (S). Dorsal wall membranous. Posterior wall ( Fig. 15 ) classical, with A structures or inter-ramal sclerites ( AS) slightly curved ventrally, elongated E structures or inter-ramal lobes (ES) reaching the dorsal structure, small H structures or lateral lobes (HS). The B structure including an oval foot or sigmoide process (Fo), an elongated hat (Ha) and rounded dorsal structure or plate (Plt).

Etymology. The specific name derived from an indigenous people of the region of Cuyo, Argentina, the Huarpes or Warpes. The Huarpes Chiquillanes , also called "huarpes algarroberos" were a group distributed in the south of Mendoza Province, where the collecting site of this species, the department Malargüe, is located.

Biology. Unknown. Collected between 1580m and 2050m elevation. The collection sites belong to the Andean region and Central Patagonian subregion ( Morrone 2001). The species was collected on the typical patagonian shrubs: Adesmia volkmanni (Fabaceae) , Fabiana denudata patagonica (Asteraceae) , Anarthrophyllum rigidum (Asteraceae) and on an undetermined Asteraceae .

Discussion. Mendozamiris chiquillanes can be easily recognized by its habitus and male genitalia. Specimens of both sexes from different localities have relatively dramatic chromatic variation (compare figures 1–3 and 2–4).

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 4. Mendozamiris n. gen. chiquillanes n. sp. Habitus in dorsal view. 1 – 2. Male and female paratypes from Portezuelo del Viento (FC n ° s 6216 - 6217). 3 – 4. Male and a female paratype from El Payén (FC n ° s 6220 - 6221). Scales = 1 mm.

FIGURES 9 – 15. Mendozamiris n. gen. chiquillanes n. sp. Genital structures. 9. Left paramere. 10. Right paramere. 11. Endophallus. Ds: ductus seminis, G 2: secondary gonopore, Pa 1 and 2: toothed sclerites. 12. toothed sclerite Pa 2. 13. Left part of anterior sac in dorsal view. Ga: gland, Ap: parieto-vaginal ring. 14. Left parieto-vaginal ring (Ap). DLP: dorso-labiate plate, S: sclerite. 15. Posterior wall. As: A structures, Es: E structures, Fo: foot, Ha: hat, Hs: H structures, Plt: plate. Scales = 0.1 mm.