Utarametopus Taszakowski & Kim, 2025

Taszakowski, Artur, Kim, Junggon & Jindra, Zdeněk, 2025, Further records of the tribe Gigantometopini (Hemiptera, Heteroptera, Miridae, Isometopinae) with descriptions of three new genera and five new species, Zootaxa 5725 (4), pp. 451-474 : 460-461

Genus: Utarametopus Taszakowski & Kim , gen. nov.

Type species. Utarametopus linuspitti Taszakowski & Kim , sp. nov.

( Figs. 6 , 7 ).

Diagnosis. Recognized by the following combination of characters: dorsum densely and deeply punctuate, with uniformly distributed pale, shiny, semierect long setae; head vertically elongate, flattened in front, slightly higher than or as high as pronotal height; compound eye relatively small, height less than 1/2 head height; lateral margin of frons under compound eye U-shaped; scape as thick as pedicel in distal part; pedicel slightly arcuate and clavate; pronotum somewhat elongate in dorsal view, moderate in thickness in lateral view, height as long as length, posterior margin weakly concave on either side, with a median projection; calli weakly swollen; scutellum partially tumid, impunctate, except baso-medial part clearly depressed with punctures; exposed part of mesoscutum punctate ( Figs 7E , 8E ); embolium and cuneus impunctate.

Description. Female. Body oval, length approximately 2.60–3.40 ( Figs 6A , 8A, B ). Surface and Vestiture. Body shiny, densely and deeply punctate; except glabrous head, covered densely with pale, shiny, setae ( Figs 6A–C , 8A–C ); along costal vein row of punctures, embolium and cuneus impunctate, antennae with sparse setae; pronotal collar with row of setae; scutellum punctate only in the midline ( Figs 6E , 8E ); legs with short, recumbent, pale-brown setae. Structure. Head: flattened, hypognathous, distinctly higher than width across eyes, dorsally almost reaching or extending level of the highest point of pronotum; vertex flat, at same level or slightly protruding above eyes level; compound eyes height shorter than 1/2 head height; vertex wide, subequal to single compound eye width; ocelli small to medium-sized, spaced apart, touching compound eyes ( Figs 6B–D , 8A,C ); fovea antennalis positioned at middle of ventral margin of compound eye and apex of clypeus; scape short, as thick as pedicel in distal part; pedicel slightly arcuate and clavate; flagellomeres linear, thin; labium long, reaching fourth to five abdominal segment. Thorax: pronotum trapeziform, midline length about 1/2 posterior width, lateral margin carinate, posterior margin weakly concave on either side, with median projection, posterior angles weakly angled; pronotal collar broad; calli slightly marked, disc slightly convex; scutellum partially tumid, relatively large, midline length shorter than pronotal length, width subequal to 1/2 pronotal maximum width, baso-medially clearly depressed ( Fig. 6E ); scent gland evaporative area triangular; ostiolar peritreme swollen, directed upward and anteriorly; hemelytron lateral margin rounded; cuneus broad, inner margin almost straight; membrane with two cells. Abdomen: elongate, reaching or exceeding apex of cuneus.

Etymology. The name combines “Utara” (the type locality, province Sulawesi Utara) with a suffix “ metopus ” which is part of the generic name Isometopus , the type genus of the subfamily. Gender masculine.

Remarks. The placement of the newly described genus in Gigantometopini is also based on the following characters: a body elongate oval; the presence of a mesial fossa (incision) in the calli region; and the claval commissure length shorter than the scutellum length, although only female individuals are known so far.

Within Gigantometopini , the new genus, Utarametopus gen. nov. can be easily distinguished from the genera Isometopidea Poppius, 1913 and Kohnometopus Yasunaga, 2005 by the fovea antennalis clearly separated from compound eye (vs. placed near compound eye); from the genera Bruneimetopus Taszakowski et al., 2020 , Planicapitus Taszakowski et al., 2020 , and Sulawesimetopus Herczek et al., 2018 by the small compound eye relative to head height, compound eye height shorter than 1/2 head height (vs. subequal or longer than 1/2 head height); from Gigantometopus Schwartz & Schuh, 1990 and Megalofaciatus Taszakowski et al., 2021 by weakly developed pronotal calli (vs. strongly developed calli region); and Astroscopometopus Yasunaga & Hayashi, 2002 by partially tumid scutellum (vs. strongly tumid and projected scutellum). Additionally, this new genus can be separated from the genera newly described in this study based on the diagnostic characters.

This new genus is currently considered to be most similar and closely related to Sulawesimetopus , among the genera belonging to Gigantometopini , due to overall similarities in morphological features and coloration patterns. Notably, sexual dimorphism has been confirmed in Sulawesimetopus (although this was not mentioned in the original description, it has been verified through our additional examination of specimens), and the female exhibits head structures that resemble those of the present genus, which is described here based solely on female specimens. Nevertheless, the two genera can be structurally distinguished by the following morphological characters: U-shaped outer margin of head under compound eye in front view ( Figs 6C , 7C , 8C ) (vs. V-shaped outer margin; see fig 2A in Herczek et al. (2017)); distinctly small compound eye relative to head height (vs. compound eye height more than 1/2 head height in male and subequal to 1/2 head height in female); pronotum relatively moderate in thickness in lateral view, length subequal to height ( Figs 6B , 7A ) (vs. distinctly thick in lateral view, length shorter than height; fig. 1C in Herczek et al. (2017)); pronotum elongate with a sinuate posterior margin ( Figs 6A , 8A ) (vs. distinctly wide with a rounded posterior margin; fig. 1A, B in Herczek et al. (2017)); scutellum moderately tumid, with a narrow longitudinal median depression, punctures restricted to the depressed area only ( Figs 6A , 7E , 8A, E ) (vs. scutellum strongly tumid, entirely punctate; fig. 1 in Herczek et al. (2017)); and embolium and cuneus impunctate ( Figs 6A , 8A ) (vs. embolium and cuneus distinctly punctate; fig. 1A, B in Herczek et al. (2017)).

Figures

FIGURE 6. Utarametopus linuspitti Taszakowski & Kim sp. nov., holotype, female. Dorsal (A), lateral (B) and anterior (C) views.

FIGURE 7. Utarametopus linuspitti Taszakowski & Kim sp. nov., holotype, female. Lateral view (A); head and pronotum, dorsal (B), anterior (C) and dorso-antero-lateral (D) view; scutellum, dorso-postero-lateral view (E), trichobothria on mesofemur (F) and metafemur (G).

FIGURE 8. Utarametopus striatus Taszakowski & Kim, sp. nov., holotype, female. Dorsal (A), lateral (B) and anterior (C) view; head and pronotum in antero-lateral view (D); scutellum (E); foretarsus (F); pretarsal structure, ventral view (G).