Pauropsalta corymbiae, POPPLE, 2013

POPPLE, L. W., 2013, A revision of the Pauropsalta annulata Goding & amp; Froggatt species group (Hemiptera: Cicadidae) based on morphology, calling songs and ecology, with investigations into calling song structure, molecular phylogenetic relationships and a case of hybridisation between two subspecies , Zootaxa 3730 (1), pp. 1-102 : 68-72

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.3730.1.1
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:0C2C146B-FEE4-4150-A6D3-B3A5E5491E8B
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5270972
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03FC8964-FFF0-AE1B-FF62-FB08D0F44216
treatment provided by	Felipe
scientific name	Pauropsalta corymbiae
status	sp. nov.

Treatment

Pauropsalta corymbiae View in CoL sp. nov.

( Figs 2M View FIGURE 2 , 4N View FIGURE 4 , 31E View FIGURE 31 , 35E–F View FIGURE 35 , 39B View FIGURE 39 , 43–45 View FIGURE 43 View FIGURE 44 View FIGURE 45 )

Types: Holotype: ♂ ‘ Bulls Gully / Lagoon Area / Adavale /SWQ’, ‘ 19.i.1999 ’, ‘ A. Ewart’, ‘ 25°58.14'S 144°28.66'E’, ‘ QM Reg. No. T 156330’ ( QM) GoogleMaps ; Paratypes: QUEENSLAND: 4♂ 11♀ "Bulls Gully" Lagoon Area, Adavale SWQ, 19.i.1999, Ewart, 25°58.14'S 144°28.66'E ( AE) GoogleMaps ; 1♀ same data as previous, 23.i.1999 ( AE) GoogleMaps ; 2♀ same data as previous, 22.i.1999, 25°58.28'S 144°28.76'E ( AE) GoogleMaps ; 1♂ 1♀ same data as previous, 14.i.1999, 25°58.11'S 144°28.39'E (♂ song recorded) ( AE) GoogleMaps ; 6♂ 4♀ Qld: 26°23'S 146°12'E, Charleville , 5km NW, 3– 5.iii. 2003, 310m, Monteith & Burwell, Mulga, 51123 ( QM) GoogleMaps ; 1♀ Mica Ck, 16km S. of Mt Isa NWQ ( Boulia Rd ), 22.i.2002, Ewart, 20°49.26'S 139°27.60'E ( AE) GoogleMaps ; 1♂ 3♀ same data as previous, nr power station, 20.i.2002, 20°46.92'S 139°29.64'E ( AE) GoogleMaps ; 3♂ 2♀ Australia: Qld, AU.QL.MTC, 48km E. of Middleton, 121km W. of Winton, Kennedy Dev. Rd , 22°16.187'S 141°56.299'E, 28.ii.2008, Hill, Marshall, Moulds, Owen & Humphrey ( MSM) GoogleMaps ; 1♀ Milroy H[ome]st[ea]d, 70km N. of Quilpie SWQ, 12.i.2000, Ewart & Rattray, 26°02.85'S 144°20.81'E ( AE) GoogleMaps ; 3♂ 6♀ Duchess Rd, 8.4km S. of Mt Isa NWQ, Woodland , 21.i.2002, Ewart, 20°47.89'S 139°30.18'E ( AE) GoogleMaps ; 17♂ 50♀ Slaty Creek S. of Cloncurry Qld , 6.i.2001, Moulds & Moulds ( MSM) ; 1♀ nr Thorntonia H[ome]s[tea]d, 120km ENE. of Camooweal Qld , 21.xii.1986, Moulds & Moulds ( MSM) ; NORTHERN TERRITORY: 5♂ 2♀ 16.47°S 135.45°E, McArthur R., 14km S. by W. of Cape Crawford N.T., 25.x.1975, UPTON (A NIC) GoogleMaps .

Description. Male ( Figs 4N View FIGURE 4 , 31E View FIGURE 31 , 35E View FIGURE 35 , 39B View FIGURE 39 ). Head. Dorsal surface black with an orange triangular depression between the lateral ocelli, pointing anteriorly, with flat side against posterior margin of head; long silver pubescence behind eyes, with shorter yellow pubescence over remainder. Genae black, with long silver pubescence; vertex black with orange lobes. Mandibular plate black with a narrow outer marginal ridge that is pale and extends to suture between genae; long silver pubescence. Antennae dark brown to black. Ocelli pinkish-red. Eyes red in live specimens, often darkening to dark red or reddish-brown in dried specimens; distinct furrow between eyes and pronotum. Postclypeus black anteriorly, with orange margin and a small orange dorsal spot on midline extending onto dorsal surface; short and long silver pubescence along ventral surface except down midline; short yellow pubescence along posterior ventral surface. Anteclypeus black, with long silver pubescence. Rostrum pale brown grading to black apically, with silver pubescence; extending to mid coxae.

Thorax. Pronotum black; central fascia, extending from anterior margin, orange to orange-brown, tapering before posterior margin, but not extending to it; silver-yellow pubescence, especially along oblique fissures; pronotal collar orange to orange-brown. Mesonotum, including submedian and lateral sigilla, black, with orange to orange-brown, dorsolateral fasciae present in area between submedian and lateral sigilla and additional fasciae present on lateral margins; dorsolateral fasciae triangular, never converging medially; lateral fasciae narrow; cruciform elevation orange-brown, black on surrounding posterior mesonotum; ridges between wing grooves orange; silver-yellow pubescence, most evident around cruciform elevation.

Legs. Coxae dark brown with yellow-brown apices; fore femora dark brown with narrow, orange longitudinal fasciae; mid and hind femora dark brown, orange apically; fore and mid tibiae medium to dark brown; hind tibiae pale to medium brown; tarsi and claws medium brown, pale orange-brown on hind legs; spines dark brown.

Wings. Fore wing venation light orange-brown to medium brown, becoming darker towards apical cells and ambient veins; fore wing costal veins medium orange-brown; slight angulation of fore wings at node; pterostigma pale orange-brown; hind wing infuscation at the juncture of the anal lobe and wing margin, surrounding the distal termination of vein 2A, distinct.

Timbals. Long ribs 1–2 fused ventrally; long ribs 1–4 fused dorsally to basal spur. Long rib 5 typically extending ventrally beyond dorsal half of adjacent intercalary rib.

Opercula. Roughly sickle-shaped, obliquely elongated; central region domed, dark brown; medial and lateral margins dark brown to orange; parallel to body axis.

Abdomen. Tergites mainly black with contrasting orange-brown posterior margins on tergites 3 to 8; silver short pubescence conspicuous laterally. Sternites dark brown with orange-brown ventrolateral margins.

Genitalia. Pygofer black anteriorly, grading to orange-brown posteriorly; upper lobes prominent, erect, terminally rounded; lower lobes weakly distinct, bulbous, with an inner tooth weakly developed on each lobe; inner lobes enlarged, acute, posteriorly tapering; claspers with a pair of hooked processes; aedeagus with dorsal pseudoparameres that bifurcate and join theca near gonocoxite IX; pseudoparameres apically curved, tapering; theca gradually curved posteriorly, sclerotized, weakly tapering posteriorly; apex of slightly greater vertical width than shaft, with slight dorsal and ventral projections, small to medium spine ornamentation.

Female ( Fig. 35F View FIGURE 35 ). Similar colouration and patterning to that of male. Head similar in colour to that of male. Pronotum black; central fascia orange-brown, often broader than that of male, also produced slightly further posteriorly and dorsolaterally to form a pair of narrow, outward-pointing, wedge-shaped patterns. Mesonotum similar in colour to that of male. Legs similar in colour to those of male. Abdomen with tergites similar in colour to those of male; abdominal segment 9 medium orange-brown with a pair of longitudinal near-dorsal black fasciae that extend to the anterior edge and ventrolaterally to some extent; sternites dark brown with blended orange-brown ventrolateral margins; ovipositor sheath extending <0.5 mm beyond termination of abdominal segment 9.

Distinguishing features. Male and female specimens of Pauropsalta corymbiae can be easily distinguished from other taxa in the P. annulata group by their distinctive orange and black colouration ( Figs 35C–D View FIGURE 35 ). Some brightly coloured females of P. subtropica may appear superficially similar, but P. corymbiae can be distinguished by their shorter ovipositor, which extends <0.5 mm, rather than ~1.0 mm, beyond the apex of the abdomen. Male specimens also have a characteristic dark brown coloured operculum, which is unique in the P. annulata group.

Measurements. N= 30 ♂ 30 ♀. Ranges and means (in parentheses), mm; BL: ♂ 12.0–15.3 (12.6); ♀ 11.6–14.2 (13.3); FWL: ♂ 14.9–17.5 (16.2); ♀ 15.5–18.2 (17.1); FWB: ♂ 5.0–5.8 (5.3); ♀ 5.0–5.9 (5.5); HW: ♂ 3.6–4.1 (3.9); ♀ 3.7–4.3 (4.0); PW: ♂ 3.0–3.5 (3.3); ♀ 3.0–3.8 (3.4); AW: ♂ 3.3–4.3 (3.7); ♀ 3.1–4.0 (3.7); OL: ♀ 3.6–4.3 (4.0).

Etymology. Named after the plant genus Corymbia . This species shows a strong association with the desert bloodwood Corymbia terminalis .

Distribution and Ecology ( Figure 43 View FIGURE 43 ). Arid and semi-arid areas from Minilya and Beacon in central Western Australia, near Cape Crawford south to just beyond Alice Springs in the Northern Territory, and Mt Isa south to near Windorah and east to near Charleville in western Queensland. These insects occur principally in association with Corymbia terminalis . Adults are present from November to February.

Geological and Pedological Associations. Adults are associated with plants that occur on flats, terraces and rocky slopes in desert soils derived from weathered sandstones and siltstones.

Calling Song ( Figs 2M View FIGURE 2 , 44–45 View FIGURE 44 View FIGURE 45 ). Like most species in the P. annulata species group, P. corymbiae produces two components in its calling song. The introductory component comprises a series of repeated echemes (12–17 syllables, 0.098 – 0.160 s) punctuated by silent gaps (0.013 – 0.028 s). This transitions, often quite subtly, into the lilting component when the repeated echemes fragment into the more typical long–short echeme pattern. The lilting component consists of a rapid succession of alternating long and short echemes, with each phrase comprising a long echeme (6–9 syllables, 0.046 – 0.094 s) followed by a brief silence (0.008 – 0.030 s), a shorter echeme (2–5 syllables, 0.024 – 0.050 s) and another silence (0.025 – 0.059 s) (all statistics, n=14 individuals). Males of this species generally sing early in the morning and sometimes again late in the afternoon. Brief bouts are sometimes produced through the middle of the day, but males tend not to call once desert temperatures are above 40°C. The male– female duet interaction has been observed in this species (by the author), but a recording has yet to be obtained. Females respond during the silence at the end of each phrase in the lilting component. The calling song has a phrase repetition rate of 0.117 – 0.233 s, a syllable repetition rate of 100–120 Hz, a frequency plateau ranging from 5.0–10.0 kHz and highest amplitude dominant frequency from 6.5–8.0 kHz.