Melaleucoides sheathianae, Schuh & C. Weirauch, 2010

Schuh, R. T. & C. Weirauch, 2010, Myrtaceae-Feeding Phylinae (Hemiptera: Miridae) From Australia: Description And Analysis Of Phylogenetic And Host Relationships For A Monophyletic Assemblage Of Three New Genera, Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2010 (344), pp. 3-94 : 57-58

Melaleucoides sheathianae , new species Figure 27, map 5, plate 3

DIAGNOSIS: Recognized among Melaleucoides spp. by the relatively large size (mean total length 3.67), the monotonous pale coloration of the dorsum in conjunction with a conspicuously orange scutellum, and the structure of the male genitalia, with the fusion of the primary and secondary endosomal straps distad of the secondary gonopore and the spicules placed in somewhat irregular arrangement. Most similar in size and coloration to M. cassisi and M. grossi . Distinguished from the former by the arrangement of the endosomal denticles in a clublike fashion ventral to the primary endosoma strap, and from the latter by the secondary endosomal strap dorsal to the primary strap, free, elongate, conical, and uniformly covered with short denticles.

DESCRIPTION: Male: Body weakly elongate, weakly ovoid; mean total length 3.67, mean width pronotum 1.37. COLORATION (pl. 3): Head: Uniformly dirty yellow; scapus unicolorous dark; pedicellus yellow to dirty yellow; labium pale with segment 4 heavily infuscate. Thorax: Pronotum unicolorous dirty yellow-green; scutellum entirely orange; hemelytron unicolorous yellow-green; mark- ings on cuneus absent; membrane and veins weakly fumose; hind femur unicolorous pale, without black spots; hind tibial spines black without dark spots at bases. Abdomen: Venter unicolorous pale or mostly so. SUR- FACE AND VESTITURE: Dorsum with suberect or reclining black setae, without sericeous or woolly setae. STRUCTURE: Head: Barely projecting; interocular space moderate; eyes leaving gena moderately exposed in lateral view. Antenna: Segment 2 weakly tapering, more slender at base; antennal fossa with ventral margin at ventral margin of eye. Labium: Just reaching onto abdomen. Thorax: Pretarsus: Pulvilli present, flaplike, covering about one third of ventral claw surface. GENITALIA (fig. 27): Endosoma: Primary strap apically greatly elongate, weakly arcuate and curving dorsally, no ornamentation; secondary endosomal strap fused with primary strap proximal to secondary gonopore, reaching well beyond gonopore, ornamented with denticles; spinelike, elongate process arising near gonopore on dorsal surface absent; spinelike, elongate process near gonopore on ventral surface present, recurved toward base of endosoma; bladderlike process distad of secondary gonopore absent; secondary gonopore seen frontally (facing up) in lateral view of endosoma. Phallotheca: Smoothly curving on dorsal margin; dorsal surface with a curving, posteriorly directed, platelike projection; apex simple. Left Paramere: Shaft at right angles to body; body spoon shaped; apex medially broadly rounded; anterior process triangular in lateral view; posterior process in the form of a short, straight, fingerlike projection; base of posterior process without conspicuous shoulder. Right Paramere: Body short and broad, lanceolate; apex short, clawlike, decurved.

Female: Slightly more ovoid than male; mean total length 3.82, mean width pronotum 1.43. COLORATION (pl. 3): As in male. GENITALIA: Posterior wall laterally with distinct crescent-shaped interramal sclerites; posteriorly without a sclerotized transverse band; posterolaterally with a distinct swelling covered with microtrichia; longitudinal fold on either side of midline along part of length; posterior margin of posterior wall without spicules and not reflexed dorsally; interramal lobes present and asymmetrical, reclining, overlapping, and heavily ornamented with spicules; vestibulum with medial plates sclerotized and readily observed, small, nearly symmetrical, triangular, with sclerotized guide present as caplike structure with internal differentiation.

ETYMOLOGY: Named for the host species, Melaleuca sheathiana (Myrtaceae) .

HOSTS: Melaleuca sheathiana W. Fitz. , Melaleuca teuthidoides Barlow (Myrtaceae) .

DISTRIBUTION (map 5): Recorded from several localities in the Goldfields region of Western Australia.

HOLOTYPE: AUSTRALIA: Western Australia: 11 km N of Coolgardie-Esperance Hiway on Kambalda Road, 31.25231uS 121.5899uE, 320 m, 18 Nov 1999, R.T. Schuh, G. Cassis, & R. Silveira, Melaleuca sheathiana W. Fitzg. (Myrtaceae) , det. Perth 05671396, 1 - (AMNH_PBI 00371554) ( WAMP).

PARATYPES: AUSTRALIA: Western Australia: 11 km N of Coolgardie-Esperance Hiway on Kambalda Road, 31.25231uS 121.5899uE, 320 m, 18 Nov 1999, R.T. Schuh, G. Cassis, & R. Silveira, Melaleuca sheathiana W.Fitzg. (Myrtaceae) , det. Perth 05671396, 8 - (00087301, 00087499, 0037- 1970–00371973, 00371975), 29 U (00087302, 00371976, 00371978, 00371980–00371984, 00372031–00372035, 00372066–00372081) ( AM), 17 - (00129423–00129427, 00129504, 00129584–00129585, 00371552, 00371555– 00371562), 36 U (00129428–00129444, 00129- 505–00129512, 00129587–00129594, 003715- 53, 00371563–00371564) ( AMNH), 3 U (00- 371985–00371987) ( UNSW). 91.4 km SE of Southern Cross, 31.97145uS 119.287uE, 375 m, 04 Dec 1997, Schuh, Cassis, Brailovsky, Asquith, Melaleuca teuthidoides Barlow (Myrtaceae) , det. Perth 05054834, 6 - (0013- 0795–00130800), 6 U (00130801–00130806) ( WAMP).

OTHER SPECIMENS EXAMINED: AUSTRA- LIA: Western Australia: 11 km N of Coolgardie-Esperance Hiway on Kambalda Road, 31.25231uS 121.5899uE, 320 m, 18 Nov 1999, R.T. Schuh, G. Cassis, & R. Silveira, Melaleuca sheathiana W. Fitzg. (Myrtaceae) , det. Perth 05671396, 1 - (00371314) (AM). 33.3 km S of Norseman, 32.46461uS 121.6778uE, 300 m, 19 Nov 1999, R.T. Schuh, G. Cassis, & R. Silveira, 2 - (00371315, 00089117), 1 - (00371966) (AM). 91.4 km SE of Southern Cross, 31.97145uS 119.287uE, 375 m, 04 Dec 1997, Schuh, Cassis, Brailovsky, Asquith, Melaleuca teuthidoides Barlow (Myrtaceae) , det. Perth 05054834, 1 - (00087308) (AM), 7 U (00373099–00373105) (AMNH).