Meschia Distant, 1910

Gao, Cuiqing & Malipatil, M. B., 2019, Meschia zoui sp. nov., first representative of the family Meschiidae from China (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Lygaeoidea), Zootaxa 4603 (1), pp. 172-182 : 173

Genus Meschia Distant, 1910

( Figs. 1–6 )

Meschia Distant, 1910: 36 (original description). Type species by original designation: Meschia pugnax, Distant, 1910 . Bergroth, 1921: 113 (comment); Scudder, 1957: 28 (key spp.); Scudder, 1962: 63 (comment); Slater, 1964: 1500 (catalogue); Malipatil, 2014: 235 (redescription, key spp.); Henry et al., 2015: 460 (cited).

The following are additions to the redescription provided by Malipatil (2014):

Auricle and evaporatorium of metathoracic scent gland as in Fig. 6 a–b. Detailed structure of trichobothria and associated abdominal sternites IV and V as in Fig. 6 c–d. Bothrium not sunken below surface of the cuticle and trichomes present, with uniform spine-like microtrichia, which belong to the most common type within Lygaeoidea ( Gao et al. 2017). Tibial comb of fore leg and claw complex as in Fig. 6 e–f.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Meschia quadrimaculata, male. a, habitus, dorsal view; b, same, ventral view; c, left antenna, ventral view; d, head, dorsal view; e, head, ventral view.

FIGURE 2. Meschia quadrimaculata, male, genitalia. a, pygophore, dorsal view; b, phallus, dorsal view; c–d, parts of phallus, enlarged; e–h, left paramere, four different aspects. Abbreviations: ba, basal apparatus; bl, blade; bo, body; c, conjunctiva; cs, cuplike sclerite; dl, dorsal lobe of paramere; ds, ductus seminis; ej, ejaculatory reservoir; gp, gonoporal process; hp, helicoid process; id, indentation; lm, lateral magin of dorsal pygophore opening; mcp, median conical protuberance; ml, membranous lobe; ph, phallotheca; sg, secondary gonopore; w, wing; ve, vesica; vl, ventral lobe of paramere. Rectangle highlighted area indicates weakly sclerotized area of phallotheca.

FIGURE 3. Meschia zoui sp. nov. a, holotype, male, dorsal view; b, same, ventral view; c, paratype, female, dorsal view; d, same, ventral view; e, holotype, head, dorsal view, f, same, ventral view; g, holotype, left antenna, ventral view.

FIGURE 4. Meschia zoui sp. nov. paratypes. a–b, female, abdomen. a, abdominal dorsum, inner view; b, abodominal venter, inner view; c–h, male, genitalia. c, pygophore, dorsal view; d, phallus, dorsal view; e–h, left paramere, four different aspects. Abbreviations: III–VII, abdominal tergites; ba, basal apparatus; c, conjunctiva; gp, gonoporal process; id, indentation; ol II, ol III, outer laterotergites II & III; ph, phallotheca; sp II–VII, spiracles on sterna II-VII; sm, spermatheca; ve, vesica.

FIGURE 5. Meschia zoui sp. nov. paratype, SEM micrographs. a, head, ventral view; b, microtrichia on base of head, enlarged; c, antennal segments I–II; d, antennal segment III; e, antennal segment IV; f, tip of labium.

FIGURE 6. Meschia zoui sp. nov. paratype, SEM micrographs. a, metathoracic scent gland; b, suture between meso- and metapleura; c, sternites IV–V; d, anterior trichobothria on sternite V; e, tibial comb; f, hind claw complex. Arrows indicate spiracles.