Ceroplastes delottoi Hodgson & Peronti, 2012

Hodgson, Chris J. & Peronti, Ana L. B. G., 2012, 3372, Zootaxa 3372, pp. 1-265 : 162-164

Ceroplastes delottoi Hodgson & Peronti , spec. nov.

( Fig. 73; Map fig. 105)

Material examined: Holotype ♀: Angola, Nova Lisboa, on Persea sp. , 11.viii.1965, H. Cardosa ( SANC): 1/1adf (good – as C. rusci )

Unmounted material. Unknown.

Mounted material. Body roundly oval and probably convex, with distinct but shallow stigmatic clefts; dorsum with distinct tubercles. Caudal process broad and stout. Length 2.25 mm; width of venter 1.5 mm, total width 1.8 mm.

Dorsum. Derm membranous except for heavily sclerotised caudal process. Caudal process about 430 µm wide, apparently extending somewhat posteriorly. Derm with 8 clear areas, each with a few simple microducts but perhaps no dorsal setae. Dorsal setae each mainly bluntly spinose and almost cylindrical but a few more pointed; length subequal to or shorter than width of basal-socket, length 2.5–5.0 µm; basal socket width 4–5 µm; scarce. Dorsal pores: (i) loculate microducts of intermediate type, each with mainly 1 satellite loculus, those with 2 satellite loculi mainly restricted to wax-plate lines; each 5–6 µm widest, abundant throughout but absent from all clear areas; wax-plate lines present but only clear anteriorly and posteriorly on available specimen; (ii) simple microducts apparently restricted to clear areas. Preopercular pores not clear, but perhaps with about 8–10 pores. Anal plates twisted and unclear but opening within caudal process about 108 µm long and 105 µm wide. Anal tube longer than anal plate opening, about 150 µm long.

Margin. Marginal setae strongly setose, each about 13–20 µm long; with 10 between eyespots anteriorly, and, on each side, 5–8 between eyespots and anterior stigmatic setae, 8 or 9 setae between stigmatic clefts, and 23–25 along each margin of abdomen; each anal lobe with 4 long setae, longest about 70 µm long. Stigmatic clefts shallow but fairly distinct, each with a broadly triangular group of 30–35 elongate, roundly pointed, conical stigmatic setae; each group much wider than long, with 18 or 19 marginal and 12–17 non-marginal stigmatic setae; each group about 3 setae deep; most stigmatic setae about 8 µm long and 5 µm wide but each group generally with a noticeably larger seta towards dorsal apex, each about 13 µm long and 8 µm wide at base; basal sockets quite deep. Eyespots each about 35 µm wide.

Venter. Derm entirely membranous. Pregenital disc-pores abundant around genital opening (segment VII) and across preceding segment; segment V with 6 pores medially + 2 submedially on each side; segments II–IV each with 7 pores medially; metathorax with 3 pores medially plus 3 pores on each side between meso- and metacoxae. Spiracular disc-pores rather small, each probably with mainly 5 loculi; present in bands of 60–90 pores, each band rather narrow near spiracles but broadening near margin; with none extending medially. Ventral microducts in a broad submarginal band but absent medially on meso- and metathorax and all abdominal segments. Ventral tubular ducts present in a group of 21 in cephalic area and associated with anogenital fold as follows: about 6 on each side of segment V + 1 medially, and 1 laterally on segments III and IV plus 1 medially on IV. Submarginal setae perhaps as frequent as marginal setae, each 8–13 µm long.

Antennae each with 6 segments, but with a few faint pseudo-articulations in 3rd segment; total length 275 µm. Clypeolabral shield about 135 µm long. Spiracles: width of peritremes 45–50 µm. Legs well developed; tibio-tarsal articulatory sclerosis large; each claw without a denticle; claw digitules both broad and shorter than tarsal digitules; dimensions of metathoracic legs (µm): coxa 145; trochanter + femur 160–170; tibia 108; tarsus 72–75, and claw 20–22.

Discussion. Despite having just the 1 specimen, this species appears to be obviously different from other species from Africa. In having stigmatic setae that extend out of each cleft along the margin, C. delottoi would appear to belong to the C. rusci -group. However, the loculate microducts are not of the rusci-type. It seems to be closest to the C. tachardiaformis -group, which also has loculate microducts of the intermediate form but differs from the others in the C. tachardiaformis -group in having many more stigmatic setae. The main diagnostic characters of this species are: (i) the presence of multilocular disc-pores between the meso- and metacoxae, (ii) the wide gap between each stigmatic cleft without stigmatic setae, and (iii) loculate microducts of the intermediate type.

At the present time, C. delottoi is only known from the original collection in Angola on Persea sp. (Lauraceae) .

Name derivation. This species of Ceroplastes is named in honour of the late Giovanni De Lotto (1912–1990), who worked for many years on this group, first in Eritrea, then in Kenya and finally in South Africa. During that time he made substantial contributions towards clarifying the taxonomy of the Ceroplastinae .