Ceroplastes neobrachystegiae Hodgson & Peronti, 2012

Hodgson, Chris J. & Peronti, Ana L. B. G., 2012, 3372, Zootaxa 3372, pp. 1-265 : 32

Ceroplastes neobrachystegiae Hodgson & Peronti spec. nov.

( Fig. 24; Map fig. 103)

Material examined: Holotype and paratype females: Kenya, 20 km SW of Malindi Is. , on Cynometra webberi , 19.v.1988, J.H. Martin ( BMNH): 1/2 (holotype good and complete and clearly marked; paratype fair, split into dorsum and venter) .

Unmounted material. Unknown.

Mounted material. Body rather elongate, oval and probably convex, with shallow stigmatic clefts; dorsum with distinct lateral processes. Caudal process conical. Length 1.7–2.38 mm; total width on slide 1.05–1.25 mm; caudal process wider than long, width 425–700 µm and length 350–540 µm.

Dorsum. Derm membranous except for heavily sclerotised caudal process. Derm with 7 or 8 clear areas, anterior area small and mediodorsal area present or absent (pores apparently present on youngest specimen although very sparse); most areas without setae but anterior area with 0 or 1 seta. Dorsal setae each bluntly spinose to slightly capitate and 3–5 µm long, subequal to width of basal socket; basal socket width 4–5 µm; present fairly frequently throughout but mainly absent in clear areas. Dorsal pores: (i) loculate microducts of intermediate type, each unusually small, mainly with 1 or 2 satellite loculi, those with 1 satellite loculus rather more frequent than those with 2; those with 3 satellite loculi very scarce; those with 1 satellite loculus about 2.5 µm wide, those with 2 loculi 3.0–3.5 µm widest; all clearly smaller than width of basal socket of dorsal setae; long dendritic inner filament not detected; rather sparse throughout but absent from all clear areas; perhaps with wax-pore lines; (ii) simple microducts not located. Preopercular pores: 4–6 present in a band 1 pore wide. Anal plates rather elongate, with a pointed apex; length of plates 125–130 µm, width of both plates combined 105–125 µm, each with 3 large sockets on dorsal surface, most setae missing, but most posterior seta about 40–50 µm long on 1 specimen; smaller apical setae present. Anal tube about 1.5x length of anal plates; anal ring setae each about 180 µm long.

Margin. Marginal setae sharply spinose, with a narrow basal-socket (only slightly wider than base of seta); each seta about 10–25 µm long; present around entire margin including stigmatic clefts but fairly sparse, with about 20–27 anteriorly between eyespots, and (on each side) 8–12 between eyespots and anterior stigmatic areas, 13–20 between stigmatic areas and 20–24 on either side of abdomen. Each anal lobe with 2 or 3 longer setae, longest about 38 µm long. Stigmatic clefts shallow, each with a narrow band of rather sharply-conical stigmatic setae along margin, band broadening to about 3 setae wide in each cleft, where setae slightly larger; each band extending a short distance along margin on either side of each cleft; each anterior group with 15–19 conical stigmatic setae and 5–10 spinose marginal setae, and each posterior group with 16–23 conical stigmatic setae and 2–8 spinose marginal setae; smallest conical setae about 12 µm long and 8 µm wide at base, but seta at apex of each group largest up to 20 µm long and 10 µm wide. Eyespots each about 40–42 µm wide.

Venter. Derm entirely membranous. Pregenital disc-pores abundant around genital opening (segment VII) and across preceding segment; plus 5 medially and 4–6 mediolaterally on V, and 2 medially and 0–4 mediolaterally in IV. Spiracular disc-pores in fairly narrow bands of about 30–50 pores; none extending medially. Ventral microducts showing nothing distinctive. Ventral tubular ducts apparently only present in a group of about 5 or 6 in cephalic area, each with a narrow, short inner ductule. Submarginal setae setose, less frequent than marginal setae, each 8–17 µm long.

Antennae each with 6 or 7 segments (when 6 with a fairly distinct pseudo-articulation; those with 7 segments clearly with segment III divided); total length 265–300 µm. Clypeolabral shield about 165–180 µm long. Spiracles: width of anterior peritremes 43–50 µm, posterior peritremes 58–60 µm. Legs well developed, each with a distinct tibio-tarsal articulation and sclerosis; claw denticle either absent or obscure; claw digitules both broad and shorter than tarsal digitules; dimensions of metathoracic legs (µm): coxa 125–130; trochanter + femur 165–180; tibia 120–130; tarsus 75–90, and claw 25–26.

Discussion. C. neobrachystegiae clearly is closely related to C. brachystegiae but differs in having: (i) rather capitate dorsal setae; (ii) many fewer marginal and stigmatic setae; (iii) perhaps fewer antennal segments; (iv) loculate microducts with mainly 1 satellite loculus, and (v) smaller legs. Like C. brachystegiae , it appears to lack tubular ducts associated with the anogenital folds, and has unusually small dorsal and ventral microducts.

C. neobrachystegiae is only known from the original collection on Cynometra webberi (Fabaceae) in Kenya.

Name derivation. The species name neobrachystegiae is made up of neo-, derived from the Greek word neos meaning ‘new’ and brachystegiae , the name given to the closely related species, C. brachystegiae .