Martiniella Jesudasan and David, 1990

Josephrajkumar, Arulappan, Evans, Gregory, Babu, Merin, Anes, Kakkanattu Meerasahib, Sajan, Jilu V. & Hegde, Vinayaka, 2024, Discovery of Aleuroclava canangae (Corbett) (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) on Coleus in India and the establishment and review of the Aleuroclava canangae species group, Journal of Natural History 58 (17 - 20), pp. 603-623 : 607-608

Martiniella Jesudasan and David, 1990

Jesudasan and David (1990) erected the genus Martiniella , designating Aleurotuberculatus canangae Corbett, 1935 as the type species of the genus whilst also placing Aleurotuberculatus macarangae Corbett, 1935 in the genus. They characterised the genus as being closely allied to Aleuroclava Singh in possessing dorsal tubercles, submarginal papillae and other characters but differs from it by having distinct tuberculate setae on cephalic and first abdominal regions. It is closely related to Taiwanaleyrodes Takahashi, 1932 but differs from it in having dorsal tubercles, submarginal papillae and thoracic fold and cleft.

Sundararaj and David (1993) described Martiniella ayyari and Martiniella lefroyi from India, which both have a tracheal cleft. Martin (1999, p. 31) synonymised Martiniella with Aleuroclava Singh, 1931 , stating that ‘although unusual, setae of this type are sometimes present in species of Taiwanaleyrodes and Dialeurodes , and this character has also been seen to vary within samples (personal observations)’. Manzari and Quicke (2006) upheld the synonymy; however the synonymy was not accepted by authors Sundararaj and Dubey (2004) who upheld Martiniella as a valid genus and provided a diagnosis of the genus and a key to three species known from India, and described Martiniella papillata infesting Xeromphis spinosa from Goa, India which also has a pair of tracheal clefts. Sundararaj and Pushpa (2011) transferred to Martiniella two species that were previously placed in Taiwanaleyrodes which have tuberculate setae with a wider basal part and a long slender apical part, T. fletcheri Sundararaj and David, 1992 and T. tripori Dubey and Sundararaj, 2006 ; and Vimala and Sundararaj (2015) reinstated Martiniella as a valid genus based on the constant presence of the tuberculate setae with a wider basal part and a long slender apical part as well as the thoracic cleft in all specimens they had observed since 1976. They provided a description of the genus and a key to species, and assigned five species then belonging to Aleuroclava to the genus: Martiniella baccaureae ( Corbett, 1935) , Martiniella fici ( Corbett, 1935) , Martiniella macarangae ( Corbett, 1935) , Martiniella sepangensis ( Martin and Mound, 2007) and Martiniella srilankaensis ( David, 1993) .

Whether the species of Aleuroclava that have tuberculate Cs1 and As1 setae represent a valid genus (as some authors have treated them), a subgenus of Aleuroclava , or a species group is still debatable, primarily due to varying opinions regarding the importance assigned to this character and its variability. Herein, we propose the Aleuroclava canangae species group to accommodate these species. We consider them to belong to Aleuroclava because other than their tuberculate Cs1 and As1 setae with a wider basal part and a long slender apical part, they are very similar to the many other species in the genus, and because the length and shape of the dorsal setae has been shown to vary among individuals of the same species. For example, some individuals of Aleuroclava jasmini ( Takahashi, 1932) have long Cs1 and As1 setae, whereas those setae are short in other individuals. Aleuroclava is the largest genus of whiteflies, and other species groups within the genus might be distinguished; however, further studies on the morphology of puparia and adults as well as molecular characterisation of other Aleuroclava species are needed to better understand the relationship among species of the genus.

The present study analyses and characterises the DNA and morphology of the puparia and adult stages of Aleuroclava canangae and compares them to those of other Aleuroclava and non-congeneric species; the Aleuroclava canangae species group is proposed for Aleuroclava species having long, tuberculate Cs1 and As1 setae with a wider basal part and a long slender apical part.