Sphenocratus xinjiangensis Liang

Liang, Ai-Ping, Song, Zhi-Shun & Jiang, Guo-Mei, 2006, Sphenocratus xinjiangensis Liang, sp. nov., the first authentic record of the dictyopharid subfamily Orgeriinae (Hemiptera: Fulgoroidea: Dictyopharidae) in China, Zootaxa 1296, pp. 55-61 : 57-60

Sphenocratus xinjiangensis Liang , sp. nov.

( Figures 1–10)

Description

Male, brachypterous, nymphlike, length (from apex of cephalic process to tip of genitalia) 3.32–3.52 mm; length of head 0.69–0.72 mm, width (including eyes) 1.09–1.16 mm; length of fore wings 1.70 mm. General color ochraceous, marked with fuscous or brown.

Head ( Figs. 1–3) short and broad, not produced into a cephalic process. Vertex ( Fig. 1) somewhat spatulate anteriorly; anterior margin convex, lateral margins carinate and converging anteriorly, posterior margin slightly concave; median longitudinal carina distinct and complete. Frons ( Fig. 2) broad and elongate; anterior margin arched, lateral margins carinate and nearly parallel­sided, posterior margin strongly concave; median longitudinal carina distinct, lateral longitudinal carinae nearly parallel, approaching frontoclypeal suture. Postclypeus ( Fig. 2) and anteclypeus convex medially, with a distinct median carina. Rostrum long, reaching beyond hind coxa. Eyes ( Figs. 1–3) oval, brown. Ocelli absent. Antennae ( Figs. 2, 3) with scape very small; pedicel large and subglobose, with more than 20 distinct sensory plaque organs distributed over entire surface; flagellum long, setuliform.

Pronotum ( Fig. 1) shorter than mesonotum in middle line; disc broad, area between eyes slightly arched anteriorly, lateral marginal areas straight and sloping, posterior margin nearly straight, scarcely angulate mesially; median longitudinal carina distinct, lateral discal carinae obscure and only elevated anteriorly, lateral pits beyond median longitudinal carina big and distinct. Mesonotum ( Fig. 1) inversely triangular, tricarinate on disc; lateral carinae short and indistinct, median carina sharp. Fore wings ( Fig. 4) leathery, semihyaline, short and broad, reaching posterior margin of 3 rd abdominal segment, lateral edges curved ventrally; secondary veins sharp, carinate. Legs elongate, fore femur not dilated, without spines near apex; hind tibia with 3–5 lateral spines, spinal formula 7 –( 11–12) –( 11–13).

Abdominal tergites ( Fig. 1) III–VII with sharp medial carina and lateral carinae. Tergite III each side with 1 sensory pit and tergites IV­VII each side with 5 pits respectively.

Male genitalia: pygofer ( Figs. 5–7) narrow and high, wider dorsally than ventrally, dorsal posterior margin angularly produced posteriorly in lateral view ( Fig. 5); ratio of length of upper margin to lower margin about 1: 3; posterior margin straight and anterior margin broadly arched posteriorly in lateral view; dorsal margin deeply excavated to accommodate anal tube, dorsal lateral margins angularly produced posteriorly in dorsal view ( Fig. 5). Anal tube relatively short and small in dorsal view and nearly triangular in lateral view ( Figs. 5, 7), outline of apical part ring­like in dorsal view ( Fig. 7). Anal style short and broad. Parameres ( Figs. 5, 6) relatively elongate, large and broad in ventral view ( Fig. 6), apical half expanded and relatively broad in lateral view with dorsal margin with one stout, anterodorsally directed tooth near middle and one smaller, ventrally directed tooth on the inner side of the stout tooth ( Fig. 5). Aedeagus ( Figs. 5, 8–10) large and stout; phallobase with a pair of sclerotized, pigmented, sword­like processes on venter ( Figs. 8, 9) and 3 pairs of membranous, sac­like processes on back ( Figs. 5, 8–10): upper pair long and large, produced anteroventrally in lateral view ( Figs. 5, 9); middle pair short and small, produced laterally in lateral and dorsal views ( Figs. 9, 10) and lower pair small and pigmented, produced anterodorsally in lateral and dorsal views ( Figs. 5, 9, 10); phalli distinctly forked over apical half, the two arms diverging laterally and directed posteroventrally in lateral view ( Fig. 5), apex pigmented and sclerotized, apical, inner edge of arms with 2 or 3 spinelike processes ( Figs. 5, 8, 10).

Female: Unknown.

Materials examined

Holotype: male, Northwestern China: Xinjiang Autonomous Region, Tuoli, 20.VI. 1955 (S.­J. Ma, K.­L. Xia & Y.­L. Chen) ( IZCAS). Paratype. 1 male, Northwestern China: same data as holotype ( IZCAS).

Distribution

Northwestern China (Xinjiang). The discovery of this species in Xinjiang Autonomous Region in northwestern China has extended the range of the genus Sphenocratus and the subfamily Orgeriinae southeastward considerably.

Remarks

This species is related to S. megacephalus ( Oshanin, 1879) from Turkestan but can be distinguished from the latter by its distinctly smaller body size and by the minutiae of the male genitalia, especially the aedeagus with the phalli with 2 or 3 spinelike processes on the apical, inner edge of the forked arms ( Figs. 5, 8, 10) (also see Mityaev 2002, Fig. 4 –17– 19).