Bifurcatoaptera, Bai & Heiss & Cai, 2018

Bai, Xiaoshuan, Heiss, Ernst & Cai, Wanzhi, 2018, Aradidae from Vietnam V. Bifurcatoaptera, a new genus of apterous Carventinae (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Aradidae) from Vietnam, Zootaxa 4450 (2), pp. 286-290 : 286-287

Bifurcatoaptera gen. nov.

Type species: Bifurcatoaptera lamdongensis sp. nov.

Diagnosis. Medium sized apterous species; body elongate oval, colouration blackish brown, surface rugose and glabrous, antennae and legs with small setigerous tubercles. Meso- and metanotum and mtg I+II fused to each other, separated at middle by a longitudinal ridge bifurcate on mtg I+II. Habitus and body structures resemble Crassocoris Bai et al., 2007 , but distinguished from the latter by spiracles II–III ventral, IV–VII lateral (vs. II–IV ventral, V–VII lateral), different shape of median ridge without sulcus (vs. with sulcus) and head structure with more pointed and longer antenniferous lobes and postocular tubercles (vs. blunt apices and rounded tubercles).

Description. Head. Longer than wide across eyes; genae slender, short; antenniferous tubercles stout, conical, apically pointed; eyes small, semiglobose, with convex face; postocular lobes with small pointed tubercles not reaching outer margin of eyes, converging posteriorly to constricted neck; antennae long and slender, first segment stout and clavate, twice as long as second, this cylindrical and shortest, third cylindrical and longest, fourth fusiform; rostrum arising from a slit-like atrium, not reaching limits of rostral groove.

Thorax. Pronotum attenuated anteriorly, anterolateral angles subangular, tuberculate, not protruding beyond collar, disc with a median groove; meso- and metanota separated only laterally, with a subpentagonal median smooth ridge which extends and is fused to mtg I+II where it bifurcates into oblique ridges leaving a triangular smooth depression inbetween; metanotum separated from mtg I+II only laterally by thin furrows; lateral margins of thorax incrassate with deep cleft between pro-, meso- and metanota.

Abdomen. Mtg III to VI fused into a subquadrangular tergal plate, with glabrous usual pattern of large and small callous spots and dots; mtg VII strongly elevated posteriorly in male and slightly raised in female.; deltg II and III completely fused.

Venter. Prosternum raised with short median carina flanked by a pair of small depressions, at middle fused to meso- and metasternum and sterna I+II, which are flattened medially. Spiracles II–III ventral, IV–VII lateral and visible from above, VIII terminal on ptg VIII.

Legs. Long, slender, without spines, trochanters fused with femora.

Etymology. The generic name reflects the characteristic shape of the median ridge of meso-metanota and mtg I + II.

Distribution. Vietnam.