Kiwisaldula porangahau, Larivière & Larochelle, 2016

Larivière, Marie-Claude & Larochelle, André, 2016, Aoteasalda and Kiwisaldula, two new genera of Saldidae (Hemiptera: Heteroptera), with a key to New Zealand genera and a new synonymy in Zemacrosaldula, Zootaxa 4085 (4), pp. 451-480 : 464-466

Kiwisaldula porangahau new species

Kiwisaldula porangahau Larivière & Larochelle , new species. Holotype: Male (NZAC) labelled “NEW ZEALAND HB Porangahau Beach 4018 S 17639 E [= 40°18’S 176°39’E] 9.XII. 2003 Larivière, Larochelle / Sandy sides of lagoon with bare sand and drift algae. / HOLOTYPE [male symbol] Kiwisaldula porangahau Larivière & Larochelle, 2016 (red label).” Paratypes: 2 males (1 NZAC, 1 AMNZ), 4 females (2 NZAC, 1 AMNZ, 1 MONZ) with same data as holotype, bearing blue paratype labels.

Description (Macropterous adult). Body length 3.76–4.34 (4.09 mm); elongate-ovate ( Fig. 10 ). Dorsal colour largely dark, with moderately to broadly pale lateral margins of pronotum and moderately to well-developed, often coalesced pale markings on hemelytra. Facial colour ( Fig. 14 ) slightly to moderately contrasted. Head, pronotum, and scutellum slightly shiny, not or barely contrasting against mostly dull hemelytra. Dorsal pubescence short to moderately long, reclined to semi-erect, mostly golden brown or silvery, more or less evenly distributed on pronotum, scutellum and hemelytra (sometimes more densely distributed on clavus and endocorium); also with more erect dark brown setae near lateral margins of pronotum and costal margin of hemelytra. Hemelytra fully developed; hindwings reaching from base to apex of hemelytral membrane. Head ( Fig. 14 , facial view). Frons with barely distinct to slightly (shallowly) developed longitudinal furrow medially. Preocellar spots whitish. Preocellar furrows shallow to moderately deep, about as deep as or slightly deeper than longitudinal frontal furrow. Preocular spots yellowish to brown (nearly indistinct in some darker individuals). Transverse swelling very slightly to moderately developed (often thin and flat); lateral portions contiguous (often seemingly separated by a gap if broadly dark near facial midline); whitish yellow to yellowish brown (sometimes pale brown), narrowly to broadly darker at facial midline. Mandibular plates slightly to moderately developed, concolorous with or slightly darker than transverse swelling. Maxillary plates moderately developed, concolorous with or slightly paler than transverse swelling, sometimes margined with brown. Anteclypeus whitish yellow to yellowish brown or pale brown, often marked with brown basally and along margins. Rostrum yellowish brown to dark brown, extending to hind coxae. Antennae 3.5–3.9x longer than pronotum + collar medially; segment I whitish yellow to yellowish brown, ventral and dorsal sides dark (usually striped); segment II yellowish brown to dark brown, often darker on one side, sometimes dark near base and apex, 2.2–2.3x longer than segment I, clothed over entire length with setae about as long as segment width, with some longer setae in apical half; segments III–IV brown to nearly black. Thorax. Lateral margins of pronotum subrectilinear (sometimes slightly sinuate-concave) to moderately convex, distinctly explanate, moderately broadly pale whitish yellow (pale area at midlength about 1.5– 2x the width of antennal segment II), often tinged with brown or often thickly dark along outer edges (in rare cases obscuring the pale area). Scutellum 1.7–1.8x longer than pronotum + collar medially. Thoracic underside black, with slightly to strongly contrasting, broadly to very narrowly pale acetabula (acetabulum I very broadly pale in male, narrowly to moderately broadly pale in female; acetabulum II narrowly to moderately broadly pale, usually more broadly pale in male; acetabulum III very narrowly pale to almost completely dark), and broadly pale lateral margins; pubescence rather dense, silvery, and appressed (except for glabrous lateral margins). Legs largely pale, whitish yellow to yellowish brown, with dark brown to black coxae; femora with more or less defined brown spots on anterior and posterior faces; fore and mid femora often with ventral side dark brown to nearly black over most of length (often distinctly striped); tibiae pale or dark at base and apex; fore tibiae slightly to strongly infumate dorsally (not darkly striped throughout); hind tibiae 2.3–2.4x longer than tarsal segments II+III combined; hind tarsal segments usually dark apically, segment II often pale throughout, about as long as segment III. Hemelytra: corium ( Figs 10 , 18 ) largely blackish, with reduced pale markings on endocorium and more extensive pale markings (whitish yellow to yellowish brown) on exocorium; endocorium with distinct dark brown to black eyespot subbasally near R vein, seldom with a pale mark next to midportion of clavus; costal margin lined with narrow to moderately wide, mostly uninterrupted pale band (sometimes evanescent in apical half or third); colour pattern in female consistent with that in male; pruinose areas well developed, distributed on base and apex of clavus, most of endocorium and exocorium, and usually on membrane near apex of clavus; basal pruinose area of clavus broad and short, covering less than one-third of clavus length; basal pale spot of clavus absent; subapical pale spot of clavus usually present; membrane whitish yellow, usually mixed with brown, with pale apical margin, dark brown to blackish veins and patch medially in each of four usually well-formed cells (cells 1 and 4 sometimes slightly reduced); cell 1 barely shorter than cells 2 and 3, subtriangular; cells 2 and 3 subrectangular, subequal in length and width (cell 3 sometimes narrower); cell 4 the narrowest, slender, subequal in length to slightly or much longer than cell 3, ending apically more or less in line with tip of cell 3. Abdomen. Venter: male, black, rarely with posterior margin of segments very narrowly pale brown; female, narrowly margined with yellowish ivory to yellowish brown (pale margin often reduced to individual patches laterally on segments), darker medially. Pubescence dense, silvery, and appressed in both sexes. Male parandria ( Fig. 26 ) elongate, broadly subtriangular, acutely rounded at tip; inner margins sinuate; medial membrane with blunt inward projection on each side; basal margin almost straight. Male paramere ( Fig. 22 ) with barely distinct processus sensualis bearing less than ten setae; processus hamatus moderately long, its tip rather broad and acutely rounded. Apical half of male aedeagus, in lateral view, with visible sclerites configuration similar to K. parvula . Female subgenital plate (segment VII ventrally) dark brown to black with apical half pale. Other characters as in generic description.

Geographic distribution ( Fig. 33 ). North Island, central eastern and southern areas.

Material examined. A total of 471 specimens including types, from the following localities. North Island . BP – Hicks Bay ( NZAC); Otamaroa (2.3 km W Whangaparaoa) ( NZAC); Papatea Bay ( NZAC). GB –Kaiaua Beach ( NZAC); Pouawa Beach ( NZAC); Rangiata ( NZAC); Urewera National Park (Aniwaniwa ( NZAC); Mokau Landing ( NZAC)); Wherowhero Lagoon ( NZAC). HB –Blackhead Beach ( NZAC); Kereru (8 km E) ( NZAC); Napier [Ahuriri] Estuary ( NZAC); Ocean Beach, N end of beach ( NZAC); Porangahau Beach ( AMNZ, MONZ, NZAC); Whangaehu Beach ( NZAC). RI –Horopito Stream ([Junction] Pohangina Valley Road & Tunipo Road) ( NZAC); Junction Scanlyn Creek & Main South Road ( NZAC); Mount Richards , Pohangina River ( NZAC); Ruahine Forest Park, Rangitane Road end, Colenso Trig area ( NZAC); Ruahine Ranges, Armstrong Saddle ( NZAC). TK –Kai Iwi Beach ( NZAC). WA –Flat Point Beach , 1.5 km N Arawhata Stream ( NZAC); Herbertville, Wainui River mouth ( NZAC); Nireaha, Mangatainoka River ( NZAC); Okau Stream, N of Whakataki ( NZAC); Otahome Stream ( NZAC); Uruti Point, Waioronu Stream ( NZAC). WI –Koitiata ( NZAC); Santoft Forest (Koitiata stream mouth ( NZAC); Lake Koitiata stream mouth ( NZAC); Waimahora Stream mouth ( NZAC)); Tangimoana ( NZAC); Whangaehu River , 2 km S Mangawhero Road ( NZAC).

Biology. Altitudinal range. Lowland to subalpine; collected from sea level to 1,400 m. Coastal or inland. Habitat. Occurs in open coastal habitats on moist to wet, bare, sparsely to densely vegetated (e.g., rushes and sedges), often silty, sand or mud along or near the banks of estuarine streams, the edge of lagoons and small ponds, on tidal flats in open terrain or in salt marshes; as opposed to K. parvula , apparently prefers more eutrophic environments, more silty terrains, and habitats with longer or denser vegetation covers (e.g., mat vegetation, carpets of flatten dead grass or of semi-dried drift algae, marshy edges of lagoons and ponds). Also lives inland, in open or lightly forested native or modified environments (e.g., pastures), on moist to wet, bare, sparsely to densely vegetated (e.g., mat vegetation, rushes, sedges), often silty or loamy, sand or mud along or near streambanks, riverbanks, lakeshores, as well as flats or terraces at some distance from body of waters; in alpine environments, collected on floating Sphagnum moss on the side of a Sphagnum moss bog surrounded by Snow tussock, also in mat vegetation at the edge of an alpine pond. Nymphs live in the same habitat as adults, on the ground on bare areas, at the base of plant or under debris (e.g., dead algae). Seasonality. Adults collected from September to March; mating pairs observed in November (coastal area) and February (alpine zone); newly emerged adults (tenerals) collected in September and from December to March, but most abundantly in December and January; nymphs found in January and March—suggesting overwintering in the egg stage or nymphal stage, nymphal development in late winter to early spring, adult emergence in spring, early summer breeding, and emergence of a new generation that will breed before winter, from December onwards, possibly with a two to four weeks delay inland or at higher altitudes. Food. Predator or scavenger. Behaviour. Jumps or flies moderate distances (usually less than 1 m) or dashes into the base of plant tufts or under debris (e.g., dead algae) when disturbed. Moderately heliophilous; more active in full sunshine, also active under cloudy or slightly rainy conditions.

Remarks. This species is named after its type locality, Porangahau Beach (HB).

Kiwisaldula porangahau is mostly macropterous; submacropterous individuals (hemelytral membrane slightly reduced) and some subbrachypterous individuals can sometimes be seen.

At first glance this species may superficially resemble K. parvula but it is larger in size, with more fully developed wings, less shiny head, pronotum and scutellum, and a largely dark, or more narrowly pale, abdominal venter in female.

Figures

FIGURE 33. Collecting localities of Kiwisaldula species, New Zealand’s North Island and nearby offshore islands.

FIGURES 9 – 12. Dorsal view of Kiwisaldula species (males; legs and antennae omitted). Scale bar = 1 mm. (9) K. stoneri, (10) K. porangahau, (11) K. parvula, (12) K. manawatawhi.

FIGURES 13 – 16. Facial view of Kiwisaldula species. (13) K. stoneri, (14) K. porangahau, (15) K. parvula, (16) K. manawatawhi.

FIGURES 17 – 18. Eunomy (left corium) of Kiwisaldula species; most frequently observed pigmentation patterns. (17) K. stoneri, (18) K. porangahau.

FIGURES 25 – 31. Schematic view of Kiwisaldula species male genitalia. (25 – 28) Parandria, posterior view. (25) K. stoneri, (26) K. porangahau, (27) K. parvula, (28) K. manawatawhi. (29 – 30) K. parvula. (29) Anterior half of aedeagus, lateral view, (30) sclerites of aedeagus, ventral view. (31) Kiwisaldula species. Filum gonopori, lateral view.

FIGURES 21 – 24. Schematic view of Kiwisaldula species male genitalia: paramere, ventral. (21) K. stoneri, (22) K. porangahau, (23) K. parvula, (24) K. manawatawhi.