Myrsidea seversoni Price, Hellenthal and Dalgleish

Price, Roger D., Hellenthal, Ronald A. & Dalgleish, Robert C., 2005, The genus Myrsidea Waterston (Phthiraptera: Menoponidae) from tyrant­flycatchers (Passeriformes: Tyrannidae), with descriptions of 13 new species, Zootaxa 1048, pp. 1-20 : 7

Myrsidea seversoni Price, Hellenthal and Dalgleish , new species ( Fig. 7 )

Type host. Tyrannus verticalis Say , Western Kingbird.

Female. Dorsal thorax and abdomen as in Fig. 7 . Metanotum with 10, much less often 9 or 11, marginal setae. Tergites II–IV with slight medioposterior convexity. Tergal setae: I, 10–12; II–V, 14–20; VI, 15–17; VII, 9–13; VIII, 8, rarely 9. Postspiracular setae very long and of similar length on I–VIII. Sternal setae: II, each aster with 4–5 setae, 22– 32 other setae; III, 22–27; IV, 51–60; V, 56–68; VI, 43–49; VII, 15–20; VIII–IX of subgenital plate, 23–29. Anus with 35–42 setae in each fringe. Dimensions: TW, 0.54–0.56; HL, 0.36–0.39; PW, 0.33–0.35; PSL, 0.13–0.14; MW, 0.51–0.53; MSL, 0.16–0.18; AWIV, 0.67–0.72; ANW, 0.24–0.26; TL, 1.78–1.87.

Male. Unavailable.

Type material. Holotype female ( OSU), ex T. verticalis, Stillwater , Oklahoma, U.S.A., 5 Jun 1948, K. C. Emerson. Paratypes ( OSU, TNHM): 19 females, same data as holotype.

Remarks. Though we have only females available for this description, the uniformly very long postspiracular setae on I–VIII, in combination with the number of tergal and sternal setae and the large dimensions, readily separate Myrsidea seversoni from others of this species group.

Etymology. This species is named for David W. Severson, University of Notre Dame, in recognition of his many contributions to our understanding of the role of mosquitoes in disease transmission.

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 8. 1 – 2, Myrsidea magnidens. 1, Female metanotum and dorsal abdomen. 2, Male genital sac sclerite. 3, M. stenodesma female metanotum and dorsal abdomen. 4 – 6, M. pitangi. 4, Female metanotum and dorsoventral abdomen. 5, Entire dorsoventral male. 6, Male genitalia. 7, M. seversoni female dorsal thorax and abdomen. 8, M. melancholici female dorsal thorax and abdomen.