Neomegalotomus Schaffner and Schaefer 1998

Jansen, M. Andrew & Halbert, Susan E., 2016, Key to Florida Alydidae (Hemiptera: Heteroptera) and selected exotic pest species, Insecta Mundi 2016 (476), pp. 1-14 : 2

Neomegalotomus Schaffner and Schaefer 1998

The recently erected genus Neomegalotomus Schaffner and Schaefer (1998) is a difficult pest group. Schaefer and Ahmad (2008) published a revision of the genus Neomegalotomus , synonymizing many former species and leaving only two as valid. These species are N. rufipes (Westwood 1842) and N. parvus (Westwood 1842) . The article included illustrations of genitalia, descriptions, and an identification key. These species are similar, and can be difficult to separate without genitalic dissection due to intraspecific variation.

Neomegalotomus parvus is a pest of legumes in Brazil ( Panizzi et al. 2000), and has been reported from crops such as common beans ( Phaseolus vulgaris L.), soybean ( Glycine max (L.) Merrill), pigeon pea ( Cajanus cajan (L.) Millsp.), cotton ( Gossypium spp. ), and tomato ( Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. ). It can transmit yeast-spot disease ( Nematospora coryli Peglion ) by feeding on the seeds of its host ( Paradela Filho et al. 1972).