Callitricola boorabbin, Symonds & Cassis, 2018

Symonds, Celia L. & Cassis, Gerasimos, 2018, Systematics And Analysis Of The Radiation Of Orthotylini Plant Bugs Associated With Callitroid Conifers In Australia: Description Of Five New Genera And 32 New Species (Heteroptera: Miridae: Orthotylinae), Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2018 (422), pp. 1-229 : 105-107

Callitricola boorabbin , new species

Figures 13 , 29 , 48 ; map 2

DIAGNOSIS: Defined by the following characters: small size; yellow-green faded coloration, forewing membrane veins yellow-green; pygophore margin weakly concave with one small spinelike tergal process, just left lateral of midline; left paramere apophysis tapering, apex narrow with weakly recurved hook; right paramere subovate in lateral view, apex strongly curved inward, forming sclerotized and slightly serrate ridge, subapical dorsal margin round with one small spinelike serration; phallotheca simple, round distally, with small subapical ventral tumescence, and left lateral tumescence; aedeagus with PES wrapped sheathlike around secondary gonopore, left ventrolateral, bifurcate distally with twisted, distally serrate apex on right branch, left branch strongly downturned and slender with smooth margins; DES2 bifurcate medially, branches unequal in length; DES1 unbranched, distally serrate; all spicules originate adjacent to base of secondary gonopore, DES2 longer than DES1 and PES; female laIRL uniformly narrow, curved inward distally, base spiniferous with two spiniferous lobes; mIRL short, half height of laIRL, subtriangular, margins and surface serrate.

DESCRIPTION: Male: Small size, total length 3.16–3.39 mm, pronotal width 0.93–0.97 mm.

COLORATION: Dorsum yellow-green, somewhat faded to yellow with few bright green patches of pigmentation retained on lateral margins of hemelytra; forewing membrane, translucent gray-brown, mostly uniform coloration, with very slightly darker patches laterally, veins yellow-green, with color confined to vein, major cell without colored spot (fig. 13). VES- TITURE: Dorsum with moderately dense distribution of pale (light-brown) simple setae, few slightly longer and more bristlelike. STRUC- TURE: Head: Antennae with AI subequal to vertex width, AII 1.2× pronotal width; labium extending to metacoxae. Hemelytra: Cuneus and major cell of membrane moderately short, major membrane vein round (fig. 13). GENI- TALIA: Pygophore: Dorsal margin of genital opening weakly concave, with one tergal process positioned just left lateral of midline; tergal process sclerotized, short, linear, or spinelike, and with jagged distal edge, lacking serration; ventral margin concave medially; phalloguide with small, round lobe ventrad to right paramere articulation; right margin of lobe sclerotized with minute spinelike serrations on margin (fig. 29A). Left paramere: Apophysis tapering, apex narrow, with weakly recurved hook (fig. 29B). Right paramere: Subovate in lateral view; apex strongly curved inward and flattened into subtriangular ridge, with sclerotized, weakly serrate margin; subapical dorsal margin round, with one small spinelike serration; inner surface not excavated (not illustrated). Phallotheca: Dorsal opening large, distal to medial; round distally; small subapical ventral tumescence (fig. 29C); left lateral tumescence; small right lateral basal tumescence. Aedeagus: Spicule arrangement: PES left ventrolateral to secondary gonopore, wrapped sheathlike around secondary gonopore, DES2 left ventrolateral to PES and secondary gonopore, DES1 left lateral to DES2 (fig. 29); bases of spicules originating at base of secondary gonopore with base of DES1 slightly more basal to those of PES and DES2 (which are adjacent); bases of PES and DES2 flattened and broad, sheathlike, while base of third more tubular; PES bifurcate in distal third, right branch twisted distally with serrate distal margins, left branch narrow and strongly down- turned directed basally with smooth margins; DES2 bifurcate medially, branches unequal in length, acuminate apically with smooth distal margins, ventral branch very short, dorsal branch greatly elongate, longer than PES and DES1, dorsal branch also with submedial row of small spinelike serrations; DES1 unbranched, distally serrate, basal keel elongate (DESk) (fig. 29D).

Female: Small, subovate, body length 3.08 mm, pronotal width 0.93 mm. GENITALIA: Interramal lobes (fig. 48): mIRL partially joined to laIRL at base; laIRL uniformly narrow, curved inward distally, base spiniferous with one large and one small spiniferous lobe; mIRL short, half height of laIRL, subtriangular, margins and surface serrate.

ETYMOLOGY: Named for the type locality, near Boorabbin in southwestern Western Australia. Noun in apposition.

HOST PLANTS: Known from Callitris tuberculata (table 2).

HOLOTYPE: AUSTRALIA: Western Australia: 92.5 km W of Coolgardie at east side of Boorabbin National Park on Great Eastern Hwy , 31.21233 ° S 120.31 ° E, 445 m, 17 Nov 1999, R.T. Schuh, G. Cassis, and R. Silveira, Callitris tuberculata , det. WA Herbarium PERTH 05672058, 1♂ ( AMNH _ PBI 00016550 ) ( WAMP).

PARATYPES: AUSTRALIA: Western Australia: 92.5 km W of Coolgardie at east side of Boorabbin National Park on Great Eastern Hwy, 31.21233 ° S 120.31 ° E, 445 m, 17 Nov 1999, R.T. Schuh, G. Cassis, and R. Silveira, Callitris tuberculata , det. WA Herbarium PERTH 05672058, 1♂ ( AMNH _PBI 00016329), 1♀ ( AMNH _PBI 00016330) ( AM).

DISTRIBUTION: Known from one inland locality in the Southwest Interzone phytogeographic subregion of Western Australia (map 2), and was collected with E. drepanomorpha (table 2).

REMARKS: Callitricola boorabbin is one of the smallest species of the genus and can be distinguished externally by its small size and the unique left tergal process on the genital opening of the pygophore, which is spinelike and distally jagged (fig. 29A). These characters separate it from C. tatarnici , which is also found in the found in southwestern Western Australia on Callitris tuberculata .

Figures

FIG. 13. Callitricola species, dorsal habitus photographs of males. Scale bar = 1 mm.

FIG. 29. Male genitalia of Callitricola boorabbin. A. Pygophore, dorsoventral. B. Left paramere, ventral. C. Phallotheca, right lateral. D. Aedeagus, dorsal. Scale bars = 0.1 mm.

FIG. 48. Callitricola female genitalia: right interramal lobes of species, posterior wall of C. graciliphila, dorsal. Scale bar = 0.1 mm.