Empoasca nella, Southern, Phillip Sterling, 2010

Southern, Phillip Sterling, 2010, Eight new species of Empoasca (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae: Typhlocybinae: Empoascini) from Peru and Bolivia, Zootaxa 2524, pp. 1-23 : 14-17

Empoasca nella n. sp.

Body (male): Length: 3.2–3.4 mm; crown length: 0.20–0.26 mm; crown projection: 0.05–0.08 mm; crown projection ratio: 0.20–0.40; head length (including eyes): 0.43–0.50 mm; interoccular width: 0.35–0.38 mm; head width (including eyes): 0.70–0.78 mm; pronotum width: 0.68–0.78 mm; pronotum length: 0.35–0.43 mm; face length: 0.80–0.93 mm; hind tibia length: 1.40–1.50 mm; hind tarsus length: 0.54–0.56 mm; hind tarsomere I length: 0.33–0.36 mm; hind tarsomere I/hind tarsus ratio: 0.59–0.64. Crown yellow-cream with brown makings of variable intensity (medial spot on anterior margin, elongate diagonal spots on each side extending posteromedially from near eye); approximately as long medially as next to eye, distinctly shorter than width between eyes; coronal suture extended beyond midlength. Head including eyes approximately equal to width of pronotum. Eyes brown, lighter in central area. Face yellow-cream with no distinctive markings, frontoclypeus darker than rest of face and nearly brown along lateral margins; ocelli on margin about equidistant between eye and mid-line; rostrum reaching hind coxae. Pronotum yellow-cream along anterior margin with brownish markings. Forewing with basal two-thirds subhyaline, with several diffuse brownish spots - along vein Cu, on costal margin near base near vein ScR, and elsewhere; apical 1/3 hyaline; apical cell 2 petiolate; apical cell 4 distinctly tapered near base, MCu distinctly curved, ending near posterior end of apical margin; CuP distal segment 2X or more longer than segment of CuA between Cu stem and MP; punctuations along veins absent or indistinct. Hind wing venation similar to that of E. fabae . Legs yellowcream. Front femur row AV with 1 basal seta distinctly enlarged; AM1 distinctly enlarged. Middle femur with 1 dorsoapical macroseta. Hind tibia row AV with 5 preapical macrosetae. Abdominal segements yellow-cream with faint brownish marking dorsally. Genital capsule yellow-cream ventrally (including plates), brown dorsally.

Pygofer in lateral view ( Fig. 7 a) broadly rounded on posterior margin; 8–13 stout setae on posterodorsal margin and 2–3 setae extending onto lateral face of pygofer; mesal face with well developed sensilla field. Pygofer process in lateral view ( Fig. 7 a) curved dorsad to follow posterior margin of pygofer, but usually extending just beyond pygofer, basal portion not expanded significantly dorsad, apical portion flattened and may be slightly concave on dorsal surface; in ventral view ( Figs. 7 b, 7i) angled mediad from base, straight, apex rounded and micro-serrate. Plates in lateral view ( Fig. 7 a) with basolateral lamella well developed; curved gradually upward apically, tapering to rounded apex; in ventral view ( Fig. 6 b) plates separate throughout, not fused basally. A-group setae (2–3) near base of plate, about diameter of B-group setae but longer ( Fig. 1 a); B-group setae (15–19) sparse in mid-range, uniseriate, of uniform length throughout, extend from near A-group setae to apex of plate; C-group setae (17–21) roughly biseriate basally, becoming uniseriate apically, extending to apex of plate; D-group setae (20–25) generally biseriate, approximately as long as C-group setae. Style in lateral view ( Figs. 7 a, 7f) with body bowed slightly ventrad, dentifer bowed slightly dorsad; in ventral view ( Fig. 7 g), bowed mediad, dentifer slightly narrowed; with 4-6 teeth; 3-4 setae or setal bases on lateral margin; apex truncate or obliquely truncate depending on aspect. Anal hook in lateral view ( Figs. 7 a, 7j) large, at least 2/3 depth of pygofer, curved slightly cephalad, subparallel margined for most of length, bifurcate in apical 1/5th, anterior ramus longer than posterior ramus, posterior ramus curved mediad; in caudoventral view ( Fig. 7 d) narrow, subparallel-margined to apical bifurcation; bifurcation most nearly in sagital plane but visible in both lateral and caudoventral views. Aedeagus in lateral view ( Fig. 7 c) with short, broad, straight preatrium; dorsal apodeme inconspicuous; shaft diverging strongly from line of atrial complex (ca. 60°), subparallel-margined through most of length, apically curved strongly dorsad, apex somewhat truncate. In caudo-ventral view ( Fig. 7 d) with preatrium narrow at base, thence slightly wider and parallelmargined to atrium; shaft gradually expanding from base to near mid-length, thence tapered to sharp apex; gonopore on caudoventral margin; apical portion of shaft (beyond gonopore) strongly compressed, plate-like. Connective ( Fig. 7 e) wider than long, posterior notch broad, sclerotized anterior margin concave. Dorsum of genital capsule ( Fig. 7 k) with anterior margin well sclerotized; bridge broad; transverse bar well sclerotized; horns well scleotized, broadly separate and subparallel.

First sternal complex ( Fig. 7 m) with broad medial notch. Second sternal apodemes ( Fig. 7 n) subparallel-sided to broadly rounded apicies; long (reaching 5.8–6.0, L: 0.54–0.56 mm), relatively broad (W: 0.33–0.40 mm); apodemes subparallel. Tergal apodemes not significantly developed. Sternum of 8th abdominal segment ( Fig. 7 u) with posterior margin notched medailly; with pair of inconspicuous sublateral setae.

Holotype male: BOLIVIA Cochabamba / Villa Tunari, Hotel los Tucanes / 16°58.302’ S 65°23.793’W / 320m 5-IX-2000 M.Hauser / S. Gaimari, D. Yates // PSS RESEARCH / 09-308-5 // HOLOTYPE / Empoasca / nella n. sp. / Southern & Dietrich ( INHS). Paratypes: 7 males, same collection data as holotype (INHS— 5 specimens, NCSU— 2 specimens);

Etymology: This specific name, nella , is an arbitrary combination of letters treated as a feminine noun in apposition.

Diagnosis: Several species have the anal hooks bifurcate in the apical 1/4th of their length. In Empoasca adexa Davidson & DeLong the shaft of the aedeagus does not diverge strongly from the line of the atrial complex, the pygofer processes are not straight in caudoventral view and are tapered apically and not flattened as in E. nella , the second sternal apodemes are shorter than in E. nella (reaching only 5.2–5.2). E. adexa is also smaller than E. nella (2.5 mm vs. 3.2–3.4 mm) and generally brown. Empoasca bidens DeLong and Empoasca knulli Davidson and Delong (closely related and possibly synonymous) are also smaller than E. nella (2.8 -3.0 mm), have the forewings smoky green with contrasting white veins, have the aedeagal shaft straight and much shorter relative to the length of the atrial complex than in E. nella and have the pygofer processes in caudoventral view tapered sharply near their apicies. Empoasca duodens Davidson and DeLong is similar in size to E. nella but the pygofer processes of E. duodens are straight in lateral view, tapered to sharp apices in caudoventral view and extend well beyond the posterior pygofer margin.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Chaetotaxy of plate and pygofer of selected species, lateral view; a. Empoasca nella n. sp., lateral view of plate; b. Empoasca acanthafera n. sp., lateral view of pygofer and plate; c. Empoasca apatapeba n. sp., lateral view of pygofer and plate; d. Empoasca pexa n. sp., lateral view of pygofer and plate.

FIGURE 6. Empoasca pexa n. sp. a. genital capsule, lateral view; b. genital capsule, ventral view; c. aedeagus, lateral view; d. aedeagus, left anal hook and dorsal aedeagal support, posteroventral view; e. connective, ventral view; f. style, lateral view; g. style, ventral view; h. pygofer process, lateral view; i. pygofer process, ventral view; j. anal hook, lateral view; k. pattern of sclerotization of dorsal surface of genital capsule, dorsal view; m. first sternal complex, anterior view; n. base of abdomen and second sternal apodemes, ventral view; u. sternum of eighth abdominal segment, ventral view.

FIGURE 7. Empoasca nella n. sp. a. genital capsule, lateral view (broken line = outline of aedeagus); b. genital capsule, ventral view; c. aedeagus, lateral view; d. aedeagus, left anal hook and dorsal aedeagal support, posteroventral view; e. connective, ventral view; f. style, lateral view; g. style, ventral view; h. pygofer process, lateral view; i. pygofer process, ventral view; j. anal hook, lateral view; k. pattern of sclerotization of dorsal surface of genital capsule, dorsal view; m. first sternal complex, anterior view; n. base of abdomen and second sternal apodemes, ventral view; u. sternum of eighth abdominal segment, ventral view.