Aleurocanthus ashleyi, Gillespie, Peter S., 2012

Gillespie, Peter S., 2012, A review of the whitefly genus Aleurocanthus Quaintance & Baker (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) in Australia, Zootaxa 3252, pp. 1-42 : 5-7

Aleurocanthus ashleyi sp. n. ( Figs 1–3 )

Puparium. In life pale/clear, some females with darker medial mottling, oval shape, found on under surface of leaf. Pale/clear wax present on dorsum. Uniformly narrow white lateral wax fringe sometimes present. Sexually dimorphic: female 1100–1210 μm long, 820–920 μm wide, male 760–960 μm long, 530–740 μm wide. Margin with 24–26 (21–28) serrate (sharply pointed) teeth per 0.1 mm.

Dorsum. Cuticle smooth, abdomen rhachisform but only delineated medially, abdominal segmentation slightly marked in rhachis, abdominal segment VII medial width essentially same as other segments, caudal furrow absent, longitudinal moulting sutures present, transverse moulting sutures sinuate (amplitude>20% length of suture), reaching subdorsal area, tiny simple pores present on dorsum; margin concentric ring of minute simple pores in outer margin, one every 3 to 5 marginal serrations,. Vasiform orifice 'D' shaped or sub circular, close to margin (within 1.5 x vasiform orifice length from margin), interior tessellations present, with posterior margin elevated (0.5– 1 x width of vasiform orifice), operculum as long as wide, partially filling (50+%) vasiform orifice, lingula included within vasiform orifice, mostly obscured by operculum, lingula head rounded, shorter than operculum width and partially obscured by operculum.

Chaetotaxy. Anterior marginal setae present; cephalic setae short, acuminate; first abdominal setae acuminate, length less than 20% of puparial width, set further apart (distance between setal bases greater than seta length); eighth abdominal setae acuminate, as long as or longer than vasiform orifice, situated laterad of vasiform orifice; caudal setae acuminate, as long as or longer than vasiform orifice, situated within 4 setal base widths of margin; posterior margin setae present; 26 pairs of glandular spines present on dorsum, medial pairs of glandular spines present on abdomen II–VII, 17 (rarely 16) glandular spine pairs present in dorsum/subdorsum, 9 (rarely 8) glandular spine pairs present in margin/submargin with 4 (5) thoracic and 5(4) abdominal pairs, glandular spines somewhat evenly distributed over the dorsum and regularly spaced around margin with the exception of one doubled pair submedially in the cephalus, glandular spines narrowing distally with acuminate tip, basal pore present near base of glandular spine (about one setal base width from setal base). A marginal concentric row of numerous small spines present laterad of the marginal glandular spines with only a gap in the row between the caudal setae.

Venter. Antenna short, up to base of fore leg and unsegmented; legs of 1st segment with terminal 'tarsal' segment present as adhesion pad, small setae present at base of mid and hind leg; lacking caudal and thoracic tracheal folds and sparse stipling present around legs and more densely in the area of the caudal tracheal opening, stiples (spinules) all of more or less uniform size, ventral abdominal setae long (greater than half vasiform orifice width), ventral submargin, margin and disc lacking patterning.

Etymology. Named in honour of my son, Ashley.

Distribution. NSW.

Hosts. Myrtaceae : Rhodamnia argentea .

Material examined. Holotype puparium slide: ex Rhodamnia argentea , Tropical Fruit Research Station, Alstonville, NSW, 23.ii.2010, P.S. Gillespie ( DNA =WW07805) ( ASCT 00025022); Paratypes: ex Rhodamnia argentea , Tropical Fruit Research Station, Alstonville, NSW, 11.xi.2008, PS G[illespie], H L[oecker] and N R[eid], 68 puparia and immatures on 6 dry leaves ( ASCT 00174596), 5 x puparia on four slides ( ASCT 00025023-6), 3 x 2nd instar and 1 x 1st instar nymphs on a slide ( ASCT 00025027); same data as holotype, 48 x puparia and immatures on three dry leaves ( ASCT 00024985). All deposited in ASCU with the exception of one puparial slide deposited in BMNH ( ASCT 00025025).

Comments. All samples of this species have been collected at only one site in Alstonville, NSW on an ornamental specimen of its native host. The pale colouration combined with number and location of glandular spines should clearly distinguish this species from any other species of Aleurocanthus in Australia. The species appears close to A. rugosa and A. sapindus . Distinctive characters they share include clear/pale colour with some mottling in the dorsum and a margin concentric row of numerous small setae (possibly glandular in nature) in the submargin. A. ashleyi differs from these by having more numerous glandular spines on the dorsum and a distinctive serrate margin.

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 3. A. ashleyi sp. nov. puparia: 1, habitus; 2, slide (500 µm); 3, illustration.