Pseudoloxops pardellus, Yasunaga & Duwal, 2017

Yasunaga, Tomohide & Duwal, Ram Keshari, 2017, Plant bugs of the tribe Orthotylini (Heteroptera: Miridae: Orthotylinae) in Thailand, with descriptions of five new species, Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 65, pp. 280-298 : 293-297

Pseudoloxops pardellus , new species

( Figs. 8F–H , 9F–H , 11 , 12C, D )

Material examined. Holotype male, THAILAND: Nakhon Ratchasima, SERS, N14°30′27″ E101°55′39″, 410 m alt., light trap, 26 September 2013, T. Yasunaga ( DOAT) ( AMNH _ PBI 00380546 ) . Paratypes: THAILAND: Chaiyaphum, Chulabhom Dam , light trap, 26 October 2002, Y. Nakatani, 2 males ( NIAES) . Nakhon Ratchasima: same data as for holotype, 1 male, 1 female ( TYCN) (00380547); same locality, 19–21 August 2008, T . Yasunaga & B. Shishido, 4 males, 2 females ( AMNH, CNC, TYCN); same locality, 12–14 June 2009, T . Yasunaga & K. Yamada, 3 males ( TYCN); same data as for holotype, except for date 21–22 March 2014, 2 males, 1 female ( TYCN) .

Diagnosis. Recognised by the rather elongate, flat, mediumsized body ( Fig. 8F–H ); distinctly bicolourous (deep red and creamy yellow) dorsum; uniformly scattered, small brown spots on dorsum; uniformly distributed, dark, simple setae and longer, pale, upright, stiff setae on head, antennal segment I, and laterally on pronotum and hemelytron; orange-red, rhombic mark on middle of scutellum; clear red M-shaped mark on hemelytron; deep red apical half of male metafemur( Fig. 9F, G ); flat, triangularly widened sensory lobe and slender hypophysis of left paramere ( Fig. 11C ); apical flagellate spine on right paramere ( Fig. 11D ); and two short, flat endosomal spiculi ( Fig. 11F ).

Description. Body rather elongate, flat, medium-sized; dorsal surface somewhat matte, largely creamy yellow medially, with uniformly distributed, brown, semierect setae and brown small spots, and pale, long, stiff, upright setae on head, antennal segment I, and lateral pronotum and hemelytron. Head creamy yellow, sanguineous below level of antennal tubercles, somewhat pointed in front; eyes small; vertex and frons spotted, with faint, longitudinal, mesal sulcus. Antennal segment I deep red, with white stripe inward; segments II–IV creamy yellow; segment II with rouge extreme base and three orange-red rings each at basal 1/4, middle and apex; middle and apex of segment III and middle of IV each with red ring. Labium shiny pale brown, slightly exceeding apex of mesocoxa; apical half of segment IV reddish brown. Pronotum creamy yellow, with uniformly scattered, brown, small spots and deep red margin; mesoscutum shiny, faintly tinged with orange-brown; scutellum creamy yellow, spotted, with orange-red, rhombic mark; pleura whitish brown (greenish yellow in live or fresh specimen, cf. Fig. 9F ); dorsal margin of propleuron rouge; scent efferent system creamy yellow. Hemelytron rather matte, largely whitish brown, with orange-red M-shaped mark (along lateral margins of corium) and uniformly scattered, brown, small spots; apical inner corner of corium with red, triangular, small spot; embolium and lateral margin of cuneus sanguineous; basal half of cuneus creamy yellow except for orange-red macula at middle; membrane pale grayish brown, with distally sanguineous veins and darkened margin. Coxae and legs pale brown yellow (all femora greenish yellow in live or fresh specimen); apical half of male metafemur sanguineous; protibia usually tinged with red; proportion of meta-tarsomeres I–III as 4: 5: 5. Abdomen almost uniformly whitish brown (largely pale green in live or fresh specimen). Male genitalia ( Fig. 11 ): Pygophore with spines at apex ( Fig. 11B ); left paramere with flat, triangularly widened sensory lobe and slender hypophysis ( Fig. 11C ); right paramere simple, tapered apically, with apical flagellate spine ( Fig. 11D ); endosoma widely membranous, weakly sclerotised, with two short, flat endosomal spiculi ( Fig. 11F ). Female genitalia ( Fig. 12C, D ): Sclerotised ring decrescent, thin-rimmed; apical part of valvula I sharpened ( Fig. 12D ); posterior wall with elongate, spinulate interramal lobe ( Fig. 12C ).

Measurements. Male/female: Total body length 2.45– 2.60/2.64–2.77; width of head across eyes 0.55–0.59/0.60– 0.62; width of vertex 0.28–0.30/0.37–0.38; lengths of antennal segments I–IV 0.19–0.23, 0.76–0.84, 0.65–0.72, 0.27–0.30/0.19–0.23, 0.76–0.89, 0.75–0.77, 0.33–0.36; total length of labium 0.58–0.60/0.67–0.71; basal width of pronotum 0.73–0.77/0.73–0.78; maximum width across hemelytra 0.88–0.92/0.97–1.08; and lengths of metafemur, tibia and tarsus 0.87–0.90, 1.14–1.17, 0.34–0.38/0.88–0.92, 1.18–1.26, 0.39–0.42.

Etymology. From Latin, pardus [= panther or leopard], combined with the diminutive suffix [–ellus], referring to the uniformly spotted dorsum of this new species.

Biology. Unknown; all available specimens were attracted to UV light. Collection records suggest that this new species have two or more generations per year.

Remarks. The present new species is most closely related to P. imperatorius ( Distant, 1909) known from Sri Lanka, southern China, Taiwan and southwestern Japan (from central Honshu to the Ryukyus) ( Zheng & Lin, 2013; Liu & Zheng, 2014; Yasunaga & Takai, 2017). This widespread taxon, despite having been thus far undiscovered in Indochina, has the similar appearance ( Fig. 9I ) and genitalic structures, but P. imperatorius is distinct in having an unspotted head, mesal part of pronotum, scutellum and clavus; sensory lobe of left paramere wider; endosomal spiculi longer ( Yasunaga & Takai, 2017); ovipositor longer; and interramal lobe bent at middle ( Fig. 12A, B ). Both P. imperatorius and P. pardellus exhibit a similar sexual dimorphism (female metafemur uniformly pale, without reddish apical part), which may support a close relationship between them.

Figures

Fig. 8. Habitus images of Thai species of Pseudoloxops and Zanchius group. A, P. ayutthaya, male; B, P. ayutthaya, female; C, P. ayutthaya, final-instar nymph; D, P. pericarti, male; E, P. pericarti female; F, P. pardellus, male; G, P. pardellus, males; H, P. pardellus, female; I, unidentified species close to Zanchius marmoratus Zou, 1987 (SERS).

Fig. 9. Habitus images of Pseudoloxops species, dried specimens (except for F & I in live). A, P. hibiscus, holotype male; B, P. hibiscus, female; C, P. lateralis, male (SERS); D, P. lateralis, female (SERS); E, P. leopardalis, holotype male; F, G, P. pardellus, male; H, P. pardellus, female; I, P. imperatorius (Nagasaki, Japan); J, P. imperatorius, holotype female from Sri Lanka (BMNH); K, P. lateralis, holotype female from Taiwan (HNHM). Image (K) courtesy of NMNS.

Fig. 11. Male genitalia of Pseudoloxops pardellus. A, Pygophore, dorsal view; B, Pygophore, ventral view; C, left paramere; D, right paramere; E, pygophoral process; F, aedeagus.

Fig. 12. Female genitalia of Pseudoloxops imperatorius (A, B, specimen from Okinawa, Japan) and P. pardellus (C, D), named on images.