Peripsocus cochleus, Schmidt & New, 2008

Schmidt, Evan R. & New, Timothy R., 2008, The Psocoptera (Insecta) of Tasmania, Australia, Memoirs of Museum Victoria 65, pp. 71-152 : 116-118

Peripsocus cochleus sp. nov.

Figures 147–56

Peripsocus morulops (Tillyard) . New, 1973a: 345.

Material examined. Holotype: Tasmania, Cockle Creek , Leptospermum lanigerum , 21 June 1986 . Paratype: same data as holotype. Additional records: many individuals collected throughout the year.

Description of female. Coloration (after ca 7 years in alcohol). Ground colour of head buff, with the following brown: markings dorsal to eyes, across back of vertex and along each side of black median epicranial suture; postclypeal striae, converging toward pale midline; pair of thin bands extending from eye to antennal socket; maxillary palp; antenna. Ocelli pale, with blackish centripetal margins; tubercle brown surrounded by black margin. Labrum dark brown. Anteclypeus brown in basal third, remainder colourless. Eyes black. Fore wing with shades of brown pigment (fig. 147). Veins dark brown, except basally veins m and r 4+5. Hind wing hyaline (fig. 148), with brown tinge in region of radial fork. Thorax dark brown, sutural areas buff dorsally, sutural lines blackish on pleura. Legs: coxae brown, femora pale brown, hind tibia pale brown, tibiae of fore- and mid-legs brown, tarsi brown. Abdomen buff, terga with grey-brown annulations, sterna laterally greyish-brown. Terminal segments brown.

Morphology. IO:D = 3.0. Distal margin of labrum with 5 sensilla, bases very thickened. Distinct row of 4 trichoid sensilla on anterior margin of outer surface of labrum.Suture surrounding ocellar tubercle an extension of median epicranial suture.

Vertex-postclypeal suture fusing to anterolateral margins of ocellar tubercle, frons sclerite absent. Clypeal shelf absent. Head with reticulate granular pattern where brown markings occur on vertex and postclypeus. Anterior to median ocellus is an elongated patch filled with reticulate polygonal cells, not granulated. Lacinia apically bifid. Head with small scattered setae. Flagellar segments with fine small setae, placoid sensilla distributed as follows: 3 base f 1, 1 apices f 4, f 6 and f 10; those of f 6 and f 10 with a filament of medium length. Terminal segment with bluntly pointed apex. Fore wing (fig. 147): veins with sparse short setae; vein cu 2 glabrous; veins rs and m fused for a length. Hind wing (fig. 148) with veins r and m fused for a length, veins r and m+cu fused basally. Mesothoracic sterna broad. Claw with subapical tooth, pulvillus fine, flexuous with expanded tip. Rasp and mirror of Pearman´s organ well developed. Preapical margin of ninth tergite (fig. 149) bearing a single row of setae, apical margin with small tubercles. Epiproct (fig. 150) strongly setose in apical half. Paraproct (fig. 150) with ovoid field of about 22 trichobothria, posterior margin setose. Subgenital plate (fig. 151): lateral margins of median lobe folded; apex bearing 3-4 long setae, preapically a field of short setae; body of plate bearing 6 long setae in transverse arc; basal pigmented region extending into pair of anteriorly diverging arms; small membranous area medially at apex. Gonapophyses (fig. 152): ventral valve well sclerotised, apex bluntly pointed, spiculate; dorsal valve broad, strongly sclerotised basally next to membranous area, apically bearing 4 setae; external valve with sclerotised inner opening, outer surface of lobe setose in apical half and along dorsolateral margin, apex of lobe appears bluntly pointed due to convex shape of dorsolateral margin.

Dimensions. B 2.3, FW 3.07, HW 2.21, F 0.43, T 0.86, t 1 0.205, t

2

0.111, rt 1.9:1, ct 17,0, f

1

0.371, f

2

0.284.

Description of male. Coloration (after ca 7 years in alcohol). As female, with the following exceptions: eyes purple-black; hind tibia pale brown, merging brown apically; abdomen buff, lacking grey-brown annulations. Fore wing (fig. 153).

Morphology. IO:D = 0.9. Eyes large, reaching beyond level of vertex when looking at side of head. General morphology as in female. Fore wing (fig. 153) as female, costa between base and pterostigma incipiently thickened. Ninth tergite (fig. 154) with well developed curved lobe bearing an apical row of tubercles and a preapical row of setae. Epiproct (fig. 154) basally broad, with basal convex margin. Paraproct (fig. 154) with round field of 45 trichobothria. Hypandrium (fig. 155) with simple rounded apical margin, setose, and possessing a preapical row of 4 long setae. Phallosome (fig. 156) with anterior margin of frame not sclerotised. Endophallus with an anterior and posterior pair of sclerites: anterior sclerites each bearing 3 spines of differing lengths, median spine long, lateral spine small and in between one of medium length; posterior pair of sclerites somewhat rounded, apices pointed.

Dimensions. B 1.9, FW 3.10, HW 2.45, F 0.47, T 0.96, t

1

0.284, t

2

0.118, rt 2.4:1, ct 20,0, f

1

0.498, f

2

0.395.

Distribution. Tasmania and Victoria.

Remarks. This locally widespread species is very similar to Peripsocus morulops (below). As noted for that species the thickening on the costa of the male fore wing varies. In this species it is not as distinct as in P. morulops . This feature, and the overall similarity of male genitalia led New (1973a) to record the Tasmanian specimen of this species as P. morulops , noting, however, the darker markings as emphasised in his figure of the fore wing ( New, 1973a: 344, fig. 14) of the Tasmanian specimen. The darker brown markings in the fore wing, the different shape of the external valve lobe of the gonapophyses and the clunium bearing a single preapical row of setae distinguish P. cochleus from P.morulops . The chaetotaxy of the clunium appears uniform in the material examined of both sexes (better developed in males) in the two species. However the figure by New of the male clunium ( New, 1973a: 344, fig 16) shows setae more typically found in the clunium of P. morulops (setae in 2 incipient rows). The specimens collected by New (1973a: 345) from Victoria are considerably larger (2.66–2.95 mm, possibly individuals of P. morulops ?) than those of P. cochleus collected fromTasmania. P.cochleus wascollectedlargelyfrom Nothofagus and mixed forest.

Etymology. An allusion to Cockle Creek, the type locality, through the Latin cochlea, a possible origin of “cockle”.

Figures

Figures 147-156. Peripsocus cochleus Female: 147, fore wing; 148, hind wing; 149, clunium; 150, epiproct and paraproct; 151, subgenital plate; 152, gonapophyses. Figures 147, 148 and 149-151 to common scales. Male: 153, fore wing; 154, clunium, epiproct and paraproct; 155 hypandrium; 156, phallosome. Figures 154-156 to common scale