Parascaphoidella, Wei & Fang & Xing, 2020

Wei, Xingtao, Fang, Yongqin & Xing, Jichun, 2020, Parascaphoidella, a new leafhopper genus from China (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae Deltocephalinae: Scaphoideini), Zootaxa 4810 (2), pp. 328-334 : 328-329

Parascaphoidella gen. nov.

Type species: Scaphoidella transversa Li & Xing, 2009

Description. Body yellowish-brown. Vertex with transverse bands anteriorly bordered with pale yellow. Eyes black,

ocelli pale yellow. Frons light ocherous-yellow, with arc lines unclear. Pronotum with anterior margin brown and posterior margin milky white with black submarginal border. Forewing yellowish brown, with hyaline spots outlined with dark brown, brown false eyespot present on border of apical cells 2 and 3.

Head including eyes slightly narrower than pronotum. Pronotum anterior margin strongly produced, posterior margin slightly concave, with length equal to scutellum. Vertex shorter than pronotum, longer medially than next to eye, anterior margin distinctly angulate in dorsal view. Face slightly flattened, with width slightly narrower than length. Eyes fairly large, ocelli situated on anterior margin of crown and separate from eye by distance equal to ocellar diameter; antenna located near midheight of eye, antennal pit deep and expanded onto frontoclypeus; frontoclypeus narrow, longer than width between eyes; anteclypeus flat and slightly tapered from base to apex; lora large. Fore femur with IC setae long and fine, row AM with 1 stout seta, intercalary row with 14 setae, and row AV with several short setae in basal half. Fore tibia dorsal surface rounded, row AD with one macroseta, row PD with 4 macrosetae; row AV with approximately 18 macrosetae and row PV with 2 macrosetae. Hind femur apical setal formula 2+2+1. Hind tibia flattened and nearly straight, row PD with approximately 18 macrosetae; row AD with approximately 9 long stout setae and 1–4 shorter stout setae between each long seta. Metabasitarsomere with four platellae and two tapered setae on apical transverse row, plantar surface with one row of five stout setae at middle and one row of four stout setae at lateral margin. Forewing vein R with three branches, two outer branches reflexed; outer anteapical cell tapered and petiolate distally; inner anteapical cell open basally.

Male genitalia. Male pygofer side longer than height, base wide, apex narrow, with numerous macrosetae on posterior area. Segment X sclerotised laterally, not fused to the pygofer side. Valve subtriangular, about one third as long as wide. Subgenital plate broad basally and sharply narrowed posteriorly with lateral margin concave and apex sharply pointed, with single row of macrosetae along lateral margin. Aedeagus with shaft curved dorsally, tubular, with pair of processes arising separately from atrium at base and extended beyond end of the aedeagal shaft; gonopore apical. Style relatively narrow and short, apical process acute, strongly curved laterad, preapical lobe digitiform with some fine apical setae. Connective U-shaped, stem short.

Etymology. The genus name refers to similarity to the genus Scaphoidella .

Remarks. Parascaphoidella gen. nov. resembles Scaphomonus Viraktamath, 2009 externally in general appearance, but can be distinguished from the latter by the aedeagus with a pair of processes arising basally and extended beyond the end of the aedeagal shaft; the U-shaped connective with stem short and the style with a digitiform preapical lobe. The new genus is also similar to Scaphoidella Vilbaste, 1968 (e.g., to the species of Scaphoidella from Thailand in aedeagus structure and to Scaphoidella zhangi in external appearance), but differs in having the paired basal processes of the aedeagus arising separately from a pair of sclerotized arms attached to the sides of the atrium rather than from a solid ventral preatrium and closely associated with the connective. The subgenital plate of the new genus also differs in being sharply narrowed posteriorly with a strongly concave lateral margin (apex relatively broad and rounded with convex lateral margin in Scaphoidella ); the connective U-shaped (Y-shaped in Scaphoidella ), and the style with the apex sharp and strongly curved with a digitiform preapical lobe (apex straight or slightly curved with preapical lobe usually indistinct in Scaphoidella ).

Distribution. Oriental Region ( China).