Mesovelia melanesica J. Polhemus & D. Polhemus, 2000

Jehamalar, E. Eyarin, Chandra, Kailash & Polhemus, Dan A., 2019, Review of the Mesovelia horvathi species complex (Hemiptera: Gerromorpha: Mesoveliidae), with the description of seven new species from India, Zootaxa 4651 (3), pp. 471-496 : 491

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.4651.3.4

publication LSID

lsid:zoobank.org:pub:D1C1327C-D098-499D-9A2F-81504ED52C0D

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5930893

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/34238792-FFEE-7E48-FF3A-938CFA92F9A5

treatment provided by

Plazi

scientific name

Mesovelia melanesica J. Polhemus & D. Polhemus, 2000
status

 

Mesovelia melanesica J. Polhemus & D. Polhemus, 2000 View in CoL

( Figs. 10 View FIGURES 10 A–B)

2000. Mesovelia melanesica J. Polhemus & D. Polhemus, J. New York Entomol. Soc., 108(3–4), 211.

Material examined. PAPUA NEW GUINEA, NEW GUINEA, Southern Highlands Province, 13 apt. ♂, 11 apt. ♀, 3 immatures, imponded roadside stream at Moro oil exploration camp, 840 m a.s.l., 6.35694 0 S, 143.2367 0 E, water temp. 25° C., 24.iii.1994, 14:00–15:00 hrs., CL 7024, Coll. D. A. Polhemus ( BPBM) . INDONESIA, NEW GUINEA, Irian Jaya Province [= Papua Province], 1 apt. ♂, 1 apt. ♀, tributary to Tirawiwa River , 4.5 km. N. of PTFI Siewa exploration camp along old logging road, 55 m a.s.l., 3.00972 0 S, 136.3494 0 E, water temp. 26° C., 12.iv.1998, 09:30–12:30 hrs., CL 7095, D. D. A. Polhemus ( BPBM) .

Comparative notes. Mesovelia melanesica conforms to our definition of the M. horvathi species complex, possessing character states definitive for the group including paired, sublateral setal tufts on the terminal male abdomen ( Fig. 10A View FIGURES 10 ); a strongly bent male paramere ( Fig. 10B View FIGURES 10 ); and an apicolateral excavation on the abdominal segment VIII of male ( Fig. 10A View FIGURES 10 ). The species was originally described from a series of 9 specimens taken on Biak Island, off northwestern New Guinea (J. Polhemus & D. Polhemus 2000), with paratypes from other scattered locations on New Guinea proper, both north and south of the central mountains, but excluding the Papuan Peninsula.

Although widespread, this species is generally localized and uncommon, being far less regularly encountered in New Guinea than is M. subvittata , with which it is syntopic. It can be easily distinguished from this latter species by its color pattern (J. Polhemus & D. Polhemus 2000), and by the much smaller number of spinelike setae (only 3–4) in each of the paired tufts on the male terminal abdomen (segment VIII), with the bases of these tufts being covered by the posterior margin of segment VII. Ecologically, M. melanesica seems to prefer lentic habitats, including rain forest pools, sago swamps, and imponded sections of streams between 0 and 850 m elevation.

Distribution. Australasian Region: Indonesia, Papua New Guinea (J. Polhemus & D. Polhemus 2000).

NEW

University of Newcastle

BPBM

Bishop Museum

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Insecta

Order

Hemiptera

Family

Mesoveliidae

Genus

Mesovelia

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