Acesines bambusana Distant, 1918

Salini, Santhamma, Gracy, R. G., Akoijam, Romila, Rabbani, Mehaboob K., David, K. Jacob & Roca-Cusachs, Marcos, 2023, Revision of Acesines Stal and Dunnius Distant, resurrection of Mycterizon Breddin (Hemiptera, Heteroptera, Pentatomidae, Pentatominae), and description of a new species from India, ZooKeys 1148, pp. 79-117 : 79

Acesines bambusana Distant, 1918

Figs 1-6 , 7-12 , 13-19 , 20-25

Acesines bambusana Distant, 1918: 144 (original description). Holotype, India, Karnataka (NHM).

Acesines bambusana : Usman and Puttarudriah (1955) (list); Salini and Viraktamath (2015): 16 (checklist), 42 fig. 29 (illustration of dorsal habitus), 52, fig. 92 (illustration of head), 57, fig. 124 (illustration of head and pronotum), 65, fig. 167 (illustration of external scent efferent system), 72, fig. 210 (illustration of ventral habitus); Salini (2019): 137 (host).

Type locality.

Acesines bambusana . India, Karnataka, south India, Chikkaballapura (= Chikkaballapur), T. V. Campbell Coll., 13.4355°N, 77.7315°E (Fig. 24 ).

Type material.

Acesines bambusana . Not examined, only image of type was seen. The original description seems to be based on more than one specimen as the length of the examined specimens is given as a range. The type is deposited in NHM, London, UK. The image of the syntype (Fig. 25 ) is provided courtesy of P Kment.

Many of the Indian types described by Distant (1918) came from the collection of T.V. Campbell and were acquired by the Natural History Museum, London (ex-BMNH) as part of Distant’s collection ( Shobharani et al. 2018). In the case of A. bambusana this also occurs, there are 19 specimens in the NHM, which were obtained by the museum after its original description by Distant (1918). However, one syntype has a holotype label, which has an unknown acquisition date as it lacks a registration label. Hence this syntype specimen might have come to the NHM at a separate time but before its description and therefore it could be considered as a syntype. Moreover, this specimen is a pinned one, unlike the remaining specimens that are card mounted. The registration numbers on T. V. Campbell’s collection indicate when the material was donated to the museum and any material obtained after the original description may or may not be type material. Therefore, the 18 specimens, excluding the syntype having the holotype label, are considered to be specimens with uncertain type status, which are provided with handwritten information such as C. B. 7.15; C. B. 8.15 and C. B. 9.15; these are abbreviations for Chikkaballapura and probably the date of collection (M Webb, pers. comm.).

Material examined.

India: Karnataka: 1♀, Shimoga , 06.x.2008, Umeshkumar ; 1♂, NBAII (NIM); 1♀, Shimoga , 05.x.2008, Ex. light trap (sodium vapour lamp), Yeshwanth, H. M., NBAII (NIM) ; 1♀, 1♂, Shimoga , 06.x.2008, Ex. light trap (sodium vapour lamp), Umeshkumar, NBAII (NIM) ; 1♀, Kandali, Hassan [12°58.810'N, 76°02.513'E], 11.xi.2008, Yeshwanth, NBAII (NIM) ; 1♀, Forestry College Sirsi , 08.xii.2007, Ex. light trap (sodium vapour lamp), Umeshkumar, I. S., NBAII (NIM) ; 1♀, Hesaraghatta , 1.xii.2008, Umeshkumar (NIM) ; 1♂, 1♀, B.R. Hills, Chamarajanagar , 22.viii.2007, Ex. light trap (sodium vapour lamp), Yadava Babu R.K., NBAII (NIM) ; 1♂, Bengaluru, Attur , 19.ii.2018, Prabhu, G. (NIM) ; 1♀, B.R. Hills, Chamarajanagar , 22.viii. 2007 Ex. light trap (sodium vapour lamp), Naveen Kumar, N., NBAII (NIM) ; 1♂, Shimoga , 06.x.2008, Ex. light trap (sodium vapour lamp), Yeshwanth, H.M., NBAII (NIM) ; 1♀, Bangalore, Hebbal , 04.ix.2013, Salini, S. (NIM) ; Tamil Nadu: 1♀, Annamalai Univ. Campus , 11°23'N, 79°43'E, 4.ii.2010, Umeshkumar, NBAII (NIM) .

Redescription.

Colouration (Figs 1 , 2 ). Head above, pronotum, scutellum (paler basally), and hemelytra pale brown with mosaic of ochraceous irregular patches; apex of scutellum with outer margin, black; circumference of body (head, pronotum, anterolateral margin of hemelytra and abdomen) and minute spinous projection at posterolateral end of abdominal sternites, black; antennae pale; membrane pale brown, translucent; head and thorax (ventral side), ventral side of abdomen medially, pale yellowish and outer narrow marginal area pale brown; legs (apical 1/2 of claws black) and labium (apical 1/2 of segment IV of labium concolourous to abdomen.

Integument and vestiture. Body above covered with coarse, dark brown punctures; head (ventrally) and thoracic pleura with coarse, brown punctures; abdominal sternites (lateral region surrounding the subrounded fields enclosing the spiracle) with fine, brown punctures. Body glabrous except antennae and legs moderately pilose. Male genitalia with ventral rim including the posterolateral lobes of the genital capsule, possessing short, golden setae. Female genitalia with valvifers VIII and IX, laterotergites VIII and IX, and abdominal segment X provided with short setae.

Structure. See the generic redescription.

Male genitalia. Genital capsule (Figs 8 , 10 - 20 ) nearly quadrangular with posterolateral lobes (= caudal lobes) well developed. Dorsal rim wide and excavated nearly as deep as ventral rim with wavy outline; 1+1 triangular, blunt projection on inner side adjacent to the dorso- lateral wall of the dorsal rim. A short, sclerotised tooth (st) at middle and anterior to dorsal rim. Ventral rim medially wide U-shaped with a narrow median emargination, infoldings of ventral rim well developed with a 1+1 angulate process (ap) sublaterally. A pair each of superior processes of dorsal rim and parameres present. Superior processes of dorsal rim slightly sclerotised, lamellate with serrated outer margin. Parameral crown forked at apex, short neck and plate-like apodeme (ad). Articulatory apparatus. Support bridge complex excavated U-shaped on dorsal side, with two broad arm-like structures, for which the cone-like capitate processes attached (Fig. 17 ) with dorsal connectives. Phallus. Phallotheca twice as wide as long, dorsal region bulbous (Fig. 20 ) and ventral margin slightly concave towards proximal end (in lateral view); a pair of large, membranous, dorsal conjunctival processes (dcp), bilobed apically; caudal region of each lobe of dorsal conjunctival processes with elongate, narrow strip ending in the hooked sclerotised tips. Dorsal conjunctival process enclosing the base of sclerotised processes of aedeagus on its dorsal and lateral sides. Processes of aedeagus (pa) fused into tongue-like structure, contralateral counterparts medially forming as flap-like lobes (positioned in vertical plane to the plane of processes of aedeagus), slightly longer than aedeagus and enclosing it laterally, extreme apices fused medially, forming a median fusion line, but with shallow U-notch at the apex. Aedeagus short, tubular with oblique phallotreme.

Female genitalia. (Figs 21-23 ). Valvifers VIII transverse, broad and roughly subquadrangular, with medial margins slightly concave posteriorly; inner posterolateral angles angulate; posterior margin straight; valvifers IX single, transverse, large subtrapezoidal sclerite; laterotergites IX oblique, elongate, broadly rounded caudal apex; laterotergites VIII subtriangular connected each other with a narrow, straight region; caudal margin of laterotergite VIII medially with short but wide triangular projection. A pair of ring sclerites (rs) elongate oval. Spermatheca. Spermathecal dilation long, regularly, obliquely fluted at distal end and with another short dilation proximally; both dilations connected by a narrow median region; distal spermathecal duct narrow and longer than proximal one; proximal spermathecal duct narrow and tubular; proximal flange shorter than distal flange; apical receptacle (ar) elongate, constricted at middle, forming a double globular shape with four ductules, of which one elongate, facing towards distal rim and not reaching distal rim.

Measurements

(mm). Males (n = 5) as median (minimum-maximum). Body length 12.15 (10.13-15.85); head: length 1.71 (1.57-1.97), width (including eyes) 2.99 (2.61-3.51), interocular width 1.65 (1.51-1.88); lengths of antennomeres: I -0.55 (0.48-0.64), II - 1.16 (0.96-1.41), III - 1.40 (1.21-1.77), IV - 1.64 (1.43-1.97), V - 1.38 (1.19-1.54); lengths of labiomeres: I- 0.80 (0.61-1.03), II- 1.35 (1.10-1.66), III- 1.07 (1.00-1.18), IV- 0.64 (0.55-0.77); pronotum: length 2.99 (2.45-3.88), width (including humeri) 6.99 (6.12-8.31); scutellum: length 4.87 (4.13-5.99), width (at basal angles) 4.60 (4.00-5.55).

Females (n = 5) as median (minimum-maximum). Body length 11.54 (11.08-11.94); head: length 1.63 (1.56-1.66), width (including eyes) 2.98 (2.89-3.03), interocular width 1.65 (1.60-1.75); lengths of antennomeres: I -0.45 (0.42-0.47), II - 1.07 (1.01-1.13), III - 1.30 (1.27-1.32), IV - 1.53 (1.41-1.60), V -1.21 (1.18-1.24); length of labiomeres: I -0.67 (0.63-0.71), II -1.25 (1.13-1.33), III - 1.02 (0.98-1.13), IV - 0.62 (0.59-0.65); pronotum: length 3.12 (2.83-3.33), width (including humeri) 6.92 (6.77-7.03); scutellum: length 4.89 (4.73-5.03), width (at basal angles) 4.55 (4.35-4.66).

Differential diagnosis.

This species can be differentiated by the peculiar C-shaped crown of paramere, expanded dorsal conjunctival processes with hooked distal apex and the external female genitalia characters such as the short but wide triangular projection at middle the caudal margin of laterotergites VIII and the sclerotised rod-like structure expanded to an elongate, oval structure at the proximal end, beyond spermathecal dilation.

Bionomics.

Specimens of A. bambusana were collected mainly by light trap, a few were also collected from its host plant bamboo, Bambusa vulgaris Schrad. ex. J.C. Wendl (Distant, 1918). A cluster of eggs were collected on outer surface of young sprout of bamboo. The eggs were pearl-white in colour and were laid in groups of five or six (Fig. 6 ).

Distribution.

This species is presently only known from India. Distant (1918) described this species from Karnataka. It is also recorded from Tamil Nadu (this paper). Salini and Viraktamath (2015) reported this species from southern part of India with illustration of habitus (dorsal and ventral) and also the external scent efferent system.

Figures

Figures 1 - 6. Acesines bambusana Distant 1 habitus (dorsal) 2 habitus (ventral) 3 external scent efferent system (arrow showing the peritreme) 4 head (dorsal) 5 pronotum 6 eggs in clusters. Scale bars: 1 mm (1 - 3); 0.5 mm (4 - 6).

Figures 7 - 12. Acesines bambusana Distant 7 metasternal carina (arrow showing the hollowed out or grooved metasternal carina) 8 posterior apex of male abdomen 9 posterior apex of female abdomen 10 genital capsule (dorsal) 11 genital capsule (ventral) 12 genital capsule (caudal). Scale bars: 0.5 mm (7 - 9); 0.1 mm (10 - 12). Abbreviations: ap-angular process; st-short sclerotised tooth.

Figures 13 - 19. Acesines bambusana Distant 13, 14 parameres (different planes) 15, 16 superior processes of dorsal rim (different planes) 17 articulatory apparatus 18 phallus (ventral) 19 phallus (dorsal). Scale bars: 0.1 mm. Abbreviations: ad- apodeme; dcp- dorsal conjunctival processes.

Figures 20 - 25. Acesines bambusana Distant 20 phallus (lateral) 21 terminalia (dorsal) 22 terminalia (ventral) 23 spermatheca 24 syntype label Mick Webb, NHM, London, UK 25 syntype (dorsal habitus), courtesy P. Kment. Abbreviations: ar-apical receptacle; pa-processes of aedeagus; vf VIII-valvifers VIII; vf IX-valvifers IX; lt VIII-laterotergite VIII; lt IX-laterotergite IX. Scale bars: 0.1 mm (20 - 23).