Zelus xouthos Zhang & Hart

Zhang, Guanyang, Hart, Elwood R & Weirauch, Christiane, 2016, A taxonomic monograph of the assassin bug genus Zelus Fabricius (Hemiptera: Reduviidae): 71 species based on 10,000 specimens, Biodiversity Data Journal 4, pp. 8150-8150 : 8150

Zelus xouthos Zhang & Hart sp. n.

Materials

Type status: Holotype. Occurrence: catalogNumber: UCR_ENT 00008003 ; recordedBy: W. M. Schaus; sex: Adult Male; Taxon: scientificName: Zelusxouthos; family: Reduviidae; genus: Zelus; scientificNameAuthorship: Zhang and Hart, 2016; Location: country: GUATEMALA; stateProvince: Izabal; locality: Cayuga ; verbatimElevation: 25 m; decimalLatitude: 15.5333; decimalLongitude: -88.7; georeferenceSources: Gazetteer; Identification: identifiedBy: G. Zhang; dateIdentified: 2013; Event: eventDate: 1915-05-01; Record Level: institutionCode: USNM Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: catalogNumber: UCR_ENT 00029352 ; occurrenceRemarks: Abdomen missing. Designated as allotype by Hart, unpublished. This status is not used in Zhang et al., which formally publishes this species.; recordedBy: T. H. Hubbell; sex: Adult sex unknown; Taxon: scientificName: Zelusxouthos; family: Reduviidae; genus: Zelus; scientificNameAuthorship: Zhang and Hart, 2016; Location: country: GUATEMALA; stateProvince: Peten; locality: Tikal ; decimalLatitude: 17.225; decimalLongitude: -89.6133; georeferenceSources: Gazetteer; Identification: identifiedBy: G. Zhang; dateIdentified: 2013; Event: eventDate: 1956-05-12; Record Level: institutionCode: USNM

Description

Figs 214, 215, 216

Male: (Fig. 214) Medium-sized, total length 12.59 mm (n=1, Suppl. material 2); slender. COLORATION: Entire surface brown, dorsum of head, posterior pronotal lobe, corium, clavus, apices of femora, parts of tibiae somewhat reddish. VESTITURE: Sparsely setose. Short, recumbent setae on dorsal surface of head, long recumbent setae on ventral surface; short, erect, spine-like setae on dorsum, denser on anterior lobe; few moderately long, erect, fine setae on ventral surface. Pronotum with sparse, recumbent setae and short, erect setae over dorsal surface; denser, moderately long recumbent setae on lateral surface and pleura, intermixed with semi-erect or erect setae; scutellum with sparse, semi-erect and recumbent setae. Legs with sparse setation on femora and moderately dense setation on tibiae. Corium and clavus with short, recumbent setae. Abdomen with moderately dense, short recumbent setae, intermixed with sparse, short to long, erect setae. STRUCTURE: Head: Cylindrical, L/W = 2.43. Postocular lobe long; in dorsal view distinctly narrowing through anterior 2/3, posterior 1/3 constant, tube-like. Eye prominent; lateral margin much wider than postocular lobe; dorsal margin attaining postocular transverse groove, ventral margin removed from ventral surface of head in lateral view. Labium: I: II: III = 1: 2.1: 0.4. Basiflagellomere diameter slightly larger than that of pedicel. Thorax: Anterolateral angle with inconspicuous subtuberculate projection; medial longitudinal sulcus evident throughout, deepening posteriorly. Posterior pronotal lobe with rugulose surface; disc about same level as humeral angle; humeral angle armed, with spinous processes. Scutellum moderately long; apex angulate. Legs: Very slender, femoral diameters subequal. Hemelytron: Surpassing apex of abdomen by about length of abdominal segment seven; quadrate cell small and slender; Cu and M of cubital cell subparallel. GENITALIA: (Fig. 215) Pygophore: Ovoid; not expanded laterally in dorsal view. Medial process cylindrical; slender; moderately long, much longer than paramere; minute spicules on posterior surface; semi-erect; basally slightly curved; apex in posterior view acute, with small hooklike projection. Paramere: Cylindrical; moderately long, slightly exceeding medial process; directed posteriad; apical part appearing somewhat truncate dorsally. Phallus: Dorsal phallothecal sclerite elongated; medial, longitudinal sulcus on dorsal surface; apical portion of phallothecal sclerite gradually tapering, distinctly keeled medially, laterally flat, not forming angle; apex acute; posterior margin of foramen broadly concave, accuminate in middle. Basal plate arm slender; separate, briefly touching; converging; in lateral view slightly curved; bridge short; extension of basal plate expanded laterally onto arm, covering more than 1/2 of arm.

Female: Similar to male, except for the following. Larger than male, total length 14.69 mm (n=1, Suppl. material 2).

Diagnosis

Recognized by the following combination of characters: the slender body and delicate legs, the dorsal coloration somewhat reddish; the humeral angle elevated nearly to the level of and nearly continuous with pronotal disc; the paramere uniquely shaped, long, exceeding medial process, apex somewhat obliquely truncate; and the medial process apically not compressed.

Etymology

From Greek xutho, meaning yellowish-brown, referring to the yellowish coloration.

Distribution

Central America (Fig. 216). Known only from Guatemala.

Taxon discussion

This species appears to be the most divergent of the Zelus panamensis species group. Although three other species within the same geographical range of this species, Z. janus , Z. exsanguis , Z. ambulans , also have an elevated humeral angle, their much greater sizes and features of the male genitalia should eliminate any confusion in recognizing Z. xouthos .