Morsina gomerae, Gnezdilov & López & Suárez, 2023

Gnezdilov, Vladimir M., López, Heriberto & Suárez, Daniel, 2023, Family Nogodinidae (Hemiptera: Fulgoroidea) from the Canary Islands, with the description of a new species of the genus Morsina Melichar, 1902, Zootaxa 5231 (5), pp. 567-574 : 568-572

Morsina gomerae sp. nov.

( Figs 1–16 )

Diagnosis. Metope elongate, twice as long as wide below eyes, with distinct median carina only. Coryphe transverse, 1.5 times as wide as long medially. Forewings well developed, reaching far beyond abdominal apex. Hind wings well developed, 3-lobed, with simple A 1. Aedeagus without ventral hooks. Style with short capitulum. Hind margins of pygofer concave, without processes. Anal tube with lateral margins without lobe-shaped processes. Total length: males— 6–7 mm, females— 8–9 mm.

Description. Metope elongate, twice as long as wide below eyes, enlarged below eyes, with distinct median carina running from its upper margin but not reaching metopoclypeal suture; sublateral carinae indistinct ( Fig. 3 ). Upper margin of metope straight; lateral margins slightly foliate below eyes. Metopoclypeal suture distinct, weakly convex. Postclypeus large, slightly flattened dorso-ventrally, with lateral carinae. Anteclypeus with lateral carinae. Pedicel globular. Ocelli present. Rostrum long, reaching hind margins of pygofer in males and hind margin of sternite VII in females; 2 nd segment nearly 1.3 times as long as 3 rd one which is narrowing apically. Coryphe transverse, 1.5 times as wide as long medially, depressed, with swellings in its posterior corners; anterior margin strongly convex; posterior margin concave ( Figs 1, 2 ). Eyes large, each nearly 0.5 as wide as coryphe. Pronotum tuberculate, except median line, slightly longer than coryphe, with strongly convex anterior margin (almost up to anterior margins of eyes) and strongly concave medially posterior margin. Paradiscal fields of pronotum wide behind eyes. Paranotal lobes of pronotum large, nearly square, flat, with slightly bent lower margins. Mesonotum twice as long as pronotum, with distinct lateral carinae. Tegulae large. Forewings elongately oval, without hypocostal plate, reaching far beyond abdominal apex. Clavus long, ¾ of whole wing-length, closed (Pcu + A 1 joined A 2 before claval apex); claval apex reaching genital block ( Figs 1, 2 , 15 ). Costa distinct. Rather wide precostal area. Basal cell large, oval. Radius firstly forking closely to basal cell; R 1 and R 2 also forking apically. Median running from basal cell near to radius, firstly forking at basal ¼ of wing; M 1 and M 2 also forking in apical third of wing. Cubitus anterior forking near wing middle; CuA 1 also forking apically. Forewing vein sequence: R 6; M 4–6; CuA 3–4. Hind wings slightly shorter than forewings, 3-lobed, with weak cubital and vannal clefts; costal margin with coupling lobe ( Fig. 16 ). Basal cell large, oval. Hind wing vein sequence: R 4, firstly forking before coupling lobe, R 1 and R 2 forking after coupling lobe; r-m 1; M 2, forking apically, with return vein basally; m-cua 1; CuA 4, firstly forking at wing middle, CuA 1 forking after coupling lobe; CuP 1; Pcu 1; A 1 1; A 2 1. Hind tibia with three lateral and 11 apical spines. First metatarsomere 1.5 times as long as second one, with two lateroapical and 11 intermediate spines. Second metatarsomere with only two lateroapical spines. First and second metatarsomeres with long setae ventrally. Third metatarsonere as long as second. Arolium of pretarsus not reaching beyond claw apices, with concave hind margin (in dorsal view). Dorso-lateral plates of arolium narrow.

Coloration. Generally light yellow. Metope, preocular fields, coryphe, pro- and mesonotum with dense dark brown to black dots which are fused somewhere in large spots. Pedicel light yellow proximally and brown in its distal half. Flagellum dark brown. Postclypeus light yellow, with weak oblique light brown stripes. Anteclypeus light yellow, with four light brown spots. Rostrum black apically. Ocelli yellow. Tegulae with light brown dots. Mesonotum with median line and lateral carinae light yellow to light brown. Forewings whitish, with brown to dark brown veins and with dark brown dots and spots on veins and in cells of corium and clavus. Clavus with dark brown to black spot on apex. Hind wings whitish, with light brown veins. Fore and middle femora and tibiae with sparse brown dots. Hind femora with light brown dots proximally outside. Leg spine apices black. Claws dark brown. Abdominal tergites with dense dark brown to black dots often fused in large areas.

Female sternite VII with black lateral margin. Anal tube with dense dark brown dots. Gonoplacs brown yellow, with dark brown lateral areas and whitish marginal parts. Gonocoxae VIII with black proximal margins.

Male genitalia ( Figs 5–14 ). Pygofer wide, with concave hind margins ( Fig. 8 ). Anal tube elongate, enlarged apically, with nearly straight apical margin (in dorsal view) ( Fig. 11 ); its lateral margin without lobe-shaped processes (in lateral view) ( Fig. 12 ). Anal column wide and long, 1/3 of anal tube length. Phallobase strongly curved (in lateral view), with enlarged apically dorso-lateral lobes. Each dorso-lateral phallobase lobe bearing three processes ( Figs 5, 6 , shaded, not marked): long and narrow, curved hook on its ventral margin, directed downwards at the middle; short claw-shaped process dorsally above the hook; semicircular lobe-shaped process with marginal spines below the hook. Phallobase with unpaired nearly cylindrical dorsal process directed downwards, with denticles ( Figs 5, 7 , dp). Ventral phallobase lobe long and wide, concave apically, with two long narrow lateroapical processes tucked under lateral margins of the lobe and directed upwards ( Figs 5, 6 , lp). Aedeagus not visible above the phallobase, without ventral hooks. Style vertically elongate, with short capitulum ( Figs 9, 10 ). Connective with large cup ( Figs 13, 14 ).

Female terminalia ( Fig. 4 ). Sternite VII with widely and deeply concave hind margin. Anal tube short. Gonoplacs flat, nearly triangular, without marginal denticles.

Type material. Holotype, ♂, Canary Islands, La Gomera, San Sebastián, La Hoya : 28R 291924 3110489 , 240 m. a.s.l., 7.IV.2021, D. Suárez leg. ( ZIN) . Paratypes: 2♂♂, 2♀♀, Canary Islands, La Gomera, San Sebastián, La Hoya : 28R 291924 3110489 , 240 m. a.s.l., 7.IV.2021, D. Suárez leg. ( ZIN — 1♂, 1♀; IPNA — 1♂, 1♀) .

Etymology. The species is named after the island.

Comparison. This new species is close to Morsina ainsefra ( Holzinger, 2019) from Algeria according to distinct median carina of metope only, but differs considerably in its male anal tube without lateral processes and short capitulum of style ( Figs 9, 12 ). The above-mentioned genital characters bring the new species close to M. gnezdilovi ( Holzinger, 2019) from Morocco, but the latter is peculiar in its short forewings ( Holzinger 2019, figs 5D, 6A). The dorsal phallobase process of the new species ( Fig. 5 , dp) is homologous with the hollow cylindrical projection of the phallobase of M. aculeata Gnezdilov, 2017 , from the United Arab Emirates ( Gnezdilov 2017b, figs 5, 6, c). The last species also has short style capitulum.

Figures

FIGURE 15. Morsina gomerae sp. nov., female paratype, forewing. Out of scale.

FIGURE 16. Morsina gomerae sp. nov., holotype, hind wing. Out of scale.

FIGURES 1–4. Morsina gomerae sp. nov. 1—female paratype, dorsal view; 2—male paratype, dorsal view; 3—male paratype, frontal view; 4—female paratype, ovipositor, latero-ventral view. Scale bar—1 mm.

FIGURES 5–14. Morsina gomerae sp. nov., holotype, male genitalia. 5—penis, lateral view (phallobase processes are shaded); 6—same, ventral view; 7—same, caudo-dorsal view; 8—pygofer, lateral view; 9—style, lateral view; 10—same, dorsal view from inner side; 11—anal tube, dorsal view; 12—same, lateral view; 13—connective, dorsal view; 14—same, lateral view. Abbreviations: dp—dorsal phallobase process; lp—lateroapical processes of ventral phallobase lobe. Out of scale.