Aposthonia guizhouensis, Chen, 2022

Chen, Zhi-Teng, 2022, Aposthonia guizhouensis sp. nov., a new webspinner of Oligotomidae (Insecta: Embioptera) from China, Zootaxa 5213 (2), pp. 190-198 : 191-194

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.5213.2.7
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:B0BE0E11-8000-4EF0-AE9B-AE01AED376A1
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7474443
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/D7344D14-FFC1-FFFC-FF61-204A240467AE
treatment provided by	Plazi
scientific name	Aposthonia guizhouensis
status	sp. nov.

Treatment

Aposthonia guizhouensis sp. nov.

Figs. 1–9 View FIGURE 1 View FIGURE 2 View FIGURE 3 View FIGURE 4 View FIGURE 5 View FIGURE 6 View FIGURE 7 View FIGURE 8 View FIGURE 9

Type material. Holotype male, ( ICJUST) China: Guizhou Province, Guiyang City, Guiyang Forest Park, 26.5499891° N, 106.766504° E, 1100 m, 6-VI-2019, Lu Qiu GoogleMaps . Paratypes: four males and four females, same locality and data as holotype ( ICJUST) GoogleMaps .

Etymology. The species is named after the type locality, Guizhou Province.

Distribution. This species is known only from Guiyang Forest Park, Guizhou Province, China.

Description

Alate male (n = 5). Head length 1.5–2.0 mm, width 0.9–1.2 mm; body length 10.0–11.0 mm, width 0.8–1.0 mm; forewing length 6.5–8.0 mm, hindwing length 6.5–7.0 mm. Head capsule dark brown ( Figs. 1–3 View FIGURE 1 View FIGURE 2 View FIGURE 3 ), near 1.5 times longer than broad with kidney-shaped small eyes, sides behind eyes near parallel, gradually converging posteriorly. Clypeus pale and near trapezoidal ( Fig. 3A View FIGURE 3 ). Labrum membranous posteriorly and laterally, anteriorly with a dark brown, elliptical sclerite ( Fig. 1 View FIGURE 1 ). Maxillary palpi brown, five-segmented; labial palpi brown and short, threesegmented ( Figs. 2 View FIGURE 2 , 3B View FIGURE 3 ). Submentum brown, near rectangular, with medial concave at both anterior and posterior margins, posterior corners slightly projected laterad ( Fig. 3B View FIGURE 3 ). Mandible dark brown. Antennae brown throughout, at least 21-segmented ( Figs. 1–2 View FIGURE 1 View FIGURE 2 ). Prothorax dark brown ( Fig. 1 View FIGURE 1 ), much shorter and narrower than head, near quadrate with subqual length and width, surface with deep transverse and longitudinal grooves; meso- and metathorax generally brown with dark margins. Wings brown with longitudinal pale stripes ( Figs. 1–2 View FIGURE 1 View FIGURE 2 ); anterior medial vein (MA) not forked. All legs dark brown except the pale articulations. Hind leg with only one basitarsal papilla ( Fig. 2 View FIGURE 2 ).

Abdomen brown throughout with terminalia darker. Terminalia with left (10L) and right (10R) hemitergites of segment 10 of relatively equal size ( Figs. 4A, B View FIGURE 4 ). Process of 10L (10LP) sickle-shaped, subapically with a triangular spine pointing laterad ( Figs. 4A–D View FIGURE 4 ); process of 10R (10RP) slightly wider and much longer than 10LP, inner margin dentate, apex pointed and curved laterad ( Figs. 4A–D View FIGURE 4 ); epiproct (EP) sclerotized, length ca. two times longer than width, with concave lateral margins and rounded posterior margin ( Figs. 4A–B View FIGURE 4 ). Hypandrium (H = sternite 9) broad and rounded ( Figs. 4C–D View FIGURE 4 ). Process of H (HP) broad and near trapezoidal. Left paraproct (LPPT) broad, sclerotized, acutely pointed and hooked posterolaterally ( Figs. 4A–D View FIGURE 4 ). Left cercus-basipodite (LCB) less developed, forming a brown plate at base of left cercus. Basal segment of left cercus (LC 1) dilated distally and slightly lobed without echinulation ( Figs. 4A–D View FIGURE 4 ).

Apterous female (n = 4). Head length 1.5–2.0 mm, width 1.0– 1.2 mm; body length 11.0–12.0 mm, width 1.2–1.5 mm. Head capsule dark ( Fig. 5A–B View FIGURE 5 ), convex, slightly longer than wide. Eyes dark, smaller than in male. Submentum rectangular ( Fig. 5B View FIGURE 5 ). Antennae with at least 22 segments, basal 14–17 segments brown, distal segments pale ( Figs. 5A–B View FIGURE 5 ). Prothorax entirely pale; meso- and metathorax generally brown. Foreleg with pale femur, tibia and pale brown apical two tarsal segments; tibia of mid leg and hind leg with both ends conspicuously pale ( Figs. 5A–B View FIGURE 5 ). Hind leg with only one basitarsal papilla ( Figs. 5B View FIGURE 5 ). Abdomen brown throughout, similar to meso- and metathorax. Tenth tergum elongated posteriorly ( Fig. 6A View FIGURE 6 ); tenth sternum symmetrically divided longitudinally into two lateral plates ( Fig. 6B View FIGURE 6 ). Cerci entirely dark brown ( Figs. 5A–B View FIGURE 5 ).

DNA barcode. The obtained COI sequence of A. guizhouensis sp. nov. was 678 bp in length. The genetic distance between A. guizhouensis sp. nov. and all other sequenced congeners is a high value of over 0.2 ( Fig. 7A View FIGURE 7 ), which excludes its identity with these congeners. The NJ and ML trees generated very similar tree topology ( Figs. 7B–C View FIGURE 7 ), where A. guizhouensis sp. nov. clustered with an unidentified species from Mexico, Aposthonia sp. KBMEB165 (accession No. JQ907087 View Materials ). However, the high sequence divergence (0.2) and the remarkable geographical isolation exclude conspecific status of the two species.

Remarks. The new species is assigned to genus Aposthonia instead of Oligotoma or Eosembia on the basis of the following combination of characters: absence of mesal lobing of the left cercus-basipodite (LCB) in the male; hind basitarsus with single ventral papilla in both male and female ( Ross 2007, Poolprasert et al. 2011a, b). The presence of an outer subapical spine on 10LP in combination with the apically pointed and out-curved 10RP can easily separate A. guizhouensis sp. nov. from all other species of Aposthonia ( Poolprasert et al. 2011a) . The new species can be distinguished from A. borneensis , the only known Aposthonia species from China, by the small eyes, different shapes of 10LP, 10RP, HP and LPPT in the male and by the apparently different body color in the female (see Figs. 2–3 View FIGURE 2 View FIGURE 3 in Poolprasert et al. 2011a). The DNA barcode of A. guizhouensis sp. nov. also exhibits a high ratio of sequence divergence from all included sequences of A. borneensis ( Fig. 7A View FIGURE 7 ), strongly supporting A. guizhouensis sp. nov. as a distinct different species from A. borneensis .

Aposthonia guizhouensis sp. nov. is common in Guiyang Forest Park, inhabiting various habitats from dirt road in wild jungle ( Figs. 8A–C View FIGURE 8 ) to man-made stone railings and columns ( Figs. 9A–C View FIGURE 9 ). There are also numerous examples of adults of A. guizhouensis sp. nov. in Guiyang City. Their abundance is evidence that Guiyang City is a warm area with a high humidity and plenty of vegetable matter such as dead leaves and lichens. The Embioptera fauna in China lacks systematic investigation and is apparently underestimated. More undescribed webspinners are expected to be discovered in this vast area.