Stirellus neoconvexus, Naveed & Shah & Sohail & Zhang, 2020

Naveed, Hassan, Shah, Bismillah, Sohail, Kamran & Zhang, Yalin, 2020, Review of the leafhopper genus Stirellus Osborn & Ball, 1902 (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae: Deltocephalinae) with description of two new species from Pakistan, Zootaxa 4722 (5), pp. 479-485 : 481-482

Stirellus neoconvexus sp. nov.

( Figs. 7, 8 , 16–20)

Measurements. Body length (including forewing): male 3.5–3.7 mm.

Coloration: Brown to ochraceous ( Fig. 7 ). Crown with pair of dark brown spots around basal marginal ridge ( Fig. 7 ). Pronotum with brown spots in row near anterior margin ( Fig. 7 ). Eyes with longitudinal reddish brown markings ( Fig. 7 ). Face with brown markings, clypeus with parallel brown striae interrupted with median brown longitudinal band ( Fig. 8 ). Forewings with brown hue ( Fig. 7 ).

Morphology. Head subequal to pronotum, subconical, anterior margin rounded to face, acutely angled ( Fig. 7 ). Crown about 1.3x longer than breadth between eyes ( Fig. 7 ). Pronotum median length shorter than median length of crown ( Fig. 7 ). Mesonotum and scutellum shorter than pronotum ( Fig. 7 ). Forewings macropterous, extending beyond apex of abdomen ( Fig. 7 ).

Genitalia. Pygofer longer than high, with two to three macrosetae near dorsal margin, with ventral preapical tooth, apex as in figure (Fig. 16). Subgenital plates convexly rounded laterally, macrosetae irregularly arranged laterally (Fig. 17). Valve broadly triangular (Fig. 17). Style apophysis digitate, curved laterally (Fig. 18). Connective ‘H’-shaped, stem shorter than anterior arms (Fig. 18). Aedeagal shaft long, mostly straight, strongly bent near base in lateral view, with slight preapical expansion, apex blunt in lateral and posterior views (Figs. 19–20).

Type material. Holotype: ♂, Pakistan, Punjab, Murree Hills, 2291m, 2016, Coll. Hassan Naveed. ♂, Pakistan, Azad Jammu and Kashmir , Rawalakot City , 1638m, July 2017, Coll. Hassan Naveed. 2♂, Pakistan, Khyber Pakh- tunkhwa, Kumrat Valley , 2359m, August 2018, Coll. Hassan Naveed (all NWAFU).

Remarks. This species is similar to Stirellus convexus ( Thomas, 1933: 130, plate I, 2 & 2a; plate II, figs. 4, 4a, 4b) but differs in having the male pygofer side with macrosetae dorsally, the shape of the style and the aedeagal shaft with a slight dorsal expansion. This species also resembles Stirellus multipunctatus ( Duan et al. 2016: Figs, 15–16) but differs in lacking the habitus with an orange-red or brownish red band on the head interrupted medially, as well as in the pygofer and aedeagus shape.

Etymology. This species is named for its similarity to S. convexus ( Thomas, 1933) .

Figures

FIGURES 1–8. 1–2. Stirellus lahorensis (Walker) 1. habitus, dorsal view; 2. face; 3–4 Stirellus viridulus (Walker) 3. habitus, dorsal view; 4. Face; 5–6 Stirellus kumratensis sp. nov. 5. habitus, dorsal view; 6. Face; 7–8 Stirellus neoconvexus sp. nov. 7. habitus, dorsal view; 8. face.