Ranatra, Fabricius, 1790

Polhemus, Dan A. & Polhemus, John T., 2013, Guide To The Aquatic Heteroptera Of Singapore And Peninsular Malaysia. X. Infraorder Nepomorpha-Famlies Belostomatidae And Nepidae, Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 61 (1), pp. 25-45 : 32

Genus RANATRA Fabricius, 1790

( Figs. 8–29 )

Discussion. — Members of this genus are elongate, yellowish-brown colored insects that are usually found along the margins of lentic ecosystems amid tangles of submerged sticks and weeds, which they closely resemble. The genus is pantropical in distribution, with 123 species currently recognised (exclusive of subspecies), of which 69 occur in the New World, and 54 in the Old World, with no species shared between the two hemispheres (J. Polhemus & D. Polhemus 2008). This genus was revised for Southeast Asia by Lansbury (1972), with subsequent descriptions of new species from the region by Nieser & Chen (1991), Nieser (1996, 1997), Zettel (1999), Chen et al. (2004), Tran & Polhemus (2012) and D. Polhemus & J. Polhemus (2013), and additional records from China provided by Nieser et al. (2005).

Figures

Fig. 8. Ranatra longipes Stål, female, specimen from Indonesia, Java, Bogor.

Figs. 9–10. Ranatra species, left lateral view of head.9, R. parmata, specimen from Indonesia, Sumbawa (CL 2172). 10, R. thai, specimen from Thailand, Chiang Mai Prov. (CL 2201).

Figs. 11–18. Ranatra species, male left parameres, outer view with detail of distal hook. 11, 12, R. gracilis, specimen from Laos, Vientiane Prov. 13, 14, R. parmata, specimen from Indonesia, Sumbawa (CL 2172). 15, 16, R. spinifrons, specimen from Malaysia, Selangor. 17, 18, R. varipes, specimen from Laos, Khammouane Prov.

Figs. 19–24. Ranatra species, male left parameres, outer view with detail of distal hook. 19, 20, R. longipes, specimen from Singapore, Nee Soon. 21, 22, R. thai, specimen from Thailand, Chiang Mai Prov. (CL 2201). 23, 24, R. rafflesi, specimen from Singapore, Selatar Reservoir.

Figs. 25, 26. Ranatra species, male phallotheca, right lateral view. 25, R. longipes, specimen from Singapore, Nee Soon.26, R. rafflesi, specimen from Singapore, Selatar Reservoir.

Figs. 27–29. Ranatra species, forelegs. 27, R. longipes longipes, specimen from Singapore, Nee Soon.28, R. rafflesi, specimen from Singapore, Selatar Reservoir. 29, R. varipes, specimen from Laos, Khammouane Prov.