Ruppeliana longiphallus, Mejdalani, 2017

Mejdalani, Gabriel, 2017, The Neotropical sharpshooter genus Ruppeliana Young (Insecta: Hemiptera: Cicadellidae): four new species, key to males, and new synonyms, Zootaxa 4329 (5), pp. 436-448 : 442-444

Ruppeliana longiphallus sp. nov.

( Figures 15–21 )

Total length: male holotype 9.7 mm; female paratypes 8.8–10.8 mm (n = 2).

Description. External morphology. Head ( Fig. 15 ), in dorsal view, moderately produced anteriorly; median length of crown approximately 1/2 of interocular width and almost 1/3 of transocular width; ocelli located slightly behind imaginary line between anterior eye angles, each ocellus closer to adjacent anterior eye angle than to median line of crown. Frons with central area granular; epistomal suture complete. Clypeus, in lateral view, with contour of lower portion forming angle with profile of frons; with fine pubescence at apex. Pronotum ( Fig. 15 ), in dorsal view, with lateral margins slightly convergent anteriorly; dorsopleural carinae complete, rectilinear and declivous anteriorly; posterior margin approximately rectilinear. Forewings with veins inconspicuous. Remaining characteristics of external morphology as described for the genus by Young (1977: 747).

Color ( Fig. 15 ). Anterior dorsum black with yellow maculae (some maculae, mostly on pronotum, mottled with light green). Crown, in dorsal view, with three pairs of maculae, large pair between ocelli and eyes extending onto antennal ledges and two smaller pairs, one between ocelli and another apically at transition to frons. Face mostly black with pair of central maculae on frons and small stripe extending from each antennal ledge onto frontogenal sutures and convergent on clypeus, yellow. Pronotum, in dorsal view, with pair of anterior small spots aligned with apical pair of crown, followed by three pairs of large spots, one pair central and slightly more anterior and two pairs located laterally; posterior margin bordered by irregular transverse maculae (divided into smaller maculae in holotype and one paratype); posterior two-thirds with translucent smoky red maculae covering almost all maculae on disc. Forewings dark red; base of corium with yellow small stripe close to costal margin, followed by outer elongate grey stripe; with grey spot close to claval sulcus, followed by inner elongate grey stripe; with faint grey stripe between outer and inner stripes; clavus with two basal spots followed by longitudinal stripe, grey. Lateral portions of thorax and bases of legs yellow, femora brownish-yellow and tibiae and tarsi dark brown.

Male genitalia. Pygofer ( Fig. 16 ), in lateral view, strongly produced posteriorly, posterior margin narrowly rounded; macrosetae mostly on apical half; in ventral view, with triangular median projection ending in digitiform process on ventral margin. Valve ( Figs. 16–17 ), in ventral view, with posterior margin broadly convex. Subgenital plates ( Figs. 16–17 ), in ventral view, elongate, subtriangular, gradually tapering toward apex, outer margin slightly sinuous on median third; with uniseriate row of macrosetae and, dorsally, with numerous fine setae; in lateral view, reaching pygofer apical fourth. Style ( Fig. 18 ), in dorsal view, elongate, extending posteriorly beyond apex of connective, almost reaching subgenital plate midlength; with outer preapical lobe; apical portion slightly directed outward; apex blunt. Connective ( Fig. 18 ), in dorsal view, short, stalk and arms very short, with high and long median keel. Aedeagus ( Figs. 19–20 ), in lateral view, with shaft narrow, elongate and expanded apically, slightly curved ventrally; in dorsal view, with apicodorsal median split associated with gonopore; atrium developed as ventral sheath-like portion bearing two pairs of processes, one pair basal, slender, curved slightly dorsally, not exceeding apical third of shaft, with acute apex, and another arising distad, long, robust, arcuate, with acute apex, extending approximately as far posteriorly as shaft apex.

Female with sternite VII ( Fig. 21 ), in ventral view, with slight median emargination on posterior margin.

Etymology. The specific epithet, longiphallus , is of Latin derivation and refers to the comparatively long aedeagus.

Taxonomic notes. The new species can be distinguished from the remaining ones of the genus by the elongate and slender aedeagus and the atrial pair of processes as long as the aedeagal shaft ( Fig. 19 ). Curiously, the color pattern of R. longiphallus is similar to those of Macugonalia spinolai (Signoret, 1853) and Parathona albostriata (Signoret, 1853) (see digital images in Wilson et al. 2009). The latter two sharpshooter species, like R. longiphallus , are recorded from the Atlantic Forest of Rio de Janeiro State ( Mejdalani et al. 2009).

Type material. Brazil, Rio de Janeiro State . Holotype: male, “BR/ RJ [Rio de Janeiro State], Valença \ Parque Natural Municipal \ Açude da Concórdia \ 01-03/II/2013 \ Silva, R.S., Proença, B. & Xisto, T. col.” ( MNRJ) . Paratypes: two females ( MNRJ), same data as the holotype .

Figures

FIGURES 15 – 21. Ruppeliana longiphallus sp. nov. 15, male holotype (total length 9.7 mm), dorsal view (antennae and legs not depicted), MNRJ. Male genitalia: 16, pygofer, valve, and subgenital plate, lateral view; 17, valve and subgenital plate, ventral view; 18, connective and style, dorsal view; 19, aedeagus, lateral view; 20, aedeagus, ventral view. 21, female sternite VII, ventral view.