Drabescus angulatus Signoret, 1880

Viraktamath, C. A., Webb, M. D. & Yeshwanth, H. M., 2022, Review of the leafhopper genus Drabescus Stål (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae: Deltocephalinae) in the Indian subcontinent with description of one new species, Zootaxa 5128 (2), pp. 225-247 : 228-235

Drabescus angulatus Signoret

Figs 1A–D, 2G, 3AB, 5A, 6A–F.

Drabescus angulatus Signoret 1880: 210 (120), plate 7, fig. 73; Distant 1908: 305–306, fig. 194; Ghauri 1964: 688; Zhang & Webb 1996: 24, figs 380–384, 525.

Greenish yellow with rich dark brown maculation on crown, pronotum and exposed mesonotum, some of these maculae coalesce to form irregular lines. Crown fore margin with transverse yellowish ochraceous band with dorsal and ventral dark brown margins. Eyes dark reddish brown with median transverse band in continuation of fore marginal transverse band. Face reddish brown with dark brown clypellus and dark brown maculae or entirely dark brown with outer margins of genae paler.Antennae with scape and pedicel dark brown with apices and arista reddish ochraceous brown. Forewings hyaline with brownish tinge, with dark brown maculation on forewings with a median transverse hyaline band more prominent in darker specimen (paratype male) compared to lighter one (holotype male); appendix and apical angels dark brownish; veins dark brown spotted with yellowish white.

Crown medially slightly longer than next to eyes, transversely depressed across eyes, about 5.5× as wide between eyes as median length, transition to face angulate and carinate, not rimmed. Pronotum 2.5–2.75× as wide as long medially. Fore tibia lamellately expanded.

Male genitalia. Pygofer about twice as long as height at base in lateral view, broad in basal 0.33 and then narrowed posteriorly terminated by spine-like process arising from ventral margin, dorsoposterior angle rounded. Valve with posterior margin convexly rounded about 2.4× as wide as long. Subgenital plates triangular, about 2.2× as long as wide at base; apices narrowed to form un-pigmented appendage. Style elongate, with poorly developed subapical lobe, apophysis long, slightly curved laterally and transversely striate. Connective with stem shorter than arms, distally bifid, anterior margin with prominent median lobe. Aedeagus V-shaped in lateral view, dorsal apodeme almost as long as shaft, basal processes on lateral side about as long as shaft and slightly curved in distal half in lateral view, in dorsal view apices convergent; shaft slightly broader at base and slightly narrowed in lateral view, in dorsal view with lateral marginal lamellate expansions right from base and extending to distal 0.75 shaft length as they narrow; gonopore subapical on ventral surface.

Female pregenital sternite. Sternite VII slightly longer medially than VI, posterior margin concave with a median U-shaped excavation ( Fig. 2G ).

Measurements. Male 8.1–8.2 mm long, 2.8–3.0 mm wide across eyes and 2.6–2.8 mm wide across posterolateral angles of pronotum. Female 8.2–8.4 mm long, 2.7–2.9 mm wide across eyes and 2.4–2.6 mm wide across posterolateral angles of pronotum

Material examined. INDIA: 1♂, Himachal Pradesh, Bandrol , 18.v.2016, Stuti ( NPC) ; 1♂,: Solan , 30.vii.2006, NPIB ( UASB) ; 1♀, Jammu & Kashmir: Sri Nagar , 3.x.1981, Dworakowska ; 1♀, Mizoram: Lunglei , 20.xi.1981, C.S. Wesley ( BMNH) . PAKISTAN: 1 ♂, Abbottabad , 15.vi.1963, on Asparagus (BMNH) .

Remarks. This species was described from an unknown number of female specimens (syntype (s)) with the following data: “Indes nord” in “coll. Signoret”. A type was examined by Zhang & Webb 1996: 25 and designated as lectotype. Colouration of this species is very variable. This species can easily be recognized among the species of the Indian subcontinent by the following combination of characters: male pygofer strongly and abruptly narrowed in basal 0.4 and then gradually narrowed in lateral view, about 2× as long as basal width; style almost linear and the basal processes of the aedeagus slightly shorter than the shaft in both ventral and posterior views and their apices convergent apically; female sternite VII with posterior margin concave and medially with U-shaped excavation. Ghauri (1964) was the first to record this species from Pakistan. Two females from Mizoram, Lunglei (BMNH) are externally similar to this species but have a pronounced medial longitudinal yellow band on the pronotum and mesonotum and the oblique posterior margin of the pregenital sternite either side of midline straight rather than sinuate.

Figures

FIGURES 2 A–L. Species of Drabescus from Indian subcontinent. Habitus, dorsal and lateral views (A–F) and female sternite VII (G–L). A–B, D. nervosopunctatus Signoret; C–D, D. nigrofacialis (Distant); E–F, D. shillongensis Rao; G, D. angulatus Signoret; H, D. kempi Pruthi; I, D. limbaticeps Signoret; J, D. nervosopunctatus Signoret; K, D. nigrofacialis (Distant); L, D. shillongensis Rao.