Hydrometra butleri Hungerford and Evans, 1934

Jehamalar, E. Eyarin & Chandra, Kailash, 2014, On the genus Hydrometra Latreille (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Hydrometridae) from India with description of two new species, Zootaxa 3779 (5), pp. 501-517 : 502-509

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.3779.5.1
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:6B08D969-5277-4CFE-8F90-DAB07755D272
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6124805
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/0B5E8796-FFB4-FF89-AE96-030BFD12865A
treatment provided by	Plazi
scientific name	Hydrometra butleri Hungerford and Evans, 1934
status

Treatment

Hydrometra butleri Hungerford and Evans, 1934 View in CoL

( Figs. 1A–B View FIGURES 1 A – H , 2A–B View FIGURES 2 A – H , 3A–B View FIGURES 3 A – H , 4A–B View FIGURES 4 A – H , 5A–B View FIGURES 5 A – H )

Hydrometra butleri Hungerford and Evans, 1934: 71 View in CoL (type locality: Kodaikanal, Tamil Nadu, India).

Material examined. ASSAM, Barpeta District, Kapla Beel, 20.x.2012, 2 ♀ (mac.), Coll. Alakesh Barman; MADHYA PRADESH, Jabalpur District, CZRC, ZSI Residential Colony, 26.ix.2010, 2 ♂ (mac.), 3 ♀ (mac.)., 2.x.2010, 7 ♂ (mac.), 12 ♀ (mac.), Coll. E. Eyarin Jehamalar, (Reg. No. 2543/H15, 2544/H15); TAMIL NADU, Kanyakumari District, Nagercoil, Pond in Scott Christian College campus, 60 m, N 08°10’58.2’’, E 077°24’20.3’’, 4.iii.2008, 2 ♂ (mac.), 1 ♀ (brapt.), 1 ♀ (mac.), Coll: E. E. Jehamalar, (Reg. No. 2537/H15); Cherukole village, 131.2 ft [40 m], N 08°18’17.9’’, E 077°15’33.6’’, 25.xi.2011, 1 ♂, Coll. E.H.R. Deasingh, (Reg. No. 2541/H15); Nagercoil, Scott Christian College Pond, 31.i.2008, 3 ♂ (mac.), 1 ♀ (mac.), (Reg. No. 2830/H15)., 20.viii.2008, 2 ♂ (mac.), (Reg. No. 2833/H15), Coll. E.E. Jehamalar; WEST BENGAL, South 24 Parganas District, Chousa Village, 19.xi.2011, 1 ♀, Coll. Babu Sona Mondal, (Reg. No. 2542/H15); Hoogli District, Pandua, 29.i.1966, 2 ♂ (mac.), 4 ♀ (mac.), Coll. KSPV, (Reg. No. 2821/H15).

Repository. All the examined materials are deposited in National Zoological Collection, Hemiptera Section , ZSI, Kolkata, except the specimens from Assam, which will be returned to the collector Mr. Alakesh Barman.

Diagnosis. Macropterous ♂ length range from 9.53–10.6 (n=5) and macropterous ♀ 10.9–12.24 (n=5); seventh abdominal sternum of male swollen and sublateral region on mid way with a pair of small round patch of short setae on each side and adjacent to this with little longer setae continued upto postero-laterally of the segment ( Figs. 4A View FIGURES 4 A – H , 5A View FIGURES 5 A – H ); caudal process of female fringed with short hairs ( Figs. 3B View FIGURES 3 A – H , 4B View FIGURES 4 A – H , 5B View FIGURES 5 A – H ); anteclypeus conical with blunt tip ( Fig. 2A, B View FIGURES 2 A – H ), mostly occur in macropterous form.

Redescription: Macropterous male: ( Fig. 1A View FIGURES 1 A – H ). Body length 10 (range 9.53–10.6, n=5); maximum body width (across metacetabula) 0.64 (range 0.61–0.67, n=5).

Colour: Brown both dorsal and ventral; head ventral region anterior, posterior and between eyes yellow to brown; antenna brown, except at the base of I–III segments, yellow; eyes, antennal tubercles, rostrum and anteclypeus brown and shiny; maxillary plate milky white and shiny; legs yellow and apices of femora and tibiae and entire tarsi dark brown; post ocular region with median longitudinal faint white pruinose line, continued posteriorly, distinctly along pronotal lobe; sublateral region along the midway on each side of pronotal lobe with broad dark brown to black hue; wing brownish with central longitudinal white stripe, without interrupted except at cross veins ( Fig. 1A View FIGURES 1 A – H ); setal patch on sternum VII pale brown; mediotergites dark brown and shiny, except tergites VII and VIII; latero-tergites (= connexivum) with prominent pruinose areas; lateral region of tergite VIII with white pruinose area ¾ area distance from anterior margin.

Structural characters: Head length 2.89 mm, maximum head width across eyes 0. 43 mm; head width across antennal tubercle 0.38; anteocular length 1.85, post ocular length 0.82; antennal tubercle length 0.08, antennal tubercle width 0.05; head anterior region with two pairs of trichobothria and posterior region with one pair of trichobothria; antennal length, segments I–IV 0.48, 1.15, 2.28, 1.30; anteclypeus conical with blunt tip and convexed posterior margin ( Fig. 2A, B View FIGURES 2 A – H ), anteclypeus length along midline 0.13; outer margin of maxillary plate straight, in lateral view slightly extending anterior margin of gular lobe but not extending in front of anteclypeus; gular lobe well developed, outer margin rounded; rostrum at rest reaching near sub-basal region of head; eye length 0.24, eye width 0.16, dorsal minimum width between eyes 0.10. Prothorax with a ring of punctures surrounds anterior region of pronotum, prominent both dorsally and ventrally; pronotal lobe with numerous pits in posterior part ( Fig. 1A View FIGURES 1 A – H ); acetabula with few pits; pronotal lobe length 1.55; distance between procoxa and mesocoxa 0.98, distance between mesocoxa and metacoxa 1.71; prosternal length 0.52; wings surpassing anterior margin of abdominal segment VI. Legs (length). Fore leg: femur 2.67 (2.64–3.01, n=5), tibia 3.12 (2.93–3.50), tarsus I–III 0.07 (0.06–0.08), 0.28 (0.27–0.45), 0.21 (0.20–0.22); mid leg: femur 3.15 (3.09–3.67), tibia 3.52 (3.29–4.66), tarsus I–III 0.07 (0.07), 0.41 (0.39–0.45), 0.24 (0.23–0.25), MTaI 1.70 (1.69–1.86); hind leg: femur 3.81 (3.67– 4.09), tibia 4.86 (4.66–4.86), tarsus I–III 0.07 (0.06–0.07), 0.39 (0.39–0.42), 0.22 (0.21–0.23); hind femur without any specialized long hairs. Abdomen: length 4.09; anterior width of sternum V 0.51; connexivum without characteristic pilosity, connexival corners slightly produced, but without prominent characteristic pilosity; tergite VII and VIII clothed with minute hairs; tergite VII length 0.45, anterior width of medio-tergite VII 0.19, posterior width of medio-tergite VII 0.23; sternum VII swollen, sublateral region on mid way with a pair of small round patch of short setae on each side, adjacent to it with a line of little longer setae continued postero-laterally ( Figs. 4A View FIGURES 4 A – H , 5A View FIGURES 5 A – H ), sometimes a little gap present between setal patch and adjacent setal line; tergite VIII length including caudal process 0.39; caudal process length 0.10, less than half the length of tergite VIII.

Description. Macropterous female: ( Fig. 1B View FIGURES 1 A – H ). Body length 12.24 (range 10.90–12.24, n=5); maximum body width (across metacetabula) 0.80 (range 0.72–0.81, n=5).

Colour: Similar to male.

Structural characters: Similar to male, only measurements given here. Head length 3.19 mm, maximum head width across eyes 0.46 mm; head width across antennal tubercle 0.44; anteocular length 2.05; post ocular length 0.88; antennal length, segments I–IV 0.50, 1.21, 2.30, 1.03; anteclypeus length along midline and antennal tubercle length same, 0.12; antennal tubercle width 0.06; eye length 0.24, eye width 0.17, dorsal minimum distance between eyes 0.12. pronotal lobe length 1.80; distance between procoxa and mesocoxa 1.21, distance between mesocoxa and metacoxa 1.86; acetabula with few pits; wings surpassing anterior margin of abdominal segment V. Legs (length). Fore leg: femur 2.87 (2.57–2.94, n=5), tibia 3.30 (2.88–3.30), tarsus I–III 0.07 (0.06–0.08), 0.31 (0.22– 0.31), 0.20 (0.17–0.22); mid leg: femur 3.63 (2.97–3.63), tibia 3.80 (3.28–3.80), tarsus I–III 0.08 (0.07–0.08), 0.47 (0.39–0.47), 0.26 (0.21–0.26), MTaI 1.80 (1.72–2.04); hind leg: femur 4.41 (3.91–4.41), tibia 5.19 (4.32–5.19), tarsus I–III 0.08 (0.05–0.08), 0.39 (0.28–0.39), 0.25 (0.18–0.25); Abdomen: length 5.74; anterior width of tergite V 0.75; tergite VII length 0.60, anterior width of medio-tergite VII 0.20, posterior width of medio-tergite VII 0.19; caudal process fringed with numerous setae ( Figs. 3B View FIGURES 3 A – H , 4B View FIGURES 4 A – H , 5B View FIGURES 5 A – H ), caudal process length 0.20.

Brachypterous female, (n=1): Similar to macropterous female. Body length 11.54, width 0.79; antennal length, segments I–IV 0.38, 0.89, 1.80, 1.03. Legs (length). Fore leg: femur 2.60, tibia 2.91, tarsus I–III 0.07, 0.27, 0.17; mid leg, femur 2.98, tibia 3.23, tarsus I–III 0.08, 0.38, 0.18, MTaI 2.11; hind leg, femur 3.78, tibia 4.44, tarsus broken; lateral margin of pronotal lobe straight; wings surpassing anterior region of tergite II.

Distribution. INDIA: Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal. Elsewhere: Sri Lanka ( Gunawardane & Karunaratne, 1965).

Remarks. This species is very rare in collections made throughout India by ZSI, however light trap collections near a marsh at Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh and collections from Kanyakumari District, Tamil Nadu, yielded a sufficient number of H. butleri . Morphologically this species is very close to H. annamana Hungerford & Evans, 1934 , having a pair of short clusters of hairs on sternite VII in males; although in H. butleri this short cluster of setae is followed by an oblique setal line extending ventro-laterally to the posterior margin of segment VII; this setal line adjacent to the setal tuft is absent in H. annamana . Sometimes a small gap is present between the setal tuft and the setal line, in most of the specimens only the setal cluster is very prominent in H. butleri . The hind femur of H. annamana is lined with long hairs; however, in H. butleri the long hairs are absent. The female can easily be identified by the setal fringe on the caudal process.