Macropsis puttarudriahi, Viraktamath & Yeshwanth, 2021

Viraktamath, C. A. & Yeshwanth, H. M., 2021, Three new leafhopper species of Macropsis Lewis (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae Eurymelinae: Macropsini) with a key to species from the Indian subcontinent, Zootaxa 4903 (3), pp. 353-372 : 365

Macropsis puttarudriahi sp. nov.

Figs 2 M–N, 4J, 7I, 8A–H.

Pale brownish yellow. Eyes brown. Posterior half of pronotum more brownish because of dark markings on mesoscutum visible through semi-transparent pronotum, basal triangles on mesoscutum brownish. Forewing hyaline with yellow tinge, outer apical margin brown tinged, one spot at apex of clavus, a series of tiny spots on apical margin, dark brown. Face, thoracic sternites and legs yellowish, bases of meta tibial setae fuscous.

Head obtusely angled. Crown short medially than next to eyes, not raised above level of pronotum. Face convex in profile, rugose, including eyes as wide as long. Clypellus constricted in distal 0.66, then expanded with rounded anterior margin, exceeding genal curve. Pronotum convex in profile, about half as long as wide medially, shorter than mesonotum, rugae obliquely angular, converging on median line, posterior margin concave. Forewing about 3 × as long as wide. Abdominal tergal apodemes broader than long, mesally in contact with each other; sternal (2S) apodemes, longer than wide at base more or less rectangular.

Male genitalia. Pygofer dorsal margin more or less straight, posterodorsal margin slightly rounded; ventral process well developed but reaching about half length of posterior margin, stout basally and tapered distally and pigmented. Style apophysis with a few thin long setae, twice as long as anterior part, subapically strongly constricted, apex rounded and pigmented. Aedeagus with dorsal apodeme short, preatrium well developed and longer than dorsal apodeme, shaft short, appears wider in lateral aspect with dorsal margin much less curved compared to ventral margin, with lateral triangular projection near apex, in posterior view more or less of uniform width, with apex rounded, gonopore subapical to apical on ventral margin; dorsal connective somewhat H-shaped, dorsal arms slender, long and divergent, ventral arms short.

Measurements. Male 4.1 mm long and 1.3 mm wide across eyes and across posterolateral angles of pronotum.

Material examined. HOLOTYPE ³, INDIA: Arunachal Pradesh: Khonsa, Sweep [net], 27 o 1’12” N, 95 o 34’12” E, 989 m, 11.vii.2018, Stuti ( NPC).

Etymology. This species is named in honour of late Dr M. Puttarudriah, a renowned entomologist of Karnataka, India.

Remarks. M. puttarudriahi sp. nov. has a stout and short aedeagus quite different from the other known species of the genus from the subcontinent. It resembles the aedeagus of the Chinese species M. latiaedeagus Li, Dai & Li (in Li et al. 2012) breeding on Salix sp. ( Salicaceae ) from Henan Province. However, it differs in having a much shorter ventral pygofer process (pygofer process exceeding dorsal margin in M. latiaedeagus ) and the shape of the apophysis of the style is of uniform width, abruptly constricted near apex and apex dark pigmented (apophysis of style uniformly tapering distally, tip slightly expanded in M. lataedeagus ). The basal tergal apodemes of the abdomen in the new species are broad, lobe-like and in contact with each other medially near the base compared to poorly developed widely spaced tergal apodemes in M. latiaedeagus . The host plant of the new species is unknown.

Figures

FIGURES 2 A–R. Species of Macropsis, habitus, dorsal and lateral aspects. A–B, M. krishna sp. nov.; C–D, M. kundui Rao & Ramakrishnan; E–F, M. leucasasperae Viraktamath; G–H, M. linnavuorii Viraktamath; I–J, M. nepalica Viraktamath; K–L, M. nigrolineata Viraktamath; M–N, M. puttarudriahi sp. nov.; O–P, M. shrideviae Viraktamath; Q–R, M. smitae Viraktamath.