Xestocoris nitens Van Duzee

O’Donnell, Jane E., 2007, A new species of Xestocoris Van Duzee, with comments on the genus (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Rhyparochromidae: Rhyparochrominae), Zootaxa 1606, pp. 51-57 : 53-54

Xestocoris nitens Van Duzee

Xestocoris nitens Van Duzee 1906 , p. 390;

Type: Van Duzee (1906) described this species from 9 examples taken at Colden (8 individuals) and Buffalo (1 individual), New York. I have seen 8 of these 9 specimens, all with an “EPVanDuzee Collection” label on them. Van Duzee did not designate a holotype, nor could I find any subsequent designation of a lectotype in the literature, so these specimens are all syntypes despite the labels on them. 2 specimens (on the same pin) from CAS bear a red “ Paratype ” label, with “ nitens ” handwritten below “ Paratype ”, from Colden; in addition, there are 3 more specimens (2 pointed on one pin) in CAS with yellow “ Paratype ” labels from Colden, also with “ nitens ” handwritten below “ Paratype ”. There is another specimen from the same place and date in the Smithsonian with a red “co-type” label (“ USNM no. 12245”), and with a separate handwritten “ Xestocoris nitens ” label; another CAS specimen collected by Ph. Fischer at Buffalo bears a yellow paratype label with “ nitens ” handwritten on it. CAS Type no. 1977 is labeled “ Lectotype ”, with “ nitens ” handwritten beneath “ Lectotype.” It appears that all these labels were written by the same hand; the sample of Van Duzee’s handwriting provided by the California Academy of Sciences indicates that these labels were probably all written by Van Duzee himself. I hereby designate CAS Type no. 1977 as the Lectotype, following Van Duzee’s intent, and have attached a new label so stating. The Lectotype ( Figure 2 ) is redescribed below.

Redescription: Female; small, elongate-oval, shining, hairy, brachypterous. Pleural and sternal surfaces shining.Total body length 3.52; maximum width, across hemelytra at level of apex of clavus, 1.44. Head, third and fourth antennal segments (fourth is missing on the lectotype; color discerned from topotypic female paralectotype), disk of pronotum, scutellum, visible terga, and all of venter chestnut, tinged with amber on tylus, anterior and posterior pronotal margins, acetabula, and posterior margins of propleuron and metapleuron. First two antennal segments, labium, femora, and mid and hind tibiae amber; hemelytron paler, cream color laterally.

Head nearly smooth, convex across vertex, with only indistinct shallow rugosities; eyes small, ocelli present; length head 0.60; preocular length 0.40; length eye 0.20; width across eyes 0.76; interocular width 0.48. Antennae with first segment surpassing apex of tylus by about one-half its length; length antennal segment I 0.48; II 0.52; III 0.40; IV 0.48 (from topotypic female paralectotype). Head beneath moderately swollen on either side of midline. Length labial segments I 0.88; II 0.88; III 0.36; IV 0.32.

Thorax: Pronotum quadrate, flat; anterior margin slightly concave; collar not well-differentiated, represented by only a few punctures, remainder of pronotum impunctate; posterior margin straight; lateral margins nearly straight, very narrowly carinate; trichobothrium removed from anterolateral corner by about the width of an eye; transverse impression obsolete mesally, very shallow laterally; length pronotum 0.76; width across trichobothria 0.84; width across humeri 1.16. Scutellum flat, only slightly raised along anterior margin, with row of punctures laterally and several scattered punctures between; length scutellum 0.68; width scutellum 0.64. Clavus with 3 rows of punctures; length claval commissure 0.40. Corium with distinct, regular row of punctures along clavus, and 3 irregular rows lateral to regular row; lateral (outer) half impunctate. Membrane reduced to a broadly rounded flap extending to level of apex of corium, no veins apparent; straight-line distance apex clavus-apex corium 0.56. Metathoracic scent gland auricle comma-shaped, raised and set off from remainder of evaporative area by a deep groove; evaporative area covering all of mesepimeron, extending in narrow band along posterior margin of mesopleuron nearly to dorsal edge of mesopleuron; occupying ventral half of metapleuron, dorsal margin nearly straight and sloping evenly posteriorly. LEGS: fore femur not much more swollen than mid or hind femora; fore femur with 4 spines, the three distal ones stout, the more proximal one not so stout as the other three; mid and hind femora mutic.

Abdomen: Sterna covered with minute appressed iridescent scale-like hairs. O’Donnell (1991) illustrates the clasper and sperm reservoir; Khan & Woodward (1979) describe and figure the spermatheca.

Distribution: Northern United States and southern Canada ( Slater 1964; Ashlock & A. Slater 1988). I have seen specimens from the following places, not previously reported in the literature: District of Columbia (CUIC), Maryland (NMNH), Michigan (UMMZ), Missouri (UMC), Nebraska (NMNH), New Jersey (SNOW), Ohio (LSU), Virginia (NMNH) and Nova Scotia (NMNH).

Figures

FIGURE 1, 4 – 7. 1, Left foreleg of holotype of Xestocoris tibialis; scale line = 0.25 mm; 4, Genital capsule of holotype of Xestocoris tibialis, lateral view; scale line =. 25 mm; 5, Genital capsule of holotype of Xestocoris tibialis, dorsal view (hairs omitted); scale line = 0.25 mm; 6, Left clasper of holotype of Xestocoris tibialis, inner view; scale line = 0.10 mm; 7, Sperm reservoir of holotype of Xestocoris tibialis, lateral view; scale line = 0.10 mm.