Aleeta, Moulds, 2003

Moulds, M. S., 2003, An Appraisal of the Cicadas of the Genus Abricta Stål and Allied Genera (Hemiptera: Auchenorrhyncha: Cicadidae), Records of the Australian Museum 55, pp. 245-304 : 263

Genus Aleeta n.gen.

Type species. Cicada curvicosta Germar, 1834 .

Included species. curvicosta (Germar) .

Etymology. Derived from the Greek aleton meaning flour or meal and pertaining to the flour-like “dusting” partly covering the body of A. curvicosta , resulting from the fine silver body pubescence. This pubescence is easily abraded and is often substantially lacking on older adults.

Diagnosis. Postclypeus slightly produced. Rostrum reaching or just passing bases of hind coxae. Width of head including eyes equal to, or slightly wider than, anterior pronotum and equal to, or narrower than, mesonotum; width of abdomen as wide as thorax. Pronotal collar narrow with lateral angles ampliate and rounded; rudimentary and essentially confluent with adjoining sclerites anterior of lateral angles. Wings hyaline. Fore wing with infuscation at bases of apical cells 2 and 3; costal margin ampliate to node, the maximum dilation greater than width of costal vein; basal cell usually with translucent pigmentation. Hind wing with plaga along much of vein 3A plus inner margin of anal lobe and along length of vein 2A; plaga bordered by black infuscation that is partly expanded along wing margin at distal end of 2A. Tymbals ( Fig. 20) with 11–13 long ribs (usually 12) evenly spaced but slightly converging dorsally; basal plate small. Male opercula tending tear-drop in shape, weakly angled inwards before midpoint; nearly flat; not quite meeting; extending laterally beyond lateral margins of abdomen and distally a little beyond tympanal cavities. Newly emerged individuals bear fine silver pubescence over much of body and along basal fore wing veins.

Male genitalia ( Figs. 46, 47) with apical spine of pygofer large, long and pointed; upper pygofer lobes much shorter than apical spine, tending bilobed; pygofer basal lobes divided into primary outer and secondary inner lobes, the outer lobe in lateral view substantially webbed to inner lobe. Uncal lobes widely separated, beak-like, downturned; no lateral process at base of uncus. Aedeagus in lateral view straight or gently curved for most of its length, basal plate a fused pair of nearly circular discs; conjunctival claws directed ventrally, claw-like with no associated sclerotization, flattened, broad in lateral view, narrow in ventral view, apex simple and pointed; a small sublateral rounded flange either side of theca near distal end; palearis absent.

Female abdominal segment 9 long, clearly more than half as long as abdominal remainder, nearly conical; ovipositor ( Fig. 8) long with strong dorsal downward slope in lateral view; ovipositor sheath terminating about level with, or slightly extending beyond, apex of dorsal beak.

Distinguishing features. Male genitalia show features unique within the Abricta complex of genera: the beaklike uncal lobes and the partially bifurcate upper pygofer lobes do not occur elsewhere in the Abricta complex, while the pair of sublateral flanges near the distal end of the theca and the laterally flattened conjunctival claws are unknown in any other Cicadoidea . The broad male opercula, which extend clearly beyond the lateral margins of the abdomen, are also unique within the Abricta complex of genera. The strongly ampliate fore wing costa is shared with Tryella but is otherwise only found in a few distantly related genera.

Remarks. The distinctive nature of this monotypic genus is also reflected in its genetic makeup. Allozyme electrophoresis revealed a high number of fixed differences between A. curvicosta and some allied species examined, reflecting the high genetic dissimilarity and long genetic distance between A. curvicosta and Tryella species (Serkowski & Moulds, unpub. data). Further, phylogenetic analyses of both electrophoretic and morphological data confirm the evolutionary distinctiveness of A. curvicosta from its sister group Tryella (Serkowski & Moulds, unpub. data, and Figs. 15–17). See also discussion under Rationale for new taxa (pp. 254–255).

Distribution. The single species included in this genus occurs in eastern Australia from northern Queensland to southern New South Wales.