Micronecta (Basileonecta) siva (Kirkaldy, 1897)

Ha, Tuyet Ngan & Tran, Anh Duc, 2021, Taxonomy of Micronectidae (Heteroptera: Nepomorpha) from Vietnam, with descriptions of 11 new species, European Journal of Taxonomy 756, pp. 1-82 : 15-16

Micronecta (Basileonecta) siva (Kirkaldy, 1897)

Fig. 1C

Sigara striata Fieber, 1844: 14 , pl. 1 fig. 22–24 (type locality uncertain) (junior secondary homonym of Notonecta striata Linnaeus, 1758 ) (nec Fabricius).

Sigara siva Kirkaldy, 1897a: 240 (new name for Sigara striata ).

Micronecta striata – Kirkaldy 1898: 3. — Distant 1906: 50, fig. 30 (descriptive notes). — Lundblad 1933b: 101, table IV (additional notes).

Micronecta siva – Kirkaldy 1905: 261 (list); 1908: 209 (synonyms). — Hutchinson 1940: 371–376, figs 94–100 (redescription, synonym list). — Fernando 1964: 607–608, figs 6, 13, 24, 36 (habitat, distribution). — Wróblewski 1968: 771, 776 (nomenclature, checklist); 1972a: 26, 29, figs 38, 42, tables 1–2 (key). — Jansson 1995: 29 (catalogue). — Nieser & Chen 1999: 79, 80–81, fig. 54, table 2 (key, distribution catalogue). — Nieser 2002b: 270, figs 3, 8, table 2 (diagnosis, distribution).

Diagnosis

Body length 2.7–3.4. Pronotum distinctly longer than median head length, with three distinct transverse dark stripes across pronotum width ( Fig. 1C ). Hemelytron: corium with four distinct longitudinal dark stripes; embolium with a long, continuous dark stripe ( Fig. 1C ).

Males: fore femur with two longitudinal rows which both have four spines; fore tibia with one subapical spine; palar claw slender, straight. Free lobe sub-rectangular, posterior margin nearly straight, lateral angle produced. Left paramere: shaft stout, mesial side of apical part serrated, apex blunt. Right paramere: shaft slender, slightly curved at distal third, apex narrowly rounded (see Wróblewski 1972a: figs 38, 42).

Material examined

VIETNAM – Dong Nai Prov. • 1 ♀; Vinh Cuu, Ma Da, Bo Hao lotus pond; 15 Apr. 2010; T.D. Pham leg.; PTD1010 ; ZVNU .

Distribution

Vietnam: Nghe An and Ha Tinh ( Wróblewski 1967); Dong Nai (first record). Other countries: widespread from India and Sri Lanka to China and Southeast Asia ( Myanmar, Thailand, Indonesia) (Lunblad 1933b; Nieser & Chen 1999; Nieser 2002b).

Remarks

Among species of the subgenus Basileonecta , M. siva is unique in having distinct transverse stripes on the pronotum and dark longitudinal stripes on the hemelytra. The left and right parameres of M. siva look like those of M. sedula , but their detailed structures are clearly different. In M. sedula , the apex of the left paramere is swollen, and the shaft of the right paramere is curved at around on the distal fourth. In M. siva , the apex of the left paramere is not swollen, and the shaft of the right paramere is curved at the distal third.

Among the three Asian species of the subgenus Basileonecta , M. sedula has similar marking patterns on the hemelytra to those of M. scutellaris , but it is a distinctly smaller species (body length not more than 3.4 mm), its left paramere is not twisted pre-apically, and its right paramere is not expanded pre-apically.

Figures

Fig. 1. Habitus photos of species of MicronectaKirkaldy, 1897. A. M. scutellaris (Stål,1858), ♂ (ZVNU). B. M. sedula Horváth, 1905, ♂ (ZVNU). C. M. siva (Kirkaldy, 1897), ♀ (ZVNU). D. M. jaczewskii Wróblewski, 1962, ♂ (ZVNU). E. M. decorata Lundblad, 1933, ♂ (ZRC). F. M. desertana Distant, 1920, ♂ (ZVNU). G. M. ludibunda Breddin, 1905, ♂ (ZVNU). All to the same scale.