Andinodarnis, Flórez-V & Evangelista, 2022

Flórez-V, Camilo & Evangelista, Olivia, 2022, Andinodarnis gen. nov., a new treehopper genus from the Andes (Hemiptera: Membracidae: Darninae), Zootaxa 5200 (1), pp. 37-50 : 38-40

Andinodarnis gen. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:264E9AEB-7003-4D71-A3B7-C85CD1973882

Type-species: Tomogonia pectoralis Stål, 1869

Diagnosis: Head in anterior view subtriangular. Pronotum convex, finely punctate, smooth; suprahumeral horns acute, very close to humeral angles, slightly projected and curved backward in dorsal view; semicircular lateral impressions extending from behind humeral angles to apical third; posterior process extended slightly beyond M fork of forewing. Forewings entirely exposed, not concealed by pronotum. Pro- and mesothoracic femur bearing two rows of cucullate setae on ventral surface; metathoracic femur bearing one row of cucullate setae on ventral surface, fewer and comparatively smaller than other femora.

Description: Color: Pale to ochraceous yellow, dark brown, or combination thereof; yellow patches bright green in live specimens. Labium, thoracic pleurites and sternites, coxae and base of metathoracic femur dark brown to black. Forewings amber to smoky hyaline with dark macula at apical third. Abdomen ochraceous, yellow to dark brown.

Vestiture: Head and pronotum smooth, shiny, and finely punctate. Body glabrous, except thoracic pleurites and sternites, coxae, ventral surface of femora and tibiae covered in golden or silver pubescence.

Head: Subtriangular; posterior margin of vertex, including supra-antennal ledges and frontoclypeus, forming slightly arcuate continuous outline; with feeble semicircular concavity between ocelli; lower half depressed, slightly directed posteriorly, frontoclypeus ovoid to subpentagonal with smooth round edges; dorsal margin arcuate; labium reaching mesothoracic coxae.

Thorax: Pronotum convex, low, dorsally arched, moderately compressed laterally behind humeri; suprahumeral horns minute, conical, arising right above humeral angles, curved backward in dorsal view, slightly projected into acute tip; semicircular impressions, one at each side of posterior process, extending from behind humeral angles to apical third; dorsomedial carina inconspicuous anteriorly, gradually compressed and tectiform from mid-dorsum to pronotal apex; posterior process tapering into spine-like apex. Forewings entirely exposed, R initially divided into R 1+2+3 and R 4+5, with one s, one r-m, and two m-cu crossveins; crossvein s slightly distad of r-m; s and m-cu delimiting two discoidal cells. Hind wing with one r-m, and m-cu crossvein almost as long as M 3+4, and R 4+5 not fused with M 1+2. Pro- and mesothoracic femur bearing two rows of cucullate setae on ventral surface ( Fig. 5A–D ), metathoracic femur bearing one row of cucullate setae on ventral surface, each row with few spines (7 or less), much less acute and pronounced in metathoracic femur; well-defined rows of cucullate setae on metathoracic tibia (three single rows: antero-dorsal, postero-dorsal and ventral = I, II and III sensu Deitz, 1975) ( Fig. 5E–G ).

Abdomen: Terga smooth, lacking fenestrae, tuberosities or dorsal scars ( Fig. 3A , 7A ).

Male genitalia: Subgenital plates somewhat rectangular, elongate, weakly curved in lateral view. Styles slender, hook-shaped, broader at middle. Aedeagus U-shaped, bearing several rows of minute teeth on upper anterior surface of posterior arm.

Female genitalia. Gonoplac round apically in lateral view, narrow basally and abruptly wider at apical half; ventral margin arched, sclerotized, covered in fine punctation and setae. First valvulae in lateral view weakly curved, apex triangular and acute; delicately ornate along dorsal margin, fine lines more or less perpendicular to longitudinal axis; ramus reaching apex of valvulae with pores along entire extension. Second valvulae blade shaped, distinctly more sclerotized than first valvulae, dorsally curved toward triangular apex, finely serrate; apical 1/5 covered in canals and pores; longitudinal ventral axis ornate basally with linear and oblique integumental processes, and apically with escamiform integumental processes; ramus extended almost to apex.

Nymph: unknown.

Distribution. COLOMBIA: Antioquia, Putumayo, Risaralda. ECUADOR: Pichincha (new record). PERU: Cuzco. Members of Andinodarnis gen. nov. are endemic to the Andean region. Recent specimens were collected in montane habitats ranging between 1800 and 3000 masl ( Fig. 8 ).

Etymology. The generic name is composed of two words: ‘ andinus ’, meaning ‘from the Andes’, and ‘ Darnis ’, a genus in the same tribe that is somewhat similar in appearance. The gender is feminine.

Constituent species (2):

Andinodarnis pectoralis Stål, 1869

Andinodarnis atromeris Flórez-V and Evangelista sp. nov.

Remarks. Representatives of Andinodarnis gen. nov. are infrequently collected and scarce in entomological collections. Several collecting events targeting this group yielded only a few specimens (six new exemplars in four collecting sites). Current records indicate that A. pectoralis occurs at mid to high elevation along the Northern and Central Andes (1800–3000 masl), while A. atromeris sp. nov. is restricted to the western area of Colombian Andes (1800–2450 masl).

The genus can be unambiguously ascribed to Darnini based on the femoral cucullate setae ( Fig. 5 ). Tribal constituents in the clade with the same pronotal syndrome lack suprahumeral horns and have forewings partially to entirely concealed by the posterior process, in addition to more pronounced and numerous femoral cucullate setae. Andinodarnis gen. nov. is, therefore, the only genus in the raindrop group (‘dewdrop’ sensu Roy et al., 2007) with fully exposed wings and suprahumeral horns ( Figs. 2 , 4 ). These two traits are also observed in Sundarion , a genus in the tribe outside the raindrop group, which differs in having much larger, strongly projected suprahumeral horns, which are prismatic and often truncate apically. A phylogenetic framework is required to verify whether these topologically similar structures are homologous, considering stark differences in pronotal shape and vestiture. In Andinodarnis gen. nov., the suprahumeral horns are conical, minute, lacking a longitudinal carina, and the surface of the pronotum is ultra-smooth, shiny, and finely punctured. Additional distinguishing features of Andinodarnis gen. nov. include a triangular head, femora with few cucullate setae on the ventral surface (rows with seven spines or less), and a widely curved upward female second valvulae with one or two prominent teeth apically ( Fig. 3 , 7 ).

Key to Andinodarnis species

1. Head, pronotum and legs pale to ochraceous yellow, forewings amber hyaline, highest point of dorsal outline past mid-dorsum ( Fig. 2 ).......................................... A. pectoralis Stål comb. nov. (= Tomogonia pectoralis Stål, 1869 )

1’. Head and metopidium dark brown, posterior process yellow from humeral angles to apex, forewings smoky hyaline, highest point of dorsal outline approximately at mid-dorsum ( Fig. 4 ).............. A. atromeris Flórez-V and Evangelista sp. nov.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Andinodarnis pectoralis comb. nov. (Stål, 1869). (A–D) Female from Colombia in frontal, dorsal, lateral, and frontolateral view, respectively. (E–G) Female from Peru in frontal, dorsal and lateral view, respectively.

FIGURE 3. Female abdomen and genitalia of Andinodarnis pectoralis comb. nov. (Stål, 1869).Abdomen: (A) dorsal view, (B) ventral view, (C) abdominal sternites and pleurites. Female genitalia: (D) Gonoplac. (E) first valvulae, (F) close-up of apex of first valvulae, (G) second valvulae, (H) close-up of apex of second valvulae.

FIGURE 4. Andinodarnis atromeris sp. nov. (A–D) Holotype male before DNA extraction in frontal, dorsal, lateral, and frontolateral view, respectively. (E–H) Holotype male after DNA extraction in frontal, dorsal, lateral, and frontolateral view, respectively.

FIGURE 5. Holotype male of Andinodarnis atromeris sp. nov. (A–B) Ventrolateral view and close-up of prothoracic femur, (C) Anteroventral view of pro- and mesothoracic femora, (D) Ventral view of pro- and mesothoracic femora, (E–G) Metathoracic leg posterior view.

FIGURE 7. Female abdomen and genitalia of Andinodarnis atromeris sp. nov. Abdomen: (A) lateral view. Female genitalia: (B) Gonoplac, (C) first valvulae, (D) close-up of apex of first valvulae, (E) second valvulae, (F) close-up of apex of second valvulae.

FIGURE 8. Distribution map of Andinodarnis pectoralis comb. nov. (Stål, 1869) and A. atromeris sp. nov. (A) Belmira (Colombia: Antioquia), (B) PNN Tatamá (Colombia: Risaralda: Pueblo Rico), (C) San Rafael—Sibundoy (Colombia: Putumayo).