Pseudoferrisia Kaydan & Gullan, 2012

Kaydan, M. B. & Gullan, P. J., 2012, 3543, Zootaxa 3543, pp. 1-65 : 59-60

Genus Pseudoferrisia Kaydan & Gullan gen. n.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:F216908F-0204-4108-A657-35E5F5EA3B48

Type species: Ferrisiana floridana Ferris , by monotypy.

Ferris (1953) described and illustrated the adult female of an unusual species of mealybug from Florida, U.S.A., and placed it in the genus Ferrisiana Takahashi as F. floridana Ferris , along with four other species, F. claviseta , F. quaintancii (misspelt as F. quaintancei ), F. setosa and F. virgata . McKenzie (1967) transferred these five species to Ferrisia . Although the adult female of F. floridana has enlarged tubular ducts on the dorsum, these ducts differ structurally from those of other Ferrisia species. The auxiliary setae around the sclerotised rim of the dorsal enlarged tubular ducts of F. floridana are short (mostly 8–15 µm long) and robust with a rounded apex, unlike the tapered and slightly capitate auxiliary setae (usually 15–40 µm long) found on other Ferrisia species. F . floridana also is distinctive in possessing six-segmented antennae (eight, rarely seven, segments in other species) and more than one pair of cerarii (all other Ferrisia species possess only anal lobe cerarii), plus some, slender cerarian-type setae more anteriorly on the abdominal margin and on the head. Also the anal lobe cerarii of F. floridana are unusual for Ferrisia in possessing numerous (usually 9–18; 15–16 on the holotype) long conical to lanceolate setae associated with a grouping of trilocular pores on the sclerotised area of each anal lobe. Although Ferris (1953) described the adult female as having three pairs of cerarii, only the anal lobe cerarius is always discrete with the cerarius of the penultimate and next most anterior segment sometimes being a diffuse group of lanceolate cerarian-type setae without obvious clustering of trilocular pores. The anal lobe cerarii of F. floridana more closely resemble those of species in the genus Anisococcus Ferris , which molecular data have shown to be closely related to Ferrisia ( Downie & Gullan 2004; Hardy et al. 2008). The ventral surface of F. floridana is covered in oral-rim tubular ducts, with an orifice about the same diameter as a trilocular pore and a minute pore sometimes associated with the rim of the duct; these ducts are scattered on the head and thorax and in a transverse row on most abdominal segments. All other Ferrisia species lack ventral oral-rim tubular ducts. The dorsal setae (slender spine-like) and ventral setae (hair-like or spine-like) of F. floridana also differ structurally from the body setae (all bluntly tipped to capitate) on other Ferrisia species.

We were unable to obtain fresh material of F. floridana for our molecular phylogenetic study ( Gullan et al. 2010) but, based on its morphology, we predict that F. floridana may be sister to all other Ferrisia species. The inclusion of F. floridana in Ferrisia makes the diagnosis of the latter genus unsatisfactory, with most features of F. floridana conflicting with those of other species, as discussed above. For this reason we here transfer F. floridana to a new monotypic genus, Pseudoferrisia gen. n., which we diagnose and describe below, followed by an illustrated redescription of the type species.

Generic diagnosis of adult female. The adult females of Pseudoferrisia can be distinguised readily from those of Ferrisia (features of the latter genus in parentheses) by having (i) numerous long conical to lanceolate cerarian setae on each anal lobe, with cerarii or partial cerarii present anterior to anal lobes (cerarii confined to anal lobes and cerarian setae rarely numbering more than 2 or 3 per cerarius); (ii) dorsal enlarged tubular ducts bearing slender spinelike setae on or near the sclerotised area around duct (tapered setae with a slightly capitate apex), (iii) short, slender spine-like dorsal setae with blunt apex (flagellate setae with a bluntly-tipped to slightly capitate apex), (iv) oral-rim tubular ducts present on venter and each sometimes associated with a minute discoidal pore (oral-rim tubular ducts absent on venter), (v) no circulus (circulus present), and (vi) antennae 6 segmented (8, rarely 7, segmented).

Generic description of adult female. Body elongate to oval, up to 4.7 mm long. Antennae 6 segmented. Labium 3 segmented, slightly longer than wide, apical segment broadly rounded at apex. Posterior pair of spiracles larger than anterior spiracles. Circulus absent. Legs well developed, with pit-like ‘translucent’ pores on hind coxa only; claw without a denticle; tarsal and claw digitules both capitate, claw digitules shorter and thicker than tarsal digitules. Anterior and posterior ostioles both present. Anal lobes well developed. Anal ring with 6 anal ring setae.

Dorsum. Cerarii present on posterior abdominal segments only; each anal lobe cerarius with up to 18 long conical to lanceolate setae associated with a group of trilocular pores on strongly sclerotised area of lobe; penultimate and sometimes more anterior cerarii present. Body setae slender, short (up to 13 µm long), spine-like with blunt apex, shorter than ventral setae. Trilocular pores each 4–5 µm in diameter, scattered over dorsum. Enlarged tubular ducts present, few in number, mostly marginal or submarginal; duct opening of each tubular duct surrounded by sclerotised rim and also a circular sclerotised area bearing 1–5 minute discoidal pores and associated with up to 7 slender spine-like setae. Oral-collar and oral-rim tubular ducts absent. Multilocular disc pores absent.

Venter. Body setae of two types, one robust hair-like with acute apex on mid venter, second type slender spinelike with acute apex in longitudinal row on submarginal area. Trilocular pores each 3–4 µm in diameter, scattered over surface. Minute discoidal pores scattered, almost always associated with ventral oral-rim tubular ducts. Oralcollar tubular ducts very few and only on posterior abdominal segments. Oral-rim tubular ducts scattered, some of them associated with a minute discoidal pore. Multilocular disc pores absent.

Etymology. The name reflects the similarity of this new genus to Ferrisia .