Diognetus pilosus ( Poppius, 1914 )

Yasunaga, Tomohide, Schwartz, Michael D. & Chérot, Frédéric, 2023, Revision of the plant bug genus Diognetus, with descriptions of thirteen new species from the Oriental and Eastern Palearctic Regions (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Miridae), Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae (Acta. Ent. Mus. Natl. Pragae) 63 (1), pp. 1-55 : 36

Diognetus pilosus ( Poppius, 1914)

( Figs 17D− E, 22A− D, 32G–P)

Gorna pilosa Poppius, 1914: 131–132 (new species).

Gorna pilosa: CARVALHO (1959) : 96 (catalog); SCHUH (1995): 760 (catalog); SCHUH (2002 –2013) (online catalog).

Diognetus pilosus: CHḖROT et al. (2017) : 48 (new combination, diagnosis).

Type material examined. HOLOTYPE: ♀, INDONESIA: JAVA: «Mus.

Zool. Hels. Loan n° HE 96-31» / «Mus. Zool. H:fors. Spec. typ. n° 9977

Gorna pilosa POPP. » / « Gorna pilosa n. gen. et sp. B. Poppius Det.»

/«Tijnj(i)ruan,W. Java., 1400 m., Malabar geb(irge) [1700m]» ( FC n° 935)

( ZMHF) [dorsal habitus image shown by CH ḖROT et al. (2017:87, fig. 10)].

Additional material examined. INDONESIA: SUMATERA UTARA (North

Sumatra): Brastagi, NW end of Lake Toba; 2.88851, 98.49254, 1,600 m

(5,249 ft), no date provided, E.W. Diehl, 1 ♀ ( AMNH _ PBI 00419636)

( CNC); Brastagi, North of Toba Lake, 3.18˚N, 98.50˚E, 1,400 m, at FL light, 4 Dec 1989, T. Yasunaga, 1 ♀ ( TYCN). MALAYSIA: PERAK: Taiping, Bukit Larut (Maxwell Hill), 4.8624, 100.7999, 1100 m, UV lighting, 7 Jan 1990, T. Yasunaga, 1 ♀ ( TYCN).

Redescription. Female. Body oval, tumid, moderate in size, 5.1–5.4 mm. COLORATION: Dorsum almost uniformly castaneous ( Fig. 17D), without mottled pattern. Antennae yellowish brown; apical part of segment II slightly darkened; segment III (except for pale extreme base) and segment IV brown. Labium shiny pale brown; apex of segment IV infuscate. Pronotum brown, weakly shining, with posterior 1/5 pale; anterior mesal part of scutellum sometimes narrowly infuscate; pleura fuscous; scent efferent system creamy yellow. Forewing membrane smoky brown, with irregular pale, semitransparent maculae and pale veins. Coxae and legs whitish brown; apical half of metafemur darkened, with two (subapical and apical) pale rings in Malaysian specimen. Ventral surface of abdomen pale brown, with more or less darkened lateral margins. SURFACE AND VESTITURE: As in generic diagnosis; punctures on scutellum and hemelytron fine and sparsely distributed ( Fig. 32H); dorsum with densely distributed, silvery, reclining setae; base of mesepisternum with long, erect setae ( Fig. 32G); hemelytron rather matte. STRUCTURE: Vertex relatively wide. Labium reaching apex of metacoxa ( Fig. 17E). Pronotum tumid, with slanting disk ( Fig. 32G); scutellum nearly flat. Metathoracic scent efferent system as in Fig. 32I. Metatarsomere III longer than I or II ( Fig. 32J); parempodia as long as claw. FEMALE GENITALIA ( Figs 22A− D, 32K− P): Sclerotized ring ovoid ( Figs 32K, N), with thickened posterolateral rim ( Figs 22A, C); dorsal labiate plate with sclerotized anterior margin; posterior wall ( Figs 32L− M, O–P) with rounded dorsal structure and narrow, laterally rounded interramal lobe ( Figs 32L, O); dorsal structure and inner part of interramal lobe with spinulate processes ( Fig. 32P).

Male. Unknown.

Measurements. See Table 1; holotype ♀ (by F. Chérot): total length ca. 5.46; maximum width 2.60; medial length of pronotum 1.19; posterior width of pronotum 2.21; vertex width 0.41; eye width 0.40; length of antennal segments I: 0.67, II: 2.24, III–IV missing; medial length of scutellum 1.06; basal width of scutellum 1.02; length of cuneus 1.10; width of cuneus 0.82.

Differential diagnosis. Recognized by its ovoid, stout body; dark castaneous general coloration; slanting pronotum; almost uniformly creamy brown femora; and spinulate dorsal structure and inner part of interramal lobe on posterior wall.

Biology. Unknown.

Distribution. Indonesia (Java, Sumatra *), Malaysia * (Perak).

Comments. Gorna pilosa was described by POPPIUS (1914) on the female holotype from Malabar Gebirge [= Mts.], Java, Indonesia. This species had been little known until CH ḖROT et al. (2017) redefined the taxon and correctly placed under Diognetus . Our recent examination revealed that the species also occurs in Peninsular Malaysia and Sumatra and is now posited to be a Sundaland element. However, any definitive relative of D. pilosus is yet to be recognized, as no male specimen is currently available.