Pediopsis bannaensis Yang & Zhang, 2015

Li, Hu, Dai, Ran-Huai & Webb, Michael D., 2023, Description of two new species of the leafhopper genus Pediopsis Burmeister (Hemiptera, Cicadellidae, Eurymelinae, Macropsini) from China, ZooKeys 1149, pp. 135-144 : 135

Pediopsis bannaensis Yang & Zhang

Pediopsis bannaensis Yang & Zhang, 2015: 488, figs 29-39.

Remarks.

This species was described from the holotype and paratype male from China deposited in the Northwest A&F University, Yangling, China (NWAFU) and three male paratypes from Thailand in the Illinois Natural History Survey, Champaign, USA (INHS). However, there are some ambiguities in the original description. Firstly, if the genitalia are drawn accurately, two different species appear to have been figured. The genitalia of one species were shown undissected in fig. 33 of the original description, and based on the aedeagus, the dissected parts of another species were shown in figs 34-39. The aedeagus shown in fig. 33 is the one described, i.e., "Aedeagus strongly tapered from wide base to narrow apex in lateral aspect". Enquiries made by one of us (Webb) indicate that there are three (not two) Chinese specimens of the species present in the NWAFU collection, with the original type data, all without type labels. Of these specimens only one is dissected and matches fig. 33. Other enquiries made regarding the paratypes in INHS indicate that their aedeagi also match fig. 33. All type series specimens match the habitus images in the original description with respect to general appearance and color pattern, particularly the long dark basal triangles of the mesonotum. However, unaccountably none match the actual specimen imaged based on the leg position in the lateral habitus figure ( Yang and Zhang 2015: fig. 30). It is suggested that the dissected specimen in NWAFU be regarded as the holotype even though we do not know what specimen provided the external images, which are of a better specimen.