Tsingya Hoch and Bourgoin, 2013

Hoch, Hannelore, Bourgoin, Thierry, Stelbrink, Björn & Wessel, Andreas, 2013, Small giants from Madagascan caves: autapomorphic giantism in the new cave-dwelling planthopper Tsingya clarkei gen. nov., sp. nov. (Hemiptera: Fulgoroidea: Meenoplidae), Journal of Natural History 48 (15 - 16), pp. 919-935 : 922-927

Tsingya Hoch and Bourgoin gen. nov.

Type species: Tsingya clarkei Hoch and Wessel sp. nov. Type locality: Madagascar .

Description

Habitus. Large meenoplid (c. 1 cm), with small compound eyes, well-developed tegmina and wings, and long forelegs. Body pigmentation pale and whitish, except light red compound eyes.

Head. ( Figure 2 ).Vertex short, c.7× wider than medially long, posterior margin convex, separated from frons by a distinct carina concave towards frons. Frons subrectangular, with lateral carinae strongly ridged, with a dense row of sensory pits along outer margin. Frons and postclypeus medially smooth, anteclypeus with a distinct median carina. Frontoclypeal suture nearly straight, slightly arched towards frons. Rostrum elongate, in repose well surpassing hind-coxae. Compound eyes present, comparatively small, lateral ocelli present, median frontal ocellus vestigial. Antennae with scape cylindrical, pedicel subcylindrical, c.2× as long as scape, with distinct rows of sensory plaque organs.

Thorax. ( Figures 2 and 3 ). Pronotum short, 1.54 × wider than maximum width of head (including eyes), lateral carinae sinuate, running parallel to posterior margin of head, median carina obsolete; posterior margin of pronotum sinuate, distinctly concave. Mesonotum tricarinate, carinae obsolete, c.1.48× wider than long. Tegmina well developed; c.2.7× longer than maximal width; anterior and posterior margin nearly parallel, distal margin rounded; distal part not notably expanded; fork of Sc + R and M at about the midlength of Sc + R, Sc + R in proximal threequarters with two rows of sensory pits; fusion of claval veins near middle, claval veins proximally of fusion each with two rows of sensory pits; second claval vein only slightly curved, nearly parallel with posterior margin of tegmen. Wings well developed; venation not notably reduced. Legs overall long and narrow, fore femora distinctly longer than middle femora, middle femora slightly longer than hind femora. Hind tibiae laterally unarmed, distally with a row of eight equally small teeth, arranged in two groups (medially three, laterally five; group of five slightly more proximally than group of three); metabasitarsus and second metatarsal segment each with seven small teeth distally, arranged in a slightly arched row. Metabasitarsus about one-third longer than second and third metatarsal joints together.

Male genitalia. ( Figures 4–7 ). Genital segment bilaterally symmetrical, in caudal aspect highly ovate, outline nearly figure-8-shaped; in lateral aspect caudal margin deeply notched in dorsal third; dorsocaudal margin laterodorsally distinctly projected laterally, ear-shaped. Anal segment in dorsal aspect narrow at base, with lateral margins diverging distally; lateral lobes distally well surpassing anal style, converging medially, in lateral aspect distally rounded and slightly bent dorsally.

Parameres bifurcate. Aedeagus differentiated into two processes arising from a common base: dorsal process trilobate, with phallotreme located medially at apex, phallotreme exposed ventrally; ventral process tongue-shaped.

External female genitalia. ( Figure 8 ). Strongly reduced, ventral valvifer laterodorsally rounded; ventral valvulae slender, narrow, tip rounded, directed mediocaudad, laterally and ventrally with several smaller and one prominent, almost claw-like seta ventrally near apex; VIIth sternite in ventral aspect narrow, c.1.3× longer than wide.

The wax-plate areas are of paratopic type (= internal area of wax plate shifted in a median position and joining the body sagittal line) ( Bourgoin 1997, p. 202).

Internal female genitalia. ( Figure 9 ). Bursa copulatrix spherical with few rounded sclerotinized ornamentations limited to its posterodorsal part; ductus bursa long and thin, emerging from aliferum ( Bourgoin 1997, p. 209), ventral wings and the spermatheca posterior of the aliferum. Spermatheca divided into a long and thin ductus receptaculi, ampulla-like distally (= diverticulum ductus), a long pars intermedialis (= spermathecal pump) and the very thin ramified glandula apicalis. Aliferum long and robust, bearing distally a pair of laterodorsally pointed, foliaceous, ear-like expansions (laterodorsal wings) and a ventral pair of flattened cupula-like expansions (ventral wings), enclosing between them the bursa copulatrix ductus. Spermathecal ductus receptaculi running anteroventrally to the ventral wings; both ducts running inside the aliferum joining ventrally the dorsal wall of the vestibulum. Vagina opening anteriorly into the vestibulum at the base of the aliferum. Common oviductus as usual, branched anteroventrally but directed caudad. Lateral sides of sternite VII shortly produced posteriorly, not forming any rod-like arm, reaching gonocoxae VIII ventrally.

Diagnosis

Tsingya gen. nov. can be readily distinguished from all other meenoplid genera by the combination of the following characters: large body size (c. 10–11 mm including tegmina), tegmina with fusion of claval veins near middle, both claval veins with two rows of sensory pits proximally of fusion, and fork of Sc + R and M at c. midlength of Sc + R.

In addition to the tegmina venation, the new genus differs significantly from other known meenoplid taxa by the configuration of the head capsule, the male genitalia (shape of genital segment, anal tube and paramere) and female genitalia (aliferum).

Etymology

The genus name honours the Tsingy de Bemaraha National Park in western Madagascar, characterized by its acutely eroded, sharp-bladed “tsingy” limestone pinnacle karst.

Remarks

With regard to the internal structures of the female genitalia, the aliferum ( Bourgoin 1997) deserves special attention. The aliferum is a complex of sclerotized formation(s) in the dorsal wall of the posterior vagina forming a more or less tubular structure that encompasses the bursa copulatrix ductus, and also in most cases (but not all: e.g. Anorhinosia Bourgoin 1997 ), the spermatheca, and which separates them from the vagina. It is a particularly common structure observed in all meenoplid genera, of both subfamilies Kermesiinae and Meenoplinae (but also in several kinnarid planthopper genera: Adolenda Distant, 1911 , Bashgultala Dlabola, 1957 , Emeljanopleroma Koçak, 1986 , Nesomicrixia Emeljanov, 1984 , Southia Kirkaldy, 1904 and Oeclidius Van Duzee, 1914 ) and is diverse in its configuration according to the taxa studied. In Tsingy a gen. nov. the sagittal medioventral lamina is separated into two ventral wings. The unpaired dorsal lamina is absent. The morphological origin of this structure is unclear: at least it is formed by the fusion of the basal apodeme of gonapophyses IX with the posterovaginal process, probably also with parts of the gonospiculum (Bourgoin 1993).

Figures

Figure 2. (A) Head and thorax, dorsal aspect; (B) head, ventral aspect. Scale bar 0.5 mm.

Figure 3. Right tegmen, maximal aspect. Scale bar 1 mm.

Figure 4. (A) Male genital segment, caudal aspect; (B) male genitalia, in situ, left lateral aspect. Scale bar 0.5 mm.

Figure 5. Male genitalia, dissected. Male anal segment, dorsal aspect. Scale bar 0.1 mm.

Figure 6. Malegenitalia, dissected.Aedeagus (A)dorsal aspect,(B) ventral aspect.Scale bar 0.1 mm.

Figure 7. Male genitalia, dissected. Parameres, ventral aspect. Scale bar 0.1 mm.

Figure 8. External female genitalia, in situ. (A) Right lateral aspect; (B) ventral aspect. Scale bar 0.5 mm.

Figure 9. Internal female genitalia, dissected, right lateral aspect. Scale bar 0.5 mm.