Orthocephalus modarresi Linnavuori

Namyatova, Anna A. & Konstantinov, Fedor V., 2009, Revision of the genus Orthocephalus Fieber, 1858 (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Miridae: Orthotylinae) 2316, Zootaxa 2316, pp. 1-118 : 63-64

Orthocephalus modarresi Linnavuori

Figures 2, 8, 12, 15

Orthocephalus modarresi Linnavuori, 1997: 304–306 .

DIAGNOSIS: Recognized by the following combination of characters: small size; orange or at least partly yellow tibiae, femora, forecoxa, and antennal segments I and II (fig. 2); relatively narrow head; large eyes; aedeagus with two spicules, long spicule distinctly shorter than dorsal wall of theca, thin, distinctly widened at base (fig. 8); dorsal labiate plate without medial sclerites (fig. 15). Males similar to O. scorzonerae in the body proportions and coloration, but the latter species differs in the vestiture of dorsum devoid of scalelike setae and composed of flattened setae and short pale simple setae (figs. 22 G). Moreover, O. scorzonerae differs from O. modarresi in the structure of male and female genitalia. The aedeagus of the former species has the short spicule curved (claw-shaped) (fig. 9) and the dorsal labiate plate with medial sclerites (fig. 16). The females are most easily confused in appearance with those of O. fulvipes , but that species differs in the presence of medial sclerites (fig. 15).

REDESCRIPTION: Male: Macropterous; length 4.5–4.7. COLORATION (fig. 2): Head: Dark brown to black; vertex with spot near inner margin of eye, posterior margin of eye with yellowish stripe; antennal segment I dirty yellow with darker base; antennal segment II black with dark yellow basal quarter; antennal segments III and IV entirely black; labium dark brown. Thorax: Pronotum and pleurites dark brown to black; evaporatorium orange or pale brown, scutellum dark brown to black; forecoxa reddish orange, middle and hind coxa black, femur reddish orange, tibia reddish orange, with black apex; tarsus black; hemelytra dark brown to black, membrane pale brown. Abdomen: Uniformly dark brown to black. SURFACE AND VESTI- TURE: As in O. bivittatus (as in figs. 22 A-C, E, 23 A, D). STRUCTURE AND MEASUREMENTS: Body 3.5–3.6× as long as width of pronotum. Head: Shape of head and eye similar to that of O. bivittatus (as in figs. 20 B, 21 A, G), 1.3× as wide as high; vertex 2.1× as wide as eye; eye located at a small distance from anterior pronotal margin; antennal fossa located close to inferior margin of eye, antennal segment I as long as or somewhat longer than diameter of eye; antennal segment II 0.8–0.9× as long as basal width of pronotum, 1.0–1.2× as long as width of head, labium reaching middle coxa. Thorax: Pronotum 1.7–2.3× as wide as long and 1.2–1.3× as wide as head, with slightly concave posterior margin, lateral margin not carinate, calli slightly raised; hind femora relatively narrow, approximately 1.5× as wide as middle femora. GENITALIA: Aedeagus (fig. 8) with two spicules; long spicule 1.5-2× as long as short spicule, shorter than dorsal wall of theca, thin, gradually tapering apically, distinctly widened at base; small spicule comma-shaped, almost oval at base; parameres as in fig. 12.

Female: Brachypterous, length 3.6. COLORATION: As in male. SURFACE AND VESTITURE: As in male. STRUCTURE AND MEASUREMENTS: Body 2.5× as long as width of pronotum. Head: 1.1× as wide as high; vertex 2.3–2.5× as wide as eye; antennal segment II 0.7–0.8× as long as basal width of pronotum, 0.8–1.0× as long as width of head. Thorax: Pronotum 2.0–2.4× as wide as long and 1.1–1.3× as wide as head; hemelytra covering abdominal tergum VIII, cuneus slightly delimited, claval commissure as long as inner claval margin, posterior and lateral margins of hemelytra rounded or posterior margin truncate. GENI- TALIA: Sclerotized rings of bursa copulatrix triangular, without medial sclerites (fig. 15); posterior wall of bursa copulatrix with uniformly sclerotized trapeziform sclerite, incision on the anterior margin not reaching middle of sclerite, anterior angles of this sclerite somewhat dentate, posterior margin without sclerites (as in fig. 18, bivittatus ); vulva with curved sclerites forming a circle (as in fig. 19, vittipennis ).

DISTRIBUTION: Linnavuori collected this species in Khorasan and Tehran Provinces of Iran.

HOSTS: Linnavuori (1997) noticed that O. modarresi occurs in mountain meadows with Astragalus sp. (Fabaceae) , Phlomis sp. (Lamiaceae) , Thymus sp. (Lamiaceae) , Verbascum sp.(Scrophulariaceae) , and Euphorbia sp. (Euphorbiaceae) .

SPECIMENS EXAMINED: Holotype: IRAN: Khorasan: 70 km W Darreh Gaz , 37.43333 ° N 59.1 ° E, 14 May 1994, R. Linnavuori, 1♂ ( AMNH _ PBI 00157072 ) ( NMWC).

Paratypes: IRAN: Khorasan: 70 km W Darreh Gaz , 37.43333 ° N 59.1 ° E, 14 May 1994, R. Linnavuori, 1♀ ( AMNH _ PBI 00250451 ) ( NMWC) . Khargh , 70 km SW Quchan , 36.65 ° N 57.98 ° E, 08 Jun 1994 – 09 Jun 1994, R. Linnavuori, 1♀ ( AMNH _ PBI 00259737 ) ( LCRT) . Tehran: Kandovan , 36.13 ° N 51.3 ° E, 03 Jul 1995 – 04 Jul 1995, R. Linnavuori, 1♂ ( AMNH _ PBI 00253277 ), 1♀ ( AMNH _ PBI 00249657 ) ( LCRT) .