Montandoniola indica Yamada, 2011

Yamada, Kazutaka, Bindu, K., Nasreem, A. & Nasser, M., 2011, A new flower bug of the genus Montandoniola (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Anthocoridae), a predator of gall-forming thrips on black pepper in southern India, Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae 51 (1), pp. 1-10 : 2-6

Montandoniola indica Yamada sp. nov.

( Figs. 1–19 , 21–23 )

Type locality. Southern India, Kerala State, Palakkad, Kuzhalmannam.

Type material. HOLOTYPE: ♁ (TKPM-IN-13042, with glass slide for genitalia; Figs. 1–4 , 10, 15, 17–18 ), ‘ INDIA: Kerala / Palakkad / Kuzhalmannam / 13. i. 2008 / K. Bindu leg.’ [white square] // ‘ Host Insect: / Liothrips karnyi / Host Plant: / Piper nigrum ’ [white square] ( TKPM). PARATYPES: INDIA: KERALA: 52 ♁♁ (one shown in Figs. 6–7 , 11, 19 ; other in Figs. 12, 14 ; other in Fig. 9 ), 48 ♀♀ (one shown in Figs. 8 , 13, 16 ; other in Fig. 5 ), same data as holotype (all in TKPM except for 2 ♁♁ 2 ♀♀ in MNHN, 2 ♁♁ 2 ♀♀ in USNM) ; 4 ♁♁ 2 ♀♀, Calicut University Campus, 27. ii. 2008, A. Nasreem ( TKPM) .

Description. Measurements [♁♁ (n = 10) / ♀♀ (n = 10), holotype in parentheses]. Body length 2.25–2.58 (2.38) / 2.38–2.80; head length (incl. neck) 0.38–0.39 (0.38) / 0.36–0.44; head width across eyes 0.35–0.38 (0.36) / 0.33–0.36; vertex width 0.16–0.18 (0.16) / 0.16–0.19; width between ocelli 0.11–0.13 (0.13) / 0.13–0.15; length of antennal segments I–IV: I – 0.10–0.13 (0.12) / 0.10–0.13, II – 0.31–0.35 (0.34) / 0.30–0.36, III – 0.20–0.22 (0.21) / 0.21–0.23, and IV – 0.21–0.24 (0.23) / 0.22–0.25; length of labial segments II–IV: II – 0.08–0.09 (0.09) / 0.10–0.11, III – 0.28–0.31 (0.29) / 0.30–0.33, and IV – 0.20–0.22 (0.21) / 0.21–0.23; anterior pronotal width 0.30–0.33 (0.30) / 0.31–0.34; mesal pronotal length 0.29–0.31 (0.29) / 0.30–0.34; basal pronotal width 0.74–0.81 (0.79) / 0.74–0.88; length of embolial margin 0.58–0.66 (0.63) / 0.61–0.71; length of cuneal margin 0.40–0.44 (0.42) / 0.43–0.48; maximum width across hemelytra 0.71–0.78 (0.77) / 0.72–0.85.

Coloration. Head and pronotum ( Figs. 10, 12–13 ) uniformly black, sometimes brown; eyes reddish black; margin of ocellus red to reddish brown. Antennal segments I and II ( Figs. 7–8 , 12–13 ) dark brown to black; segment II somewhat reddish at tip; segments III and IV ( Figs. 7–8 , 12–13 ) pale yellow. Labium ( Figs. 11, 14 ) dark brown to black except for pale yellow apical one-third of segment III and basal two-thirds of segment IV. Scutellum ( Fig. 10 ) overall blackish. Clavus ( Fig. 10 ) dark brown to black along inner margin and claval commisure; endocorium ( Fig. 10 ) narrowly dark brown to black along corium-membrane boundary; embolium and cuneus ( Fig. 10 ) wholly dark brown to black; membrane ( Fig. 10 ) centrally with clear blackish stripe except for basal semi-transparent area; remainder area of hemelytra off-white or semi-transparent. Fore- and mid femora ( Figs. 15–17 ) entirely black; fore- and mid tibiae ( Figs. 15–17 ) pale yellow except for somewhat darkened base of tibiae; hind femora and tibiae ( Fig. 18 ) black; each tarsus ( Figs. 15–18 ) pale yellow tinged with fuscous apex. Venter of thorax ( Fig. 11 ) uniformly black. Abdomen ( Fig. 11 ) black tinged with reddish brown.

Structure. Body ( Fig. 10 ) elongate, shiny on dorsal and ventral surfaces, sparsely covered with short, silky setae. Head ( Figs. 6 , 12–13 ) cylindrical, impunctuated, slightly longer than width across eyes, sparsely covered with long, erect setae intermixed with short, reclining setae; pairs of long, erect setae on side of tylus, near anterior inner margin of eyes, between eye and ocellus, and between ocelli; anteocular region about 0.75 times as long as length of eye in dorsal view; vertex about 1.6 times as wide as eye in dorsal view; postocular region distinctly long, not constricted; eye oblong, not exceeding level of ventral surface and dorsal surface of head in lateral view. Antennal segment I ( Figs. 12–13 ) just reaching apex of head, sparsely with short setae; segment II ( Figs. 7–8 , 12–13 ) greatly swollen, male thicker than female, about 0.9 times as long as head width across eyes, densely covered with short reclining setae interspersed with long suberect setae, of which the longest are slightly shorter than width of the segment; segments III and IV ( Figs. 7–8 ) shorter and somewhat slender than segment II, covered with long, suberect setae intermixed with short, reclining setae; longest seta as long as or longer than width of respective segments; segment III about 0.6 times as long as segment II; segment IV flattened, slightly longer than segment III. Labium ( Figs. 11, 14 ) exceeding anterior margin of prosternum, not reaching fore coxae; segments I, II, and III respectively with long, suberect setae near apex; segment III about three times as long as segment II; segment IV about 0.7 times as long as segment III.

Pronotum ( Figs. 6 , 12–13 ) with long, stout, erect setae on anterolateral and posterolateral corners and a pair of similar setae behind the collar; surface smooth, with scattered short, reclining setae and short, suberect setae along lateral margin; anterior margin nearly straight, slightly longer than mesal length; lateral margin shallowly concave inwardly; lateral carina well developed anteriorly, gradually more obscure posteriad; posterior margin concave, about 2.3 times as wide as anterior margin; collar about one-fourth of mesal pronotal length, with scattered short setae, weakly rugose; callus demarcated by a shallow transverse impression; posteromedian region of pronotum widely depressed. Scutellum ( Fig. 10 ) smooth, anteriorly swollen and gradually more depressed posteriad, with a pair of long, erect setae near base of both sides. Hemelytra ( Fig. 10 ) subparallel-sided, impunctuated, sparsely covered with short, suberect setae; endocorium about twice as wide as maximum width of embolium; cuneal margin 0.6–0.7 times as long as embolial margin; membrane with two weak veins, inner vein arising from base of membrane and extending along outer margin, outer vein a little remote from outer margin. Ostiolar peritreme ( Figs. 9 , 19 ) broad, elbowed at middle, posteriorly angular, gradually narrowed anteriad, slightly bent interiorly, not touching anterior margin of metapleuron; outer margin of ostriolar peritreme strongly raised above level of surrounding evaporatorium. Legs densely covered with short, reclining setae; fore tibia ( Figs. 15–16 ) slightly thickened apicad, in male ( Fig. 15 ) furnished with a ventral row of 16–20 fuscous, small teeth; hind tibia weakly flattened; mid- and hind coxae far from each other. Abdomen ventrally covered with short, suberect setae at posterior portion of respective segments; a pair of long, stout setae on lateral margin of seventh and eighth sternum in male; eighth sternum in male covered with low number of long, stout setae at right posterolateral area; scissure on abdominal tergite reaching posterior margin of third segment.

Male genitalia ( Figs. 1–4 ): Pygophore ( Fig. 1 ) with 8–10 long, stout setae intermixed with short, suberect setae along outer margin and on posteroventral surface, of which the longest are longer than length of pygophore; midventral surface very hirsute with short, suberect setae; cone ( Figs. 2–4 ) very thin, acute apically in dorsal view, with a strongly elevated denticule; flagellum ( Figs. 1–2 ) long, slightly sinuate, slender and tapering, basally not adjacent to the paramere body, approximately twice as long as maximum width of cone.

Female genitalia ( Fig. 5 ): Genital segments (seventh to ninth segments) laterally covered with long, stout setae; ninth sternum very hirsute with short, suberect setae; copulatory tube ( Fig. 5 ) mesally located at sternum VII, distinctly separated from base of ovipositor, consisting of much longer, straight, sclerotized cylinder-shaped tube leading into minute and membranous apex; apex of copulatory tube exceeding anterior margin of sternum VII.

Differential diagnosis. Judging from PLUOT- SIGWALT et al. (2009) and YAMADA et al. (2010c), Montandoniola indica Yamada sp. nov. is closely allied to M. thripodes Bergroth, 1916 described from Hong-Kong in the coloration of labium, hemelytra and legs. The structure of male and female genitalia is the only key character clearly separating the species. Montandoniola indica Yamada sp. nov. can be distinguished from M. thripodes by slightly sinuate flagellum approximately twice as long as cone ( Fig. 2 ) (in M. thripodes , straight, shorter than twice width of cone) and much longer copulatory tube distinctly separated from the base of ovipositor and exceeding the anterior margin of sternum VII ( Fig. 5 ) (vs. very close to the base of ovipositor, shortened, not reaching the anterior margin of sternum VII). From M. moraguesi , M. indica Yamada sp. nov. differs by dark brown to black labium except for pale yellow apical one-third of segment III and basal two-thirds of segment IV (in M. moraguesi , entirely dark brown), posteriorly angular ostiolar peritreme ( Fig. 9 ) (vs. rounded), pale yellow fore tibia except for somewhat darkened base (vs. black, apical part whitish), slightly sinuate flagellum ( Figs. 1–2 ) (vs. strongly curved), and copulatory tube distinctly separated from the base of ovipositor, exceeding the anterior margin of sternum VII ( Fig. 5 ) (vs. close to the base of ovipositor, reaching the anterior margin of sternite VII).

Etymology. Named after the type area, India; an adjective.

Distribution. Southern India (Kerala State).

Figures

Figs. 1–5. Montandoniola indica Yamada sp. nov., male (1–4, holotype) and female (5, paratype) genitalia. 1 – pygophore with paramere, dorsal view; 2 – paramere, dorsal view; 3–4, ditto, two different orientations; 5, copulatory tube, dorsal view. Scale bars = 0.1 mm.Abbreviations: cn = cone; dn = denticule; fl = flagellum.

Figs. 6–9. Montandoniola indica Yamada sp. nov., male (6–7, 9) and female (8). 6 – head and pronotum, dorsal view; 7–8 – antennae, dorsal view; 9 – ostiolar peritreme and evaporatorium, left lateroventral view. Scale bars = 0.5 mm for 6–8; 0.1 mm for 9.

Figs. 10–19. Montandoniola indica Yamada sp. nov., male (10–12, 14–15, 17–19) and female (13, 16). 10–11 – habitus, dorsal and lateral views; 12–14 – head and pronotum, dorsal (12–13) and lateral (14) views; 15–16 – left fore legs, inner views; 17 – left mid leg, outer view; 18 – left hind leg, outer view; 19 – ostiolar peritreme and evaporatorium, left lateroventral view. 10, 15, 17–18 – holotype; 11–14, 16, 19 – paratypes. Scale bars = 0.5 mm for 10–14; 0.2 mm for 15–18; 0.1 mm for 19.

Figs. 20–23. 20 – Prey, Liothrips karnyi Bagnall, 1924; 21 – eggs of Montandoniola indica Yamada sp. nov., with only the operculum exposed; 22 – habitus of a nymph sucking adult thrips; 23 – habitus of an adult sucking adult thrips.