Cofana trilobata, Meshram & Ramamurthy, 2014

Meshram, Naresh M. & Ramamurthy, Vilayanoor V., 2014, A new species of Cofana associated with grasses from India (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae: Cicadellinae), Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae (suppl.) 54 (1), pp. 57-64 : 58-60

Cofana trilobata sp. nov.

( Figs 1–22 )

Type locality. India, Meghalaya, Barapani.

Type material. HOLOTYPE: 3, INDIA: MEGHALAYA: Barapani, Ri-Bhoi , 25°39 ' 9 ″ N, 91°52 ' 44 ″ E, 1496 m a.s.l., 19.viii.2011, N. M. Meshram leg. ( NPCI) . PARATYPES: 2 332 ♀♀, same data as holotype ( NPCI).

Description. Coloration ( Figs 8–10 ). Pale ochraceous. Crown with median apical black spot and two medium-sized elliptical spots each near lateral clypeal sutures extending to ocelli; disc of crown with central round large black spot. Pronotum with distinct central longitudinal dark brown stripe extending to scutellum. Anteclypeus dark brown in middle with pale yellow margin and white outer margin. Frontoclypeus with 11 dark brown transverse lines and pale yellow midline interrupted in the middle. Genae with pale brown marking. Forewing white, veins brownish.

Structure. Head including eyes 1.1× wider than pronotum, obliquely produced in front; crown length 0.2× width between lateral margins of eyes; pronotum not extending beyond eyes. Anteclypeus apically exceeding facial margin ( Fig. 9 ). Frontal suture extending onto vertex, terminating laterad of ocelli. Ocelli placed near the hind margin of vertex next to corresponding eye, distance between eye and ocellus twice as large as diameter of ocellus. Antennae situated at mid-height of eye in facial view. Pronotum 0.6× as long as wide and 2.2× longer than crown. Scutellum 0.8× length of pronotum ( Fig. 10 ). Forewing with appendix. Abdominal apodeme in male long, slender, just exceeding third segment ( Fig. 7 ).

Male genitalia. Pygofer moderately produced with acutely rounded caudo-dorsal margin and obliquely truncate caudal margin ( Figs 3 , 15 ). Subgenital plate triangular, with 10 uniseriate macrosetae and numerous hairs along outer lateral margin ( Figs 4 , 12 ). Style with apex slender, smoothly curved laterally in dorsal view, bifid in lateral view ( Figs 5 , 11 ). Connective Y-shaped; stem narrowed, 1.6× smaller than arms ( Figs 6 , 16 ). Aedeagus, in lateral view ( Figs 1 , 14 ), broadly U-shaped, shaft uniformly broad throughout its length, with round membranous apex with serrated dorsal and ventral margins, shaft with minute spine-like spicules throughout length which are more numerous at apex laterally and triangular membranous region at midlength on ventral margin; apodeme as long as shaft ( Fig. 7 ); in caudal view, shaft with broad base, gradually narrowed towards apex ( Figs 2 , 13 ).

Female genitalia. Hind margin of seventh sternite convex with caudal projection feebly trilobed ( Fig. 20 ). Second valvulae in lateral view broad in the middle with irregular sculpturing in distal two thirds and bearing dorsal teeth, each tooth subtriangular with denticles throughout its length ( Figs 21, 22 ).

Measurements (in mm, 3 332 ♀♀). Male: body length: 5.81–5.87, body width across eyes: 1.3–1.5, body width across hind margin of pronotum: 0.68–0.72. Female: body length: 6.93–6.95, body width across eyes: 1.4–1.6, body width across hind margin of pronotum: 0.78–0.79.

Differential diagnosis. Cofana trilobata sp. nov. resembles Cofana lineata (Distant, 1908) in coloration but can be distinguished from it by the following characters (features of C. lineata in parentheses): Head with blunt anterior margin (head with anterior margin narrowly pointed); anterior portion of pronotum without any spots (anterior portion with 5–6 small brown spots arranged transversely); pygofer moderately produced with acutely rounded caudo-dorsal margin (pygofer trapezoidal with rounded caudo-dorsal margin); aedeagal shaft, in lateral view, uniformly broad throughout length with round membranous apex and serrated dorsal and ventral margins, with minute spine-like spicules throughout length which are more numerous at apex laterally and triangular membranous region midventrally (aedeagal shaft, in lateral view, bulbous, apex slightly narrowed, not membranous); apodeme of aedeagus as long as shaft (apodeme longer than shaft); hind margin of female seventh sternite convex with caudal projection feebly trilobed (hind margin of seventh sternite convex and feebly bilobed); abdominal apodeme in male long, slender, just exceeding third segment (abdominal apodemes slender, extending to mid length of fourth segment). From C. nigrilinea (Stål, 1870) , also similar in body shape and coloration, C. trilobata sp. nov. can be distinguished by its aedeagal shaft uniformly broad throughout its length (broadest near base in C. nigrilinea ), size of abdominal apodemes, and trilobed female seventh sternite (undulate in case of C. nigrilinea ).

Etymology. The species name alludes to the feebly trilobed posterior margin of the female seventh sternite. Adjective.

Biology. Cofana trilobata sp. nov. was collected by net sweeping on the grass (unidentified Poaceae ).

Distribution. India: Meghalaya.

Figures

Figs 1–7. Cofana trilobata sp. nov., male. 1 – aedeagus, lateral view; 2 – aedeagus, caudal view; 3 – pygofer, lateral view; 4 – subgenital plate, ventral view; 5 – style; 6 – connective; 7– male abdominal apodemes.

Figs 8–16. Cofana trilobata sp. nov., male. 8 – habitus, dorsal view; 9 – face; 10 – pronotum and scutellum; 11 – style; 12 – subgenital plate, ventral view; 13 – aedeagus, caudal view; 14 – aedeagus, lateral view; 15 – pygofer, lateral view; 16 – connective, dorsal view.

Figs 17–27. 17–22 – Cofana trilobata sp. nov., female. 17 – habitus; 18 – face; 19 – pronotum and scutellum; 20 – seventh sternite, ventral view; 21–22 – second gonapophysis, lateral view.23–27 – Cofana lineata (Distant, 1908). 23 – habitus, female; 24 – habitus, male; 25 – face, male; 26 – pronotum and scutellum, male; 27 – aedeagus, lateral view; 28 – seventh sternite, female, ventral view.