Felisacus meilingae, Namyatova & Cassis, 2016

Namyatova, Anna A. & Cassis, Gerasimos, 2016, Revision And Phylogeny Of The Fern-Inhabiting Genus Felisacus Distant (Insecta: Heteroptera: Miridae: Bryocorinae) Anna A. Namyatova And Gerasimos Cassis, Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2016 (403), pp. 1-169 : 122-124

Felisacus meilingae , sp. nov.

Figures 6 , 9B , 12 AA, AB, 15B, 19

DIAGNOSIS: Recognized by the following combination of characters: dorsal surface of head and pronotum mostly yellow, lateral margins of collar not dark; inner part of clavus often pale

brown to brown, sometimes yellow with brown margins; posterior margin of pronotum with brown marking laterally; cuneus mostly translucent, colorless (fig. 6); cylindrical antennal segment I (as in Namyatova et al., 2016: fig. 8A), transverse depression on head extending laterally, vertex upraised, labium reaching middle of mesosternum or slightly surpassing it; antennal segment I ca. 1.5–1.7× as long as wide; labium reaching middle of mesosternum; cuneus ca. 3× as long as base; medial part of right paramere slightly wider than basal part, shorter than basal and apical parts combined (fig. 12AA); apical part of left paramere not widened, ca. 3× as long as wide (fig. 12AB); vesica with six spicules, including spicules A, C, D, G, and I (fig. 9B).

DESCRIPTION: Male. Total length 4.0–4.5. COLORATION (fig. 6): Head: Whitish yellow to yellow, dorsal surface often somewhat darker than other sides; head sometimes with stripe above eye and marking between eyes reddish and clypeus with darker apex. Eye dark brown to black, often with reddish tinge. Labium: Yellow, segment III often brown or reddish ventrally. Antenna: Segment I yellow to brown with paler base, segment II pale brown to brown, usually darker than segment I, segments III–IV brown to dark brown. Thorax: Pronotum mostly yellow, with anterior margin pale brown or brown and posterior margin with pair brown to dark brown marking near humeral angle, sometimes pale brown between markings; scutellum and mesoscutum whitish yellow to pale brown, scutellum with brown apex; thoracic pleura yellow to pale brown, scent gland evaporative area whitish yellow to yellow, often darker apically, paler than thoracic pleura. Hemelytron: Mostly colorless and translucent; inner part of clavus yellow to brown with small markings and margins pale brown to brown; outer part of clavus sometimes with pale brown to brown apex; corium with marking long, inner margin of corium yellow to dark brown, often paler medially; embolium sometimes yellow with brownish margins; cuneus with brown outer and posterior margins and whitish inner margin; membrane with yellowish to pale brown cell, rarely cell colorless. Legs: Coxae whitish or yellow, femora whitish yellow to yellow basally and darker, yellow to pale brown or reddish apically; tibia yellow to pale brown, often paler apically, sometimes with reddish tinge; tarsi pale brown to brown, sometimes segment I yellow and segments II–III pale brown or brown. Abdomen: Whitish yellow to yellow, often with dorsal surface pale brown, brown, or red. SURFACE AND VESTITURE: Corium smooth, with shallow and scarce punctures. Dorsum, antennal segment I and femora with setae subequal to or slightly longer than antennal segment II diameter; abdomen clothed with short erect setae, distinctly mostly shorter than antennal segment II diameter. STRUCTURE AND MEASURE- MENTS: Body ca. 4.2–4.4× as long as pronotum width. Head: Depression delimiting occipital region distinct dorsally and laterally (as in Namyatova et al., 2016: fig. 4E); distance between depression and pronotum distinctly shorter than eye diameter; longitudinal sulcus on dorsal surface of head longer than eye diameter; distance from eye to pronotum longer than eye diameter, not swollen laterally (as in Namyatova et al., 2016: fig. 4E); vertex ca. 1.6–2.0× as wide as eye, upraised (as in Namyatova et al., 2016: fig. 6D). Labium (as in Namyatova et al., 2016: figs. 6D, 9C): Reaching middle of mesosternum; segments I and II strongly reduced, combined shorter than half of segment III; segment I shorter than wide; segment II as long as wide, its dorsal surface elongate posteriorly; segment III longer than ventral side of head; segment IV ca. 1.5× as long as segment III. Antenna: Segment I cylindrical (as in Namyatova et al., 2016: fig. 8A), ca. 1.5– 1.7× as long as head width, ca. 0.9–1.2× as long as pronotum width; segment II ca. 1.6–2.5× as long as head width, ca. 1.1–1.5× as long as pronotum width; segment III slightly longer than segment II; segment IV ca. 0.3× as long as segment III. Thorax: Anterior and posterior parts of pronotum subequal in length, collar delimited; posterior part slightly upraised; posterior margin of pronotum concave, pronotum ca. 1.1–1.4× as wide as long and ca. 1.4–1.8× as wide as head; mesoscutum exposed. Hemelytron: Area along inner margin of corium almost flat; inner margin of cuneus convex (as in Namyatova et al., 2016: fig. 13E), outer margin of cuneus ca. 3× as long as base. Abdomen: Genital capsule rotated leftward at right angle relative to rest of abdomen. Genitalia: Genital capsule (fig. 15B) ca. 1.5× as long as wide; ventral wall ca. 1.5× as long as dorsal wall, with posterior margin of ventral wall semioval, smooth, without outgrowth(s), its apex inclined to left-hand side, not curved; left side of genital capsule not widened; right paramere socket slightly acute, left one rounded; distance between paramere sockets subequal to half of genital capsule width at base. Right paramere (fig. 12AA) distinctly curved in apical half; apex slightly concave; medial part slightly wider than basal part, bearing setae, with outer margin slightly concave and inner margin convex; outer angle distinct; inner angle indistinct, not bearing setae; basal part of paramere ca. 0.15–0.2× as long as rest of paramere. Left paramere (fig. 12AB) L-shaped; apical part not flattened, with tooth on posterior side medially (as in fig. 11G) and without outgrowth on dorsal surface; middle part widened, without swelling or outgrowth; setae only on middle part near outer margin. Aedeagus (general view as in Namyatova et al., 2016: fig. 22I) conjunctiva weakly sclerotized; secondary gonopore placed at base of vesica in repose; sclerotization of ductus seminis around secondary gonopore shorter than wide; vesica with six spicules, including spicules A, C, D, G, I (fig. 9B).

Female. Total length 4.2–4.6. COLORATION (fig. 6): Head: Similar to male, but coloration varying from whitish yellow to pale brown. Labium: As in male. Antenna: Segments I–II often as in males, but rarely reddish. Thorax: Similar to male, but posterior part of pronotum, mesoscutum, and scutellum sometimes with reddish tinge; thoracic pleura yellow to pale brown. Hemelytron: Similar to male, but inner part of clavus sometimes uniformly brown. Legs: As in male. Abdomen: Yellow to pale brown with reddish dorsal surface. SURFACE AND VESTITURE: As in male. STRUCTURE AND MEASUREMENTS: Structure as in male; body ca. 4.2–4.4× as long as pronotum width; vertex ca. 1.6–2.0× as wide as eye; antennal segment I ca. 1.4–1.7× as long as head width, ca. 0.8–1.1× as long as pronotum width; segment II ca. 1.8–2.1× as long as head width, ca. 1.1–1.3× as long as pronotum width; pronotum ca. 1.2–1.3× as wide as long and ca. 1.5–1.7× as wide as head. Genitalia (as in Namyatova et al., 2016: fig. 23F, G): Dorsal labiate plate wider than distance between apodemes of second valvula; mostly smooth, without distinct striations, with semicircular sclerite and distinct sclerotized rings laterally; lateral oviducts placed almost medially, very close to each other, spermathecal gland placed between lateral oviducts; dorsal labiate plate with distinct tubercles, without membranous lobe medially.

DISTRIBUTION: Vanuatu (Ambrym Is., Pentecost Is., Shepherd Is., and Maewo Is.) (fig. 19).

HOST PLANTS: Unknown.

ETYMOLOGY: This species is named after Mei- Ling Chan (National Museum of Natural Sciences, Taichung, Taiwan), who loaned us the paratype of Felisacus bellus Lin, 2000 .

DISCUSSION: Felisacus meilingae is similar to F. schuhi in coloration and structure (fig. 6), but the latter species can be separated by the pronotum uniformly yellow to pale brown and the presence of five vesical spicules (fig. 9J).

Felisacus meilingae is also similar to F. myersi in external morphology (fig. 6) and the shape of vesical spicules (cf. fig. 9B with 9C); F. myersi differs from it by the dorsal surface of the head brown to dark brown, the inner part of the clavus mostly colorless or yellow and it has four vesical spicules.

MATERIAL EXAMINED: Holotype: VANUATU: Malampa: Ambrym Is.: Ranon to Mount Toyo, 16.15949 ° S 168.13365 ° E, 400 m, 02 Sep 1979, W.C. Gagne, 13 (00043085) ( BPBM). Paratypes: VANUATU: Malampa: Ambrym Is.: Ambrym Is., 16.24546 ° S 168.12298 ° E, Dec 1984, N.L.H. Krauss, 13 (00043095) ( BPBM). Ranon to Mount Toyo, 16.15949 ° S 168.13365 ° E, 400 m, 02 Sep 1979, W.C. Gagne, 53 (00043084, 0004308611H, J, 00043089), 1♀ (00043090), 1 sex unknown (00043091) ( BPBM). S Ambrym [Ambrim] Is., 16.35815 ° S 168.14838 ° E, 22 Aug 1967 – 04 Sep 1967, J. and M. Sedlacek, 1♀ (00043092) ( BPBM). Penama: Maewo Is.: Sounwari, 15.38 ° S 168.12989 ° E, 180 m, 04 Sep 1979 – 05 Sep 1979, G.A. Samuelson, 2♀ (00043064, 00043065) ( BPBM). Sounwari, 15.38 ° S 168.12989 ° E, 20 m, 04 Sep 1979, B.H. Gagne, 43 (00043048–00043051), 6♀ (000430055– 00043060), 1 sex unknown (00045806) ( BPBM). Pentecost Is.: Wall Bay, 15.76364 ° S 168.19233 ° E, 50 m, Dec 1984, N.L.H. Krauss, 1♀ (00043096) ( BPBM). Shefa: Shephard Group: Tongariki Island, 16.8 ° S 168.5 ° E, 300 m, 29 Aug 1979, G.M. Nishida, 4♀ (00042274, 00044635, 00043094, 00043093) ( BPBM).

Figures

FIGURE 6. Habitus of Felisacus species.

FIGURE 9. Vesical spicules of Felisacus species.

FIGURE 12. Parameres of Felisacus species.