Ceraleurodicus wire Canty, 2023

Canty, Roy J., Martini, Biancamaria & Wanke, Dominic, 2023, Three new species of Neotropical Ceraleurodicus Hempel (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) found in the Natural History Museum (London) collection, with notes and a puparial key to species, Zootaxa 5277 (2), pp. 313-338 : 333

Ceraleurodicus wire Canty sp. nov.

Distribution. Neotropical region— Ecuador.

Host. Arecaceae : Cocos nucifera , “oil palm” Elaeis sp.

Material examined. Holotype: 1 puparium, split into dorsal and ventral sides, on 1 slide, marked as HT, ECUADOR, Coca city, on “oil palm”, vii.1984 (G. Onore #40) ( NHMUK010162411 ) ( NHMUK) . Paratypes: 5 puparia, marked as PT, on 2 slides ECUADOR, Coca city (Orellana Province), in military base, on Cocos nucifera L., 16.ii.2005 (J. H. Martin #8144) ( NHMUK010162409 [3 specimens]; NHMUK010162410 [2 specimens]) ( NHMUK) .

Description

Puparium: Body ( Figs 11a , 12a ) Elongate-oval and symmetrical in shape (3.44–4.08 mm long, 2.08–2.44 mm wide, generally widest at abdominal segment IV). Dorsum with 9 pairs of lateral rays on the dorsum, running mesad from the puparial margin.

On the sub-mesial plane of the dorsum are 5 pairs of compound pores. The first 4 pairs are subequal in size (diameter 22–26 µm), each with a small, rod-like central process, which does not extend past the margin of the pore ( Figs 11d , 12c ). Each pore is located at the edge of the mesial plane thusly: the first pair is located on the cephalothoracic region and the last 3 pairs are found on abdominal segments III (on or near the boundary between abdominal segments II and III), IV (in the middle of the segment) and V (on or near the boundary between segments V and VI). The 5th pair of compound pores ( Fig. 11c ) are reduced in size (diameter 11–15 µm), and are located on abdominal segment VII posterior to the VO, on the posterior margin of the 9th pair of rays. On the same latitude as, and between the cephalothoracic compound pores, are a pair of granular-looking areas made up of miniscule, agglomerate pores ( Fig. 11e ). The dorsum is also covered, relatively densely, with miniscule dorsal disc pores, made prominent by the small, wire-like bristles extruding from them.

The margin is planar, but with submarginal folds producing a crenulated submarginal layer with well-defined teeth, and an additional layer of folds of less well-defined teeth, appearing as collars for the dentate folds ( Figs 11b , 12b ). The submargins of rays 2 and 9 (counting from the anterior to the posterior), however, have combs of 6 teeth that are finer than the teeth along the rest of the margin, with the middle 4 teeth being finer than the 2 outer teeth ( Figs 11b , 12b ).

VO ( Figs 11f , 12d ) is rounded, subcordate (0.13–0.15 mm long; about 1.2 times longer than wide). Inset from caudal margin by approximately 7–8 times its own length. Operculum widely oblong and smooth, approximately 1.6 times wider than long, and covering approximately half of the lingula. Lingula inserted and subdeltoid in shape.

Adults. Unknown—no adults that could be linked to these specimens were available for study.

Etymology. The species epithet wire , a noun in apposition, is the name of a seminal art-rock group, Wire, whose members have shown an interest in nature and natural history in their work.

Comments. The specimens examined were identified only to genus level, as Ceraleurodicus , by Dr. Jon Martin. Superficially, C. wire sp. n. potentially resembles C. neivai ; however, it displays a unique set of characters. Compared to C. neivai , the body shape of C. wire is similar, but more elongate than C. neivai ; C. wire has 9 pairs of rays, as opposed to the 8 pairs on C. neivai , and only rays 2 and 9 of C. wire end in combs, as opposed to rays 1, 2, 4, and 8 in C. neivai ; there are only 5 pairs of compound pores (4 large and 1 small in C. wire as opposed to 6 pairs (5 large and 1 miniscule) in C. neivai , the pores in C. wire being much reduced in size and closer to the mesial plane compared to the pores of C. neivai . In C. wire , the operculum is widely oblong and the lingula is subcordate, whereas in C. neivai the operculum is cordiform and the lingula is spatulate. Finally, the pair of granular areas of the minute, agglomerate pores on the cephalothoracic region, and the minuscule dorsal pores with the minute, wire-like bristles protruding from them, are unique features to C. wire .

Figures

FIGURE 11. Ceraleurodicus wire Canty sp. nov. photographs showing: (a) dorsal habitus, (b) puparial margin showing submarginal combs at ray 2, (c) small abdominal compound pore, (d) large cephalothoracic compound pore, (e) large cephalothoracic compound pore and granular section, and (f) vasiform orifice.

FIGURE 12. Ceraleurodicus wire Canty sp. nov. line drawings showing: (a) dorsal habitus, (b) puparial margin showing submarginal combs at ray 2, (c) large compound pore, and (d) vasiform orifice.