Myrsidea lightae Price, Johnson & Dalgleish, 2008

Literak, Ivan, 2017, Where are the species limits? Morphology versus genetics in Neotropical chewing lice of the genus Myrsidea (Phthiraptera: Menoponidae), with description of three new species, Zootaxa 4324 (1), pp. 161-179 : 169-170

Myrsidea lightae Price, Johnson & Dalgleish, 2008

Myrsidea lightae Price, Johnson & Dalgleish, 2008c: 2 , figs 1–4.

Myrsidea lightae Price, Johnson & Dalgleish, 2008 . Kounek et al. (2011: 9 ).

Type host. Saltator maximus (Statius Müller, 1776) —Buff-throated saltator (Thraupidae) .

Type locality. Serriana del Maje, Panamá.

Material examined. Ex Saltator atriceps (Lesson, 1832) —Black-headed saltator (Thraupidae) : 4♀, 2♂, Atlántida, Tela, Botanical Garden Lancetilla, Honduras (15°44' N, 87°27' W), 13 Aug. 2014, I. Literak.

Ex Saltator coerulescens Vieillot, 1817 —Greyish saltator (Thraupidae) : 7♀, 7♂, Los Tres Gigantes Biological Station, Paraguayan Pantanal, Paraguay (20°04'S, 50°09'W), 6–9 Aug. 2012, I. Literak.

Remarks. This species was previously described from Saltator maximus and Saltator striatipectus Lafresnaye, 1847 from Costa Rica, Panamá and Venezuela ( Price et al. 2008c). Our host records are new host-louse associations for M. lightae and the first records of this louse species from Honduras and Paraguay.

A portion of COI gene was sequenced from specimens of Myrsidea lightae ex Saltator atriceps from Honduras and from S. coerulescens from Paraguay (GenBank accession numbers KY 113134 and KY 113135 , respectively). Comparing our sequences with those of M. lightae from S. maximus from Panamá (A/N EU289211 ), the following sequence divergences were found: between lice from S. atriceps and S. maximus : 8.2%; between lice from S. maximus and S. coerulescens : 11.1%, and between lice from S. atriceps and S. coerulescens : 11.4%. All three divergences fall well under or close to the limit of interspecific variation for Myrsidea species as proposed in this paper. We believe that these genetic data together with minimal morphological differences (see below), justify the conspecific status of the Myrsidea populations from all the hosts and localities mentioned above.

Our specimens differ from the original description of Myrsidea lightae by setal counts and dimensions, as follows (data from Price et al. 2008c are in parentheses):

Female ex Saltator atriceps (n = 4). Gula with 5–6 (4–5) setae on each side. Length of postspiracular setae: III, 0.34–0.39 (short); VII, 0.30–0.39 (long). Sternal setae: II, 2–6 (6–12) anterior; III, 39–40 (32–35); VI, 40–45 (33–43). Anus with 42–49 (34–40) dorsal and 35–37 (38–46) ventral fringe setae. Dimensions: TW, 0.55–0.58 (0.51–0.56); HL, 0.36–0.37 (0.34–0.36); AWIV, 0.67–0.73 (0.68–0.75); ANW, 0.25–0.26 (0.24); TL, 1.75–1.85 (1.67–1.82).

Male ex Saltator atriceps (n = 2). Tergal setae: V, 11–14 (13–18); VIII, 6–10 (8–11). Sternal setae: 4–5 (7–14) anterior; III, 21–34 (24–33); IV, 31–42 (38–46); V, 37–43 (39–47); VIII, 6–12 (7–12). Dimensions: TW, 0.51 (0.46– 0.50); HL, 0.32–0.34 (0.28–0.33); MW, 0.44–0.46 (0.41–0.45); GSL, 0.11 (0.09); TL, 1.50–1.53 (1.34–1.47).

Female ex Saltator coerulescens (n = 7). Gula with 5–6 (4–5) setae on each side. Metanotum with 14–19 (15– 1) setae on posterior margin. Tergal setae: I, 10–16 (11–18); II, 11–17 (13–18); III, 11–16 (13–20); IV, 10–15 (13– 18); VI, 11–15 (12–17). Length of postspiracular setae: III, 0.27–0.30 (short); VII, 0.24–0.30 (long). Sternal setae: II, 2–3 (6–12) anterior; III, 31–45 (32–35); IV, 45–58 (42–52); V, 43–57 (40–53); VI, 36–50 (33–43); VII, 14–17 (15–20). Anus with 41–47 (34–40) dorsal and 36–42 (38–46) ventral fringe setae. Dimensions: HL, 0.34–0.37 (0.34–0.36); PW, 0.30–0.34 (0.33–0.35); AWIV, 0.63–0.75 (0.68–0.75); ANW, 0.25–0.28 (0.24); TL, 1.63–1.76 (1.67–1.82).

Male ex Saltator coerulescens (n = 7). Tergal setae: II, 11–16 (12–17); VII, 10–14 (11–16). Sternal setae: II, 17–20 (15–19) marginal setae between asters; III, 2 8–37 (24–33); IV, 37–48 (38–46); VI, 39–46 (24–41); VIII, 11– 15 (7–12). Dimensions: PW, 0.27–0.31 (0.30–0.32); MW, 0.39–0.46 (0.41–0.45); GW, 0.12–0.13 (0.13); GSL, 0.09–0.10 (0.09); TL, 1.38–1.53 (1.34–1.47).