Melucha grandicula, Brailovsky, Harry & Barrera, Ernesto, 2014

Brailovsky, Harry & Barrera, Ernesto, 2014, Revisional notes on the genus Melucha (Hemiptera, Heteroptera, Coreidae), Deutsche Entomologische Zeitschrift 61 (1), pp. 15-22 : 15

Melucha grandicula sp. n. Fig. 11

Type material.

Holotype, female, Peru, Loreto, Headwaters, Río Loreto-Yacu, Indian Vill., 21-IV-1-V-1970, Malkin (AMNH). Paratypes, 1 female, Colombia, Meta, El Buque, silv., 1200 m, 18-II-1947 (NHMW); 1 female, Colombia, without date (UNAM).

Description

(female, holotype). Dorsal color. Head and antennal segments I to III shiny orange, segment IV pale yellowish orange; pronotum coarsely punctate, strongly striate, reddish brown, with a single, longitudinal, median dark line, diffuse, with pigment in the punctures; scutellum reddish brown with basal third, lateral borders and apex shiny orange; clavus and corium finely punctate, reddish brown, moderately infuscate; hemelytral membrane amber, translucent, veins darker; connexival segments reddish brown with posterior spines black; dorsal abdominal segments dark orange with irregular dark marks.

Ventral color. Rostral segments (apex of IV dark brown), legs, and anterior and posterior lobe of metathoracic scent gland peritreme shiny to dull orange; pro- and mesopleura coarsely punctate with black elongate mark; hind femur dull orange with dorsal and ventral tubercles and spines black; hind tibiae dark orange with posterior third yellowish orange; middle and hind tarsus yellowish orange.

Structure. Body large-sized (above 22.00 mm), robust, almost glabrous.

Head. Antennal segment III cylindrical; rostrum reaching anterior margin of mesosternum.

Thorax. Pronotal disk declivent; anterolateral borders obliquely straight, nodulose, armed with five or six subacute spines; humeral angles prominent, laterally expanded, apically sharply pointed; posterolateral borders almost straight, nodulose, with three or four subacute spines; posterior border smooth, straight; callar region evident.

Legs. Fore and middle femora not incrassate; dorsal surface smooth, ventral surface distally armed; hind femur incrassate its dorsal surface with two rows of tubercles, ventral surface armed with two rows of spines increasing in size distally; fore and middle tibiae sub-cylindrical, unarmed, sulcate; inner and outer surfaces of hind tibiae markedly dilated; outer surface smooth, inner surface with short tubercles on the border.

Scutellum. Triangular, wider than long, transversely striate and punctate; apex subacute.

Abdomen. Posterior angle of abdominal segments III to VI armed with short but distinct spine.

Male. Unknown.

Measurements (holotype; mm). Total body length 27.50. Head length 2.28; width across eyes 2.98; interocular space 1.74; interocellar space 0.92; preocular distance 1.61; length of antennal segments: I, 6.15; II, 4.25; III, 3.80; IV, 7.60. Pronotal length 6.53; width across humeral angles 11.78. Scutellar length 3.19; width 3.57. Maximum width of abdomen 9.70.

Differential diagnosis.

This species is closely related to Melucha phyllocnemis and Melucha quadrivittis , which are also robust and larger than 23.00 mm; the other species in the genus are slender and shorter than 20.00 mm.

Melucha grandicula sp. n. is distinguished by having a single median dark line on the pronotal disk, the humeral angles prominent, laterally expanded, and apically sharply pointed (Fig. 11) and connexival segment VII entirely dark orange. In the other two species the pronotal disk is yellow and has four longitudinal dark lines and the midline unpigmented, the humeral angles prominent, laterally expanded, and apically blunt (Figs 8, 9) and connexival segment VII is yellow, with posterior half or posterior third dark brown.

Etymology.

Named for the comparatively large size of this species, after the Latin adjective "grandiculus, -a, -um" meaning rather large.

Distribution.

Known from Colombia and Peru.