Afromenotes hirsuta, Kment & Kocorek, 2014

Kment, Petr & Kocorek, Anna, 2014, Afromenotes hirsuta, a new genus and species of Eumenotini from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Dinidoridae), Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae 54 (1), pp. 109-131 : 114-119

Afromenotes hirsuta sp. nov.

( Figs 1 –3, 5–6, 8, 10, 12–15, 20, 22, 24–25)

Type locality. Democratic Republic of the Congo, Katanga, Sampwe (9°21ƍ05ƎS 27°26ƍ18.02ƎE), Mufungwa.

Material examined. HOLOTYPE: ♀ ( MRAC), ‘MUSÉE DU CONGO / Mufungwa Sampwe / 1/ 16-XII-1911 / Dr. Bequaeret’ [p, ivory label] // ‘ ♀ ’ [p, small white label] // ‘ HOLOTYPUS / AFROMENOTES / HIRSUTA / sp. nov. / det. Kment & Kocorek 2013’ [p, red label]. Specimen pinned through scutellum by a minutien stabbed through a piece of card attached to an entomological pin; left antennal segment III and IV, left fore leg, and right antenna missing; detached antennal segments I+II, III+IV and profemur glued to the same piece of card.

PARATYPE: ♀ ( MRAC), ‘COLL.MUS.TERVUREN [p] / Mufungwa Sampwe / 1/6[sic!]- XII-1911 / Dr. Bequaeret [hw]’ [white rectangular label] // ‘ ♀ ’ [p, small white label] // ‘ PARATYPUS / AFROMENOTES / HIRSUTA / sp. nov./ det. Kment & Kocorek 2013’ [p, red label]. Specimen pinned through scutellum by a minutien stabbed through a piece of card attached to an entomological pin; left antennal segment II and IV and right antennal segments IIIíIV lost.

Description. Female. Coloration and vestiture. Body surface (including antennae, rostrum and legs) black, but covered with brown (waxy?) crust ( Figs 1 –3, 6) and long (up to 0.33 mm), erect brown bristles, straight or curved ( Figs 1 –3, 6, 8, 20, 22, 25). Only membrane bare, without crust and seate, brown with dark brown veins ( Figs 1 , 2).

Structure. Body narrowly obovate, widest across mid of abdomen ( Figs 1 –2), only slightly convex dorsally, strongly convex ventrally (Fig. 3), thorax nearly trapezoid in cross-section.

Head transverse, 1.42–1.54 times wider than long ( Figs 1 , 2, 8), dorsally flattened; mandibular plates much longer than clypeus, their outer margin slightly divergent in basal half, then strongly curved inwards, anterolateral margin arcuately rounded; mandibular plates not adjacent in front of clypeus, their inner margins parallel, apex of clypeus free (Fig. 8). Base of head posteriad of mandibular plates and clypeus wide (widest accross eyes), pedunculate; small compoud eyes positioned posterolaterally; postgenae not developed (Fig. 8); anteocular tubercle small and rounded, bearing 1–4 bristles; ocelli small, positioned on posterior margin of head, hardly visible among the crust and bristles; interocellar distance slightly longer than distance between ocellus and eye (0.5 mm: 0.45 mm). Antennae 4-segmented (Fig. 5); antennal segment I pyriform, not surpassing apex of mandibular plates; antennal segments II and III parallel-sided, II being the longest of all ( Figs 1 , 5), III longer than IV; antennal segment IV lanceolate with pointed apex; all antennal segments laterally compressed, less pronounced in segment IV. Insertion of antennae clearly visible from above. Bucculae short and low, anteriorly widely rounded; a small rounded tubercle with 3 long bristles present in front of bucculae. Rostrum 4-segmented, reaching base of mesocoxae; segment II longest, segment III longer than IV.

Pronotum trapezoidal, anterior margin slightly concave ( Fig. 6 ); anterolateral angles blunt, not prominent; lateral margins straight, gradually diverging posteriad; humeral angles blunt, not prominent; posterior margin along base of scutellum slightly concave. Pronotal surface rather flat, highest between humeral angles, only slightly sloping anteriad, anteriorly shallowly depressed sublaterally. Scutellum 1.53–1.77 times longer than wide, reaching slightly behind middle of abdominal length ( Figs 1 , 2); regularly narrowing posteriad, lateral margins only slightly concave; apex narrow; disc with depressions at anterolateral angles (mostly obscured with crust), with basal hump indistinct, and without a trace of median keel in posterior half. Pro- and mesosternum with shallow groove medially (mostly obscured with crust), metasternum seems flat in the specimens examined; coxae situated rather wide appart. External scent efferent system small, limited to metapleuron (Figs 3, 12–13); ostiole positioned ca. in mid-width of metapleuron, drop-shaped, opening posteriad in a small, deep, oval periostiolar depression (Fig. 13), not covered from above; periostiolar depression not extending laterad in form of evaporatory channel, metathoracic spiracle not depressed (Fig. 13); vestibular scar not visible; peritreme in form of a short and narrow spout (ca. twice as long as ostiole), directed laterad, with shallow median furrow and acute apex (Figs 13–15); evaporatorium covering the surface of periostiolar depression (which also bears no bristles), presence of mycoid surface outside periostiolar depression cannot be ascertained due to the crust; surface of evaporatorium inside the periostiolar depression with well developed gyri- ¿cation (Figs 13–14).

Hemelytra ( Figs 1 , 2). Clavus short, and narrow, reaching the basal third of scutellum. Corium as long as or slightly shorter than scutellum, without any apparent vein; posterolateral margin rouned. Membrane widely rounded apically, reaching or nearly reaching apex of abdomen; venation reticulate with 4 larger basal cells.

Legs. All femora clavate, widening towards apex (Fig. 3), ventrally not attenuated anteapically, unarmed; tibiae slightly flattened laterally; tarsi 2-segmented.

Abdomen. Connexiva not covered by hemelytrae; posterolateral angles of connexival segments with distinct small lobes which become larger and more prominent in posterior segments ( Figs 1 , 2); spiracle II exposed, situated laterally near margin of the ventrite ( Figs 20 , 22); spiracles IIIíVII positioned laterally on ventrites, situated on small tubercles; spiracle VIII shifted more laterally, on laterotergite VIII ( Figs 24 , 25). Trichobothria probably present, but heavily obscured with waxy crust. External female genitalia. Valvifers 8 of quarter-circle shape, not fused medially, bearing shallow depressions along inner margins (especially basally); laterotergites 9 triangular ( Figs 24 , 25).

Measurements (in mm; n = 2, holotype / paratype). Body length (from apex of mandibular plates to apex of abdomen) 9.0 / 6.8; head: length (from apex of mandibular plates to anterior margin of pronotum) 1.33 / 1.23, width (maximum width across eyes) 2.04 / 1.74, height (height across compound eye) 0.9 / 0.8, interocular width (between inner margins of compound eyes) 1.53 / 1.33; maximum lengths of antennal segments: I – 0.72 / 0.51, II – 1.02 / 0.77, III – 0.72 / –, IV – 0.64 / –; pronotum: length (medially in most exposed view) 2.15 / 1.53, anterior width (between anterolateral angles) 2.04 / 1.74; posterior width (maximum width between humeral angles) 3.27 / 2.66; scutellum: length (medially from base to apex) 2.96 / 2.35, width (maximum width at base) 1.94 / 1.33; abdomen width (maximum width across laterotergites IV) 4.09 / 3.27.

Male. Unknown.

Differential diagnosis. See the generic diagnosis above.

Etymology. The species name is the Latin adjective hirsutus, - a, - um (= hairy, hirsute, bristly or rough) referring to the long bristles of the body distinguishing the species from all remaining Dinidoridae .

Bionomics. Unknown. The only two known specimens were collected in an area originally covered by a tropical rain forest.

Distribution. Democratic Republic of the Congo, Katanga province.

Figures

Figs 1í5. General habitus and antennal morphology.1í3, 5 – Afromenotes hirsuta gen.& sp. nov.: 1 – holotype,female (dorsal view); 2í3 – paratype, female (2 – dorsal view, 3 – lateral view); 5 – antenna of the holotype. 4 í Eumenotes obscura Westwood, 1846, female, Malaysia: Tanah Rata..

Figs 6í11. External morphology: 6, 8, 10 – Afromenotes hirsuta gen. & sp. nov., holotype, female; 7, 9, 11 – Eumenotes obscura Westwood, 1846, male, Laos: Namtha. 6–7 – head and pronotum (6 – magni¿cation 25×, 7 – 20×); 8í9 – head (8 í 42×, 9 – 30×), 10í11 – antennal segment II (10 – 90×, 11 í 90×). Scale bars: 0.5 mm (Figs 10í11), 1 mm (Figs 6í9).

Figs 20í23. External morphology: 20, 22 – Afromenotes hirsuta gen. & sp. nov., paratype, female; 21, 23 – Eumenotes obscura Westwood, 1846, male, Laos: Namtha. 20–21 – base of corium and connexivum (20 – magni¿cation 100×, 21 – 100×); 22í23 – spiracle on ventrite II (22 í 120×, 23 – 120×). Abbreviation: s – metathoracic spiracle. Scale bars: 0.2 mm (Figs 22, 23), 0.5 mm (Figs 21, 23).

Figs 24í26. External genitalia: 24–25 – Afromenotes hirsuta gen.