Zelus lewisi Zhang & Hart

Zhang, Guanyang, Hart, Elwood R & Weirauch, Christiane, 2016, A taxonomic monograph of the assassin bug genus Zelus Fabricius (Hemiptera: Reduviidae): 71 species based on 10,000 specimens, Biodiversity Data Journal 4, pp. 8150-8150 : 8150

Zelus lewisi Zhang & Hart sp. n.

Materials

Type status: Holotype. Occurrence: catalogNumber: UCR_ENT 00014251 ; occurrenceRemarks: Verbatim coordinates info LN L N 318100 381900. Site number 5367; recordedBy: F. Quesada; sex: Adult Male; otherCatalogNumbers: INBIO CRI002211269; Taxon: scientificName: Zeluslewisi; family: Reduviidae; genus: Zelus; scientificNameAuthorship: Zhang and Hart, 2016; Location: country: COSTA RICA; stateProvince: Alajuela; locality: Sector San Ramon de Dos Rios ; decimalLatitude: 10.16667; decimalLongitude: -84.08333; georeferenceSources: Google Earth; Identification: identifiedBy: G. Zhang; dateIdentified: 2013; Event: eventDate: 1995-06-26; Record Level: institutionCode: INBIO Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: catalogNumber: UCR_ENT 00014250 ; recordedBy: F. Quesada; sex: Adult Male; Taxon: scientificName: Zeluslewisi; family: Reduviidae; genus: Zelus; scientificNameAuthorship: Zhang and Hart, 2016; Location: country: COSTA RICA; stateProvince: Alajuela; locality: San Cristobal ; decimalLatitude: 10.49557; decimalLongitude: -84.55206; georeferenceSources: Gazetteer; Identification: identifiedBy: G. Zhang; dateIdentified: 2013; Event: eventDate: 1997-10-01 to 1997-11-01; Record Level: institutionCode: INBIO Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: catalogNumber: UCR_ENT 00014261 ; recordedBy: C. Moraga; sex: Adult Male; Taxon: scientificName: Zeluslewisi; family: Reduviidae; genus: Zelus; scientificNameAuthorship: Zhang and Hart, 2016; Location: country: COSTA RICA; stateProvince: Guanacaste; locality: Parque Nacional Guanacaste, Finca Aguirrez, Lado N. Volcan Orosi ; decimalLatitude: 10.99992; decimalLongitude: -85.46858; georeferenceSources: Google Earth; Identification: identifiedBy: G. Zhang; dateIdentified: 2013; Event: eventDate: 1994-03-01; Record Level: institutionCode: INBIO Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: catalogNumber: UCR_ENT 00014262 ; recordedBy: C. Moraga; sex: Adult Female; Taxon: scientificName: Zeluslewisi; family: Reduviidae; genus: Zelus; scientificNameAuthorship: Zhang and Hart, 2016; Location: country: COSTA RICA; stateProvince: Guanacaste; locality: Parque Nacional Guanacaste, Finca Aguirrez, Lado N. Volcan Orosi ; decimalLatitude: 10.99992; decimalLongitude: -85.46858; georeferenceSources: Google Earth; Identification: identifiedBy: G. Zhang; dateIdentified: 2013; Event: eventDate: 1994-03-01; Record Level: institutionCode: INBIO Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: catalogNumber: UCR_ENT 00014263 ; recordedBy: C. Moraga; sex: Adult Female; Taxon: scientificName: Zeluslewisi; family: Reduviidae; genus: Zelus; scientificNameAuthorship: Zhang and Hart, 2016; Location: country: COSTA RICA; stateProvince: Guanacaste; locality: Parque Nacional Guanacaste, Finca Aguirrez, Lado N. Volcan Orosi ; decimalLatitude: 10.99992; decimalLongitude: -85.46858; georeferenceSources: Google Earth; Identification: identifiedBy: G. Zhang; dateIdentified: 2013; Event: eventDate: 1994-03-01; Record Level: institutionCode: INBIO Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: catalogNumber: UCR_ENT 00014264 ; recordedBy: A. Azofeifa; sex: Adult Female; Taxon: scientificName: Zeluslewisi; family: Reduviidae; genus: Zelus; scientificNameAuthorship: Zhang and Hart, 2016; Location: country: COSTA RICA; stateProvince: Alajuela; locality: Parque Nacional Volcan Tenorio. Estacion El Pilon ; decimalLatitude: 10.6607; decimalLongitude: -84.96272; georeferenceSources: Google Earth; Identification: identifiedBy: G. Zhang; dateIdentified: 2013; Event: eventDate: 2005-10-20; Record Level: institutionCode: INBIO Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: catalogNumber: UCR_ENT 00014265 ; recordedBy: J. F. Corrales; sex: Adult Female; Taxon: scientificName: Zeluslewisi; family: Reduviidae; genus: Zelus; scientificNameAuthorship: Zhang and Hart, 2016; Location: country: COSTA RICA; stateProvince: Cartago; locality: Monumento Nacional Guayabo, Turrialba ; decimalLatitude: 9.97159; decimalLongitude: -83.69072; georeferenceSources: Google Earth; Identification: identifiedBy: G. Zhang; dateIdentified: 2013; Event: eventDate: 1994-06-21; Record Level: institutionCode: INBIO Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: catalogNumber: UCR_ENT 00014409 ; recordedBy: C. Moraga; sex: Adult Female; otherCatalogNumbers: INBIO CR1OO2 029708; Taxon: scientificName: Zeluslewisi; family: Reduviidae; genus: Zelus; scientificNameAuthorship: Zhang and Hart, 2016; Location: country: COSTA RICA; stateProvince: Guanacaste; locality: Est. Pitilla, 9 km S. Santa Cecilia, P.N. Guanacaste, A.C. Guanacaste ; decimalLatitude: 10.99261; decimalLongitude: -85.42948; georeferenceSources: Label; Identification: identifiedBy: G. Zhang; dateIdentified: 2013; Event: eventDate: 1994-08-01; Record Level: institutionCode: INBIO Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: catalogNumber: UCR_ENT 00017828 ; recordedBy: H. A. Hespenheide; sex: Adult Male; Taxon: scientificName: Zeluslewisi; family: Reduviidae; genus: Zelus; scientificNameAuthorship: Zhang and Hart, 2016; Location: country: PANAMA; stateProvince: Panama; locality: Cerro Campana ; decimalLatitude: 8.66666; decimalLongitude: -79.93333; georeferenceSources: Label; Identification: identifiedBy: G. Zhang; dateIdentified: 2013; Event: eventDate: 1977-07-01; Record Level: institutionCode: AMNH Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: catalogNumber: UCR_ENT 00038446 ; recordedBy: P. A. Opler; sex: Adult Male; Taxon: scientificName: Zeluslewisi; family: Reduviidae; genus: Zelus; scientificNameAuthorship: Zhang and Hart, 2016; Location: country: COSTA RICA; stateProvince: Heredia; locality: La Selva, 3 km S Puerto Viejo ; decimalLatitude: 10.43333; decimalLongitude: -84.01666; georeferenceSources: Label; Identification: identifiedBy: G. Zhang; dateIdentified: 2013; Event: eventDate: 1973-10-15; Record Level: institutionCode: UCB

Description

Figs 121, 122, 123

Male: (Fig. 121a, b) Large, slender, total length 18.71-20.15 mm (mean 19.20 mm, Suppl. material 2); slender. COLORATION: Entire surface blackish-brown. Pleura, abdomen venter and sometimes scutellum with whitish markings. Antenna brown; scape with three dark annulations. Profemur brown, with dark medial and subapical rings; meso- and metafemora yellowish-brown, dark spot on base outer/anterior surface, and dark brown rings medially and subapically. VESTITURE: Sparsely setose. Similar to that in Z. armillatus , less dense. STRUCTURE: Head: Cylindrical, L/W = 2.36. Postocular lobe very long; in dorsal view distinctly narrowing through anterior 2/3, posterior 1/3 constant, tube-like. Eye moderately sized; lateral margin much wider than postocular lobe; dorsal and ventral margins removed from surfaces of head. Labium: I: II: III = 1: 1.1: 0.3. Basiflagellomere diameter very slightly larger than that of pedicel. Thorax: Anterolateral angle bears small protuberance; medial longitudinal sulcus distinct throughout, deepened posteriorly. Posterior pronotal lobe finely rugulose; disc distinctly elevated above humeral angle, bears two small tubercles; humeral angle armed, with spinous processes. Scutellum moderately long; apex angulate. Legs: Very slender. Hemelytron: Surpassing apex of abdomen by about length of abdominal segment seven; quadrate cell small, relatively broad; Cu and M of cubital cell subparallel. GENITALIA: (Fig. 122) Pygophore: Ovoid; not expanded laterally in dorsal view; broad, weakly sclerotized expansion between paramere and medial process. Medial process short; semi-erect; apex folded ventrad, with small sharp lateral projections. Paramere: Cylindrical; very long, exceeding apex of medial process; apical part not expanded. Phallus: Dorsal phallothecal sclerite rectangular; apical portion of phallothecal sclerite not distinctly tapered, surface flat, apex rounded, not emarginate; phallothecal sclerite laterally with wrinkles; posterior margin of foramen broadly inversely V-shaped. Struts attached to dorsal phallothecal sclerite; apically separate, not connected by bridge; basally separate. Basal plate arm moderately robust; separate; converging; in lateral view slightly curved; bridge short; extension of basal plate expanded onto arm.

Female: (Fig. 121c, d, e, f) Larger than male, total length 22.52-24.06 mm (mean 23.29 mm, Suppl. material 2). Coloration variable; yellowish or reddish with dark spots or markings.

Diagnosis

Recognized by the large and slender body and the posterior pronotal lobe bearing a pair of tubercles. Males can be easily recognized by the black coloration with white markings on scutellum and abdomen and females yellowish or reddish with black spots and markings. Among males of the Zelus armillatus group (Fig. 8), the paramere of Z. annulosus is more than 2x longer than the medial process. Zelus amblycephalus and Z. annulosus also have long parameres, but these are apically curved, whereas it is straight in Z. annulosus .

Etymology

The specific epithet is a patronym, named after Dr. James Lewis, in honor of his contribution to the curation of Heteroptera of Costa Rica at INBio. Without his and his fellow scientists' work the discovery of this species would not have been possible.

Distribution

Central America (Fig. 123). Countries with records: Costa Rica and Panama.