Carvalhoiella maldonadus (La Rivers) Reynoso-Velasco, 2017

Reynoso-Velasco, Daniel, 2017, New combinations, status, and species of Neotropical Ambrysini (Heteroptera: Naucoridae: Cryphocricinae), Zootaxa 4323 (4), pp. 503-518 : 504-505

Carvalhoiella maldonadus (La Rivers) NEW COMBINATION

Figs. 1–7

Ambrysus maldonadus La Rivers 1954 : Entomol. News 45: 197–201 (original description).

Ambrysus (Syncollus) maldonadus: La Rivers 1965 . Biol. Soc. Nevada Occas. Pap., 4: 5 (subgenus designation).

Diagnosis. Body length 10.24–11.20 mm. The dorsum is shiny. A series of pits lines the anterior margin of the posterior transverse band on the pronotum ( Fig. 1 ). Tergum VI of the male lacks an accessory genitalic process ( Fig. 2 ). The mesal margins of the laterosternites (evident on segments III–VI of both sexes) are slightly offset from one another and the abdominal venter is brown with a wide, glabrous, yellow marginal band. The midline of sterna V–VIII (males) and V–VII (females) are mostly glabrous and impubis. The pseudoparameres (medial lobes of tergum VIII) are large, broad, posterolaterally directed, with apices broadly rounded and overlapping the lateral lobes ( Fig. 3 ). The proctiger is setose in the middle third and nearly devoid of setae in the lateral thirds ( Fig. 5 ), and the parameres have an apical tuft of elongate setae ( Fig. 6 ). The ventral margins of the phallosoma are mostly unmodified, although sclerotized lobes overlap near the base of the endosoma ( Fig. 7 ). The distal margin of the female subgenital plate is broadly convex medially with roundedly-produced posterolateral corners ( Fig. 4 ).

Discussion. In the original description, La Rivers (1954) recognized the distinction of A. maldonadus from other species of Ambrysus because of the "conspicuous black procts" (=pseudoparameres or medial lobes of tergum VIII) and the outline of the subgenital plate. Later, La Rivers (1963, 1965) further recognized the degree to which this species was atypical by suggesting that it might merit its own subgenus. In the original description of Ambrysus montandoni, La Rivers (1963) made extensive comparisons with A. maldonadus , which he considered to be closely related.

This species is known only from Venezuela and bears superficial resemblance to Carvalhoiella nitida in that their size, shape, and glossy appearances are similar; however, Ambrysus maldonadus exhibits other diagnostic attributes consistent with Carvalhoiella , including the loss of setae on the abdominal mediosternites, the head is not produced anteriorly, the anterior margin of the pronotum is only slightly concave to receive the head, the mesal margins of the laterosternites are diagonally offset from one another, the ventral abdominal lateral band is wide, and the pseudoparameres are large and posterolaterally directed ( Table 1). It lacks many of the distinguishing features of the genus Ambrysus , including deep invagination of the head into the pronotum, continuous ventral abdominal hair pile, continuous mesal margins of the laterosternites, narrow ventral abdominal lateral band, small male pseudoparameres, and the male accessory genitalic process of tergum VI ( Table 1). Thus, Ambrysus maldonadus is transferred to the genus Carvalhoiella .

Type locality: Venezuela, Territorio Amazonas, Mount Marahuaca, Upper Cunucunuma River.

Type repository: California Academy of Sciences (holotype ♂ by original designation).

Material examined. VENEZUELA: Venezuela Exp., Territ. Amazonas, Upper Cunucunuma, Julian, May 27, 1950 / J. Maldonado Capriles Coll. / Ambrysus maldonadus La Rivers 1954 , HOLOTYPE ♂ / Ambrysus maldonadus La Rivers 1954 , determined by Ira La Rivers '54 / Ira La Rivers Collection, Bequeathed to the California Academy of Sciences—1978 / California Academy of Sciences Type No. 13409 (Holotype ♂ CAS); same data, Ambrysus maldonadus La Rivers 1954 , Paratype / J.T. Polhemus Collection 2014, C.J. Drake Accession (1♂, 1♀ USNM); Amazonas State, S Puerto Ayachucho, El Tobogan de la Selva, 14 January 2009 / 5°23.207'N, 67°36.922'W, 125 m, VZ-20090114-01, coll: J. Camacho (1♂, 1♀ UMC); Amazonas, 42 km S of Puerto Ayacucho Tobogan, 19 January 1989, J.T. Polhemus, CL2371, (2♂, 2♀ UMC).

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 7. Carvalhoiella maldonadus. (1) Dorsal habitus, (2) abdominal terga VI and VII of male, (3) abdominal tergum VIII of male with pseudoparameres, (4) terminal abdominal sterna of female, (5) male genital capsule, (6) male genital capsule with terga IX and X (proctiger) removed, (7) ventral surface of phallosoma (yellow arrows indicate overlapping sclerotized lobes). sgp = subgenital plate, pp = pseudoparamere, pr = paramere, ptg = proctiger.