Casuarinicola warrigalensis Taylor

Taylor, Gary S., Austin, Andy D., Jennings, John T., Purcell, Matthew F. & Wheeler, Gregory S., 2010, Casuarinicola, a new genus of jumping plant lice (Hemiptera: Triozidae) from Casuarina (Casuarinaceae), Zootaxa 2601, pp. 1-27 : 20-24

Casuarinicola warrigalensis Taylor , sp. nov.

Figs 37–43 , 47–49 , Tables 1–5, 8

Types. AUSTRALIA, New South Wales: Holotype: 1 ɗ (slide) 25 km NW Baradine, “Warrigal”, 30°48.825’S, 148°51.382’E, GST, 3.x.2008, Casuarina cristata , ABCL 2008 580 (ASCU). Paratypes: 2 Ψ (slide) same data as holotype (ASCU, WINC); 1 Ψ (head, abdomen; spirit) same data (WINC); 1 ɗ (slide) same data except 30°49.305’S, 148°52.270’E, ABCL 2008 581 (WINC).

Description. Adult. Colour ( Figs 37–42 ): Male: general colour ochraceous with dark brown markings. Vertex with an extensive dark brown marking in vicinity of fovea and prominent dark longitudinal stripe along median suture; genal processes pale ochraceous; antennal segments 1–2 dark brown; segment 3 ochraceous-brown, segments 4–10 dark brown to black; pronotum pale ochraceous with dark brown anterior margin and a pair of pale brown lateral markings; mesopraescutum with a pair of broad triangular light orange-brown markings anteriorly; mesoscutum with 2 pairs dark brown longitudinal submedial stripes; mesoscutellum with a broad, dark brown medial stripe; fore wing clear; legs ochraceous to dark brown; femora, fore and hind tibia ochraceous with dorsal longitudinal brown infuscation, hind tibia pale ochraceous with longitudinal brown infuscation; tarsi dark brown to black; abdominal tergites dark brown to black; abdominal sternites with pale medial stripe; proctiger subgenital plate and parameres brown to dark brown Female: as for male, except paler; mesoscutellum light ochraceous with pale brown medial stripe; fore wing ( Fig. 41 ) with heavily maculated dark brown to black markings in apical half, lightly maculated in proximal half; legs pale ochraceous with dorsal brown longitudinal infuscation; abdominal tergites brown to dark brown; abdominal sternites pale with a submedial brown patch each centred with pale brown; proctiger dark brown to black, including immediately surrounding circumanal pore ring; subgenital plate ochraceous with dark brown markings anteriorly and laterally.

Structure: measurements and ratios as in Tables 1–5. Antenna ( Fig. 43 ) short, 1.20–1.41 times width of head; genal processes very short, conical, 0.17–0.22 times length of vertex; length of vertex 0.38–0.43 times width of head; anterior margin of vertex delineated by moderate ridge, vertex with prominent medial suture and prominent fovea; pronotum with weak, rounded anterior medial node; fore wing elongate-oval with broadly rounded apex; Rs short, smoothly curved upward to costa, terminating well short of wing apex; vein M1+2 terminating little anterior of wing apex; cell m1 short triangular, cell value 1.4–1.6; cell cu1 elongate triangular, cell value 0.7–1.0; male terminalia as in Figs 47–48 ; proctiger short with broad lateral expansions; parameres thin elongate, curved inward towards apex; female terminalia as in Fig. 49 ; proctiger short, with dorsal profile flat, little rounded from lateral aspect, with broadly rounded flange-shaped lateral lobes.

Etymology. From “Warrigal” (locality) + ensis (L.) belonging to, from. Named after “Warrigal”, 25 km NW of Baradine, NSW, from which the type specimens were collected.

Distribution. Recorded from near Pilliga Scrub in ‘mid-western’ New South Wales ( Fig. 51 ).

Host plant. Recorded from C. cristata . Casuarina cristata (belah) occurs as a 10–20 m tree in clay calcareous soils in subcoastal regions in eastern Australia (usually west of the Great Dividing Range, from Clermont, Qld to Temora, NSW. It frequently produces root suckers and often forms pure (often clonal) stands as an open forest or woodland ( Wilson & Johnson 1989).

Comments. This species can be distinguished from all other species in the genus by the female with heavily maculated fore wings. The male has clear wings. Casuarinicola warrigalensis sp. nov. has very short genal cones, considerably shorter that all other species in the genus; the pronotum has a weak, rounded median lobe (which is produced anteriorly in C. australis sp. nov., C. nigrimaculatus sp. nov., C. mucronalatus sp. nov. and C. novacaledonica sp. nov.); the fore wing is elongate oval with a rounded apex, cell m1 is short and broad and cell cu1 is narrow and high, each with a low cell value (shared with C. australis sp. nov., C. nigrimaculatus sp. nov. and C. novacaledonica sp. nov., but differs from C. mucronalatus sp. nov. in which the fore wing has a subangular apex, cell m1 is long and narrow and cell cu1 is short and broad, each with a high cell value); and, the hind tibia is distinctly long (differs from C. australis sp. nov., C. nigrimaculatus sp. nov. and C. mucronalatus sp. nov. with a moderate hind tibia moderate tibia length to head width ratio and from C. novacaledonica sp. nov. with a short hind tibia and low length to head width ratio). Casuarinicola warrigalensis sp. nov. occurs on C. cristata , which is also a host for C. australis sp. nov. and C. mucronalatus sp. nov.

Figures

FIGURES 37 – 43. Casuarinicola warrigalensis sp. nov. (37), habitus, female (dorsal aspect); (38), habitus, male (dorsal aspect); (39), habitus female (lateral aspect); (40), habitus male (lateral aspect); (41), fore wing, female; (42), fore wing, male; (43), head (dorsal aspect). Scale = 0.5 mm.

FIGURES 44 – 49. Casuarinicola novacaledonica sp. nov. and C. warrigalensis sp. nov. Casuarinicola novacaledonica sp. nov. (44), male terminalia (lateral aspect: note twisting of distal segment of aedeagus is an artefact); (45), paramere (inner face, lateral aspect); (46), female terminalia, (lateral aspect: note alignment of circumanal pore ring is an artefact); Casuarinicola warrigalensis sp. nov. (47), male terminalia (lateral aspect); (48), paramere (inner face, lateral aspect); (49), female terminalia, (lateral aspect). Scale = 0.2 mm.

FIGURES 50 – 51. Distribution for Australian species of Casuarinicola gen. nov.: (50),, Casuarinicola australis sp. nov.; (51),, C. nigrimaculatus sp. nov.;, C. mucronalatus sp. nov.;, C. warrigalensis sp. nov.