Holopothrips punctatus, Lindner & Ferrari & Mound & Cavalleri, 2018

Lindner, Mariana F., Ferrari, Augusto, Mound, Laurence A. & Cavalleri, Adriano, 2018, Holopothrips diversity-a Neotropical genus of gall-inducing insects (Thysanoptera, Phlaeothripidae), Zootaxa 4494 (1), pp. 1-99 : 77-79

Holopothrips punctatus sp. n.

( Figs 226–233 )

Diagnostic features. Body (except antenna) uniformly light brown; head with sharply straight margins, maxillary stylets V-shaped, and minute tubercles on sculpture dorsolaterally; one pair of long pronotal setae on epimeral region; metanotal sculpture with equiangular reticles, without internal markings; sculpture on pelta weak to absent near posterior margin; male with pore plates on sternites VI–VIII, posterior plate on VIII extending slightly towards tergite; female spermatheca enlarged medially.

Macropterous female: Body ( Fig. 226 ) light brown, with head and tergite X slightly darker, fore tibia and all tarsi yellow, mid tibia yellow on apical half and hind tibia yellow on apex. Antennal segment I concolourous with head, II light brown basally and yellow apically, III–VIII clear yellow. Fore wings pale but very light brown on area around sub-basal setae, without median dark line, clavus shaded; major body setae yellow.

Head ( Fig. 227 ) about 1.3 times as long as width behind eyes, dorsal surface with transverse lines of sculpture, sometimes enclosing elongated reticles; cheeks straight, bearing several minute tubercles on sculpture dorsolaterally. Eyes large, dorsal length about 0.4 of head length; po with weakly capitate apex, about as long as the dorsal width of the eye. Maxillary stylets V-shaped, not reaching po level and more than half of head width apart. Mouth cone with rounded tip, not reaching ferna. Antennal segment III with 3 sense cones and IV with 3 sense cones + 1 additional small sense cone.

Pronotum ( Fig. 227 ) trapezoidal, with weak lines of sculpture near posterior margin but smooth medially; epimeral sutures incomplete and short, in some specimens apparently bifurcating around pa setae ( Fig. 228 ). Five major pairs of pronotal setae, one pair on epimeral region; am small, aa, ml, ep and pa well-developed and with weakly capitate tips. Basantra absent; prosternal ferna well-developed, close medially but not touching, anterior margins weakly produced in some specimens. Mesonotum ( Fig. 229 ) with equiangular reticulation medially, which becomes transversely elongated anterolaterally; internal markings on sculpture absent. Metanotum ( Fig. 233 ) with equiangular reticles, slightly elongated near margins, internal markings on sculpture absent; one or two pairs of anterior discal setae and one pair of median major setae present. Fore tarsal hamus not enlarged. Fore wings with 4 to 8 duplicated cilia.

Pelta ( Fig. 230 ) triangular, wider basally than long medially, anterior margin straight to slightly curved, no lateral wings but with weak projections near base; paired campaniform sensilla present. Sculpture present medially but weaker or absent posteriorly and near margins; elongated reticles surrounded by irregular ones medially, weak irregular lines laterally, internal markings on sculpture absent. Tergite II without visible sculpture; tergites II–VII with three pairs of wing retaining setae. Tergite IX setae S1 with blunt to slightly expanded apex, S2 and S3 finely acute. Tube about 0.8 of head length and about 2.5 times as long as greatest width near base, apical width about 0.6 of basal width. Spermatheca ( Fig. 231 ) swollen medially.

Measurements (female holotype in microns): Length about 2646; head length 287, width behind eyes 224, po length 77, eye dorsal length 107; median length of pronotum 140, width across ep 305, am 17, aa 40, ml 62, ep 105, pa 80; width of mesonotum 325; fore wing length 980; tergite IX setae S1 225, S2 235, S3 187; tergite X length 242, basal width 87, apical width 54; length(width) of antennal segments III–VIII 82 (30), 62(30), 72(27), 70(25), 72(25), 27(12), respectively.

Macropterous male: Similar to female in both colouration and structure, but smaller. Pore plates ( Fig. 232 ) with punctuated texture and present on sternites VI–VIII: VIII with a transverse band posterior to discal setae and two anteroangular plates, VII with only the transverse band, VI with irregular spots posterior to discal setae. Posterior plate on VIII extending towards tergite, slightly past spiracles.

Measurements (male paratype in microns): Length about 2093; head length 237, width across cheeks 182, po length 60, eye dorsal length 97; median length of pronotum 120, width across ep 255, am 15, aa 37, ml 55, ep 80, pa 57; width of mesonotum 277; fore wing length 830; tergite IX setae S1 182, S2 205, S3 197; tergite X length 195, basal width 79, apical width 45; length(width) of antennal segments III–VIII 77 (27), 60(25), 65(25), 62(22), 62(21), 40(10), respectively.

Material studied. Holotype female, Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Antônio Prado, Gruta Natural , in Mollinedia leaf galls, 18.ii.2010 (Cavalleri, A.), at UFRGS. Slide with code UFRGS 1083 .

Paratypes: 2 males and 17 females collected with holotype, at UFRGS . 1 male and 1 female collected with holotype, at ANIC .

Etymology. Species named after the distinct punctuate appearance of the dorsolateral area of its head, due to the presence of minute tubercles in the sculpture.

Comments. This species also has the curious trait of the posterior pore plate on sternite VIII extending onto the tergite, which is found in a few other species, such as H. hambletoni and H. paulus . Holopothrips punctatus is very similar in appearance and structure to H. hambletoni , but differs in having the maxillary stylets wider apart ( Fig. 227 ), minute tubercles on dorsolateral sculpture of head, and the posterior pore plate on sternite VIII only barely extending onto the tergite, while in H. hambletoni it extends for about a third of the tergite width. Holopothrips pennatus also shares some similarities with this species, but is distinguished by having all legs fully yellow (except for coxae). Holopothrips punctatus was found co-existing with H. claritibialis on Mollinedia leaves in South Brazil.

Figures

FIGURES 226–233. Holopothrips punctatus sp. nov. holotype and paratypes. (226) body; (227) head and pronotum; (228) detail of pronotum, showing the forking of the epimeral suture around the base of pa setae (white arrow); (229) mesonotum; (230) pelta; (231) spermatheca; (232) male abdominal sternites VII–VIII, pore plate visible on VII (white arrow) but hidden by internal content on VIII; (233) metanotum.