Malmaemichungia qinlingensis, Wei, Cong, Zhang, Yalin & Dietrich, Christopher H., 2010

Wei, Cong, Zhang, Yalin & Dietrich, Christopher H., 2010, A new brachypterous leafhopper of the tribe Malmaemichungiini (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae: Bathysmatophorinae), representing the first record of the tribe from China, Zootaxa 2689, pp. 48-56 : 53-54

Malmaemichungia qinlingensis , sp. nov.

Description. Body length: male 8.5mm, female 8.1–11.6mm. Head and thorax generally blackish ochre to dark brown, mottled with yellowish brown. Crown with weak but distinct transverse carina aubapically. Pronotum with disc concave medially and area adjacent to posterior margin of crown slightly elevated. Apical tergites of abdomen usually elevated posteriorly. Male pygofer with inner lateral processes well slerotized, bifurcated apically, with apices acute; valve with lateral apodemes weakly developed anteriorly; connective with arms short but robust, well sclerotized, anteriorly produced medial process thin; aedeagal shaft (in situ) in lateral view with posterior margin distinctly wavelike, apex with prominent acute denticle proximally on anterior margin.

Female with third pair of valvulae extending well beyond apex of pygofer.

Type material. HOLOTYPE: male ( NWAFU), CHINA, Shaanxi Province, Fengxian County, 3.VI.1999, on bushes, coll. J. Morse. PARATYPES: 1 female ( NWAFU), the same date as holotype, in copulation with the holotype when collected; 1 female ( NWAFU), CHINA, Shaanxi Province, Meixian County, Mt. Taibai, Dianbingchang, 34°05’N, 107°42’E, 1200m, 29.V.1981, Insect Exploration on Mt. Taibai of Qinling Mountains (Shaanxi Prov.); 1 female ( NWAFU), CHINA, Gansu Province, Tianshui, Xiaolongshan National Forest Park, Manping, 33°81’N, 107°51’E, 1650m, 18.VI.2010, coll. Lu Lin.

Etymology. The specific name is after the locality of the type material, Qinling Mountains.

Remarks. This species is very similar to Malmaemichungia brachycephala Kwon but differs in having the aedeagal shaft with the anterior tooth-like projection more prominent and the posterior basal keel longer and more rounded and the connective with the median anterior lobe narrower ( Figs 14, 19 ).

Variation of the second pair of valvulae. One of the two female paratypes of M. qinlingensis has the second valvulae strongly decurved and fractured in several places along the dorsal margin. The apparent deformation of the second valvulae of this specimen may be correlated with copulation as the specimens were found in this activity when collected or may have been caused by the premature separation of the male and female after their capture.

Figures

FIGURES 8 – 20. Male genitalia of Malmaemichungia qinlingensis sp. nov. 8. male pygofer (dissected with valve and subgenital plates removed), lateral view; 9. male pygofer, lateral view; 10. valve and subgenital plates, ventral view; 11. partial male pygofer with inner process, dorsal view; 12. inner process of male pygofer, dorsal view; 13. partial valve and subgenital plates, ventral view; 14. connective; 15. style, connective and aedeagus, lateral view; 16. Style, lateral view; 17. style, connective and aedeagus, dorsal view; 18. apex of style, dorsal view; 19. aedeagus, lateral view; 20. aedeagus, posteroventral view.