Coletinia mendesi Wygodzinsky, 1980

Molero, Rafael, Bach, Carmen, Sendra, Alberto, Montagud, Sergio, Barranco, Pablo & Gaju, Miguel, 2013, <strong> Revision of the genus <em> Coletinia </ em> (Zygentoma: Nicoletiidae) in the Iberian Peninsula, with descriptions of nine new species </ strong>, Zootaxa 3615 (1), pp. 1-60 : 43-47

Coletinia mendesi Wygodzinsky, 1980

Figs. 1A , 4 , 6 , 8 , 134–140

Studied material. Cádiz, San Roque, 31 December 1979, 1 female, under stones; published as Coletinia sp. V in Molero-Baltanás et al. (1997); deposited in UCO, Ref. Z 0303. Córdoba, Palenciana, 28 June 2001, captured in Sentri-Sol traps for termites, 3 males (partially dissected for SEM study) and 2 juveniles, Ref. Z 2172. Córdoba, edaphic in decomposed wood, August 2001, 1 juvenile male, UCO, Ref. Z 2173 .

Part of the material from Portugal reported by Mendes (1985, 1996) has also been examined.

Descriptive remarks. All specimens studied agree well with the original description by Wygodzinsky (1980). Compared with other species, the body shape of the living specimens is not as elongated (see Fig. 1A , compare with 1B or 1C). The setation of the head may be more irregular than was illustrated by Wygodzinsky, but the absence of bifid macrosetae is characteristic ( Fig. 4 ).

The availability of many specimens from Córdoba has allowed us to study one of them with SEM, especially the secondary sexual characters of the male. The antennal apophysis was visualized and photographed from different angles to obtain a tri-dimensional image of this feature ( Figs. 8 , 134–136 ) and to clarify Wygodzinsky’s illustrations made with OM techniques. These photographs reveal the configuration of the subapical plate-like process; it has an internal position and is curved towards the glandular cone. The cone is also curved apically to the subapical process, delimiting a nearly circular cavity with a smooth tegument ( Figs. 135, 136 ). The tegument is scale-like externally and basally in the basal trunk of the apophysis, and hairy (with many short setae) in the internal side, adjacent to the basal annuli of the flagellum. The setae on the external side of the trunk are longer, robust and relatively numerous ( Figs. 134, 135 ), which results in the most distinctive appearance of the apophysis in this species. In some other aspects, the antennal apophysis of male C. mendesi is not significantly different from those species belonging to the “ capolongoi ” subgroup; this similarity suggests that C. mendesi (and likely, the very closely related C. setosula ) are apomorphic and derive from the “ capolongoi ” group of species, as the diagnostic features of the “ mendesi ” group of species coincide with their apomorphic exclusive characters. The apical part of the apophysis attains the level of the fourth division of the flagellum, or even the demarcation between the fourth and fifth joints.

In this species, the lateral spines of the tibiae are absent in all examined specimens ( Fig. 6 ); the discal bifid macrosetae of the urosternites also are absent, but are present in the remaining species of Coletinia studied (see Fig. 7 ). Another species-specific characteristic is found in the ventral spines of the mesotibiae, which are strong and longer than the diameter of the tibiae ( Fig. 6 ). Other diagnostic features of this species are the straight hind border of the eighth urosternite in males ( Fig. 137 ), the short paramera (approximately 3–3.5 times longer than their maximum width and slightly shorter than the ninth stylets, see Fig. 138 ) and the semicircular subgenital plate in females (shorter than wide at the base and with convex hind margin, but with evident intraspecific variation as shown in Figs. 139 and 140 ). The original description by Wygodzinsky is sufficient to distinguish this species; the examination of more specimens allows us to widen the variability of some characteristics, such as the aforementioned shape of the subgenital plate or the proportions of the maxillary palp, in which the distal article can be 4.8–6 times longer than wide and 1.3–1.5 times longer than the penultimate article.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Photographs of living specimens of Iberian Coletinia. A. C. mendesi (photograph by R. Molero). B. C. tinauti (photograph by M. Gaju). C. C. redetecta n. sp. (photograph by S. Montagud). Scales: 2 mm.

FIGURES 3, 4. Head chaetotaxy. 3. Coletinia capolongoi. 4. C. mendesi. Scale: 0.1 mm.

FIGURES 5, 6. SEM photographs of Coletinia tibiae. 5. Tibia III of C. capolongoi, showing the typical position of the tibial spines: d: dorsal; l: lateral; v: ventral. 6. Tibia II of C. mendesi, without lateral spines and with long and stronger ventral spines. Scales: 0.2 mm.

FIGURES 7, 8. Terminology of body parts. 7. Urosternite VI of Coletinia redetecta, showing the position of its macrosetae. Sl: sublateral; Sm: submedian; D: discal. Scale: 0.1 mm. 8. Pedicellar apophysis of C. mendesi, showing its main structures: B, basal trunk; A: apical cone; S: glandular seta; L: lamellar (plate-like) projection. Scale: 0.1 mm.

FIGURES 134–140. Coletinia mendesi. 134–136. SEM images of antennal structures of a male from Palenciana (Córdoba). 134. Pedicellar apophysis. 135. Pedicellar apophysis from another point of view. 136. Pedicellar apophysis, detail of the apical region. 137. Urosternite VIII of a male from San Roque, (Cádiz). 138. Paramera and stylets IX. 139. Subgenital plate of a female from San Roque (Cádiz). 140. Subgenital plate of a female from Palenciana (Córdoba). Scales: 0.1 mm, except Figs. 135: 50 µm, and 136: 20 µm.