Meschia, Distant, 1910

Malipatil, M. B., Yeshwanth, H. M. & Kondorosy, Előd, 2021, Taxonomic position of Heissothignus and review of the species of Meschia (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Meschiidae), Zootaxa 5032 (2), pp. 283-289 : 289

publication ID	https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5032.2.9
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:261EB197-F836-4745-8EE8-3606FE7B98DC
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03C6879B-FF92-FFEA-18A7-FF22C2BAFD36
treatment provided by	Plazi (2021-09-07 09:01:43, last updated 2023-11-08 01:03:56)
scientific name	Meschia
status

Treatment

Key to the species of Meschia View in CoL

1 Body and appendages, particularly pronotum and hemelytra uniformly pale ochraceous; antennal segment I more than twice as wide as segment II; antennal segment II with numerous long, bristly erect setae [ Australia]................................................................................................. Meschia barrowensis Malipatil, 2014 View in CoL

– Body and appendages, particularly pronotum, hemelytra, often also head,with at least some brownish markings but never uniformly pale ochraceous; antennal segment I less than twice as wide as segment II; antennal segments with short decumbent setae only ................................................................................................... 2

2 Abdominal terga III–VI without punctures; anterior margin of pronotum with distinct fuscous spots in middle [ China]............................................................................ Meschia zoui Gao & Malipatil, 2019 View in CoL

– Abdominal terga III–VI medially with punctures; anterior margin of pronotum without distinct fuscous spots in middle.... 3

3 Pronotum with three pairs of fuscous patches on posterior margin, these patches vaguely extending to almost entire length of pronotum but not reaching anterior margin [ Australia]............................ Meschia woodwardi Scudder, 1957 View in CoL

– Pronotum with fuscous markings of variable size, shape and intensity, often only on posterior margin (as irregularly shaped and spaced spots or patches, or these joined to form one variably shaped fuscous band covering almost entire width on posterior margin) ( Figs. 5 & 6 View FIGURES 5–8 ), or irregular patches on most of pronotum ( Fig. 8 View FIGURES 5–8 ), or with two ill-defined broad central longitudinal fasciae along entire length of pronotum ( Fig. 7 View FIGURES 5–8 ) [ India]............................... Meschia pugnax Distant, 1910 View in CoL

References

Distant, W. E. (1910) The Fauna of British India, including Ceylon & Burma. Rhynchota Vol. V. Heteroptera: Appendix. Taylor and Francis, London, 362 pp.

Gao, C. & Malipatil, M. B. (2019) Meschia zoui sp. nov., first representative of the family Meschiidae from China (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Lygaeoidea), Zootaxa, 4603 (1), 172 - 182. https: // doi. org / 10.11646 / zootaxa. 4603.1.9

Malipatil, M. B. (2014) Meschiidae, a new family of Lygaeoidea (Hemiptera: Heteroptera) from India and Australia, with descriptions of a new genus and two new species. Zootaxa, 3815 (2), 233 - 248. https: // doi. org / 10.11646 / zootaxa. 3815.2.4

Scudder, G. G. E. (1957) A revision of the genus Meschia Distant (Hemiptera: Lygaeidae) with a new species from south Queensland. Proceedings of the Royal Society of the Queensland, 67 (5), 25 - 28.

Figures

FIGURES 5–8. Meschia pugnax Distant, 1910, habitus showing variations in colour markings: 5, male, Bengaluru (Karnataka); 6, male, Bengaluru (Karnataka); 7, male, Chikkaballapura (Karnataka); 8, male, Bengaluru (Karnataka). Mean body length of specimens in Figs 5–8 is 3.90 mm.