Alafrasca, Lu, Si-Han & Qin, Dao-Zheng, 2014

Lu, Si-Han & Qin, Dao-Zheng, 2014, Alafrasca sticta, a new genus and species of the tribe Empoascini (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae: Typhlocybinae) with a checklist of the tribe from China, Zootaxa 3779 (1), pp. 9-19 : 10

Alafrasca gen. nov.

Type species: Alafrasca sticta sp. nov., here designated.

Description. Body robust. Head as wide as pronotum ( Figs. 2, 3 ). Vertex short, rounded anteriorly, anterior and posterior margins subparallel ( Figs. 2, 3 ), profile of transition to face rounded ( Fig. 1 ), coronal suture distinct, extending to anterior margin of vertex ( Figs. 2, 3 ). Face broad, lateral frontal suture present, ante- and frontoclypeal areas strongly swollen ( Figs. 1, 4 ). Ocelli present. Pronotum large ( Figs. 2, 3 ). Mesonotum basally with black spot in middle, scutoscutellar sulcus distinct ( Figs. 2, 3 ). Forewing narrow, rounded apically, apical cells occupying more than one-third of total length, 3rd cell shortly stalked, c and r cells nearly equal in width, narrower than m and cua cells; veins RP, MP’ arise from r cell and MP”+CuA’ from m cell ( Fig. 8 ). Hindwing with CuA branched, point of branching distad of coalescence of CuA with MP” ( Fig. 9 ).

Abdominal apodemes well developed, apically parallel sided ( Fig. 7 ). Male pygofer elongated, terminally with few rigid microsetae on each side of lobe, ventral appendage present ( Figs. 5 , 10, 11 ), dorsal bridge short ( Fig. 6 ). Anal tube process well developed, branched apically ( Figs. 5 , 10, 12 ). Subgenital plate far exceeding pygofer side, all categories of setae present; setae of basal group located at dorsal margin in basal 1/3, lateral macrosetae arranged in two rows and merged into a single row distally, reaching apex of plate, short marginal microsetae occupying more than half length of anterior margin ( Figs. 5 , 10, 16 ). Paramere apophysis with prominent dentifer and few sensory pits in apical half ( Fig. 17 ). Connective lamellate ( Fig. 15 ). Aedeagal shaft tubular, with pair of basal processes, preatrium long and trough-like; without dorsal apodeme ( Figs. 13, 14 ).

Remarks. Alafrasca is similar to Alebroides Matsumura , Apheliona Kirkaldy , Alebrasca Hayashi & Okada , Matsumurama Thapa , Nikkotettix Matsumura , Pradama Dworakowska , Schizandrasca Anufriev , Shumka Dworakowska and Znana Dworakowska in having veins MP’ and RP in the forewing stalked (in Nikkotettix and Znana , 3rd apical cell stalked or sessile), both arising from r cell and CuA in the hindwing branched apically. However, the new genus differs from Alebroides Matsumura in having the branching of CuA in the hindwing distad of the coalescence of CuA with MP” ( Fig. 9 ), from Apheliona , Shumka and Znana in having the head as wide as the pronotum and the coronal suture extending to the anterior margin of the vertex ( Figs. 2, 3 ), from Alebrasca , Matsumurama and Pradama in having the lateral macrosetae of the subgenital plate arranged in two rows and merged into a single row distally ( Figs. 5 , 10, 16 ), from Nikkotettix in the absence of a ventral process at the base of the aedeagal shaft ( Figs. 13, 14 ) and the subgenital plate having stout setae in the basal group ( Figs. 5 , 10, 16 ), from Schizandrasca in having a well-developed aedeagal preatrium. The new genus also differs from Shumka in lacking large blackish patches on the anterior margin of the vertex ( Figs. 2, 3 ) and the manubrium of the connective not bilobate ( Fig. 15 ).

Etymology. The generic name is an arbitrary combination of letters, and is regarded as feminine.

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 7. Alafrasca sticta sp. nov., 1, adult, left lateral view; 2, adult, dorsal view; 3, head and thorax, dorsal view; 4, face; 5, male terminalia, left lateral view; 6, male terminalia, dorsal view; 7, abdominal apodeme.

FIGURES 8 – 17. Alafrasca sticta sp. nov., 8, forewing; 9, hindwing; 10, male terminalia, left lateral view; 11, pygofer side, left lateral view; 12, anal tube appendage, left lateral view; 13, aedeagus, left lateral view; 14, aedeagus, dorsal view; 15, connective; 16, subgenital plate, dorsal view; 17, paramere.