Callitricola tatarnici, Symonds & Cassis, 2018

Symonds, Celia L. & Cassis, Gerasimos, 2018, Systematics And Analysis Of The Radiation Of Orthotylini Plant Bugs Associated With Callitroid Conifers In Australia: Description Of Five New Genera And 32 New Species (Heteroptera: Miridae: Orthotylinae), Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2018 (422), pp. 1-229 : 137-139

Callitricola tatarnici , new species

Figures 13 , 42 , 48 ; map 3

DIAGNOSIS: Defined by the following characters: midsized; forewing membrane veins yellow-green; pygophore dorsal margin with medial tumescence, one left lateral tergal process arising from tergal plate; left tergal process broad serrate comb; left paramere apex narrow with weakly recurved hook; right paramere base short, apex weakly curved inward and forming slightly pointed flange, subapical dorsal margin round, few small spinelike serrations on apical flange and subapical dorsal margin; phallotheca with small basal tumescence and large subbasal lobe, on right dorsal margin; aedeagus with PES fully enclosing secondary gonopore, bifurcate medially with slender smooth right branch and moderately downturned left branch; DES2 unbranched, distally serrate; DES1 bifurcate, branches subequal length, distally serrate; female laIRL uniform width, slightly curved inward at apex, base with two spiniferous lobes—one small (behind), one large (in front); mIRL elongate, almost as long as laIRL, subrectangular, apex round, margins and surface serrate.

DESCRIPTION: Male: Midsized, body length 4.02 mm, pronotal width 1.04 mm. COLOR-

ATION: Dorsum yellow-green, often faded to yellow, with some bright green patches retained on hemelytra; forewing membrane light graybrown with darker patches laterally, veins yellow-green with pigmentation bleeding onto surrounding membrane, major cell with bright green spot (fig. 13). VESTITURE: Dorsum with moderately dense distribution of pale simple setae. STRUCTURE: Head: Antennae with AI subequal to vertex width, AII 1.2× pronotal width; labium medium length, extending to mesocoxae. Hemelytra: Major cell subovate, major membrane vein slightly round (fig. 13). GENITALIA: Pygophore: Dorsal margin of genital opening straight, with medial tumescence at margin, with one sclerotized tergal process positioned left lateral arising from tergal plate; left tergal process, broad with one prominent spine; ventral margin convex medially; phalloguide with small, slightly sclerotized lobe at base of right paramere articulation (fig. 42A). Left paramere: Apophysis tapering apically, apex narrow with weakly recurved hook (fig. 42B). Right paramere: Base short; paramere round in lateral view; apex weakly curved inward, forming small, slightly pointed flange, margin with few small spinelike serrations; subapical dorsal margin with small spinelike serrations; mesiolateral surface excavated (fig. 42C, D). Phallotheca: Dorsal opening large, distal to medial; round distally; large subapical ventral tumescence; small right lateral basal tumescence; large right lateral subbasal lobe on dorsal margin; small left lateral tumescence (fig. 42E, F). Aedeagus: Spicule arrangement (fig. 42): PES with tubular base entire and wholly sheathing secondary gonopore, with opening medially through which apex of secondary gonopore protrudes, distal portion of PES left lateral to secondary gonopore, DES2 left lateral to PES, DES1 left dorsolateral to DES2; bases of all spicules originating adjacently at base of secondary gonopore; DES2 and DES1 flattened at base, not tubular; PES bifurcate medially, right branch narrow and ribbonlike distally with smooth margins, left branch elongate and distally serrate, projected perpendicular to spicule; DES2 unbranched, distally serrate, subequal length to PES and DES1 spicules; DES1 bifurcate in distal half, branches subequal length and distally serrate, basal keel (DESk) moderately short (fig. 42G, H).

Female: Relatively small, body length 3.33– 3.55 mm, pronotal width 0.92–1.09 mm. GENI- TALIA: Interramal lobes (fig. 48): mIRL partially joined to laIRL at base; laIRL uniform width, slightly curved inward at apex, base with one small and one large spiniferous lobes; mIRL elongate, almost as long as laIRL, subrectangular, apex round, margins and surface serrate.

ETYMOLOGY: This species is named after Nikolai Tatarnic, in honor of his contributions to the taxonomy and biology of the Australian Miridae and other Heteroptera , and in gratitude for assistance with fieldwork and supporting this work.

HOST PLANT: Known from Callitris tuberculata (table 2). These specimens are labelled as “ex. Callitris preissii ,” but it has been confirmed by the Western Australian Herbarium that the voucher is Callitris tuberculata (Sue Carroll, personal commun.).

HOLOTYPE: AUSTRALIA: Western Australia: ca. 35 km S of Menzies , 29.96214 ° S 121.1323 ° E, 600 m, 24 Oct 1996, Schuh and Cassis, Callitris preissii , det. WA Herbarium PERTH 05100003, 1♂ ( AMNH _ PBI 00016338 ) ( WAMP).

PARATYPES: AUSTRALIA: Western Australia: ca. 35 km S of Menzies, 29.96214 ° S 121.1323 ° E, 600 m, 24 Oct 1996, Schuh and Cassis, Callitris preissii , det. WA Herbarium PERTH 05100003, 1♂ ( AMNH _PBI 00016339), 1♀ ( AMNH _PBI 00016340) ( AM), 1♀ ( AMNH _ PBI 00016341) ( WAMP).

OTHER SPECIMENS EXAMINED: AUSTRA- LIA: Western Australia: ca. 35 km S of Menzies, 29.96214 ° S 121.1323 ° E, 600 m, 24 Oct 1996, Schuh and Cassis, Callitris preissii , det. WA Herbarium PERTH 05100003, 1♀ (AMNH_PBI 00016342) (AM).

DISTRIBUTION: Known from a few specimens at one locality in the Goldfields region of southcentral Western Australia, where vegetation is predominantly dry open shrublands (map 3). Avititerra xerophila and Erysivena drepanomorpha were collected nearby but not with C. tatar-

nici. C. tatarnici with E. drepanomorpha also recorded from Callitris tuberculata ; the other two orthotyline species have a much very wider range (maps 1, 4).

REMARKS: Callitricola tatarnici and C. pullabooka are very similar, united by the round shape of the right paramere, comblike tergal process on the genital opening of the pygophore, the near identical endosomal spicules, and the female laIRL has two basal lobes and an elongate mIRL. Callitricola tatarnici is distinguished from C. pullabooka by the slightly larger body; the slightly less bulbous eyes; the phallotheca has a small right basal tumescence and a large lobe on the right dorsal margin; the right paramere is slightly more excavated and cupped; PES is more threadlike distally, lacking serrations on the distally projected right branch (cf. figs. 42 and 38); the shape of the basal lobes on the female laIRL are positioned one in front of the other, with one much larger, and both are round and spiniferous; and the mIRL is almost as long as the laIRL (fig. 48).

Figures

FIG. 13. Callitricola species, dorsal habitus photographs of males. Scale bar = 1 mm.

FIG. 42. Male genitalia of Callitricola tatarnici. A. Pygophore, left lateral. B. Left paramere, ventral. C. Right paramere, right lateral. D. Right paramere, ventral. E. Phallotheca, right lateral. F. Phallotheca, dorsal. G. Aedeagus, dorsal. H. Aedeagus, ventral. Scale bars = 0.1 mm.

FIG. 48. Callitricola female genitalia: right interramal lobes of species, posterior wall of C. graciliphila, dorsal. Scale bar = 0.1 mm.