Labramachaerota luilaka De Haas & Mertens, 2024

Haas, Matthé Cornelis De & Mertens, Jan E. J., 2024, Two new species of Machaerotidae from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with some additional records of the family (Hemiptera: Cercopoidea), Zootaxa 5433 (4), pp. 546-558 : 551-554

Labramachaerota luilaka De Haas & Mertens sp. nov.

( Figures 5–7 )

Specimens examined. Holotype ♂: Congo, buffer zone of Salonga National Park , Monkoto 370 masl (S01°44.865’ E20°40.823’), 26.XI.2022, on light trap, leg. M. Jocqué.

Differential diagnosis. This novel taxon differs from L. salonga sp. n. by the forewings which are brown in the basal ¼ and hyaline in the other ¾ (forewings completely brown in L. salonga sp. n.), see for differences also the differential diagnosis under L. salonga sp. n. This taxon is especially close to L. korupa , from which it differs in the brown thorax (more greenish brown in L. korupa ), the distinctly bicoloured face (more or less unicoloured in L. korupa ), the complete convex posterior margin of the appendage of the pygofer (first convex, then concave in L. korupa ), the subgenital plates which are narrowed before the apex in posterior view (broadly rounded in L. korupa ), the rounded margins of the paramere (subtriangular of shape in L. korupa ) and a more slender aedeagus in lateral view.

Description. Measurements. Length: ♂ 5.25 mm (n=1); ♀ unknown.

Colouration. Face bicoloured. Ocellar area, side pieces of vertex, supra-antennal triangle, tylus, upper half of postclypeus and upper half of pleurostome brown. Lower half of postclypeus and pleurostome, gena proper, maxillary plate, lorum and anteclypeus straw-yellow. The anteclypeus has a distinct medial spot. Antenna brown, scapus with a light margin. Eyes dark ochre, ocelli dull-reddish. Pronotum brown, scutellum of the same colouration as the pronotum. Legs light-brown, spines dark tipped. Abdomen dark brown. Forewings with basal 1/4 dark brown, hyaline in apical 3/4; veins weakly pigmented, with apical cells having light brown veins. Hindwings hyaline.

Habitus. Face sparsely covered with short, brownish hairs, with exception of upper postclypeus; postclypeus covered in minute and shallow punctures. Pleurostome 2.1x as long as gena proper and 1.7x as long as lorum. Head width (incl. eyes) 0.76x width of pronotum. Vertex nearly smooth, lacking median carina. Pronotum distinctly humpbacked, lightly punctate, lacking reticulation. Scutellum 1.4x longer than its width; covered with minute punctures and few scattered more distinct punctures, subapically with moderate depression, anterior of this depression with shallow, transverse furrows. Hindlegs with 2 spines. Veins of forewings with sparse pilosity.

Male genitalia. Pygofer heavily sclerotized in dorso-posterior and posterior part, scabrous part covered with yellow setae. Dorso-posterior appendage of pygofer relatively long and slender, completely rugosely spinose, apically directed posteroventrally. Subgenital plates fused basally, slightly narrowed before apex, apex rounded, covered with setae. Aedeagus cylindrical at the base, with light scaling; apex laterally flattened, dorsoventrally narrowing towards the tip, apex directed anterodorsally. Parameres small, with rounded margins in lateral view, apex somewhat pointed, covered in light setae.

Distribution. Democratic Republic of the Congo: Monkoto (buffer zone between the western and eastern part of Salonga National Park).

Ecology. No host plants are recorded since the individual was collected on a light trap. The sheet was positioned on the premises of the WWF Monkoto headquarters with a clear view of the Luilaka river and the riverine forest on the other side: the Southern block of SNP. The vegetation surrounding the trap consisted of low-cut grasses and herbs with a few interspersed treelets and a large tree on the river bank.

Etymology. The specific epithet ‘luilaka’ refers to the Luilaka river, next to which the only specimen of the novel taxon was collected. The Luilaka river borders the Salonga National Park.

Figures

FIGURE 5. Labramachaerota luilaka sp. n. male habitus, A) left lateral view, B) dorsal view, C) face, ventral view.

FIGURE 6. Labramachaerota luilaka sp. n. terminalia, A) pygofer with subgenital plates in lateral view, B) dorsoposterior appendage of pygofer in posterolateral view, C) pygofer with subgenital plates in posterior view.

FIGURE 7. Labramachaerota luilaka sp. n. terminalia, A) aedeagus in posterior view, B) aedeagus in lateral view, C) paramere in lateral view.