Ausejanus arvensus, Menard & Schuh, 2011

Menard, Katrina L. & Schuh, Randall T., 2011, Revision Of Leucophoropterini: Diagnoses, Key To Genera, Redescription Of The Australian Fauna, And Descriptions Of New Indo-Pacific Genera And Species (Insecta: Hemiptera: Miridae), Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2011 (361), pp. 1-159 : 52-53

Ausejanus arvensus , new species Figures 6 , 9H ; plate 2

DIAGNOSIS: Distinguished from other species of Ausejanus by combination of a transparent, incomplete fascia restricted to claval suture, pale brown to mauve hemelytra, and dark reddish-brown posterior margin of cuneus in male (pl. 2). Female similar in fascia pattern but usually with white pigment within fascia, and darker-brown coloration of hemelytra and posterior margin of cuneus.

DESCRIPTION: Male: Macropterous, medium sized, elongate, and parallel sided. Total length 3.56–3.86, width pronotum 0.95–1.02, and maximum width across hemelytra 1.19– 1.34. COLORATION: Dark brown, pale brown, and white. Head dark brown. Antennal segment 1 gold, remaining antennal segments dark brown. Labial segments 1 and 2 gold, segments 3 and 4 dark brown. Eyes dark red. Thorax, pronotum, scutellum dark brown. Thoracic pleura dark brown. Procoxae gold, meso- and metacoxae dark brown basally, gold anteriorly. Pro- and mesofemora gold, metafemora gold basally, pale brown on anterior half. Tibiae gold, metatibia with parallel rows of dark spicules. Clavus dark brown, lightening to transparent laterally along claval suture L distance anteriorly from base of corium to form partial fascia. Transparent area of partial fascia thickest in anterior portion of hemelytra, corresponding to M distance of corium; remaining portion of hemelytra toward cuneus pale brown to pale reddish brown (pl. 2). Cuneus with pigmented white band along basal margin for less than a third of cuneal length, dark brownish red for posterior lobes near distal margins with membrane. Membrane pale brown with some dark pigmentation around veins. STRUC- TURE: Eyes in lateral view encompass total height of head, vertex width less than width of an eye. Antennal segment 2 just longer than 1.25 times total head width. Remaining structure characteristics as in generic description. GENITALIA: As in generic description.

Female: Macropterous. Total length 2.77– 3.07, width pronotum 0.92–0.99, width at widest part of hemelytra 1.09–1.29. STRUC- TURE: Vertex equal to half total head width. Length antennal segment 2 just wider than total head width. COLORATION: Similar to male, but showing variation on following characteristics. antennal segment 2 with larger portion gold basally, antennal segment 2 with minimal lightening to gold proximally. Partial fascia usually containing white pigment, hemelytra and cuneus posteriorly dark brown to dark reddish brown, anterior portion of cuneus with wider band of white pigmentation along margin.

ETYMOLOGY: Named for the type locality Arve River Park.

HOSTS: Primarily Ozothamnus sp. R.Br. ( Asteraceae ), with some records on Leptospermum lanigerum (Myrtaceae) , Olearia axillaris (Asteraceae) , and Oxybolium arborescens (Fabaceae) .

DISTRIBUTION: South Australia and Tasmania.

DISCUSSION: This species appears to be extremely close to A. albisignatus in hemelytral transverse fascia patterning and general coloration; however, in male A. arvensus the anterior coloration of the hemelytron is distinctly pale as compared to other species of Ausejanus (pls. 1–2). This species also has the metafemur gold to pale brown instead of red as in A. albisignatus . Lastly, unlike A. albisignatus and some of the other more widely distributed taxa that feed on a wide variety of Fabaceae and Myrtaceae , A. arvensus appears to be largely host specific on Ozothamnus spp. (Asteraceae) .

HOLOTYPE: AUSTRALIA: Tasmania: 13.8 km N of Crabtree on Jeffery’s track (C6180), 42.88893 ° S 147.05144 ° E, 643 m, 21 Jan 2004, M.D. Schwartz and P.P. Tinerella, Ozothamnus rosmarinifolius (Labill.) DC. (Asteraceae) , det. NSW staff NSW658244, 18 (00272387) ( AM).

PARATYPES: AUSTRALIA: South Australia: Eyre Penin.; Cape Donington, 34.71666 ° S 135.98333 ° E, 10 m, 14 Aug 1978, W.C. Gagne, Olearia axillaris (DC.) Benth. (Asteraceae) , 18 (00318956), 3♀ (00318953– 00318955) ( BPBM). Tasmania: 0.5 km NW of Southwest National Park (Maydena access): Huon Campground, off of Scotts Peak Rd, 43.03732 ° S 146.29721 ° E, 276 m, 19 Jan 2004, M.D. Schwartz and P.P. Tinerella, Leptospermum lanigerum Maiden & Betche (Myrtaceae) , det. NSW staff NSW658232, 48 (00272411–00272414) ( AMNH). 4.1 km N of Huon Hwy & Pilliger Ave intersection, Mt. Wellington, The Springs, 42.91707 ° S 147.25546 ° E, 684 m, 15 Jan 2004, M D. Schwartz and P.P. Tinerella, Oxylobium arborescens R.Br. (Fabaceae) , det. NSW staff NSW658211, 48 (00108565, 00272391– 00272393), 3♀ (00272415–00272416, 00272418) ( AMNH). 13.8 km N of Crabtree on Jeffery’s track (C6180), 42.88893 ° S 147.05144 ° E, 643 m, 21 Jan 2004, M.D. Schwartz and P.P. Tinerella, Ozothamnus rosmarinifolius (Labill.) DC. (Asteraceae) , det. NSW staff NSW658244, 1♀ (00272407) ( AM), 1♀ (00272408) ( AMNH), 18 (00272386) ( ANIC), 18 (00272385) ( QM). 53.1 km S of Wynyard on Murchison Hiway (A10) near pond on S side of road, 41.30545 ° S 145.59042 ° E, 570 m, 25 Jan 2004, M.D. Schwartz and P.P. Tinerella, Ozothamnus rosmarinifolius (Labill.) DC. (Asteraceae) , det. NSW staff NSW658258, 1♀ (00272410) ( AMNH), 1♀ (00272409) ( QM), 18 (00272388) ( SAMA), 18 (00272390) ( TAMU), 18 (00272389) ( USNM). Arve River Picnic Ground on C632, 43.15874 ° S 146.8068 ° E, 172 m, 21 Jan 2004, M.D. Schwartz and P.P. Tinerella, Ozothamnus ferrugineus (Labill.) Sweet (Asteraceae) , det. Field ID, 1♀ (00108563) ( AMNH), 18 (00108579) ( UNSW), 1♀ (00272395) ( USNM). Tarraleah Power Station grounds, on A10, NW of Hamilton, 42.29848 ° S 146.4584 ° E, 366 m, 22 Jan 2004, M.D. Schwartz and P.P. Tinerella, Ozothamnus rosmarinifolius (Labill.) DC. (Asteraceae) , det. Field ID, 18 (00272394), 1♀ (00272403) ( AM), 18 (00108557), 7♀ (00108564, 00272396– 00272397, 00272401, 00272404–00272406) ( AMNH),

1♀ (00272398) ( ANIC), 1♀ (00272399) ( SAMA), 1♀ (00272400) ( TAMU), 1♀ (00272402) ( UNSW).

Figures

Figure 6. Distribution map of Ausejanus spp. (A–I).

Figure 9. Male genitalia of Ausejanus spp. A. Endosoma, A. schwartzi. B. Phallotheca, A. cordatus. C. Right paramere, A. neboissi. D–K. Left paramere. D. A. meridionalis. E. A. neboissi. F. A. femoralis. G, K. A. albisignatus. H. A. arvensus. I. A. vividus. J. A. iris.