Xiphovelia Lundblad, 1933

Ye, Zhen & Bu, Wenjun, 2015, A review of the genus Xiphovelia Lundblad, 1933 (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Veliidae) from China, with descriptions of three new species, Zootaxa 3946 (2), pp. 190-200 : 191

Xiphovelia Lundblad, 1933

Xiphovelia Lundblad, 1933: 364 . Type species by original designation: X. ensis Lundblad, 1933 .

Xiphovelia: Esaki & Miyamoto, 1959: 92 ; Nieser, 1995: 85; Chen et al. 2005: 262; Zettel, 2012: 100.

Diagnosis. Small-sized veliids (1.50–2.30 mm), apterous or macropterous form; body in apterous morph with elongate in male and broadly oval in female; dorsum colour dark grey to black, thorax and abdomen dorsally with distinctly silvery pubescence; antennae relatively thin but not flagelliform; pronotum of apterous morph very short, mesonotum the largest and transverse, broadly fused with metanotum in the middle; hemelytra of macropterous form with four or five closed cells, reaching abdominal apex; legs relatively stout, middle legs usually longer than hind legs, claws of fore and hind tarsi subapical and short, claws and ventral arolium of middle tarsal segment II leaf-like ( Fig. 20 ) and relatively long; posterolateral region of male pygophore with a broad ear-like projection on each side ( Figs. 26–29 ), which in caudal view are round or ear-shaped, paramere rudimental. This genus can be easily separated from all other genus of this subfamily by second middle tarsi with three leaf-like subapical structures (modified claws and ventral arolium).

Habitat. Xiphovelia species are usually inhabits at the slow moving areas of small streams or springs (eg. Figs. 33–36 ).

Distribution. China, Indonesia (Sumatra, Sulawesi), Japan, Philippines, Sri Lanka.

Figures

FIGURES 11 – 20. Legs of Xiphovelia spp. (males). 11 – 14. fore leg (11. X. glauca Esaki & Miyamoto, 1959; 12. X. denigrata sp. nov.; 13. X. fulva sp. nov.; 14. X. reflexa sp. nov.); Scale 0.2 mm; 15 – 18. middle leg (15. X. glauca Esaki & Miyamoto, 1959; 16. X. denigrata sp. nov.; 17. X. fulva sp. nov.; 18. X. reflexa sp. nov.); Scale 0.2 mm; 19. fore tibia of X. denigrata sp. nov. (male); Scale 0.1 mm; 20. second middle tarsus of X. denigrata sp. nov. (male); Scale 0.1 mm. gc: grasping comb; cl: claw; va: ventral arolium.

FIGURES 21 – 29. Abdominal segment VIII and pygophore of Xiphovelia spp. (males). 21 – 25, abdominal segment VIII (21. X. glauca Esaki & Miyamoto, 1959; 22. X. denigrata sp. nov., ventral view; 23. X. denigrata sp. nov., ventrolateral view; 24. X. fulva sp. nov.; 25. X. reflexa sp. nov.); 26 – 29, pygophore in dorsal view (26. X. glauca Esaki & Miyamoto, 1959; 27. X. denigrata sp. nov.; 28. X. fulva sp. nov.; 29. X. reflexa sp. nov.). Scale 0.1 mm.

FIGURES 33 – 36. Habitats of Xiphovelia spp .. 33. X. glauca Esaki & Miyamoto, 1959; 34. X. denigrata sp. nov.; 35. X. fulva sp. nov.; 36. X. reflexa sp. nov.