Plagiognathus notodysmicos, SCHUH, 2001

SCHUH, RANDALL T., 2001, Revision Of New World Plagiognathus Fieber, With Comments On The Palearctic Fauna And The Description Of A New Genus (Heteroptera: Miridae: Phylinae), Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2001 (266), pp. 1-267 : 177-178

Plagiognathus notodysmicos , new species Figures 11 , 18 , 29

HOLOTYPE: Male: ‘‘[ USA] Pagosa Sprs., Colo [rado], Aug. 12, 1925, H. H. Knight’ ’. Deposited in the United States National Museum of Natural History , Washington, D.C.

DIAGNOSIS: Recognized by basal half of corium being intensely yellow white, extend­ ing narrowly along posterior portion of claval suture and cuneus intensely and entirely yellow­white, opaque (fig. 11). Most similar in pattern of coloration and elongate parallelsided body shape to Plagiognathus obscurus , but distinguished by narrowly pale corium along the posterior half of clavus, and by entirely pale, opaque cuneus, a pattern occurring only rarely in obscurus . Vesica of notodysmicos (fig. 29) lacking broad flange of obscurus and body of vesica not so robust (fig. 29).

DESCRIPTION: Male: Elongate, nearly parallel­sided, moderately large; total length 3.93–4.46, length apex clypeus–cuneal fracture 2.47–2.93, width across pronotum 1.07– 1.25. COLORATION (fig. 11): Background coloration of dorsum brown to castaneous, corium intensely yellow­white on basal onehalf, the posterior margin of this area jagged and extending narrowly along remaining posterior portion of the claval suture; cuneus entirely and intensely yellow­white, opaque; pronotum often pale on disc; posterior margin of vertex pale; face at and below base of clypeus intensely castaneous; membrane fumose, veins fumose except opaque white along posterior margin of cells, membrane pale at angle between posterior margin of cells and posteromesial margin of cuneus; all antennal segments castaneous to black (fig. 18), segment 1 with pale apical annulus; labium castaneous; venter entirely castaneous, including metathoracic scent­gland evaporatory area; coxae castaneous on proximal onehalf, pale distally, trochanters pale, femora pale on proximal one­third, weakly infuscate on remainder with some darker spots; tibiae with pale background coloration, dorsal tibial spines with conspicuous dark spots at bases; tibiae dark at articulation with femora. SUR­ FACE AND VESTITURE: Dorsum weakly granular, polished, moderately shining. Face at and below base of clypeus more highly polished than remainder of body surface. Vestiture of dorsum composed of recumbent, shining, simple setae, pale on pale areas, dark on dark areas. STRUCTURE: Elongate, dorsum appearing flattened; frons moderately convex, clypeus visible from above; anteocular distance 1.5 times diameter of antennal segment 1; head projecting below eye by a distance 1.3 times diameter of antennal seg­ ment 1; labium reaching to about apex of hind coxae. GENITALIA (fig. 29): Body of vesica moderately stout, broadly curving, Jshaped, base of vesica falling distinctly below level of base of secondary gonopore; posterior apical spine moderately long, nearly straight and nearly erect relative to body of vesica; anterior spine more strongly angled relative to body of vesica, only slightly longer than posterior spine, and nearly straight in lateral view; flange narrow, broadly curving, extending to base of secondary gonopore.

Female: Body shape and coloration very similar to that of male. Total length 3.79– 4.22, length apex clypeus–cuneal fracture 2.49–2.86, width across pronotum 1.15– 1.28.

ETYMOLOGY: From the Greek notos, south, and dysmikos, western, alluding to its distribution.

HOSTS: Unknown.

DISTRIBUTION: Known from Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado.

DISCUSSION: The general appearance of this species is very much like that of Plagiognathus obscurus , although notodysmicos has an opaque white aspect to the pale marking on the dorsum unlike that ordinarily seen in obscurus . The two taxa appear to be largely, if not totally, allopatric. Nothing is known of the habits of notodysmicos , although it would appear that most of the known specimens have been collected inadvertently through sweeping or other techniques; the single specimen from Stonewall, Colorado, was collected sweeping in a meadow. The vesica of notodysmicos is unlike that of obscurus , especially in the narrow flange and much more slender body, removing any doubt about the fact that two taxa are involved.

PARATYPES: USA.— Arizona: Coconino Co.: Oak Creek Canyon, 6000 ft, F. H. Snow, 13, (AMNH). Yavapai Co.: 2 mi NE of Sheeps Crossing, White Mountains, Greer Rec. Area, June 26, 1980, J. D. Pinto, 13, 1♀ (UCR). Colorado: Archuleta Co.: Pagosa Springs, July 5, 1937, C. L. Johnston, 13, 1♀ (KU). Pagosa Springs, August 12, 1925, H. H. Knight, 13 (USNM). 16 mi N of Pagosa Springs, June 24, 1964, H. R. Burke, 13, (TAMU). Las Animas Co.: 1 mi E of Stonewall, Fire Dept., 7400 ft, August 18, 1986, R. T. Schuh, 1♀ (AMNH). Montezuma Co. : Dolores, August 15, 1925, H. H. Knight, 1♀ (USNM). New Mexico: Lincoln Co.: Ruidoso, June 26, 1940, R. H. Beamer, 13 (KU). San Miguel Co.: Beulah, August 17, 1915, H. Skinner, 23 (USNM). Sandoval Co.: Jemez Springs, July 1, 1941, R. H. Beamer, 13, 1♀ (KU).

Figures

Fig. 11. Habitus figures of Nearctic Plagiognathus spp. (see p. 263 for localities).

Fig. 18. Antennal segments 1 and 2 of Nearctic Plagiognathus spp.

Fig. 29. Male genitalia of Nearctic Plagiognathus spp. fl flange.