Asiothrixus, Dubey, Anil Kumar, Ko, Chiun-Cheng & Martin, Jon H., 2010

Dubey, Anil Kumar, Ko, Chiun-Cheng & Martin, Jon H., 2010, Description of Asiothrixus gen. nov. (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) and two new species with diagnoses and a puparial key to species, Zootaxa 2417, pp. 51-65 : 52

Asiothrixus gen. nov.

Type species: Aleurothrixus antidesmae Takahashi.

Diagnosis. PUPARIA. pale white, usually with peripheral wax filaments around the margin. Margin crenulate, not modified at tracheal pore openings, marginal crenulations with wax secreting glands at base, appearing as double row of teeth. Submargin not demarcated from dorsal disc. Submedian area usually with scallop/crescent-shaped markings. Longitudinal moulting suture reaching margin, and transverse moulting suture reaching subdorsum. Submedian metathoracic setae absent. First abdominal setae absent. A combination of cephalic, eighth abdominal and caudal submedian setae present; second and third abdominal segments usually each with a pair of siphons, the siphons glandular in nature, enlarged, and appearing swollen, siphons not or with light demarcation near mid-length, their apical ends broad, trumpet-shaped, siphons sometimes absent from a few puparia of a colony or present only one side of the puparium; dorsal disc with simple pores associated with porettes, usually a row of large pores present along the bases of marginal glands; pores along the marginal glands without associated porettes. Sometimes, dorsal siphons or submarginal row of pores absent from puparium, but one of these characters always present; submargin usually with 2 pairs of setae on cephalothorax and 2–3 pairs on abdomen. The median length of the abdominal segment VII nearly equal to VI. Vasiform orifice elongate-subcircular, inner posterior wall with transverse ridges; operculum almost covering the orifice; lingula almost obscured; only tip may be visible. Ventrally, tracheal folds may be indicated by spinules, adhesive sacs and spiracles visible.

ETYMOLOGY: The genus name Asio- and - thrixus elicited from the geographical distribution of the species in Asian region, and the – thrixus means “thread-like” representing the marginal wax fringe which is present in the live puparia.

Remarks. The new genus differs from Aleurothrixus in the following combination of characters: submargin not separated from the dorsal disc, metathoracic setae absent, a row of submarginal pores present and/or the submedian area of second and third abdominal segments with siphons, the second, and third abdominal siphons are glandular at base and forming concavity at apex, and vasiform orifice elongatesubcircular. The species of Aleurothrixus have: the very wide submargin distinctly separated from the dorsal disc, metathoracic setae present, dorsal disc without siphons, and the vasiform orifice usually transverselyelliptical. The new genus differs from Aleurotrachelus Quaintance & Baker and Cohicaleyrodes Bink- Moenen in the absence of lateral longitudinal fold/markings on the submedian/subdorsal area of cephalothorax and abdomen. It also differs from Dialeuropora Quaintance and Baker by the presence of dorsal siphons and wax secreting glands at the base of submarginal teeth, and much smaller submarginal pores. In Dialeuropora the submarginal pores are much larger and sometimes associated with small tubercles, and submarginal wax secreting glands are absent.