Mangalcoris, Murphy & Polhemus, 2012

Murphy, D. H. & Polhemus, Dan A., 2012, A New Genus Of Micropterous Miridae From Singapore Mangroves (Insecta: Hemiptera: Heteroptera), Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 60 (1), pp. 109-115 : 109-110

Mangalcoris , new genus

Type species. — Mangalcoris miniatus , new species, by present designation. Gender of genus masculine.

Diagnosis. — A deep-bodied, uniformly sclerotised, micropterous cimicomorphan with extremely attenuate wings and elongate appendages. Integument finely shagreened, with simple uniform setation. Tarsi two segmented, bearing long, symmetrical, uniformly curved and tapered claws without pseudarolia and a single long, simple curved seta representing the arolium. Colouration bright red.

Description. — Head ovoid, vertex and frons domed, clypeus vertical, gula short, with bucculae undeveloped. Compound eyes small, widely spaced, moderately protuberant, with two posterior setulae. Ocelli absent in both sexes ( Fig. 1A–D ).

Antennae long, slender, filiform. Rostrum long, reaching onto basal abdomen.

Prothorax short, simple, domed, without carinae, collar or dorsal impressions. Prosternum prominent, shield-shaped. Mesonotum exposed, scutellum not evident ( Fig. 1B, D ; Fig. 2B ); forewing transversely ovoid, without venation, separated mid-dorsally to expose narrow metanotum which is weakly sclerotised. Hind wings entirely absent. Meso- and metathoracic spiracles anterior and lateral, in intersegmental membrane beneath preceding segment. Metepisternum and metacetabula modified into prominent lateral evaporatoria, gland openings diastomate, widely separated but opening into a common transverse groove behind prominent metasternum, each orifice with complex valve and apodeme. Glands lateral but sharing a common median reservoir.

Legs attenuate, coxae without adhesive pads, trochanters without trichobothria, femora with subapical discoidal pits, meso- and metafemora bearing ventrolateral trichobothria. Tibia with weakly developed apical spurs, pro- and mesotibiae with apical combs, metatibia without. All tarsi elongate, similar on all legs (in both sexes), 2-segmented ( Fig. 4A ), basitarsus very short, acute beneath, protarsus bearing a long ventral apical seta not differentiated on meso- and metabasitarsi. Pretarsus bearing long, smooth, equal, uniformly curved and tapered claws, pseudarolia absent ( Fig. 4B ); unguitractor plate transversely ridged, pseudarolia represented by single long, simple curved seta slightly displaced from ventral midline.

Abdomen in both sexes with pregenital segments symmetrical, well sclerotised, strongly overlapping, with laterotergites folding but not clearly delimited by membrane, bearing small, simple spiracles on segments 2–7; sternites well sclerotised, setose, continuously fused with laterotergites; spiracle I absent; trichobothria not evident. Dorsal abdominal glands persistent in adults (both sexes) but hidden in intersegmental membrane between tergites II and III, with reservoir protruding on maceration.

Male abdominal segment VIII symmetrical, solidly fused, with bridge separating anal and genital apertures. Pygophore symmetrical with conspicuous protractor, retractor and lateral apodemes. Parameres asymmetrical. Gonopore framed by slightly asymmetrical sclerites, aperture with longitudinal ribs, gonoduct flexible, not sclerotised anteriorly. Vesica with large basal apparatus, one ventral digitiform appendage, distal section coarsely spiculate, and possibly with a short lateral lobe only minutely spiculate ( Fig. 3C ), margins of vesical spicules smooth and lacking serrations.

Female ovipositor laciniate ( Fig. 2A ), typical of family Miridae in all details. First valvulae finely toothed, narrow inner ramus broadening dorsally, with strong gonangulum. First valvulae dilate at base in wall of vulva to enclose a pair of smooth, ovate, mirror-like structures (possibly muscle insertions). Second valvula basally united above, strongly toothed dorsally with major teeth alternating on each side. Strong outer ramus bearing second valvifer which has a small basal hair plate and well-defined apical gonoplac.

Female internal structures typical of family Miridae (cf. Davis, 1955). Ventral seminal depository large, saccular, lying below common oviduct. Cuticular part of each lateral oviduct well developed, ending in a strongly fluted section from which arises a crown of microtubules. Long, narrow, dorsal, tubular spermathecal gland inserted between lateral oviducts.

Remarks. — Many details of Mangalcoris morphology conform closely with available interpretations of Miridae by Slater (1950), Davis (1955), Kullenberg (1947), and Scudder (1959), including the diagnostic presence of meso- and metafemoral trichobothria. We follow the nomenclature of Matsuda (1976) rather than that of Dupuis (1970) although the latter is more detailed and useful in interpretation. The pretarsus of this taxon shows a number of highly reductional character states, including the apparent absence of parempodia, and the pseudarolia represented by a single long, curving seta slightly displaced from the ventral midline of the tarsus, suggesting one of these typically paired structures ( Schuh, 1976) has been secondarily lost.

Figures

Fig. 1. Mangalcoris miniatus, new genus, new species, paratype specimens from Singapore, Mandai Kechil mangrove. A, B, male; C, D, female. A, C, lateral views; B, D, dorsal views.

Fig. 2. Mangalcoris miniatus, new genus, new species, paratype specimens from Singapore, Mandai Kechil mangrove. A, female; B–E, male. A, body, lateral view; B, body and appendages, dorsal view; C, body, ventral view; D, E, male parameres.

Fig. 4. Mangalcoris miniatus, new genus, new species. A, male hind leg; B, detail of pretarsal structures.

Fig. 3. Mangalcoris miniatus, new genus, new species. A, male left paramere; B, male right paramere; C, male vesica (partially inflated).