Pseudoparonella seminigra, Zhang, Feng & Deharveng, Louis, 2015

Zhang, Feng & Deharveng, Louis, 2015, A revision of Pseudoparonella, Plumachaetas, Parachaetoceras and Lawrenceana (Collembola: Paronellidae), with description of three new species from New Caledonia, Zootaxa 4058 (4), pp. 561-577 : 562-566

Pseudoparonella seminigra sp. nov.

Figs 1‒9

Types. Holotype: female on slide, New Caledonia: Rivière Bleue, alt. 170 m, Malaise trap, 18.vii‒1.viii.1986, J. Chazeau leg. (# ρ7(20)ε10). Paratypes: 5 females on slides and numerous individuals in alcohol, same data as holotype. Two paratypes in NJAU and others in MNHN.

Description. Body length up to 2.4 mm.

……continued on the next page Ground colour pale yellow in alcohol. Head, thorax, Abd. I‒II, anterior Abd. III, coxa, trochanter and ventral tube dark blue ( Fig. 1 ). Scales mostly pointed, coarsely striate, and present on Ant. I‒II, head, terga, legs, ventral tube, and ventral side of furcula.

Antenna 2.4‒2.8 times as long as cephalic diagonal. Antennal segments ratio I: II: III: IV = 1: 1.8‒2.0: 1.6‒1.9: 3.3‒3.6. Ant. III organ with 2 rod-like chaetae; guard S-chaetae not clearly seen ( Fig. 2 ). Ant. IV without apical bulb or thick spiny chaetae. Eyes 8+8, G and H much smaller than others. Prelabral and labral chaetae 4/5, 5, 4; prelabrals ciliate; chaetae of the p-row unmodified. Subapical chaeta of maxillary outer lobe pointed. Labial triangular chaetae as MREL1L2, all ciliate ( Fig. 30 ). Dorsal cephalic chaetotaxy as in Fig. 3 ; middle macrochaeta S0 absent.

Th. II with 11 posterior macrochaetae. Th. III with 12 central macrochaetae ( Fig. 4 ). Trochanteral organ with about 21 smooth spiny chaetae; 10 in arms, 11 between arms ( Fig. 5 ). Tibiotarsal ventrodistal swelling not observed. Unguis with 2 lateral and 4 inner teeth; lateral one at 0.35‒0.50 distance from base, inner pair with tip reaching 0.20‒0.35 from base of ventral edge, median one at 0.72 and distal one 0.90 from base; the distal one minute. All unguiculi truncate with a corner tooth. Tenent hair clavate and subequal to unguis ( Figs 6, 7 ).

Abd. IV 5.6‒8.0 times as long as Abd. III along dorsal midline. Abd. I with 4 macrochaetae. Abd. II with 3 central and 2 lateral macrochaetae. Abd. III with 1 central and 6 lateral macrochaetae. Abd. IV with 11‒16 central and 15‒19 lateral macrochaetae ( Fig. 4 ). Accessory microchaetae of bothriotrichal complexes on Abd. II–IV modified as scale-like chaetae. Tenaculum with 4 + 4 teeth and one large striate chaeta. Terminal tubule of ventral tube smooth. Posterior face of manubrium with 3+3 distal thickened chaetae ( Fig. 8 ). Dens with many thick ciliate chaetae and distal two much larger than others. Mucro tridentate with 3 subequal teeth ( Fig. 9 ).

Etymology. Named because of the dark anterior half of the body.

Remarks. This new species is characterised by its unique and constant colour pattern (dark from head to Abd.

III). It is most similar to Ps. bicincta Yoshii, 1989 and Ps. najtae Yoshii, 1989 from New Caledonia in most features including dorsal cephalic and tergal chaetotaxy, but differs from them in colour pattern and the number of spiny chaetae on trochanteral organ. Pseudoparonella seminigra sp. nov. has whitish antennae and dark blue head and half body (Th. II‒Abd. III), whereas the other two species possess pigmented antennae and pigmented lateral patches on body. Femur and tibiotarsi are whitish in the new species but partly/mostly pigmented in other two species. The new species also has fewer (≈21) spiny chaetae on trochanteral organ, with about 40 in Ps. bicincta and 100 in Ps. najtae . Interestingly, another Paronellidae species, Paronellides dandenogenesis ( Womersley, 1934) from Australia, exhibits a very similar colour pattern except for the head which is white (blue in our species). It differs from Ps. seminigra sp. nov. by the absence of scales.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Habitus of Pseudoparonella seminigra sp. nov.

FIGURES 2 – 9. Pseudoparonella seminigra sp. nov.: 2, Ant. III organ; 3, dorsal cephalic chaetotaxy; 4, dorsal body chaetotaxy from Th. II to Abd. IV (pseudopores not clearly seen on thorax); 5, trochanteral organ; 6, fore claw; 7, hind claw; 8, distal dorsum of manubrium; 9, mucro.

FIGURES 24 – 36. Plumachaetas yoshii sp. nov.: 24, body scales, tip rounded in the left and pointed in the right; 25, Ant. III organ; 26, Ant. IV apical chaetae; 27, labrum; 28, lateral process of labial palp; 29, maxillary outer lobe; 30, labial triangle chaetae, same as other two new species; 31, dorsal cephalic chaetotaxy; 32, dorsal body chaetotaxy from Th. II to Abd. IV (pseudopore not clearly seen on Abd. IV); 33, trochanteral organ; 34, mid claw; 35, hind claw; 36, mucro.