Scalida ramiformis Qiao & Che, 2023

Qiao, Limin, Li, Qianqian, Yao, Wenwen, Wang, Zongqing & Che, Yanli, 2023, Three new species of Scalida (Blattodea: Blattellidae) from Yunnan, China, Zootaxa 5306 (1), pp. 144-150 : 148-149

3. Scalida ramiformis Qiao & Che sp. nov.

Description. Male: pronotum length×width 2.8–3.4× 3.7–4.2 mm, tegmen length 11.8–12.2 mm, body length including tegmen 14.2–14.5 mm.

Body yellowish brown. Head yellowish brown, eyes dark or dark brown. Ocellar spots white. Antenna with first two segments yellowish brown; other segments dark brown. Fourth and fifth maxillary palpomeres brown, remainder of maxillary palpomere yellowish brown. Pronotum yellowish brown with a few sporadic, brown and symmetrically distributed spots. Tegmina pale reddish brown in middle part and lighter in the side borders. Vertex with interocular space equal to the distance between antennal sockets. Third and fifth maxillary palpomeres about equal length, each distinctly longer than the fourth. Pronotum nearly trapezoidal, hind margin slightly arched ( Fig. 3A–B ). Tegmina and hind wings fully-developed, extending beyond end of abdomen. M of hind wing unbranched and distinctly curved near middle. CuA with 3 complete branches and 2 incomplete branches ( Fig. 3I ). Front femur Type B3 ( Fig. 3G ). T7 specialized with a pair of nearly circular symmetrical glands in the middle, extending beyond the anterior margin of T7, and a small thumb-shaped knob with bristles at tips on each posterolateral corner ( Fig. 3J ).

Supra-anal plate symmetrical, hind margin produced into two spine-like processes with 3–4 small teeth on each side, middle of hind margin slightly knobbed with two small teeth ( Fig. 3E ). Paraprocts asymmetrical; end of left paraproct with some small teeth; right paraproct irregular, front margin of right paraproct with small, stout and dense spines ( Fig. 3E ). Subgenital plate subsymmetrical with long and scattered setae around it. Hind margin of subgenital plate narrow with two big bifurcated styli. Hooked phallomere on the left of subgenital plate, median phallomere slender, rodlike, apex acute; right phallomere with an S-shaped sclerite ( Fig. 3F ).

Diagnosis. This species is slightly similar to S. ectobiodes in the shape of pronotum and paraprocts. It differs from that species as follows: 1) two circular glands extending beyond the anterior margin of T 7 in the former, while two short and wide glands of T 7 in middle in the latter; and 2) both knobs of T7 with a cluster of setae in the former, while two knobs of T7 without setae in the latter (see Wang et Che 2010: 41 Fig. 17, 18).

Etymology. The species name is derived from the Latin words “ramus” meaning “branch” and “forma” meaning “shaped” referring to the apex of the styli being bifurcated.

Holotype. Male, Yunnan Province, Mongla County, Wangtianshu Scenic Area , 23-V-2016, Lu Qiu & Zhiwei Qiu leg. Paratypes. 1 male and 1 female, same collection data as holotype .

Figures

FIGURE 3. A–J. Scalida ramiformis Qiao & Che sp. nov., male. A. habitus, dorsal view, paratype; B. habitus, ventral view, paratype; C. female habitus, dorsal view, paratype; D. female habitus, ventral view, paratype; E. supra-anal plate, ventral view, holotype; F. subgenital plate, dorsal view, holotype; G. front femur, ventral view, holotype; H. right tegmen, dorsal view, holotype; I. left wing, dorsal view, holotype; J. seventh abdominal tergite, dorsal view, holotype. Scale bars = 5.0 mm (A–D), 2.0 mm (H, I), 0.5 mm (E, F, G, J).