Eupelicini Sahlberg, 1871

Zahniser, James N. & Dietrich, Chris H., 2013, A review of the tribes of Deltocephalinae (Hemiptera: Auchenorrhyncha: Cicadellidae), European Journal of Taxonomy 45, pp. 1-211 : 76-78

Eupelicini Sahlberg, 1871

Figs 22 , 23

Type genus: Eupelix Germar, 1821 .

Diagnosis

Eupelicini are medium sized to large ivory, ochraceous, green, or brownish leafhoppers. They can be identified by the strongly produced or spatulate head, gena without fine erect seta beside laterofrontal suture, genal margins strongly emarginate (~90º angle), forewing veins raised or carinate, metafemur apical setae 2+0, metatarsomere I expanded apically, male pygofer macrosetae absent or reduced, subgenital plates without macrosetae, and aedeagus not hinged basally.

Description

HEAD. Head subequal to or wider than pronotum; somewhat to very strongly produced anteriorly. Discal portion of crown shagreen, granulose, or punctate. Anterior margin of head foliaceous. Frontoclypeus elongate; not tumid; texture shagreen or punctate. Clypellus parallel-sided, tapering apically, or widening apically; apex following or slightly surpassing normal curve of gena; notched apically. Lorum subequal to or wider than clypellus near base. Antennal bases near upper or anterodorsal corners of eyes. Gena strongly incised laterally (nearly forming right angle); without fine erect seta beside laterofrontal suture. Antennae short, less than 1.5 x width of head. Antennal ledge absent or weakly developed (carinate or weakly carinate). Antennal bases near upper or anterodorsal corners of eyes. Ocelli present; close to or distant from eyes; on anterior margin of head or on crown.

THORAX. Pronotum usually with median longitudinal carina and sublateral keels or carinae; lateral margin carinate or not; lateral margin as long as or longer than basal width of eye.

WINGS. Forewing macropterous or submacropterous; appendix absent or reduced (Paradorydiina) or appendix large, extending around wing apex (Eupelicina); with 3 anteapical cells; veins distinctly raised or carinate; without reflexed costal veins; A1-A2 crossvein absent.

LEGS. Profemur with AM1 absent or reduced; intercalary row reduced or absent; row AV without setae or with relatively long macrosetae. Protibia dorsal surface flat, AD and PD margins at ~90º angles but not carinate. Metafemur apex macrosetae 2+0. Metatibia row AV macrosetae restricted to apical 1/2 or less. Metatibia not strongly compressed laterally, more or less square shaped in cross section; distinctly bent apically in dorsal view. Metatarsomere I expanded apically; plantar setae simple, tapered.

MALE GENITALIA. Valve articulated with pygofer or fused to pygofer (Paradorydiina), if articulated then lateral margin short, articulating with pygofer at a point. Pygofer basolateral membranous cleft present (Eupelicina) or absent (Paradorydiina); macrosetae absent or reduced (≤ two rows). Subgenital plates free from each other; articulated with or fused to valve; without macrosetae. Style broadly bilobed basally, median anterior lobe pronounced. Basal processes of the aedeagus/connective absent or reduced. Aedeagus with single shaft and gonopore. Connective anterior arms somewhat divergent, Y - or V -shaped; articulated with aedeagus.

FEMALE GENITALIA. Pygofer with macrosetae reduced or absent. Ovipositor protruding (Paradorydiina) or not protruding (Eupelicina) far beyond pygofer apex. First valvula not strongly convex; dorsal sculpturing pattern reticulate, granulose, maculose, or imbricate (with overlapping scales); sculpturing reaching dorsal margin or submarginal; with (Paradorydiina) or without (Eupelicina) distinctly delimited ventroapical sculptured area. Second valvula broad, gradually tapered or gradually broadened medially or subapically; with or without dorsal median tooth; dorsal teeth on apical 1/3 or more if present; teeth small, regularly or irregularly shaped (Eupelicina) or absent (Paradorydiina).

Geography and ecology

Distribution: Palearctic, Afrotropical, Oriental and Australian regions. All members are grass feeders.

Remarks

Eupelicini contains 7genera and 64 species.Listrophorina is removed from the tribe here and synonymized with Chiasmini , and Dorycephalini is considered a separate tribe following Zahniser & Dietrich (2010). Eupelicini is supported as a monophyletic group in phylogenetic analyses and by shared morphological characters. It is related to other grass-feeding tribes of Deltocephalinae including Drakensbergenini, Chiasmini , and Stenometopiini.

Selected references

Evans (1966), Morrison (1973), Linnavuori (1979a, b), Viraktamath & Viraktamath (1989), Dmitriev (2001), D’Urso (1992).

Included subtribes:

Figures

Fig. 22. Eupelicini (Eupelicina). Eupelix cuspidata (Fabricius, 1775). A–I. Standard views (see Material & Methods).

Fig. 23. Eupelicini (Parodorydiina). Paradorydium quadrigonum (Naudé, 1926). A–E, H–I. Standard views (see Material & Methods). D. Pygofer shown with valve, plates, and internal genitalia. J. Ventral view of pygofer showing valve, plates, connective and styles. K. Ventral views of sternites I (s1ap) and II (s2ap).