Revision of the Southern African leafhopper genus Pravistylus (Hemiptera, Cicadellidae, Deltocephalinae) 2468
Author
Stiller, M.
text
Zootaxa
2010
2010-05-14
2468
1
1
81
https://biotaxa.org/Zootaxa/article/view/zootaxa.2468.1.1
journal article
10.11646/zootaxa.2468.1.1
11755334
10094177
Pravistylus scolopygeus
sp. n.
(
Figs 1
af; 2 l; 3 w; 4 u; 5 h; 6 v; 7 bw–by; 8 bf)
Diagnosis
. Plate 1.7–1.9 times as long as wide; deeply notched subbasally; apices unequal in length, narrow, blunt (
Fig. 2 l
); plate similar to that of
P. longitrunculus
(
Fig. 2 k
). Pygofer lobe with sclerotized appendage on median surface (
Fig. 1
af). Aedeagus, in dorsal view, with base of shaft depressed, tapering towards apex (
Figs 3 w
,
4 u
). Style with distal part close to base; apophysis very narrow (
Fig. 5 h
). Female sternite 7 ligula with triangular or rectangular ligula, base rectangular (
Figs 7
bw–by).
Etymology
. Greek, for the thorn-like (
skolos
) spine on the pygofer (
pyge
).
Male and female
. Ochraceous, sometimes with minor fuscous markings on vertex, generally with fuscous markings in inner anteapical, posterior discal and brachial cells (
Fig. 8
bf).
Male
.
Dimensions
. (n = 16) Length: apex of vertex to apex of tegmina
2.4–2.8 mm
; apex of vertex to apex of abdomen
2.7–3.1 mm
; vertex medially
0.5 mm
; vertex next to eye
0.3–0.4 mm
; pronotum medially
0.3–0.4 mm
.
Width
: head 0.9–1.0 mm; pronotum
0.8–0.9 mm
. Ocellar diameter 28.0 µm; ocellocular distance 32.8–51.2 µm.
Genital capsule
. Pygofer, in lateral view, with ventral posterior margin bulbous, membranous; dorsal posterior margin lobate (
Fig. 1
af). Pygofer lobe subapical, short, with medial spine-like process, curved ventrally (
Fig 1
af); width of lobe about ¾ as wide as width of pygofer (
Fig. 1
af). Plate roughly triangular; subbasal lateral margin emarginate, tufts of setae distally and proximally of emargination; apex sclerotized, narrow, rounded or truncate; both apices usually of dissimilar length; 3–8 uniseriate subapical macrosetae (
Fig. 2 l
); plate 1.7–1.9 times as long as wide. Aedeagal shaft, lateral view, arising medially from atrium; preatrium short; C-shaped; dorsal view, tapering toward apex, depressed; gonopore ventral, elongate, extending from apex into about one third of shaft (
Figs 3 w
,
4 u
). Style distal part close to anterior medial lobe; apophysis elongate, curved, narrow with large basal, ventral tooth; preapical lobe acute (
Fig. 5 h
). Connective, in lateral view, with distal half slightly angled dorsad; dorsal view, stem narrow, rounded (
Fig. 6 v
).
Female
.
Dimensions
. (n = 11)
Length
: apex of vertex to apex of tegmina
2.4–2.9 mm
; apex of vertex to apex of abdomen 3.0–
3.4 mm
; vertex medially
0.5–0.6 mm
; vertex next to eye
0.3–0.4 mm
; pronotum medially
0.3–0.4 mm
.
Width
: head 0.9–1.0 mm; pronotum
0.8–0.9 mm
. Ocellar diameter 26.5–30.7 µm; ocellocular distance 35.7–50.8 µm.
Genitalia.
Sternite 7 with base rectangular, median posterior ligula about as long as median length of base; ligula variable: triangular (
Fig. 7
bw), with base triangular, apex parallel (
Fig. 7
bx) or ligula rectangular (
Fig. 7
by), V- or U-shaped notch; ventral surface of ligula and sternite with median ridge.
Material examined
.
Holotype
male.
South Africa
,
Mpumalanga
.
Suikerboschfontein Farm
,
25°56ʹS
,
30°19ʹE
,
1700 m
,
3.ii.2001
,
M. Stiller
, sweeping, grass and forbs (
SANC
)
.
Paratypes
.
16♂
,
12♀
.
Limpopo
.
1♂
,
1♀
, Sekororo Kloof near Burgersfort,
24°23ʹ6ʺS
,
30°27ʹ39ʺE
,
1430 m
,
19.iii.2005
, M. Stiller, sweeping, very short grazed
Cynodon dactylon
(Poaceae)
and other grass species;
2♀
, Sekororo Kloof, summit,
24°22ʹ55ʺS
, 30.29ʹ20ʺE,
1830 m
,
19.iii.2005
, M. Stiller, sweeping, steep E-facing shaded slope on summit;
5♂
,
4♀
, Sekororo Kloof,
24°22ʹ55ʺS
,
30°29ʹ20ʺE
,
1800 m
,
19.iii.2005
, M. Stiller, sweeping, summit ridge grazed grass and forbs;
2♂
,
1♀
,
The Downs
, near black wattle plantation,
24°10ʹ40.46ʺS
,
30°12ʹ04.77ʺE
,
1460 m
,
25.iv.2009
,
M. Stiller
, sweeping grass and forbs.
Mpumalanga
.
8♂
,
4♀
, same data as holotype (
BMNH
,
INHS
,
SANC
)
.
Remarks
. The plate of this species (
Fig. 2 l
) is similar to that of
P. longitrunculus
(
Fig. 2 k
), with the sternite 7 of both females also depicting similarities. However the elongate process on the median surface of the pygofer lobe (
Fig. 1
af) is the distinctive feature of
P. scolopygeus
, and is sometimes visible in undissected specimens. The pygofer lobe in
P. longitrunculus
(
Fig. 1 p
) is much longer than in
P. scolopygeus
(
Fig. 1
af), the style has the distal part close to the base in both species with the apophysis digitate in
P. longitrunculus
(
Fig. 5 e
), but narrower in
P.scolopygeus
(
Fig. 5 h
). The aedeagal shaft is not compressed in
P. longitrunculus
(
Figs 3
ab, 4 z), and in the connective the stem wider (
Fig. 6 z
) than in
P. scolopygeus
(
Fig. 6 v
). No other species has a similarly pronounced process on the pygofer lobe, except a distinctly smaller tooth in
P. odontopygeus
(
Fig. 1 y
).