Review of the plant bug tribe Eccritotarsini (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Miridae) of India and Sri Lanka with description of two new genera and six new species
Author
Yeshwanth, H. M.
3481CF9D-615D-41BF-BF0E-3FFF8205BEB0
Department of Entomology, University of Agricultural Sciences (GKVK), Bangalore 560 065, India.
hmyeshwanth@gmail.com
Author
Konstantinov, Fedor V.
B5DF0683-A68F-4075-9B0C-171DFADD75E6
Saint Petersburg State University, 7 / 9 Universitetskaya Emb., St. Petersburg 199034 Russia.
f.konstantinov@spbu.ru
text
European Journal of Taxonomy
2021
745
1
69
journal article
7325
10.5852/ejt.2021.745.1311
ac540bdb-8587-411a-8ab1-a2115525c618
2118-9773
4690362
6C85E664-6DE6-442A-9410-D94254E429F5
Ernestinus ramkeshariae
Yasunaga & Ishikawa, 2016
Figs 2B
,
13
,
26A–C
Ernestinus ramkeshariae
Yasunaga & Ishikawa, 2016: 36–38
.
Diagnosis
Distinguished from congeners by the following combination of characters: antennal segment I and sometimes basal half of segment II yellowish white, remaining segments brown; antennal segment II short, subequal in length to segment III and head width; scutellum orange-yellow medially; transverse dark spot on medioapical part of corium roughly T-shaped, at sides always reaching submarginal vein (
India
) or costal margin (
Nepal
); apical ⅓ of cuneus dark brown; cells entirely dark brown but remaining part of membrane without color-pattern (
Fig. 2B
); left paramere question mark-shaped; right paramere bulbous, simple, with slight subapical constriction and small subapical outgrowth (
Fig. 13
).
Material examined
INDIA
•
30 ♂♂
,
25 ♀♀
;
Manipur
,
Imphal
,
Lamphelpat
;
24.83° N
,
93.93° E
;
779 m
a.s.l.
;
20 Sep. 2013
;
H.M. Yeshwanth
leg.; Ex:
Colocasia esculenta
;
UASB
•
6 ♂♂
,
3 ♀♀
; same collection data as for preceding;
ZISP
•
8 ♂♂
,
10 ♀♀
;
Karnataka
;
Madikere
,
Galibeedu
;
12°28.57ˊ N
,
75°42.58ˊ E
;
1047 m
a.s.l.
;
6 Jan. 2012
;
H.M. Yeshwanth
leg.; Ex:
Colocasia
sp.;
UASB
•
14 ♂♂
,
5 ♀♀
;
Karnataka
,
Mudigere
;
13°7.190ˊ N
,
75°37.670ˊ E
;
913 m
a.s.l.
;
17 Dec. 2013
;
H.M. Yeshwanth
leg; Ex:
Colocasia esculenta
;
UASB
.
Host
In
India
, nymphs and adults were found aggregating in large numbers on the under surfaces of leaves (
Fig. 26A–C
) and damaging the cultivated edible aroid
Colocasia esculenta
(L.) Schott (
Araceae
).
Yasunaga & Ishikawa (2016)
provided detailed observations on the biology of
E. ramkeshariae
in
Nepal
and reported
C. esculenta
as a host, suggesting it could become a pest given the severe damage observed in a vegetable garden in Kathmandu.
Distribution
Nepal
, northeastern and southwestern
India
.
Remarks
This species was recently described from
Nepal
, where it was found in subtropical areas and urbanized zones of Katmandu (
Yasunaga & Ishikawa 2016
). The authors provided a detailed description and suggested that this species was introduced to northern
Nepal
as a pest of cultivated
Colocasia esculenta
. Here we report this species from northeastern (
Manipur province
) and southwestern (
Karnataka province
)
India
. Indian specimens differ slightly from Nepalese specimens in the color pattern, particularly in having pale labial segment I, uniformly whitish tibiae and slightly less pronounced transverse medioapical spot on the corium, which does not reach costal margin so that the adjoining part of embolium remains whitish yellow or only slightly infuscate. Specimens of
E. ramkeshariae
from
Nepal
have a brown labial segment I, red tinged tibia and a transverse spot on the corium that extends to the costal margin (
Yasunaga & Ishikawa, 2016
). Otherwise, Indian and Nepalese specimens show no other distinctions in coloration, measurements, and male and female genitalia.