Systematic revision of Thaumastocoris Kirkaldy (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Thaumastocoridae)
Author
Noack, Ann E.
Author
Cassis, Gerasimos
Author
Rose, Harley A.
text
Zootaxa
2011
3121
1
60
journal article
45841
10.5281/zenodo.279374
597b0faf-0427-4c0b-b1f3-d40f466aa1c7
1175-5326
279374
Thaumastocoris hackeri
Drake and Slater, 1957
(Figures: 4C,D; 18E,F)
Thaumastocoris hackeri
Drake and Slater 1957
: 367
(description);
Rose 1965
: 144
(diagnosis);
Slater 1973
: 155
(taxonomy);
Cassis and Gross 1995
: 393
(catalogue);
Cassis, Schuh and Brailovsky 1999
: 29
(diagnosis; host plants).
Holotype
:
3, QUEENSLAND, Bunya Mt.
III-1931
H. Hacker. (
USNM
)
Other material examined.
13,
NEW
SOUTH
WALES
, Upper Williams River
October 1926
, AM Lea and FE Wilson,
Paratype
Thaumastocoris hackeri
Drake and Slater
(
SAMA
).; 1Ƥ, Horton’s Creek, near Clouds Creek,
28.viii.1961
, CN and
AS
Smithers, K157186 (AM); 1Ƥ [K157190], 13 [K157191], approx.
3 km
N Lansdowne via Taree,
2 November
, 1990 G and T Williams, ex
Schizomeria ovata
blossoms (AM); 13 [K157192], approx.
3 km
N Lansdowne via Taree,
6 November 1990
, G and T Williams, ex
Schizomeria ovata
blossoms (AM). QUEEN-
SLAND
: 13, Brisbane,
1.xi.1964
, HA Rose (QM); 13, Brisbane,
26.xi.1964
, HA Rose (QM); 1Ƥ, Brookfield,
1- xi-1926
, H Hacker (QM); 13, Hidden Canyon, W slope Bluff Range, near Biggenden,
12 August 1975
, H Frauca (
ANIC
); 13, Kuranda State Forest,
28.1 km
N of Kuranda,
16°40’25”S
145°30’08”E
,
28 April 1998
, G Cassis, locality code Q98-L18-H17,
Rubiaceae
(Det. Royal Bot Gard.
NSW
) (AM); 13, Southport,
24-x-1926
, H Hacker (QM).
Diagnosis.
Thaumastocoris hackeri
is recognised by the combination of the following characters: body elongate; eyes strongly pedicellate; mandibular plates weakly concave and moderately expanded laterally; labium elongate, reaching posterior region of prosternum; corium laterally expanded beyond claval commissure; abdomen laterally expanded and visible dorsally visible beyond costal margin of hemelytra (
Figure 4
C,D); paramere elongated into a hornlike projection apically (
Figure 18
E,F).
Thaumastocoris hackeri
can be distinguished from
T. roy
, a species with a similar body shape and elongate labium, by the paramere (cf.
Figure 19
D). The paramere of
T. roy
forms a keel apically and is not hornlike. In addition,
T. hackeri
is much larger in size than
T. roy
.
Redescription.
Submacropterous. Male length 2.96–3.24, width 0.98–1.23; female length 3.24–3.36, width 1.23–1.35. Females slightly larger in size and darker in colouration.
Colouration
. Dorsum straw-coloured to yellowish brown, with contrasting dark brown markings (
Figure 4
C,D).
Head
: mostly straw-coloured; sublateral margins darker; gula dark brown.
Antennae
: mostly straw-coloured; apical half of AIII and all excluding basal eight of AIV dark brown to fuscous.
Labium
: mostly yellowish brown; LIII and LIV darker brown.
Pronotum
: mostly yellowish brown; pronotal disc yellowish cream, medially with dark brown.
Thoracic pleura and sterna
: mostly yellowish brown, propleura yellowish brown paler dorsally; prosternum fuscous; mesosternum dark brown, paler laterally.
Scutellum
: straw-coloured, anterior margin yellowish brown.
Hemelytra
: mostly straw-coloured, medial margin of corium often darker; membrane straw-coloured, medially infused with dark brown (
Figure 4
C,D).
Legs
: mostly yellowish brown, second tarsomere light brown.
Abdomen
: uniformly yellowish brown.
Texture
. Dorsum moderately polished, with shallow to deeply set setose punctures.
Head
: irregularly
punctuate
; vertex mostly impunctate, with three transverse puncticulate rows, punctures shallow; epicranial suture with irregular distribution of fine punctures; mandibular plates with regular distribution of punctures, bare anteriorly.
Pronotum
: callosite region irregularly punctate, punctures shallow, midline with fine dense punctures, anterolateral angles with sparse shallow punctures; disc densely and regularly punctate, punctures deep, posterolateral angles impunctate.
Thoracic pleura and sterna
: pleura with uniform dense shallow punctures; mesosternum strongly polished medially.
Scutellum
:
densely and regularly punctate, punctures deep, midline polished posteriorly.
Hemelytra
: clavus and corium with uniform moderate distribution of deep punctures, larger than on pronotal disc.
Abdomen
: impunctate, moderately polished.
Vestiture
. Dorsum with uniform distribution of setose punctures, setae short and straw-coloured. Lateral aspects of body uniformly clothed with short straw-coloured, erect setae. Ventral surface with short sparse setae, becoming bare medially.
Antennae
: AII–AIII with uniform distribution of fine, erect setae; AIV with same seta on lateral margins, sparse on dorsal and ventral surface.
Male genitalia
: pygophore clothed in fine setae; pygophoral lock with dense setae apically; paramere with setae medially, horn nude (
Figure 18
E,F).
Structure.
Head
: mandibular plates elongate, surpassing clypeus by less than clypeal length, contiguous medially, weakly flared anteriorly, weakly concave dorsally, anterolateral margins weakly recurved; genae swollen; bucculae strongly arcuate; gula weakly concave.
Eyes
: strongly pedicellate, recurved (
Figure 4
C,D).
Antennae
: AI to AIII cylindrical; AIV weakly dorsoventrally flattened.
Labium
: elongate, reaching towards posterior margin of prosternum.
Pronotum
: weakly constricted medially; callosite region shorter than disc, disc broader; anterolateral angles weakly arcuate; lateral margin of disc weakly arcuate; disc slightly raised above callosite region (
Figure 4
C,D).
Thoracic sterna and pleura
: prosternum moderately expanded ventrally; propleura concave medially, posterolateral margins reduced.
Hemelytra
: at rest extending to abdominal TIX; corium expanded beyond claval commissure, medial margin of corium weakly excavate distally, apex of corium at membrane narrowed, medial margin more than 45° to costal margin (
Figure 4
C,D).
Legs
: forecoxal separation less than coxal width; fore and mesofemora strongly incrassate; fossula spongiosa elongate, reaching distal margin of second tarsomere; 15–20 foretibial teeth, 12–18 mesotibial teeth, 5–6 metatibial teeth.
Male Genitalia
: pygophoral lock elongated, expanded apically; paramere ovate with horn like projection apically (
Figure 18
E,F).
Measurements.
See Table 2.
Distribution.
This species is distributed from temperate to tropical eastern
Australia
(
Figure 20
A); from just north of Sydney to Kuranda.
Host plant.
Thaumastocoris hackeri
has been collected from a wide range of host plants, and among thaumastocorids shows some of the widest phylogenetic diversity in plant families (
Table 3
). It has been collected in Kuranda from an unidentified plant in the
Rubiaceae
. Near Landsdowne in New South
Wales
it was found on the blossoms of
Schizomeria ovata
(Cunoniaceae)
.
Rose (1965)
also collected it from
Elaeocarpus obovatus
(Elaeocarpaceae)
.
Remarks.
The paramere of
Thaumastocoris hackeri
has an apical hornlike projection which is unique to this species and quite elaborate in comparison to other species of
Thaumastocoris
.