Taxonomic revision of Calamister Kirkaldy, 1906 (Fulgoromorpha: Cixiidae) with the description of a new species
Author
Löcker, Birgit
text
Zootaxa
2014
3878
1
89
96
journal article
36770
10.11646/zootaxa.3878.1.7
a2036f4e-9744-4420-88ee-f8a0cde25cc4
1175-5326
287356
D7F22A9C-158F-4449-BD0C-49C734AF3E8C
Calamister obscurus
Kirkaldy
(
Figs 2
,
4
,
6
A–C)
Calamister obscurus
Kirkaldy, 1906
: 403
.
Types
.
Lectotype
(designated here, examined), ♂,
AUSTRALIA
, Qld:
Bundaberg,
ix.–xii.1904
(Koebele) (BPBM).
Paralectotypes
, 2 ♀, same data as
holotype
(BPBM).
Notes:
The original description does not mention the designation of a
holotype
, therefore these specimens are regarded as
syntypes
. A
lectotype
is designated to provide a diagnostic reference for the species.
Other material examined.
AUSTRALIA
, Qld:
11 ♂
, 6 ♀,
1 ♂
or ♀ (abdomen missing, body length indicates male), Bundaberg,
20.viii.1919
(F. Muir) (
BPBM
);
1 ♂
, 1 ♀, Coolum,
22.ix.1956
(Kirkpolnik) (QM).
NSW
:
2 ♀, Bullsground [state forest], Port
Macquarie
, beating understorey plants,
xi. 2005
(M.L. Moir MLM01135-6).
Diagnosis.
This species can be distinguished from
C. cougalensis
by its colouration which is entirely yellow with hyaline forewings and a whitish or yellowish pterostigma. Further the phallotheca bears two spines ventrally to right-laterally, about equal in length.
Colour.
Body light brownish-yellow (testaceous), eyes and antennae darker; rarely lateral parts of mesonotum slightly darker. Forewing hyaline with testaceous veins and tubercles; pterostigma testaceous.
Morphology.
Body length: ♂
4.3–4.5 mm
; ♀
4.7–5.1 mm
.
Head: Vertex 1.5–1.7 x wider than long; apical carina v-shaped, subapical carina u- shaped; median carina of vertex absent or if present, covering up ¼ of basal compartment of vertex; basal compartment 3.7–9.0 x longer than apical compartment. Frons 1.1–1.4 x longer than wide. Postclypeus with median carina absent or evanescent; lateral carinae absent. Anteclypeus with median and lateral carinae absent. Rostrum very short, reaching mid coxa or mid femur; apical segment of rostrum shorter than or as long as subapical segment.
Thorax: Forewing 2.7–3.5 x longer than wide; costal margin with about 1–4 tubercles; Sc+R+M near basal cell fused, forming a minute common stem Sc+R+M; fork of ScRA+
RP
basad or at same level as fork CuA1+CuA2; position of r-m at same level as or slightly basad of fork MA+MP; MP apically unforked or bifid; vein delimiting subapical cell C4 more or less at same level as vein delimiting C5; subapical cell C5 distinctly longer than C4; CuA2 ending well before it reaches margin of wing or fading (reaching margin of wing with reduced thickness); 7–8 apical cells; 3 anteapical cells.
Hind
leg: 1st tarsomere with 7 apical teeth (rarely 6 or 8) and no platellae; 2nd tarsomere with 8 (rarely 9) apical teeth and 4 (rarely 5) platellae (
Fig. 2
E).
FIGURE 2.
Calamister obscurus
: A habitus; B forewing; C–D head; E first and second tarsomere. Scale bar 1mm.
Male genitalia: Anal tube as in
Figs 4
C,D. Pygofer and genital styles as in
Figs 4
E,F. Aedeagus (
Figs 4
A,B): Phallotheca ventrally to right-laterally with two large, curved spines (a, b), about equal in length; spine (a) arising near apex of aedeagus and spine (b) arising right underneath spine (a). Flagellum unarmed.
Female genitalia: Ovipositor, wax plate and anal tube as in
Figs 6
A–C: wax plate oval-shaped; anal tube trapezoid, widening towards apex.
Remarks.
In general
C. obscurus
has 7 apical teeth and no platellae on the 1st tarsomere and 8 apical teeth and 4 platellae on the 2nd tarsomere. The following deviations from this formula appear to be aberrations as they only occurred on one leg of the specimen: One male from Bundaberg had only 6 and another male from the same location 8 apical teeth on the 1st tarsomere; the female from Coolum had 9 apical teeth and 5 platellae on the 2nd tarsomere.
Kirkaldy’s original descriptions of the genus and species are not very specific and lack illustrations. Muir (1908) provided a dichotomous key to the genera of
Cixiidae
which includes
Calamister
. Based on this identification key
Jacobi (1928)
identified a female specimen from the 'Blackal Range’ (this appears to be the ‘Blackall Range’ in South East Queensland) to be
C. obscurus
. Jacobi mentions features such as a minute stem of Sc+R+M; a long common stem of Sc+R and the fact that fork Sc+R and fork CuA1+CuA2 are at about the same level, situated in the basal half of the forewing; and transverse carina of vertex slightly u-shaped. These features can be found in the
type
specimens of
C. obscurus
and/or the other material examined.
Jacobi (1928)
noted that apical veins (towards the margin) and crossveins were darker brown in the Blackall Range specimen. In
C. cougalensis
sp. nov.
the apical veins are darker but not the crossveins. In
C. obscurus
all veins are uniformously coloured throughout (
Figs 2
A,B). Jacobi included an illustration of the forewing in his redescription of
C. obscurus
Kirkaldy. The
specimen depicted varies considerably from the wing venation found in
Calamister
, e.g. the specimen pictured has a trifid
RP
, MA and MP, however in
Calamister
these veins are bifid (
Figs 1
,
3
A), or even in some cases MP unforked (
Fig. 2
B). Further, Jacobi’s specimen shows CuA1 and CuA2 rejoining which does not occur in any of the
types
. This means there is considerable doubt that the specimen from the Blackall Range is
C. obscurus
—examination of the specimen is needed to clarify this.