Graziaphylus, a new genus and two new species of Eremophila-feeding (Scrophulariceae) Phylinae (Insecta: Heteroptera: Miridae) from Australia
Author
Schuh, Randall T.
0000-0002-0713-1367
Division of Invertebrate Zoology, American Museum of Natural History, New York 10024 USA & schuh @ amnh. org; https: // orcid. org / 0000 - 0002 - 0713 - 1367
schuh@amnh.org
Author
Salas, Ruth
0000-0003-4493-7842
Division of Invertebrate Zoology, American Museum of Natural History, New York 10024 USA & rsalas @ amnh. org; https: // orcid. org / 0000 - 0003 - 4493 - 7842
rsalas@amnh.org
text
Zootaxa
2021
2021-04-14
4958
1
319
326
journal article
7229
10.11646/zootaxa.4958.1.18
5e4f90e6-bed3-4335-85ba-f7dcdbee7f9e
1175-5326
4691975
45AA47B6-7C5E-4F04-9B4D-F03B7D235700
Graziaphylus
,
new genus
Type
species:
Graziaphylus joceliae
Schuh and Salas
Etymology:
From the surname Grazia and the generic name
Phylus
; masculine.
Diagnosis:
Male
: Small, total length 2.56–3.18, weakly elongate, broadly ovate, weakly to distinctly flattened, width across pronotum 1.05–1.11, membrane weakly exceeding apex of abdomen; coloration castaneous to nearly black, posterior margin of vertex pale, antennae pale (
Fig. 1, 3
), legs, except tibiae and tarsi ranging from pale to black/castaneous, tibiae pale, always with black spines with black bases, tarsi pale; head short, broad, eyes somewhat bulging as viewed from above, posterior margin of vertex rounded, nearly straight across (
Figs. 1, 3
); antennae short, slender, not sexually dimorphic, pale (
Figs. 1, 3
); claws only moderately elongate, nearly straight over much of length; pulvilli elongate, adnate to claw over most of length of the latter (
Figs. 7, 8
); parempodia setiform. Dimensions and proportions as in
Table 1
; interocular distance relative to width of head apparently distinctive for two known species. Vestiture composed of reclining simple setae intermixed with flattened lanceolate setae, the latter either dark or silvery in appearance (
Figs. 1, 3
,
9, 10
). Legs short, femora flat (
Figs. 1, 3
). GENITALIA (
Figs. 12–15, 18
): Endosoma with a single strap, apical attenuation single, about the length of the gonopore and with one or two barbs; gonopore relatively large; phallotheca with apical portion at right angles relative to proximal portion; left paramere conventionally phyline, without distinctive structural variation; right paramere lanceolate.
Female (
Figs. 2, 4
) similar to male in coloration and vestiture, but somewhat larger and more broadly ovoid.
Among Australian
Phylinae
Graziaphylus
is most similar in coloration and shape to
Xiphoidellus gilvus
Weirauch and Schuh (2011)
, but the latter taxon lacks scalelike setae, has small flaplike pulvilli placed near the midpoint of the claw, and the endosoma forms a complete coil and with a fingerlike process at the apex of the secondary gonopore.
Description:
Male
: Moderately small, broad-bodied, somewhat flattened, total length 2.56–3.18, width across pronotum 1.05–1.11. COLORATION (
Figs. 1, 3
): Body castaneous to nearly black; antennae pale; legs pale or castaneous/black; tibiae pale, spines with dark bases; membrane of wing, including veins, fumose. SURFACE AND VESTITURE (
Figs. 1, 3
,
5, 9, 10
): Dorsum smooth, shining, covered with recumbent, dark, simple setae and some dark or silvery scalelike setae. STRUCTURE: Curvature of posterior margin of vertex and eyes more or less conforming to anterior margin of pronotum (
Figs. 1, 3
); posterior margin of vertex and eyes smoothly and rather broadly rounded (
Figs. 1, 3
); vertex and frons moderately rounded; clypeus barely visible from above; dorsal margin of antennal fossa at level of ventral margin of eye; head short in lateral view, eyes occupying much of height of head; labium reaching to middle trochanters; costal margin of hemelytra broadly convex (
Figs. 1, 3
), cuneal fracture pronounced, hemelytra weakly deflexed at fracture (
Figs. 1, 3
); pronotum flattened, nearly straight on lateral and posterior margins; mesoscutum moderately exposed, scutellum flattened, weakly elevated anteriorly; claws of moderate length, nearly straight along dorsal margin, sharply bent near apex, pulvilli long, adnate to ventral surface of claw over most of its length (
Figs. 7, 8
), parempodia setiform (
Figs. 7, 8
). GENITALIA (
Figs. 12, 15, 18
): Endosoma formed of a single strap, more-or-less J-shaped, with a slender, nearly straight, apical attenuation about length of secondary gonopore with one or two barbs; secondary gonopore well sclerotized, subtending apical endosomal spine, gonopore sclerite lacking; phallotheca with apical portion conical, at right angle to long, broad basal flap; left paramere of characteristic phyline
type
; right paramere small, lanceolate.
Female
: Similar to male, but more broadly ovoid; total length 2.98–3.24; width pronotum 1.11–1.26. COLORATION (
Figs. 2, 4
): As in male. SURFACE AND VESTITURE (
Figs. 9–11
): As in male. STRUCTURE (
Fig. 2, 4
): Macropterous; eyes apparently lacking sexual dimorphism. GENITALIA:
Figures 16, 17
.
Discussion:Among Australian taxa,
Graziaphylus
will be most easily confused with the uniformly dark-colored species of
Xiphoidellus
Weirauch and Schuh
; nonetheless, the male genitalia in the two groups are distinctive and the latter lacks the scalelike setae seen in the former. On a world basis,
Graziaphylus
species are similar in size and appearance to the multiple dark-colored species of
Chlamydatus
Fieber
in the Northern Hemisphere, but the latter have minute, flaplike pulvilli situated at the midpoint of the claw (
Schuh & Schwartz, 2005
). Among other
Phylinae
, genera such as
Arctostaphylocoris
Schuh and Schwartz (2004)
from the western Nearctic, the Holarctic
Phoenicocoris
Reuter
(
Schwartz & Stonedahl, 2004
), members of the widely distributed
Sthenaridea
Reuter
from the Southern Hemisphere, and several of the New World
Rhinacloa
Reuter
(
Schuh & Schwartz, 1985
) species also share a resemblance, including their size and the fact that they all have some scalelike setae on the dorsum and usually on the thoracic pleuron.
We tentatively place
Graziaphylus
in the tribe
Nasocorini
(see
Schuh & Menard, 2013
) based on the size, structure of the male genitalia, and form of the claws and pulvilli. This is the first Australian taxon attributed to the tribe, whose monophyly and accommodation of
Graziaphylus
will strongly benefit from further testing using DNA sequence data.