Abietocapsus Konstantinov 2023, gen. nov.
Creators: name: Konstantinov, Fedor V.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2023
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Hemiptera
Miridae
Abietocapsus

description: 5.1. Abietocapsus gen. nov.  
Figs 4D, 5O, P, 6B, 8A-E, 11A, B  
Type species.  
 Sthenarus dissimilis Reuter, 1878   
Diagnosis.  
Recognized among other phylines by the following combination of characters: uniformly dark brown, with antennomeres III and IV, apices of femora, and tarsi yellowish brown (Fig. 4D); dorsum clothed with narrow, apically pointed scalelike setae and pale yellow simple setae (Fig. 6B); dorsoapical surface of hind femur with a row of minute spicules (Schwartz and Stonedahl 2004: fig. 21A); parempodia parallel, short and wide, distinctly flattened along entire length; claw bent at midpoint, pulvillum absent (Schwartz and Stonedahl 2004: fig. 21B-D); vesica strongly twisted at middle, with single claw-shaped apical blade (Fig. 8D, E); secondary gonopore located on membrane, subapical, elongate-oval; gonopore sclerite absent; bursa copulatrix with elongate-oval, broadly rounded sclerotized rings and S-shaped, large and wide vestibulum (Fig. 11A, B).  
Remarks.  
 The taxonomic position of Sthenarus dissimilis Reuter, 1878 has been controversial despite much effort. In the revision of the genus Sthenarus, Wagner (1958) treated this species within the subgenus Sthenarus Phoenicocoris based on the head shape and the pattern of vestiture. Kerzhner (1962) raised Phoenicocoris to the rank of a separate genus but noted that the position of " Sthenarus " Abietocapsus dissimilis remains uncertain. He mentioned that despite some resemblance in the male genitalia structure between S. dissimilis and the genera Atractotomus, Phoenicocoris, and Salicarus, this species could not be attributed to any of these taxa. Wagner (1975) retained this species within Phoenicocoris. Schwartz & Stonedahl (2004) provided a detailed and perfectly illustrated redescription of P. dissimilis, treated this species as incertae sedis, and refrained from taxonomic actions. Based on a preponderance of the morphological evidence, I must conclude that neither Phoenicocoris, nor any other phyline genus, can adequately accommodate Abietocapsus dissimilis and the new monotypic genus Abietocapsus gen. nov. is erected to place it.   
 The characteristically flattened and uniformly wide through entire length parempodia of A. dissimilis are highly untypical for the Phylini. A more or less similar flashy parempodia were documented within a handful of otherwise not related genera viz., Semium (Schuh 1976: fig. 27; Schwartz and Stonedahl 2004: fig. 21D), Moissonia (Schuh 1976: figs 30-32; Schuh 1984: fig. 1412; 1993: fig. 1b), Opuna (Schuh 1984: figs 1364, 1365), the Melaleucoides group of genera (Schuh and Weirauch 2010: figs 10D, 12C, 17C, 24C, 33D; Schwartz et al. 2018: fig. 18B), Chinacapsus (Wagner 1975: fig. 629a, b), and Lindbergopsallus (Wagner 1975: fig. 781f-i). The small North American genus Semium is clearly not related to A. dissimilis due to - among other characters - the structure of head and pronotum, vestiture, shape of the scent-gland evaporative area, and the male genitalia (Schuh and Menard 2013; Schuh 2017). Moissonia (under the subsequently synonymized names Ellenia and Ragmus) and Opuna were rendered as a monophyletic predominantly oriental clade (Schuh 1984) differing from other phylines in the general appearance and characteristic male genitalia structure. The recently described Australian Melaleucoides group of genera share several unique features in the male and female genitalia, as well as host associations with Myrtaceae (see Schuh & Weirauch 2010 for more details). Lindbergopsallus and Chinacapsus, island endemic genera restricted to Canary Islands and Madeira, respectively, clearly differ from Abietocapsus in the coloration, body proportions, structure of the male genitalia and the presence of pulvilli reaching at least midpoint of the claw. Chinacapsus is somewhat similar to Phoenicocoris in having strongly twisted, apically twin-bladed vesica, but both blades are larger and clearly separated along the entire length (Wagner 1975: figs 783a, 784i, 785i).   
 The structure of the vesica, being tightly twisted, with rounded secondary gonopore located on membrane, and single, claw-shaped apical blade, clearly differs from that of the habitually similar genera. All members of the genera Atractotomus, Phoenicocoris, and Salicarus possess gonopore sclerites missing in A. dissimilis. In addition, these genera have different apical structure of the vesica, with characteristically short single blade in Atractotomus and two long and thin blades in Phoenicocoris and Salicarus. Rhinacloa, a New World genus rendered as a sister group to Abietocapsus in the present phylogenetic analysis, also differs from the latter genus in having slender, weakly curved at middle vesica with poorly ornamented secondary gonopore (Schuh and Schwartz 1985). Rhinacloa further differs from Abietocapsus in the large eyes occupying almost entire sides of the head, the basally broad claws with large flaplike pulvilli, and the distinctly wide, apically serrate scales on dorsum. The structure of the female genitalia of Abietocapsus is also distinctive as compared to Atractotomus, Phoenicocoris, Salicarus, and Rhinacloa in having small, oval sclerotized rings of the dorsal labiate plate and S-shaped, very long and thin vestibulum.   
 Detailed descriptions, illustrations, and host information for A. dissimilis were provided by Henry and Wheeler (1974) and Schwartz and Stonedahl (2004), and not repeated here.   
Material examined.  
 Lectotype of Sthenarus dissimilis Reuter: FRANCE: Lorraine: Vosges Co.: Vosges Mts, 48.038°N 6.95°E, coll. A. Puton, Abies alba Mill. (Pinaceae), ♂, designated by Kerzhner & Matocq, 1994 (AMNH_PBI 00345054) (MNHN). - Paralectotypes of Sthenarus dissimilis Reuter: FRANCE: Lorraine: Vosges Co.: Vosges Mts, 48.038°N 6.95°E, V. Jakovlev coll., 1♂ (AMNH_PBI 00237480) (ZISP); coll. A. Puton, Abies alba Mill., ♀ (AMNH_PBI 00345054) (MNHN). Gallia, V. Jakovlev coll., ♂ (AMNH_PBI 00237481) (ZISP). - Other specimens: DENMARK: Thorso, Stoholm Jylland, 56.51787°N 9.1524°E, 27 Jun 1964, Gaun, 1♀ (AMNH_PBI 00338321) (NMWC), 4♂ (AMNH_PBI 00340519-AMNH_PBI 00340522), 4♀ (AMNH_PBI 00340527, AMNH_PBI 00340528, AMNH_PBI 00340527, AMNH_PBI 00340528) (ZMUH). FRANCE: Occitanie: Pyrenees orientales, Aude, Col de Jau, 42.688°N 2.688° E, 26 Jun 2005, J.-C. Streito, 1♂ (ZISP_ENT 00011726) (ZISP). MONTENEGRO: Between Zabljak and Podgorica, 42°N 19.1°E, 02 Jul 1958, L. Hoberlandt, 6♂ (ZISP_ENT 00011743-ZISP_ENT 00011748), 3♀ (ZISP_ENT 00011749-ZISP_ENT 00011751) (NMPC). ROMANIA: Bucarest, 44.43668°N 26.08902°E, 76 m, A. L. Montandon, 7♂ (AMNH). UKRAINE: Kvasovsk Menculi, Rakhov Distr., Zakarpatska, 48.4167°N 23.6833°E, 21 Jul 1972, Putshkov, 1♀ (AMNH_PBI 00237484) (ZISP). Uzhgorod, Zakarpatska, 48.61666°N 22.3° E, 26 May 1958, Roshko, Abies concolor (Gordon & Glend.) Lindl. ex Hildebr. (Pinaceae), 6♂ (AMNH_PBI 00237479, AMNH_PBI 00237478) (ZISP).
description: Published as part of Konstantinov, Fedor V., 2023, Plant bugs with swollen antennae: a morphology-based phylogenetic analysis of Heterocapillus Wagner, 1960 and related genera (Hemiptera: Miridae: Phylinae), pp. 845-879 in Arthropod Systematics & amp; Phylogeny 81 on page 845, DOI: 10.3897/asp.81.e104396