Kerria thrissurensis Ahmad & Ramamurthy, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Ahmad, Ayashaa
name: Sharma, K. K.
name: Vidyarthi, A. S.
name: Ramani, R.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2013
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hemiptera
Kerriidae
Kerria
Kerria thrissurensis

description: Kerria thrissurensis Ahmad & Ramamurthy sp. nov.
(Figs 3, 6, 41–56)
Holotype: India: Kerala, Thrissur, 09.viii.2011, coll. K. K. Sharma, Amherstia nobilis (Fabaceae), 1 slide (1 adƤ) (NPC). Paratypes: Data same as holotype, 2 slides (6 adƤ) (NPC); 1 slide (4 adƤ) (IINRG-R); 1 slide (3 adƤ) (ANIC) and 1 slide (3 adƤ) (BME).
Adult female
Unmounted material (Figs 3, 6). Lac test brown, each test with a thick, hard resinous covering. Tests occur in aggregations; live mature females elongated and crimson. Unmounted cleaned female shown in Figure 6 with an elongated anal tubercle and elevated brachia.
Mounted material (Figs 41–56). Body large, elongated, 2.00– 2.80 mm long, 1.35–2.50 mm wide at apex, 1.88–2.86 mm wide at middle and 1.00– 1.47 mm wide at base (n=10).
Dorsum: Brachia elevated, cylindrical and heavily sclerotized, 430–670 µm long and 330–510 µm wide. Brachial plate circular, diameter 210–275 µm; brachial crater shallow, sub-circular, 200–245 µm wide, with a defined rim; dimples small, obscure, 4 or 5 in number. Anterior spiracle 270–380 µm long and 185–260 µm wide, 175–515 µm away from brachial crater. Ratio of distance of anterior spiracles from crater rim to width of brachial plate 1:0.67–2.06. Ratio of length of anterior spiracle to width of brachial plate 1:1.08–1.71. Dorsal spine well developed 325–450 µm long and 55–120 µm wide at base; pedicel large, slender, more sclerotized, 165–285 µm long; spine 125–165 µm long and sclerotized with 2 or 3 spinosities at base. Ratio of pedicel length to spine length 1:1.03–1.80. Ratio of total dorsal spine length to brachial plate width 1:1.22–1.73. Anal tubercle elongated, well developed; pre-anal plate membranous, 350–870 µm long, 350–460 µm wide; supra-anal plate heavily sclerotized, hispid near apex, 400–580 µm long, 290–390 µm wide, ratio of supra-anal plate length to width of plate 1:1.18–1.93. Ratio of length of supra-anal plate to length of brachia 1:0.61–1.16. Anal fringe plates short, fringe maximum length 60–100 µm. Anal ring 6 sectored with 10 setae. Dorsal duct cluster in a single row of ducts between dorsal spine and anal tubercle, number of ducts uncertain, probably 5 or 6, and each cluster devoid of spermatoid ducts.
Venter: Antennae 40–50 µm long, 3 segmented, segmentation obscure; apical segment flattened with 3 long fleshy setae and 2 short setae. Clypeolabral shield 270–320 µm long, 130–180 µm wide. Labium 2 segmented. Preoral lobes elongated, membranous, present along sides of clypeolabral shield. Post-oral lobes each 120–190 µm long, membranous, dome-shaped. Legs vestigial, represented by a small, one-segmented leg with rudimentary claws. Posterior spiracles each 70–100 µm long, smaller than anterior spiracles, born on a sclerotized plate, with 50–63 spiracular pores present along one side of each spiracle. Marginal duct clusters distinct, 6 in number, each cluster arranged in a convoluted line consisting of 49–53 ducts with slight surrounding sclerotization. Perivulvar pore clusters: 12–14 on each side of anal tubercle, irregular in shape, each pore with 5–10 loculi. Ventral duct clusters irregular in shape, totalling 3 pairs: first pair anterior to mouthparts, second pair antero-lateral to mouthparts and third pair postero-lateral to posterior spiracle. Star pores: 1–5 present near mouthparts.
Comments. Kerria thrissurensis is similar to K. pusana (Misra) in having: (i) a large, globular body, (ii) the supra-anal plate hispid and shorter than brachia, (iii) the brachia prominently elevated and tubular, (iv) the anterior spiracle far from brachial plate at a distance greater than the width of the brachial plate, and (v) the dorsal spine not longer than pedicel. Kerria thrissurensis differs in having (character states for K. pusana in brackets): (i) supra-anal plate elongated (abbreviated); (ii) perivulvar pore clusters numbering 12–14 on each side of the base of anal tubercle (10); (iii) 4 or 5 dimples on the brachial plate (5 or 6); and (iv) 49–53 ducts in each marginal duct cluster with surrounding sclerotization (35–40 ducts without sclerotization).
Etymology. This species is named after the locality of its collection, i.e., Thrissur.
Redescription of Kerria yunnanensis Ou & Hong (Figs 57–65)
Specimens studied. China: Yunnan, coll. C. Hang, Dalbergia assamica (Fabaceae), 1 slide (2 adƤ) (NPC). Adult female
Mounted material (Figs 57–65). Body elongate, 2.40–3.55 mm long, 1.60–1.68 mm wide at apex, 2.70–2.96 mm wide at middle and 1.07–1.41 mm wide at base.
Dorsum: Brachia elevated, cylindrical in shape and heavily sclerotized, 470–520 µm long. Brachial plate circular, diameter 180–225 µm; brachial crater shallow, central, sub-circular, 110–175 µm wide, with a defined rim, dimples small, obscure, not countable but probably 10–12. Anterior spiracle 315–350 µm long and 175 µm wide, 350–375 µm away from brachial crater. Ratio of distance of anterior spiracles from crater rim to width of brachial plate 1:1.55–2.88. Ratio of length of anterior spiracle to width of brachial plate 1:1.55–1.75. Dorsal spine well developed, 385 µm long and 110 µm wide at base; pedicel large, slender, membranous at base and sclerotized near apex, 250 µm long; spine 135 µm long and sclerotized without spinosities at base. Ratio of length of pedicel to length of spine 1:1.85. Ratio of total length of dorsal spine to width of brachial plate 1:2.14. Anal tubercle elongated, well developed; pre-anal plate membranous, 400–570 µm long, 430 µm wide; supra-anal plate heavily sclerotized, hispid near apex 450–460 µm long, 390 µm wide; ratio of length of supra-anal plate to width 1:1.15–1.17. Ratio of length of supra-anal plate to length of brachia 1:0.86–0.97. Anal fringe plates short, fringe maximum length 60–75 µm. Anal ring 6 sectored with 10 setae. Dorsal duct cluster present as a single row of ducts between dorsal spine and anal tubercle, with 8–10 ducts but devoid of spermatoid ducts.
Venter: Antennae 30 µm long, 3 segmented, segmentation obscure, apical segment flattened with 4 long fleshy setae and 2 short setae. Clypeolabral shield 250–270 µm long, 160–180 µm wide. Labium 2 segmented. Preoral lobes elongated, membranous, present along sides of clypeolabral shield. Post-oral lobes each 140–150 µm long, membranous, dome-shaped. Legs vestigial. Posterior spiracles each 80 µm long, smaller than anterior spiracles, born on a sclerotized plate, with 59–64 spiracular pores present along one side of each spiracle. Marginal duct clusters distinct, 6 in number, each arranged in a convoluted line consisting of less than 40 ducts without any surrounding sclerotization. Perivulvar pore clusters: 8–10 on each side, irregular in shape, each cluster composed of 12–23 pores, each pore with 5–13 loculi. Ventral duct clusters irregular in shape, totalling 3 pairs: first pair anterior to mouthparts, second pair antero-lateral to mouthparts and third pair postero-lateral to posterior spiracle. Star pores: 2 near mouthparts.
Comments. Kerria yunnanensis is redescribed herein to provide a taxonomic description comparable with that of other species of Kerria and also because the original description of the adult female is in Chinese and the recent description by Chen et al. (2011) lacks details of the perivulvar pore clusters, antennae, presence of star pores, ducts in marginal duct cluster and the number of anal setae 6–13. K. yunnanensis is similar to K. chinensis (Mahdihassan) in having: (i) an elongated large body, (ii) an elongated and hispid supra-anal plate, and (iii) the brachia prominently elevated and tubular; it differs in (character states for K. chinensis in brackets): (i) canellar band absent, (ii) 29–39 ducts in each marginal duct cluster (57–62 ducts), and (iii) number of star pores near mouthparts 2 (2–19).
Key to the species of Kerria based on adult females
(Modified from Chamberlin 1923, 1925; Wang et al. 1982; Varshney 1976; Zhang 1993 and Mishra & Sushil 2000).
Note: K. communis (Mahdihassan, 1923) and K. nagoliensis (Mahdihassan, 1923) are not included in the key because their status is uncertain due to the lack of adequate morphological characters in the descriptions of the mature females. Further, K. ruralis (Wang, Yao, Teiu & Liang, 1982) and K. mengdingensis Zhang, 1993, both from Yunnan, China, are excluded from the key for want of comparative details. For those species marked * asterisk, the details used in the key are taken from the earlier descriptions.
1. Anal tubercle (supra-anal plate) elongate, longer than broad.................................................... 2
- Anal tubercle (supra-anal plate) abbreviated, length subequal to width or broader than long.......................... 10
2. Brachial plate present on an elevated brachia................................................................ 3
- Brachial plate sessile.......................................................... ebrachiata *(Chamberlin, 1923)
3. Canellar bands as a chitinous extension below anterior spiracles present......................................... 4
- Canellar bands as a chitinous extension below anterior spiracles absent........................................... 5
4. Distance of anterior spiracle from brachial plate 396–517 µm; anterior spiracle 137–172 µm, smaller than brachial plate (172–206 µm); dorsal spine 189–224 µm long...................................... chinensis (Mahdihassan, 1923)
- Distance of anterior spiracle from brachial plate 172–310 µm; anterior spiracle 258–310 µm, longer than brachial plate (103–137 µm); dorsal spine 172–189 µm long.......................................... nepalensis Varshney, 1977
5. Length of brachia clearly greater than length of supra-anal plate................................................. 6
- Length of brachia equal to or shorter than length of supra-anal plate.............................................. 9
6. Brachia club-shaped; 8 or 9 perivulvar pore clusters present on each side of anal tubercle; posterior spiracle 75–90 µm long, without a sclerotized plate............................................................. maduraiensis, sp. nov.
- Brachia cylindrical; more than 10 perivulvar pore clusters present on each side of anal tubercle; posterior spiracle>90 µm long, with a sclerotized plate............................................................................ 7
7. Brachial plate with 10–12 distinct dimples; each marginal duct cluster with <30 (25–30) ducts; supra-anal plate smooth........................................................................................... lacca (Kerr, 1782)
- Brachial plate with 4–12 indistinct dimples; each marginal duct cluster with>30 ducts; supra-anal plate hispid............ 8
8. Brachial plate with <5 indistinct dimples; brachial crater>200 (200–245) µm wide; each marginal duct cluster with>40 (49–53) ducts and surrounded by sclerotization............................................. thrissurensis, sp. nov.
- Brachial plate with> 10 (10–12) indistinct dimples; brachial crater <200 (110–175) µm wide; each marginal duct cluster with <40 ducts and without any surrounding sclerotization................................ yunnanensis Ou & Hong, 1990
9. Dorsal spine half as long as diameter of brachial crater; antennae tipped with 4 setae............. indicola *(Kapur, 1958)
- Dorsal spine two-thirds as long as width of brachial plate; antennae tipped with 3 setae........ chamberlini Varshney, 1966
10. Distance of anterior spiracle from brachial plate 17–34 µm; each marginal duct cluster with 10–15 ducts on an ovate reticulate plate.............................................................................. albizziae (Green, 1911)
- Distance of anterior spiracle from brachial plate greater than 34 µm; each marginal duct cluster with more than 20 ducts, with- out an ovate reticulate plate............................................................................. 11
11. Brachial plate diameter equal to or greater than length of supra-anal plate........................................ 12
- Brachial plate diameter less than length of supra-anal plate................................................... 16
12. Brachial crater not in centre of plate; crater rim open; dimples small and obscure............ sindica (Mahdihassan, 1925)
- Brachial crater in centre of plate; crater rim closed; dimples large and distinct..................................... 13
13. Brachial plate large, 189–310 µm in diameter; antenna 42–50 µm long............................. fici (Green, 1903)
- Brachial plate small (<180 µm in diameter); antenna lesser than 40 µm long...................................... 14
14. Brachia elevated, cylindrical; dorsal spine shorter than length of pedicel........................ pusana *(Misra, 1930)
- Brachia elevated and club-shaped; length of dorsal spine equal to or longer than pedicel............................. 15
15. Dorsal spine only as long as length of pedicel; distance of anterior spiracle from brachial plate 205–325 µm........................................................................................... sharda Mishra & Sushil, 2000
- Dorsal spine longer than length of pedicel; distance of anterior spiracle from brachial plate 189–206 µm................................................................................................ brancheata Varshney, 1966
16. Brachial crater not defined; dimples distinct and large; with 68–70 perivulvar pore clusters..................................................................................................... rangoonensis *(Chamberlin, 1925)
- Brachial crater well defined; dimples small and obscure; with fewer than 60 perivulvar pore clusters................... 17
17. Marginal duct clusters of duplex type; with large nuclear and small secondary ducts; with 58 perivulvar pore clusters..................................................................................... greeni *(Chamberlin, 1923)
- Marginal duct clusters of simplex type; no large nuclear ducts present; with fewer than 50 perivulvar pore clusters....... 18
18. Marginal duct clusters present on a weakly-marked, oval, sclerotized plate; perivulvar pore clusters secondarily clustered; length of dorsal spine less than width of brachial plate............................. meridionalis *(Chamberlin, 1925)
- Marginal duct cluster without a sclerotized plate; perivulvar pore clusters without secondary clusters; length of dorsal spine equal to or greater than width of brachial plate.............................................................. 19
19. Length of dorsal spine equal to width of brachial plate; length of anterior spiracle equal to or less than width of brachial plate; antennae one segmented with 4 long setae............................................ javana *(Chamberlin, 1925)
- Length of dorsal spine 1.16x longer than width of brachial plate; length of anterior spiracle 1.3x longer than width of brachial plate; antennae 3 segmented with 3 long setae............................................ .. manipurensis, sp. nov.
description: Published as part of Ahmad, Ayashaa, Sharma, K. K., Vidyarthi, A. S. & Ramani, R., 2013, Three new species of Kerria (Hemiptera: Sternorrhyncha: Coccoidea: Tachardiidae), a redesciption of K. yunnanensis Ou & Hong, and a revised key to species of Kerria, pp. 518-532 in Zootaxa 3620 (4) on pages 526-531, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3620.4.2, http://zenodo.org/record/215576