Petalocephala cultellifera
Creators: name: VIRAKTAMATH, C. A.
name: WEBB, M. D.
name: YESHWANTH, H. M.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2025
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hemiptera
Cicadellidae
Petalocephala
Petalocephala cultellifera

description: Petalocephala cultellifera (Walker)
Figs 5A–D, 17L.
Ledra cultellifera Walker 1857: 98.
Ledra punctifera Walker 1858: 249. Synonymized by Distant 1908: 164.
Petalocephala cultellifera (Walker): Distant 1908: 164, fig. 109.
Diagnosis. Female. Largest species of the genus Petalocephala in the subcontinent measuring more than 18 mm long. Crown medially prominently carinate. Ocelli closer to each other than to adjacent eye. Pronotum with median impressed line; posterolateral margins slightly concave. Female sternite VII posterior margin straight with median 0.25 region deeply concave (Fig. 5C).
Description. Distant (1908) adequately described and illustrated the external features of this species which measures more than 18 mm long. Additional features are as follows. Greenish ochraceous. Crown with prominent median carina; lateral margins in front of eyes straight for a short distance then convergent, apex conically rounded; 0.73× as long as interocular distance, 1.17× longer than median length of pronotum. Pronotum with lateral margins slightly divergent posteriorly, distance between posterolateral angles 1.08× longer than that of anterolateral angles, 0.89× as long as mesonotum, posterolateral margins adjacent to mesonotum slightly concave. Female sternite VII posterior margin straight with median 0.25 margin deeply concave (Fig. 5C).
Material examined. INDIA (West Bengal): HOLOTYPE ♀ (type of Ledra punctifera), “ Dhargeeling 56 161 (on reverse)”BMNH register entry for1856 161:“India, (Dhargeeling)N., Purchased from Stevens ”, “ Type ”, “ Holotype ”, “NHMUK 013590078”; SINGAPORE: SYNTYPE ♀ (type of Ledra cultellifera), “ Sing ”, “58.60” BMNH register entry for 1858 60: “various localities such as.. N. India, sale of the Entomological Society ”, “ Wallace ”, “ Type ”, “ Syntype ”, “NHMUK 010592226”. Other material. INDIA 1♀, Margherita, Doherty; 3♀, Sikkim (all BMNH); 3♀, Singapore, N.H. Ridley; MALAYSIA: 1♀, Perak; CHINA: 1♀ Hainan, You Boi, 5.vi.1904 (all BMNH).
Remarks. Walker (1857) described this species based on an unspecified number of specimens (syntypic) with data: “ Singapore ”. Distant (1908) adequately redescribed and illustrated the external features of this species, in addition to recording it from India: West Bengal (Darjeeling, Mangpoo) and also from Malay Peninsula (Perak). He also synonymized Ledra punctifera from India with this species and the present diagnosis, description and, illustrations are based on the type of L. punctifera. The material examined (from all areas) appears to be the same species based on a similar shaped pregenital sternite in the female, there being, as yet, no associated males.
description: Published as part of VIRAKTAMATH, C. A., WEBB, M. D. & YESHWANTH, H. M., 2025, Leafhopper subfamily Ledrinae of the Indian subcontinent: 2. Genera Digitata Wang, Li & Dai, Latycephala McKamey, Petalocephala Stål and Thlasia Germar (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae) with description of six new species, pp. 1-71 in Zootaxa 5623 (1) on page 15, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5623.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/15324666