Antillaptera furconotus Heiss 2019, nov.sp.
Creators: name: Heiss, Ernst
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2019
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Hexapoda
Hemiptera
Aradidae
Antillaptera
Antillaptera furconotus

description: Antillaptera furconotus nov.sp. (Figs. 3-5)
T y p e m a t e r i a l: Holotype ♂,labelled: Martinique /P1L, Tullgren extraction, 260m / GPS X: 708248, Y: 1634365 / 21 XI 2017, M. Coulis réc. // (MNHN); Paratypes: 1♀ Martinique / P2D, Tullgren extraction, 451m / GPS X: 707779, Y: 1632569 / 19 X 2016, M. Coulis réc.//; 1♀ Martinique / FC1, Barber trap, 433m / GPS X: 704341, Y: 1632777 / 04- 11 VII 2017, M. Coulis réc.//; 1♂ Martinique, 18-Z44- TA2 / Fort de France, ZNIEFF 44, / Colson, le Plateau Dumauzé / Winkler ̅ Moczarski method on / leaf litter, 06 X 2018 T. Ramage //; 1♀ Martinique, 18-Z29- TA2 / Fort de France, ZNIEFF 44, / Le Morne Monésie / Winkler ̅ Moczarski method on / leaf litter, 06 X 2018 T. Ramage //; from Martinique leg. M. Coulis are following specimens labelled: 1♂ 305 ̅ P9 ̅ 04/10/2016 / GPS: 14,679 1270282119 - / 61,106 3410062342, Alt = 582 / Plateau Concorde, Schoelcher / Tullgren ̅ Foret ̲1aire //; 1♀ 249 ̅ P1 ̅ 21/11/2017 / GPS: 14,775 25 ̅ 61,065 27, Alt = 260 / Riviẻre Sylvestre, Le Lorrain / Tullgren ̅ Foret̲2aire //; 1♂ 317 ̅ PC ̅ F / GPS: 14,832 15 ̅ 61,113 03, Alt = 218 / Pecoul, Basse-pointe / Tullgren ̅ Foret ̲2aire //. (Coll. CIRAD, Ramage, Coulis, CEHI). They are designated and labelled accordingly.
E t y m o l o g y: Named after the furcate median thoracic ridge along mesometanotum and fused mtg I+II.
D e s c r i p t i o n: Head wider than long (0.75 / 0.712); genae longer than clypeus, diverging anteriorly; antenniferous lobes diverging anteriorly with acute apex; antennae about twice as long as width of head (1.45 / 0.712), their structure as of previously described species; length of antennal segments I / II / III / IV = 0.5 / 0.25 / 0.375 / 0.325; eyes oval, inserted in head with granular surface; postocular lobes with a cluster of setigerous tubercles, then sinuately converging posteriorly.
Thorax: Pronotum 3 times as long as wide (1.12 / 0.375); lateral margins slightly concave and converging anteriorly; anterolateral angles subrounded densely best with setigerous tubercles, not producing over collar; structure of disk of pronotum with a median groove and lateral irregular smooth callosities, and fusion of meso- and metanotum with median carinate ridge extending from pronotum to mtg III corresponds basically to the other two congeners.
Abdomen: Tergal plate slightly wider than long (1.05 / 1.0), medially raised on mtg III- V; deltg II+III fused, lateral margins beset with small setigerous tubercles; posterolateral angles of deltg VI + VII with triangular expansions of dorsally reflexed vltg VI and VII; tergite VII raised medially for the reception of globular pygophore.
Venter: Spiracles II+III lateral and visible from above, VI-V sublateral and hardly traceable from above, VI+VII lateral and distinctly visible from above; posterolateral angles of vltg VII produced posteriorly with a glabrous glandular tubercle at apex, which is visible from above.
F e m a l e: Basically as male but of larger size and wider abdomen.
M e a s u r e m e n t s: Holotype ♂. Body length 3.7; ratio length of antennae / width of head 2.03; width of abdomen across tergite IV 1.625; width of mesonotum 1.425; width of metanotum 1.625; Paratype ♀♀: Length 4.25, 4.7; ratio length of antennae / width of head 1.91-2.03.
E c o l o g y: These specimens were extracted from leaf litter or caught in Barber traps. Sifting leaf litter, Barber traps or Tullgren funnels have again proved to be a successful method for collecting small soil arthropods and apterous Aradidae, as they develop in such rather stable environments in tropical and subtropical areas in substrates associated with fungi.
D i s t r i b u t i o n: So far surprisingly recorded from several localities at more occasions in Martinique but is considered endemic to this island.
C o m p a r a t i v e n o t e s: Antillaptera furconotus nov.sp. is recognized and differing from both congeners described above by its piceous coloration and the furcate median thoracic ridge.
description: Published as part of Heiss, Ernst, 2019, New genera and species of apterous Carventinae (Hemiptera, Heteroptera, Aradidae) Irom Lesser Antilles, pp. 69-82 in Linzer biologische Beiträge 51 (1) on pages 74-75, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.3763680