Cyphotes Burmeister 1835
Creators: name: Gonzalez-Mozo, Laura C.
name: Ware, Jessica L.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2023
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hemiptera
Membracidae
Cyphotes

description: Cyphotes Burmeister, 1835
Taxonomic considerations
Burmeister (1835) erected the monotypic genus Cyphotes, with C. nodosa, from Pará, Brazil (Figs. 8A; 9A; 10A), as the type species. He defined the genus based on the following features: head truncate, obtuse, with two ventral pits in which the antennae are inserted; pronotum with a longitudinal ridge in the middle and extending laterally and posteriorly into two conspicuous swellings; hind tibiae gradually expanded. No illustration of the species was provided. Silbermann (1836) described and illustrated a specimen identified as C. nodosa, from Pará, Brazil, and in this work considered the main defining character for the genus as the presence of one oval cell in the forewing. This oval cell, based on his illustration, results from two fused basal veins (M and Cu), which then divide and connect distally through a crossvein (m-cu 1). However, comparison of Silbermann’s illustration with a photograph of the holotype of C. nodosa suggests that he was describing and referring to a different species (Silberman, 1936 Plate: 36 Figs. 1–4). Goding (1926) described the species Cyphotes insolita from Tena, Ecuador. Funkhouser (1927) cataloged Cyphotes in Smiliinae, retaining both described species in the genus. Goding (1929) transferred Cyphotes into the tribe Darnini and provided a key to both species. Metcalf and Wade (1965) maintained Cyphotes in Darninae-Darnini, with the two species C. insolita and C. nodosa comprising the genus. Fonseca and Diringshofen (1969) described Cyphotes quadrinodosa (as quadrinodosos) from Santa Catarina, Rio Vermelho, Brazil. McKamey (1998) listed three species of Cyphotes, including C. insolita, C. nodosa, and C. quadrinodosus.
Stål (1862) described the genus Aspona, with one species, Aspona bullata, from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (Figs. 8C; 9C; 10C). One of the diagnostic characters described was the presence of one discoidal cell in the forewing, resulting from the absence of the s crossvein.The original description of Cyphotes did not mention forewing venation. In subsequent works (Deitz, 1975; Sakakibara, 2005a), the distinction between Cyphotes and Aspona was based on the absence of the s crossvein in the forewing of Aspona and the presence of this crossvein in Cyphotes. This character was considered by Sakakibara (2005a) to validate the transfer of Cyphotes quadrinodosa into Aspona; in that paper he also synonymized Aspona bullata Stål, 1862 (= Aspona gibosa Fonseca & Diringshofen, 1969 (Figs. 8B; 9B; 10B), and Taunaya gibbosa Remes-Lenicov, 1973 and recognized only two valid species in Aspona: A. bullata Stål, 1862 and A. quadrinodosa (Fonseca & Dringshofen, 1969). The venation of the holotype of C. nodosa is examined here for the first time in detail and the s crossvein was found to be absent (Fig. 11A). This trait is found in Aspona and C. quadrinodosa (Fig. 11D). We therefore propose Aspona to be a junior synonym of Cyphotes and transfer both species previously included in Aspona to Cyphotes. Aspona bullata is here treated as a junior synonym of C. nodosa (see comments of C. nodosa). Thus, Cyphotes includes two valid species: C. nodosa and C. quadrinodosa reinstated. comb. The other species previously placed in Cyphotes are transferred to Allocyphotes gen. nov. described below: A. insolita (Goding, 1926) comb. nov., A. pompanoni (Boulard, 2011) comb. nov.; and A. colombiensis (Gonzalez-Mozo, 2017) comb. nov.
Description
Cyphotes Burmeister, 1835: 143. Type species: Cyphotes nodosa Burmeister, 1835: 143. Metcalf & Wade, 1965 a: 615 [Catalogued]; McKamey, 1998: 469 [Catalogued].
Aspona Stål, 1862: 29. Type species: Aspona bullata Stål, 1862, by monotypy]; Metcalf & Wade, 1965 a: 613 [Catalogued]; McKamey, 1998: 149 [Catalogued]. syn. nov.
Diagnosis. Length 6–8 mm. (1) Frontoclypeus oblong, not extended beyond suprantennal ledges (margin ventral of suprantennal ledges in a continuous line with frontoclypeus); (2) In dorsal view, posterolateral area of pronotum enlarged into to semicircular swellings extended beyond lateral margin (Fig. 10); (3) Humeral angles triangular (Fig. 7I); (4) Forewing s crossvein absent (Fig. 11).
Description. Color. Light brown, sometimes with black marks over the pronotum. Sculpture. Strongly punctured, pronotum tuberculate and with irregular longitudinal lines. Head. Subtriangular in anterior view, wider than long, oblique to body axis, in lateral view metopidium convex, vertex and frontoclypeus in the same straight line (Fig. 8); in anterior view, dorsal margin of head straight to sinuate, while ventral margin convex; vertex usually with weak rugae; coronal and frontoclypear sutures distinctly delimitate in vertex running complete from the midline to the inferior margin; frontoclypeus oblong, not extended beyond suprantenal ledges, apex truncate (Fig. 8A). Thorax. Pronotum. In lateral view, preapical part of posterior pronotal process elevated, shape variable from bilobate (Fig. 9D) to trapezoidal-shaped (Fig. 9A); in dorsal view, humeral angles triangular, slightly projected laterally; posterolateral area of pronotum rounded, extended laterad of humeral angles (Figs. 10A–D), posterior pronotal process triangular, gradually acute (Figs. 10A–D). Legs. Pro—and mesothoracic legs with femora and tibia subcylindrical, with cucullate setae ventrally arranged in two longitudinal rows: metathoracic leg, femur without rows of cucullate setae (Figs. 2E, F). Forewings. costal area strongly punctate (same as pronotal pattern) (Fig. 10A), s crossvein absent (Fig. 11). Abdomen. Male. Aedeagus in lateral view scoop-shaped, corona concave with denticuli on dorsal margin, style strongly curved. Female. First valvulae VID variable among species; second valvulae without teeth on dorsal surface. Gonoplac, in lateral view narrow, notably expanded in the apical portion with long setae in the ventral margin, gonoplac structure is similar among species.
Distribution. Argentina and Brazil. Species distributed between 75 and 710 meters of altitude.
Key to the species of Cyphotes
1 Pronotum in lateral view with preapical part of posterior pronotal process trapezoidal (Fig. 9A); first valvulae, VID bent in midsection (Fig. 12A); pronotum coloration uniform without black spots.................................. C. nodosa
- Pronotum in lateral view with preapical part of posterior pronotal process conical (Fig. 9D); first valvulae, VID convex, not bent in midsection (Fig. 12B); pronotum with a black dorsal spot................... C. quadrinodosa, reinstated. comb.
description: Published as part of Gonzalez-Mozo, Laura C. & Ware, Jessica L., 2023, Review of Cyphotes Burmeister, 1835 (Hemiptera: Membracidae) with the description of a related new genus, pp. 501-525 in Zootaxa 5380 (6) on pages 505-508, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5380.6.1, http://zenodo.org/record/10259472