Buphagoecus Bush 2017, new genus
Creators: name: Bush, Sarah E.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2017
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Phthiraptera
Philopteridae
Buphagoecus

description: Buphagoecus Gustafsson & Bush, new genus
Sturnidoecus Eichler, 1944: 81 (in partim).
Type species. Sturnidoecus husaini Ansari, 1968: 6
Diagnosis. Buphagoecus n. gen. (Figs 427–436) was previously considered a part of Sturnidoecus (Figs 377–426), and non-genital characters of Buphagoecus are most similar to this genus and to Rostrinirmus (Figs 437–450). All three genera are of the “head louse” ecotype (e. g, Figs 377–378, 427–428, 437–438), and share the following morphological characters: parameral heads medianly folded (e.g. Figs 382, 433, 447); as3 absent (e.g. Figs 379, 429, 439); marginal carinae interrupted submedianly (e.g. Figs 379, 429, 439) and at least partially interrupted laterally; dorsal anterior plates completely separated from the main head plate by dorsal preantennal suture (e.g. Figs 379, 429, 439). Sternal plates of Buphagoecus (Figs 427–428) are much reduced, similar to some Sturnidoecus (e.g. Figs 399–400), and like Sturnidoecus (e.g. Fig. 379) the dorsal preantennal suture of Buphagoecus (Fig. 429) is extended postero-laterally towards the preantennal nodi and the posterior margin of the dorsal anterior plate is roughly flat. The abdominal chaetotaxy of Buphagoecus (Table 2, Figs 427–428) is more similar to that of Rostrinirmus (Table 2, Figs 437–438) than to any Sturnidoecus (Table 11, Figs 377–378, 399–400, 406–407, 413– 414, 420–421), in that there are no setal rows on any segment in either sex. Neither psps nor aps are found in more anterior segments in either sex of Buphagoecus, but these are present in the anterior segments of both sexes in Rostrinirmus. Anterior seta 1 is present in Buphagoecus (Fig. 429) as in most Sturnidoecus (e.g. Fig. 379), but unlike Rostrinirmus (Fig. 439) where as1 is absent. Post-nodal seta is absent in Buphagoecus but present in both Sturnidoecus and Rostrinirmus.
The genitalia of both sexes of Buphagoecus (Figs 430–436) differ from those of Sturnidoecus (e.g. Figs 384– 398 for male genitalia, and Figs 383, 405, 412, 419, 426 for female genitalia) and Rostrinirmus (Figs 440–443, 445–450). The female subgenital plate of Buphagoecus (Fig. 430) is more reduced than in any Rostrinirmus (Fig. 440) or Sturnidoecus (e.g. Fig. 383) species, and unlike in the other two genera the subgenital plate of female Buphagoecus flares into a partial cross-piece (Fig. 430). The male genitalia of Buphagoecus (Figs 431–436) are unique within the Brueelia -complex, and not similar to those of any other genus treated here. The mesosome of Bo. prominens (Figs 434–435) is somewhat similar to those the St. basilewskyi species group (Fig. 385) and the St. pastoris species group (Fig. 390), but the fleshy bilobed distal extension of the mesosome is not found in any Sturnidoecus. The lateral extensions of the distal basal apodeme are also unique to Buphagoecus. In addition, the position of the ames and pmes is quite variable among species groups in Sturnidoecus (Figs 384–398), but neither set of setae are ever distal to the gonopore as in Buphagoecus (Figs 432, 435).
Description. Both sexes. Head slenderly bulb-shaped (Fig. 429). Marginal carina interrupted submedianly and laterally; lateral interruption only dorsal, and marginal carina laterally continuous on ventral side. Dorsal anterior plate with rectangular posterior margin, entirely separated from main head plate by dorsal preantennal suture. Dorsal preantennal suture extended towards preantennal nodi. Ventral anterior plate present, crescent-shaped, anterior margin deeply concave. Ventral carinae not continuous with marginal carina. Head setae as in Fig. 429; as3 absent; as1 very long; pos just posterior to eye. Coni moderate. Antennae monomorphic. Temporal carinae not distinct; mts 3 only macrosetae. Gular plate broadly spade-shaped.
Prothorax small, rectangular (Figs 427–428); ppss on postero-lateral corners. Proepimera broad, median ends hatchet-shaped. Pterothorax pentagonal; lateral margins widely divergent; posterior margin convergent to median point; mms narrowly separated medianly. Mesosternum and associated setae absent. Metasternum present; 1 seta on postero-lateral corner on each side in male, 2 setae in female. Metepisterna slender with much widened, bluntly triangular median ends. Leg chaetotaxy roughly as in Fig. 25, except fI-v3, fI-p2 absent.
Abdomen broad, oval (Figs 427–428). Tergopleurites triangular, with anterior margin deeply indented around spiracle openings; tergopleurites II–IX+X in male and tergopleurites II–VIII in female widely separated medianly. Sternal plates small, crescent-shaped, not approaching lateral margins of abdomen. Tergopleurites do not or only barely reach ventral surface of abdomen. Pleural incrassations very slender. Re-entrant heads short, broad, blunt. Male subgenital plate rounded triangular, not reaching posterior margin of abdomen. Female subgenital plate roughly T-shaped, reaching vulval margin where it flares into partial cross-piece (Fig. 430). Abdominal chaetotaxy as in Table 2 and Figs 427–428. Vulval margin (Fig. 430) with slender vms, thorn-like vss; vos follow lateral margins of subgenital plate; distal vos approach vss.
Male genitalia unique within Brueelia -complex (Figs 431–436). Basal apodeme rectangular, flaring slightly proximally. Distal ends of basal apodeme extended laterally into angular lateral plates, larger in Buphagoecus husaini (Fig. 431) than in Bo. prominens (Fig. 434). Proximal mesosome broadly fishtail-shaped, thickened along most of margin, overlapping basal apodeme. Gonopore (Figs 432, 435) small, ventral. Mesosomal lobes broad, rounded, extending distal to gonopore into large (in Bo. husaini, Fig. 432) or small (in Bu. prominens, Fig. 435) bilobed section. Bilobed section with 3+2 setae in Bo. husaini but only 2–3 visible setae in Bu. prominens; ames and pmes not distinguishable with certainty. Parameral heads (Figs 433, 436) moderate, triangular. Parameral blades curved, broad, tapering only distally; pst1 sensillus, central, near distal tip of paramere; pst2 microseta, central, closely distal to pst1.
Host distribution. Buphagoecus n. gen. is known only from the two species of oxpeckers in the family Buphagidae. This family is the sister group to all Sturnidae and Mimidae (Lovette & Rubenstein 2007).
Geographical range. Both hosts are limited to Sub-Saharan Africa.
Etymology. The genus name is derives from the generic name of the hosts, Buphagus Brisson, 1760 with a suffix from Greek “ oikos ” for “house”. Gender: masculine.
Remarks. Buphagoecus was not represented in the phylogeny of Bush et al. (2016), and its relationships to other genera, particularly Sturnidoecus, are unknown. The “head louse” ecomorph appears to have evolved several times within the Brueelia -complex, resulting in genera that are superficially similar in general habitus, but dissimilar in the details of the preantennal and genital structures as well abdominal chaetotaxy (i.e. Bizarrifrons, Buphagoecus, Manucodicola n. gen., Nemuus n. gen., Rostrinirmus, Schizosairhynchus n. gen., Sturnidoecus).
Included species
* Buphagoecus husaini (Ansari, 1968) n. comb. [in Sturnidoecus] * Buphagoecus prominens (Ansari, 1968) n. comb. [in Sturnidoecus]
description: Published as part of Bush, Sarah E., 2017, Morphological revision of the hyperdiverse Brueelia - complex (Insecta: Phthiraptera: Ischnocera: Philopteridae) with new taxa, checklists and generic key, pp. 1-443 in Zootaxa 4313 (1) on pages 258-259, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4313.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/883161