Afronaso cuneiceps
Creators: name: Gnezdilov, Vladimir M.
name: Neimorovets, Vladimir V.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2025
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hemiptera
Caliscelidae
Afronaso
Afronaso cuneiceps

description: Afronaso cuneiceps (Fennah, 1957)
Afronaso rhinarius cuneiceps Fennah, 1957: 142.
Afronaso cuneiceps: Gnezdilov & Bourgoin 2009: 24 (stat. nov.).
Savanopulex endroedyi Dlabola, 1987: 84, Abb. 1–4, syn. nov.
(Figs 1–11, 15–25)
Material examined. The Democratic Republic of the Congo: 12♂, 1♀, “Musée du Congo / Kisantu / –1932 / R.P. Vanderyst ” (ZIN).
Emended description. Structure. Male (Figs 1–7). Brachypterous, with head and body with fore wings covered with sparse tiny depressions with setae inside. Metope wide, wider than long medially, visible from above, wrinkly medially, with sublateral carinae running from its upper margin but not reaching metopoclypeal suture, without proboscis. Lateral margins of metope convex, slightly leaf-shaped above scapi. Metopoclypeal suture straight, distinct laterally but not visible medially. Postclypeus with distinct median carina. Pedicel with a process and sensory organs. Rostrum reaching hind coxae, with short, cylindrical third segment which is 0.3 as long as second one. Coryphe transverse, three times as wide as long medially, nearly hexagonal, with nearly straight hind margin and slightly diverging posteriorly lateral margins. Plate of coryphe with two concavities on each side of median line. Metope and coryphe joint at obtuse angle in lateral view. Ocelli absent. Pronotum almost as long as coryphe medially, transverse, with weakly convex anterior margin and nearly straight posterior margin, with tiny paradiscal fields not visible behind the eyes and with wide and elongate glossy paranotal lobes. Mesonotum large, 2.5 times as long as pronotum medially, with weak lateral carinae and weak median groove. Hind margins of forewings slightly surpassing beyond hind margin of third abdominal tergite, venation indistinct. Femora slightly foliate, flattened. Tibiae not foliate neither flattened. Hind tibia with a single lateral spine near to its middle and with five apical spines. First and second metatarsomeres are nearly equal in length but first one wider. First metatarsomere with two latero-apical and one intermediate spines, with dense short and thick setae ventrally. Second metatarsomere with only two latero-apical spines, with dense long hair-shaped setae ventrally. Arolium of pretarsus with nearly straight hind margin almost reaching claw apices in dorsal view.
Coloration. Male (Figs 1–7). Generally head and body with fore wings from dark brown to black, glossy (Figs 1–3). Eyes whitish. Coryphe, head laterally below the eyes, metope medially, traces of larval sensory pits (pustules) between lateral margins and sublateral carinae of metope, and clypeus light yellow. Rostrum light yellow, with dark brown apex. Scapus and pedicel from light yellow to brown. Pronotum light yellow, with two large elongate dark brown to black spots at its anterior margin. Mesonotum light yellow medially, with dark brown to black lateral parts and with two large dark brown to black spots on each side of median line. Costal margins of fore wings pale. Abdominal tergites with pale median stripe. Legs with coxae light yellow. Claws dark brown. Apices of leg spines black. Melanistic specimens with head, pro- and mesonotum, fore wings and abdomen almost completely dark brown to black, except light yellow lateral parts of head below the eyes, clypeus, rostrum, and legs (Figs 5–7). Pygofer dark brown. Anal column of anal tube and dorsal bifurcate process of penis whitish (Fig. 4). Styles brown.
Structure. Female (Figs 9–11). Brachypterous. Metope wide, wider than long medially, with a short flattened and glossy laterally—chisel-shaped (in dorsal view) proboscis above clypeus. Metope with convex lateral margins, wrinkly between sublateral carinae. Apex of metopial proboscis with median carina. Coryphe transverse, three times as wide as long medially, nearly hexagonal, with weak median carina, nearly straight hind margin and slightly diverging posteriorly lateral margins. Plate of coryphe with two concavities on each side of median line. Ocelli absent. Pronotum almost as long as coryphe medially, transverse, with weakly convex anterior margin and nearly straight posterior margin, with tiny paradiscal fields not visible behind the eyes and with wide and elongate paranotal lobes. Mesonotum large, twice as long as pronotum medially, with lateral carinae. Hind margins of fore wings reaching middle of third abdominal tergite. Femora slightly foliate, flattened. Hind tibiae flattened. Metatarsomeres as in male.
Coloration. Female (Figs 9–11). Head laterally below the eyes, scapus, pedicel, and clypeus brownish light yellow. Metope brown to dark brown, with pale traces of larval sensory pits (pustules). Metopial proboscis dark brown and glossy laterally. Rostrum light yellow, with dark brown apex. Coryphe and pronotum whitish light brown. Paranotal lobes of pronotum whitish light brown, with dark brown areas behind the eyes. Mesonotum whitish light brown medially and dark brown laterally, with two dark brown dots on each side of median line. Fore wings brown, with whitish light yellow claval margins. Hind episternae dark brown. Coxae whitish. Legs light yellow. Claws and apices of leg spines black. Abdominal tergites light brown, with dense dark brown dots and with wide whitish median stripe. Anal tube light brown, with dense dark brown dots. Abdominal sternites brown to dark brown, except yellowish light brown sternite VII. Gonoplacs whitish light yellow, with dark brown marks.
Male genitalia structure (Figs 4, 8, 15–24). Pygofer elongate vertically, narrow, with nearly straight hind margins (Fig. 15). Anal tube wide, slightly narrowing apically (in dorsal view) (Fig. 16). Anal column globular, short. Phallobase with two large semicircular dorso-lateral lobes bearing macrosetae at the margins (Figs 8, 19–21). Macrosetae arising from inner side on the right lobe (Fig. 19) and from outer side—on the left lobe (Figs 20, 21). Dorso-lateral lobes fused dorsally, with a large weakly sclerotized bifurcate process subapically (Figs 4, 19, c, 21, c, 22). Aedeagus with a long narrowing apically apical part (probably fused apical processes of the aedeagus) (Figs 8, 23) and with two ventral hooks (19–21, a, b). Right ventral hook is spirally curved inside of the phallobase (Fig. 20, b) and covered by small lobe below the dorso-lateral lobe (Figs 19, b, d, 20, d). Phallobase distinctly convex basally below ventral hooks (Figs 19, 21). Penis connected with basal part of anal tube by two narrow plates (suspensorium) (Fig. 21). Connective large, with a large cup (Fig. 19).
Female terminalia (Figs 24, 25). Hind margin of sternite VII concave medially (Fig. 25). Gonoplacs short not surpassing beyond apex of anal tube in lateral view (Fig. 10). Anal tube wide, nearly oval, weakly narrowing apically in dorsal view (Fig. 24). Anal column globular, short.
Total length. Males—2.7–3.0 mm. Female— 3.5 mm.
Note. Perhaps the male specimens listed above are the parts of Fennah’s type series of this taxon mentioned in the original description as “ 1 ♂, 70 ♀♀, Kisantu, Sept., 1920, 1932, R. P. Vanderijst ” (Fennah 1957: 142), but misidentified with the females and not labeled as the type specimens.
description: Published as part of Gnezdilov, Vladimir M. & Neimorovets, Vladimir V., 2025, Review of the genus Afronaso Jacobi, 1910 (Hemiptera: Fulgoroidea, Caliscelidae), with the description of two new genera and a new species from tropical Africa and Madagascar, pp. 386-400 in Zootaxa 5590 (3) on pages 388-392, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5590.3.5, http://zenodo.org/record/14953299