Petalocephala sahyadrica VIRAKTAMATH, WEBB & YESHWANTH, 2025, sp. nov.
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 sahyadrica

description: Petalocephala sahyadrica sp. nov.
Figs 9E–I, 18 KL, 20EL, 22AD, 32A–H.
Diagnosis. Externally similar to P. fuscomarginata but without marginal reddish coloration on crown and yellow mottling on head, thorax and forewings. Male pygofer with posterodorsal angle less acute (compared to that in P. fuscomarginata), with ventral lamellate process (stout and not lamellate in P. fuscomarginata). Aedeagal shaft with narrow short proximal region, then widened distally in lateral view, apex bilobed, with median sclerotized rod-like process on dorsal surface.
Description. Uniformly pale green, preserved specimens with brownish tinge, much more so on forewing and upper part of face dorsad of eyes.
Male. Crown punctate, with very weak median longitudinal carina, medially about 0.7×as long as interocular distance, slightly shorter (about 0.9×) than median length of pronotum; lateral margins in front of eyes straight for about 0.6 length then convexly curved, without apical distinct angle. Ocelli closer adjacent eye than to each other. Pronotum anterior margin slightly convexly curved, anterior width near eyes slightly narrower than width of head including eyes, diverging slightly posteriorly (posterolateral angles 1.1× wider than distance between anterolateral angles), posterior margin medially slightly concave. Mesonotum slightly shorter than median length of pronotum. Forewings with claval veins separate, outer claval veins not prominent, subapical cells with one or two accessory cross veins. Metabasitarsomere with 5 platellae on apical transverse row (Fig. 20E).
Female. Coloration similar to that in male. Crown about as long as interocular distance (1.1× as long), 1.5× as long as pronotum and lateral margins in front of eyes slightly convergent and anteriorly conically rounded, with weak median carina. Ocelli slightly close to each other than to adjacent eye. Pronotum about 2.1× as wide as long. Other characters as in male. Sternite VII anterior margin slightly concave, about 0.4× as long medially as wide proximally, posterior margin with lateral angles rounded, medially concavely excavated (Fig. 20L).
Male genitalia. Pygofer more or less triangular, with acutely angled posterodorsal angle, in ventral view about as long as height, ventral process lamellate, with dorsal and ventral projections. Subgenital plate about 1.5× as long as pygofer, in lateral view. Style with anterior apodeme 0.33× as long as total length of style, widest proximad of midlength, then gradually narrowed, apophysis more or less of uniform width, more or less straight, apex truncate, with its ventral slightly more projected than dorsal one, dorsal surface with series of short thin widely spaced setae. Aedeagus with dorsal apodeme stout, more or less quadrangular about 0.33× as long as shaft, shaft with proximal narrowed short section then suddenly widened, then gradually widened distally in lateral view, in ventral view more or less of uniform width, apex of shaft in ventral view bilobed, with median rod-like sclerotized median process; gonopore apical.
Female genitalia. Valvula I dorsally curved, with sculptured area occupying more than half-length distally, strigae oblique occupying half-length in distal 0.33 of sculptured area (Figs 22 AB). Valvula II dorsally curved, toothed area occupying distal 0.33 length, teeth consisting of two sizes three large (including proximal one) alternating with three small teeth (Figs 22 CD).
Measurements. Male 6.1–6.4 mm long, and 1.9 mm wide across eyes. Female 8.4 mm long and 2.2 mm wide across eyes.
Material examined. HOLOTYPE ♂, INDIA: Kerala, Thekkady, 27.iii.1977, C.A. Viraktamath (UASB). Paratypes: 1♂, 1♀, same data as for holotype (UASB).
Etymology. The species name refers to the Sanskrit name for Western Ghats, Sahyadri, where the species lives.
Remarks. This species is very similar in shape to P. fuscomarginata but differs as mentioned in the diagnosis.
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 pages 21-22, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5623.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/15324666