Melanotrichus thaimaritimus Yasunaga &amp; Duwal 2017, new species
Creators: name: Yasunaga, Tomohide
name: Duwal, Ram Keshari
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2017
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hemiptera
Miridae
Melanotrichus
Melanotrichus thaimaritimus

description: <i>Melanotrichus thaimaritimus</i>, new species (Figs. 4A–H, 5, 6E–H) <b>Material examined.</b> Holotype male, THAILAND: Samut Prakan, Bang Pu, N13°31′07″ E100°38′57″ E, sweepnetting <i>Sueada maritima</i>, 21 December 2011, T. Yasunaga (AMNH _ PBI 00380551) (DOAT). Paratypes: THAILAND: Bangkok, Choen Tha Phae, N13°33′02″ E100°25′20″, <i>Sueada maritima</i>, 20 December 2011, T. Yasunaga, 2 males, 1 female (TYCN); Samut Prakan, same data as for holotype, except for date 15 June 2013, 10 males, 3 females (TYCN); same data, except for date 19 September 2013, 17 males, 18 females &amp; 8 October 2013, 3 males, 7 females (DOAT, TYCN); Chon Buri, Bang Saen, N13°18′11.5″ E100°55′08.8″, <i>Sueada maritima</i>, 27–28 March 2010, T. Yasunaga, 33 males, 43 females (AMNH, CNC, TYCN) (3 females, 00380552). <b>Diagnosis.</b> Recognised by small, elongate oval (male) or suboval (female) body; uniformly pale green basic colouration (but easily fading to pale brown after preservation, cf. Fig. 6E vs. 6F); densely distributed sericeous, reclining, scalelike setae (but easily rubbed off as in Fig. 6E, F); small eyes; short labium reaching middle of mesocoxa; C-shaped left paramere with blunt-tipped hypophysis and broad sensory lobe (Fig. 5A); inflated sensory lobe and rather wide hypophysis of right paramere; and developed female interramal lobe (Fig. 5E). <b>Description.</b> Body generally pale green but partly or entirely stramineous brown in dry-preserved specimen, small, elongate oval (male) or suboval (female); dorsal surface weakly shiny, with densely distributed, sericeous, reclining, scalelike setae and sparsely distributed, simple, brown, semierect setae. Head short, slightly pointed in front; eyes small. Antenna pale reddish brown; segment I pale green in live or fresh specimen; segment II longer than basal width of pronotum. Labium shiny pale brown, short, reaching middle of mesocoxa; apex of segment IV darkened. Pronotum and hemelytron shiny if sericeous setae rubbed off (Fig. 6F); membrane semitransparent, with more or less smoky posterior part. Coxae and legs pale brown but pale green in live or fresh specimen; all tibia and tarsi pale brown; apex of each tarsus darkened. Male genitalia (Fig. 5A–C): left paramere curled, C-shaped, with blunt-tipped hypophysis and broad sensory lobe (Fig. 5A); right paramere with inflated sensory lobe and rather wide hypophysis; endosoma simple. Female genitalia (Fig. 5D–F): Sclerotised ring decrescent, very tiny (Fig. 5D); posterior wall with developed interramal lobe (Fig. 5E). <b>Measurements.</b> Male/female: Total body length 2.45– 2.60/2.64–2.77; width of head across eyes 0.55–0.59/0.60– 0.62; width of vertex 0.28–0.30/0.37–0.38; lengths of antennal segments I–IV 0.19–0.23, 0.76–0.84, 0.65–0.72, 0.27–0.30/0.19–0.23, 0.76–0.89, 0.75–0.77, 0.33–0.36; total length of labium 0.58–0.60/0.67–0.71; basal width of pronotum 0.73–0.77/0.73–0.78; maximum width across hemelytra 0.88–0.92/0.97–1.08; and lengths of metafemur, tibia and tarsus 0.87–0.90, 1.14–1.17, 0.34–0.38/0.88–0.92, 1.18–1.26, 0.39–0.42. <b>Etymology.</b> Named for Thailand, in combination with the Latin adjective maritimus [= of the sea], referring to the unique halophilic habitat of this new species; an adjective. <b>Biology.</b> This species was confirmed to be associated with the breeding host <i>Sueada maritima</i> (L.) Dumort (Amaranthaceae) along the northern coast of the Gulf of Siam (Fig. 4H). Both adults (Fig. 4A–D) and immature forms (Fig. 4E–G) were seen almost throughout a year, and this mirid is thus assumed to have a multivoltine life cycle. However, populations were observed to decrease in the late dry season (January through February) and the hot summer season (April through May). Recently, rapid urbanisation and development of beach resorts seriously threaten and reduce the limited habitats (<i>Sueada maritima</i> vegetation) for this plant bug; this halophyte is officially designated as an endangered plant in southeastern Japan (Shishido &amp; Yasunaga, 2016). <b>Remarks.</b> Judging from the similarly small size and C-shaped left paramere, this new species is assumed to be sister to <i>M. choii</i> (Josifov, 1976) known to inhabit <i>Saricornia</i> spp. and <i>Sueada maritima</i> in Korea, northeastern China and southwestern Japan (Hyogo and Nagasaki Prefectures) (Shishido &amp; Yasunaga, 2016). However, the latter species, inhabitant of temperate and cool temperate climate zones, has the shorter antennal segment II (less than basal width of pronotum), more strongly curled left paramere with acute, short hypophysis, narrower right paramere and shorter interramal lobe (Liu &amp; Zheng, 2014; Shishido &amp; Yasunaga, 2016). Several additional halophilic members of <i>Melanotrichus</i>, associated with species of Sueada or Salicornia, are also reported in Mediterranean Europe (Wagner &amp; Weber, 1978) and the Nearctic Region (Henry, 1991).
description: Published as part of <i>Yasunaga, Tomohide &amp; Duwal, Ram Keshari, 2017, Plant bugs of the tribe Orthotylini (Heteroptera: Miridae: Orthotylinae) in Thailand, with descriptions of five new species, pp. 280-298 in Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 65</i> on pages 284-286, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.5356502
description: {"references": ["Shishido T &amp; Yasunaga T (2016) New record of Orthotylus (Melanotrichus) choii Josifov from Japan, with a taxonomic review of Melanotrichus Reuter (Heteroptera, Miridae, Orthotylinae). Rostria, 60: 21 - 29. [In Japanese]", "Liu GQ &amp; Zheng LY (2014) Hemiptera Miridae (II) Orthotylinae. Fauna Sinica. Insecta Volume 62. Chinese Academy of Sciences. Science Press, Beijing, 297 pp. [In Chinese, with summary in English]", "Wagner E &amp; Weber HH (1978) Die Miridae Hahn, 1831, des Mittelmeerraumes und der Makaronesischen Inseln (Hemiptera, Heteroptera) Nachtrage zu den Teilen 1 - 3. Entomologische Abhandlungen, Supplement 42, 1 - 96.", "Henry TJ (1991) Melanotrichus whiteheadi, a new crucifer-feeding plant bug from the southeastern United States, with new records for the genus and a key to species of eastern North America (Heteroptera: Miridae: Orthotylinae). Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington, 93 (2): 449 - 456."]}