Cercotingis impensa Shofner & Cassis 2024, comb. nov.
Creators: name: Shofner, Ryan
name: Cassis, Gerasimos
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2023
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hemiptera
Tingidae
Cercotingis
Cercotingis impensa

description: Cercotingis impensa (Drake 1947) comb. nov.
(Figs 6G, H, 7G, H, 9, 11)
Tingis impensa Drake, 1947: 112, fig. 24a [original description]; Drake and Ruhoff, (1965a: 400) [world catalogue]; Cassis and Gross, (1995: 436) [catalogue].
Type material
Holotype. ♂, AUSTRALIA: Tasmania, J.W. Evans (C.J. Drake Collection 1956) (USNM 00866811). Photograph of holotype examined.
Other material examined
AUSTRALIA: Tasmania: 1.63 km E of Marlborough Hwy on Serpentine Rd, 42.05055°S 146.55407°E, 950 m, 21 Feb 2014, G. Cassis and J. Karras, Hakea microcarpa R.Br. (Proteaceae), det. Miguel De Salas and Matthew Baker TMAG, 1 ♀ (UNSW _ ENT 00046286) (UNSW). 3.4 km E of Marlborough Hwy on Top Marsh Conservation Rd, 42.0307°S 146.62185°E, 1050 m, 20 Feb 2014, G. Cassis and J. Karras, Hakea microcarpa R.Br. (Proteaceae), det. Miguel De Salas and Matthew Baker TMAG, 2 ♀ (UNSW _ENT 00046281, UNSW _ENT 00046282), 1 ♂ (UNSW _ENT 00046280) (UNSW). 4.2 km W of Marlborough Hwy on Pine Tier Lagoon Rd, 42.09188°S 146.48858°E, 727 m, 22 Feb 2014, G. Cassis and J. Karras, Hakea microcarpa R.Br. (Proteaceae), det. Miguel De Salas and Matthew Baker TMAG, 2 ♀ (UNSW _ENT 00046287, UNSW _ENT 00046288) (UNSW). 4.2 km W of Marlborough Rd on Pine Tier Lagoon Rd, 42.09556°S 146.4904°E, 739 m, 19 Feb 2014, G. Cassis and J. Karras, Hakea microcarpa R.Br. (Proteaceae), det. Miguel De Salas and Matthew Baker TMAG, 3 ♀ (UNSW _ENT 00046283- UNSW _ENT 00046285) (UNSW). Bronte Park, 7.8 km E of Marlborough Hwy on Serpentine Rd, 42.08998°S 146.5667°E, 972 m, 23 Feb 2014, G. Cassis and J. Karras, Hakea microcarpa R.Br. (Proteaceae), det. Miguel De Salas and Matthew Baker TMAG, 2 ♂ (UNSW _ ENT 00046289, UNSW _ENT 00046290), 4 ♀ (UNSW _ ENT 00046291- UNSW _ENT 00046294) (UNSW). Central Plateau, St Patricks Plains, 42.067°S 146.85°E, 20 Jan 1988, P. B. McQuillan, 1 ♀ (UNSW _ENT 00046528) (TDAH). Mt. Barrow Road, 41.37432°S 147.42551°E, 1140 m, 16 Feb 1980, A. Newton and M. Thayer, Leptospermum sp. (Myrtaceae), 1 ♀ (UNSW _ENT 00046527) (AMNH). Skullbone Plains, 50m N of end of track on NW corner of reserve, 42.01261°S 146.36202°E, 936 m, 27 Feb 2012, M. Cheng, 1 ♂ (UNSW _ ENT 00045222) (TMAG); 01 Mar 2012, M. Cheng, 2 ♂ (UNSW _ENT 00045224, UNSW _ENT 00045225) (UNSW). Skullbone Plains, 193m N of end of track on NW corner of reserve, 42.011°S 146.36291°E, 947 m, 27 Feb 2012, M. Cheng, 1 ♂ (UNSW _ENT 00045223) (TMAG). Skullbone Plains, 366m N of end of track on NW corner of reserve, 42.00938°S 146.36302°E, 916 m, 27 Feb 2012, M. Cheng, 1 ♀ (UNSW _ENT 00045226) (UNSW). Top Marsh Conservation Area, 2.7 km SE of Marlborough Rd, 42.02773°S 146.61508°E, 1059 m, 19 Feb 2014, G. Cassis and J. Karras, Hakea microcarpa R.Br. (Proteaceae), det. Miguel De Salas and Matthew Baker TMAG, 2 ♂ (UNSW _ENT 00046271, UNSW _ENT 00046272), 7 ♀ (UNSW _ENT 00046273- UNSW _ENT 00046279) (UNSW).
Diagnosis: Cercotingis impensa is recognized by the following combination of characters: medial and occipital spines long, exceeding height of pronotal disc; frontal spines half of length of medial spine; medial carina greatly raised, exceeding 2× height of lateral carinae, biseriate, areolae fused at apex, forming a thickened mass; anterior portion of costal area biseriate; metasternal carinae straight, parallel, width between metasternal carinae equal to width between mesosternal carinae.
Male: Macropterous; 2.66 ± 0.03 mm (N = 2) (Table 3). COLORATION. Brown, pronotal disc brown to dark brown. Head: dark brown to black; medial and frontal spines dark brown; occipital spines brown proximally, darkening to dark brown distally; bucculae straw-coloured, clypeus dark brown, genae dark brown; eyes black. Antennae: dark brown. Labium: mottled brown and black, with LIV darkening to black. Pronotum: disc brown; calli black; collum and paranota brown, areolae translucent; lateral carinae light brown anteriorly, brown across apex of disc, light brown posteriorly; medial carina light brown anteriorly, dark brown to blackish at carinal apex, brown on the posterior projection. Thoracic pleura and sterna: proepisternum brown anteriorly, dark brown posteriorly, proepimeron and supracoxal lobes brown; mesepisternum mostly dark brown, mesepimeron and supracoxal lobes brown; metepisternum brown on supracoxal lobes; peritreme of metathoracic gland brown; pro-, meso-, and metasternum dark brown; sternal carinae straw-coloured. Hemelytra: discoidal, sutural, costal, and subcostal areas brown; cubitus vein light brown with brown band medially; R + M vein light brown with brown band medially, brown posterior to juncture with cubitus vein. Legs: tarsi brown, tarsal claws brown; tibiae, femora, and coxae brown. Abdominal venter: brown; spiracles dark brown; pygophore brown. VESTITURE. Head: robust white setae in bands from antenniferous tubercles to frontal spines, aciculate white setae in bands from frontal spines along either side of medial spine to back of head; bucculae with arcuate setae; occipital and medial spines with sparse distribution of white setae. Antennae: AI–AIII with sparse distribution of white setae, AIV with white semi-erect to erect aciculate setae; distal ends of AII and AIII with dense ring of microtrichia. Pronotum: anterior margin glabrous; paranotal margins, medial and lateral carinae, collum, calli, and disc with sparse distribution of arcuate scale-like setae, posterior projection glabrous; disc with numerous punctures with 6–8 triangular tuberculate processes distributed evenly around internal rim. Thoracic pleura and sterna: anterior portion of proepisternum, proepimeron, posterior portion of mesepisternum, mesepimeron, and metepisternum with arcuate setae and tubercle-lined punctures as on pronotal disc; anterior portion of pro- and mesepisternum with arcuate setae. Legs: coxae to tibiae with arcuate setae; tarsi with arcuate setae proximally and semi-erect aciculate setae distally; sternal carinae with sparse distribution of arcuate setae. Hemelytra: costal margins, R + M vein, and cubitus vein with sparse distribution of arcuate setae; discoidal area with scattered setae, otherwise glabrous; sutural areas glabrous. Abdominal venter: moderate distribution of arcuate setae. STRUCTURE. Head: frontal spines upright, cylindro-conical, convergent distally, subequal to AI; medial and occipital spines long, conico-acuminate, height ≥ 2× that of frontal spines, width less than one-sixth height; occipital spines upright, fully protruding beyond collum, subequal to height of pronotal disc. Antennae: AI and AII short, AI 2× longer than AII; AIII longer than the pronotal width across humeral angles, AIV weakly clavate. Labium: moderate length, reaching posterior margin of metasternum. Pronotum: strongly convex; collum flattened, apex only marginally inflated, height less than one-half of disc; medial carina greatly raised, triangular in profile, mostly uniseriate, biseriate or occasionally triseriate towards apex, with veins thickened and fused into single mass at apex; lateral carinae raised, uniseriate; medial and lateral carinae equal thickness posterior to apex of disc, lateral carinae slightly divaricating; paranota upright, curved, pterygoid, two to four areolae wide, height one-half of disc. Thoracic sterna: mesosternal and metasternal carinae elevated, uniseriate, areolae rectangular; mesosternal carinae straight, parallel, metasternal carinae straight, parallel, width between metasternal carinae equal to width between mesosternal carinae. Legs: legs thin; femora tapered proximally. Thoracic pleura: peritreme large, loop-like, with short dorsal extension reaching hemelytral margin. Hemelytra: areolae small and uniform size in discoidal and subcostal areas, increasing in size in subcostal area posterior from juncture of R + M and cubitus veins; sutural area areolae similar to discoidal area proximally, increasing in size 5× to 7× distally; costal area areolae large, irregular anteriorly, rectangular posteriorly; costal area biseriate for anterior half, uniseriate for posterior half; subcostal area mostly biseriate, discoidal area increasing from one to six or seven areolae wide; sutural area one to eight areolae wide. Male genitalia: pygophore (Fig. 11A, B); parameres (Fig. 11C–E); aedeagus with U-shaped dorsal plate; endosomal membrane not spinulate (Fig. 11F–H); paired endosomal sclerites greatly reduced, not spinulate (Fig. 11F–H).
Female: Macropterous; 3.19 ± 0.63 mm (N = 10) (Table 3). COLORATION. Mostly as in male. Discoidal area of hemelytra with more pronounced dark brown mottling than in male; costal area veins dark brown, with costal margin banded straw-coloured and dark brown. VESTITURE. As in male. STRUCTURE. Discoidal area increasing from one to nine areolae wide; sutural area one to ten areolae wide. Otherwise as in male.
Plant associations: Recorded from two families and two genera. Myrtaceae: Leptospermum sp., 1 specimen. Proteaceae: Hakea microcarpa, 24 specimens.
Distribution: Known from Mt. Barrow State reserve, near the southern end of the Central Plateau Conservation Area, and near Bronte Park in the Top Marshes Conservation Area, Tasmania, Australia (Fig. 10).
Remarks: This species is transferred from Tingis to Cercotingis based on the following characters: the shape of the paranota anterior to the pronotal disc, the spination of the head, the shape of the peritreme of the metathoracic gland, and the host association with Proteaceae. This species is similar to C. croajingolong and C. namadgi, but can be distinguished by its long, erect occipital and medial spines, greatly exaggerated medial carina, and biseriate costal area extending half the length of the hemelytra (vs. biseriate for one-third the length).
description: Published as part of Shofner, Ryan & Cassis, Gerasimos, 2024, Phylogenetics and taxonomy of the Indo-Australian genus Ulonemia sensu Drake (Hemiptera: Tingidae), with the recognition of new genera and species collected from Proteaceae in Australia, pp. 360-425 in Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 200 (2) on pages 392-393, DOI: 10.1093/zoolinnean/zlad080, http://zenodo.org/record/11240237