Journal of Threatened
Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 January 2023 | 15(1): 22522–22527
ISSN 0974-7907 (Online) | ISSN 0974-7893
(Print)
https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.8121.15.1.22522-22527
#8121 | Received 27 July 2022 | Final received
12 January 2023 | Finally accepted 17 January 2023
First
report of a coreid bug Aurelianus yunnananus Xiong, 1987 (Hemiptera:
Heteroptera: Coreidae) from India
Hemant V. Ghate 1, Pratik Pansare 2 & Rahul Lodh
3
1,2 Post-Graduate
Research Centre, Department of Zoology, Modern College of Arts, Science and
Commerce (Autonomous), Shivajinagar, Pune, Maharashtra 411005, India.
2 Present Address:
Wildlife Institute of India, Chandrabani, Dehradun,
Uttarakhand 248001, India.
3 Tripura University, Suryamaninagar, Tripura 799022, India.
3 Present Address:
Tripura State Pollution Control Board, Gurkhabasti,
Agartala, Tripura 799006, India.
1 hemantghate@gmail.com
(corresponding author), 2 pansareptk101@gmail.com, 3 rlodh.tu.bdc@gmail.com
Editor: Petr Kment, National Museum, Cirkusova,
Czech Republic. Date of
publication: 26 January 2023 (online & print)
Citation: Ghate,
H.V., P. Pansare & R. Lodh (2023). First report of a coreid bug Aurelianus yunnananus
Xiong, 1987 (Hemiptera: Heteroptera:
Coreidae) from India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 15(1): 22522–22527. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.8121.15.1.22522-22527
Copyright: © Ghate et al. 2023. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
License. JoTT
allows unrestricted use, reproduction, and distribution of this article in any
medium by providing adequate credit to the author(s) and the source of
publication.
Funding: None.
Competing interests: The authors
declare no competing interests.
Acknowledgements: We are indebted to Dr. Kaiqin Li (Kunming Natural
History Museum of Zoology, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Academia Sinica, China) for preparing and providing images of the
types preserved at the Kunming Institute; we also record our indebtedness to
the authorities of Kunming Institute for permission to use the images of the
types. This immensely helped us to compare our specimen and establish its
identity. Mr. Rahul Lodh would like to thank his
colleagues at the Tripura University for various kind of help during field
work. We thank Dr. Dharma Rajan
Priyadarsanan, Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology
and the Environment (ATREE), Bangalore,
for the facilities provided for some images and Mr. Swapnil Boyane
for preparation of photo plates. Hemant Ghate is
indebted to the authorities of Modern College for facilities and encouragement.
Abstract: Aurelianus yunnananus Xiong, 1987
(Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Pentatomomorpha:
Coreidae: Coreinae: Mictini)
is reported for the first time from India. It was collected from Tripura, in
the eastern part of our country. Brief redescription
and several photos, including those of the male genitalia, are provided along
with the images of the male holotype and female allotype. This report also adds
the genus Aurelianus to the known Indian Coreidae genera.
Keywords: First record,
leaf-footed bug, Mictini, Tripura, Yunnan.
Genus
Aurelianus was erected by Distant with the only species Aurelianus
elongatus Distant, 1902, originally described on the basis of two males
collected from Bhamo, Myanmar (Distant 1902). The
species then becomes the type species by monotype. For a long time, this genus
had only this single species until Xiong (1987)
described another species as Aurelianus yunnananus
Xiong, 1987 from Yunnan, China.
One
of us (Rahul Lodh) picked up this species while doing
biodiversity survey in Agartala, Tripura (September, 2012). It was suspected to
be another species of the genus Aurelianus but the lack of appropriate
literature delayed its scientific report. When Xiong
(1987) paper became available and when we could also obtain the images of the
type from Kunming Institute of Zoology, Yunnan (courtesy Dr. Kaiqin Li), China, it was confirmed that the collected
specimen is A. yunnananus. There is no
previous record of either the genus Aurelianus or this species, namely, A.
yunnanaus, from any part of India.
Xiong
(1987) described both male and female of this species, provided habitus photos
and drawings of some characters, including that of the pygophore
(in posterior view) and female terminalia (in ventral
view). We are providing several more photos of the only male we have, giving more
details of the pygophore, the phallus and the parameres. Emphasis here is more on illustrations than the
detailed redescription of the species, so the latter
is kept to the minimum.
Material
studied: One male. Collected by Rahul Lodh from Agartala, Tripura, in September 2012. Presently
preserved in Modern College, Pune.
Aurelianus
yunnananus
Xiong, 1987
Redescription
Elongate
coreid bug with an apically truncate body, incrassate
hind femora and ampliated / dilated hind tibia.
Coloration:
Overall reddish-brown or cinnamomeus (with a tinge of
magenta at places). Head, part of pronotum and the first two pairs of legs
ochraceous; labium ochraceous, only its tip black. General colour
slightly darker on corium, metafemora and metatibiae
dorsally and part of the thoracic sterna and abdomen ventrally; membrane,
posterior part of connexivum, lateral marginal
granules and apex of abdomen black. Pro- and meso-sternum
medially of very light colour. Abdominal sternites medially lighter, with very small scattered black
granules that are especially dense on posterior margin of fourth to seventh sternites medially; area around trichobothria of third to
sixth segments pale; sixth and seventh abdominal sternites
lighter than the rest and with bilaterally symmetrical pattern of dark black
oblique lines. (Image 1A,B). All tarsal segments with a black band laterally on
each side.
Structure
Head:
Head almost quadrate, except for bulging eyes.
Eyes large, globular. Ocelli situated closer to eyes than to each other. Anteocellar pit distinct; antenniferous
tubercles prominent, situated in front of eyes at the anterior margin of head
(Image 2A); antennomere I stout, much longer than head but shorter than head
and pronotum together. First three antennomeres slightly darker and covered
with grey adpressed setae and black, sharp,
needle-like semierect setae. Antennomere IV paler,
spindle shaped, with similar setae.
Ventrally
head covered with greyish setae, especially laterally; area underneath labium
smooth without setae. Labium moderately stout reaching well beyond middle of mesosternum. Labial segment I stout, longer than the
visible ventral portion of head, II and IV joints subequal, III shortest. Bucculae short (Image 2B).
Thorax:
Pronotum trapezoidal, much narrowed and steeply
declivous towards head, its anterior margin straight behind head, anterior
angles not prominent; lateral margins straight with posteriorly directed,
prominent, blunt black tuberculous spines. Humeral angles of pronotum rounded,
posterior margin sinuate laterally but nearly straight over scutellum. Whole
surface covered with golden setae. Anterior lobe of pronotum not well
demarcated except that it is less setose. Calli not distinct (Image 2C).
Seen
ventrally, prosternum short, region between procoxae
very narrow, not sulcate. Prosternum laterally coarsely punctured, punctures
sparse and obscured by setae. Mesosternum with discal area smooth, lateral area setose
and with punctures. Metasternum slightly elevated,
shallowly sulcate medially, disc less setose, plural
area densely setose (Image 2B). Metathoracic scent
gland ostiole as wide, vertical slit-like opening; peritreme
elevated from general plane with two disc like areas – anterior disc larger
than posterior disc, evaporatorium rather small,
mainly situated dorsal to ostiole, as shown in Image 2E.
Scutellum
and hemelytra: Scutellum triangular, slightly
convex at base, with transverse, fine rugae (Image
2C,D); punctures obscured by pubescence. Hemelytra well developed, just
reaching tip of abdomen in single male specimen examined, leaving part of
apical segment uncovered dorsally. Veins of corium elevated, prominent. Corium
and clavus finely punctured and covered with dense, adpressed
setae. Membrane with many parallel veins.
Legs:
Procoxae
closer to each other than meso- and meta-coxae,
meta-coxae widest apart. Pro- and meso-femora
slightly dilated distally while meta-femora swollen or incrassate considerably,
slightly curved and with maximum width beyond middle, with a prominent
preapical spine ventrally. Meso-femur also with sharp
spine ventrally at apex while similar spine on pro-femur very small,
indistinct. All tibiae compressed, all tarsi with the first segment longer,
almost equal to segments II and III together; metatibia with lobe like
expansion on dorsal as well as ventral margin, with a dorsal spine placed
distally while the ventral margin finely granular, with narrow expansion and with
an apical and preapical spine (Image 1B). Pulvilli
prominent, claws black.
Abdomen:
Abdomen more or less parallel-sided between
second to fifth segment then considerably narrowed (Image 2F,G). Third segment
with small, ventrolateral, blunt tubercle (Image 2I). Spiracles slightly closer
to anterior margin than lateral margin of segment, transverse (Images 2G, 3A).
All sternites with black, shining granules which are
especially dense on the posterior margin of fifth segment (Image 2H). Extreme
lateral margin (connexivum) of abdominal segments
fourth to sixth covered with black granules. Of these granules, one at
posterolateral corner of segment large and prominent (Image 3C). Connexivum of moderate size. Trichobothrial
elevations prominent.
Male
genitalia: Segment nine, or pygophore, almost completely covered dorsally by eighth
tergum, with very narrow margin visible from above. The eighth tergite with
wing like expansion on either side, seen in habitus images. Ventrally a large
portion of pygophore is visible (Image 2G). Lateral
view and posterior view of pygophore in situ as in
Images 3A,B. Detached pygophore appears almost
squarish in dorsal and ventral view, respectively (Images 4A,B). Lateral view
of the pygophore is shown in Image 4C, note that
ventral surface is more setose.
Phallus
just removed from pygophore (not everted) is shown
here in dorsal, ventral and lateral views, respectively (Image 4D,E,F). Note
large sclerotized area on ventral side of phallotheca,
dorsal surface has no such sclerotization. A well sclerotized articulatory
apparatus occupies almost half length of phallus. An everted phallus showing
different lobes of conjunctiva and a coiled vesica
are seen in dorsal, ventral and lateral views, respectively, in Images 4G,H,I. Paramere well sclerotized, strongly bent almost at right
angle and with long setae on all surfaces (Image 4J).
We
are also providing, for comparison, images of the male holotype and the female
allotype. The dorsal and ventral views of both these types are presented (Image
5A–D).
Measurements
in mm (single male): Total length 26.50
Head:
length 1.50, width including eyes 2.75, width between eyes 1.50, distance
between ocelli 0.90; antennae: antennomere I – 4.75, II – 1.75, III – 3.50, IV
– 4.85; labium: segment I – 2.0, II – 2.25, III – 0.75, IV – 1.50; pronotum:
width at anterior angles 2.50, at
humeral angles 7.50, length as seen from above 4.25; scutellum: length 3.5,
width 3; abdominal width at base 8.00, width at 7th sternum 4.5.
Discussion
We
obtained images of the male holotype of A. yunnananus
and compared our specimen with these images as well as consulted the original
description of the species. Both these things helped us to identify our
specimen with certainty as A. yunnananus
Xiong. The images of the type of Aurelianus
elongatus Distant are also available on Coreoidea
Species File website (2022) and it is possible to compare the general shape and
a few other characters of the two species; it is also necessary to note here
that neither A. elongatus nor A. yunnanaus
have been reported again from any region.
O’Shea
& Schaefer (1980), while revising the Australian and Oriental Mictini, dissected male of A. elongatus and provided
outline sketch of a paramere and the phallus but it
is difficult to compare our photographs and their small drawings, the
structures of the phallus and the parameres are only
broadly comparable; the gross structure of the phallus is like other Mictini we have studied (H. Ghate,
unpublished). O’Shea & Schaefer (1980) also state that in general Mictini possess “conjunctiva with distodorsal and
distoventral sacs with distolateral lobes sometimes sclerotized, vesica helical; parameres heavily
sclerotized with curved tips” and this is observed in A. yunnananus.
Xiong (1987) did not dissect the male genitalia of A.
yunnananus but the posterior view of the pygophore, given with the original description by Xiong, is identical with what we have presented here; same
is the case with the line drawing of hind leg of the male.
Northeastern
Indian states often harbor many insect species that are originally described
from the nearby countries like Bangladesh, Myanmar, Bhutan, Nepal, and China,
so the presence of Aurelianus yunnananus in
northeastern India was always likely. What is interesting is that this species
is as yet not recorded from the other northeastern states, like Mizoram,
Manipur, and Nagaland, which are closer to Myanmar and Yunnan. Intensive
surveys in northeastern India are necessary to document the present
biodiversity. We recently reported Epidaus wangi Chen, Zhu, Wang & Cai, 2016, a Tibetan
species, from Arunachal (Boyane & Ghate 2020). We also have some reduviid and coreid bugs collected from northeastern India but are
originally described from the neighbouring countries
(Ghate et al. 2017; H. Ghate,
unpublished). Nevertheless, it is important to record the presence of the genus
Aurelianus and the species A. yunnananus
from India for the first time since the original description by Xiong (1987). Further, the details of the structure of the pygophore, phallus and parameres
were not illustrated originally hence the illustrations we provide here are an
addition to the knowledge about this species.
For images - -
click here for full PDF
References
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S.S. & H.V. Ghate (2020).
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