Journal of Threatened Taxa |
www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 April 2023 | 15(4): 23123–23130
ISSN 0974-7907
(Online) | ISSN 0974-7893 (Print)
https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.8440.15.4.23123-23130
#8440 | Received 19 March 2023 |
Final received 14 April 2023 | Finally accepted 18 April 2023
Rediscovery and redescription of Urolabida
nilgirica Yang (Hemiptera: Heteroptera:
Urostylididae) from India
Pratik Pansare 1, H. Sankararaman 2 &
Hemant V. Ghate 3
1,3 Post-Graduate Research Centre,
Department of Zoology, Modern College of Arts, Science and Commerce
(Autonomous), Shivajinagar, Pune, Maharashtra 411005, India.
2 Department of Crop Protection
(Entomology), Vanavarayar Institute of Agriculture, Manakkadavu, Pollachi, Tamil Nadu 642103, India.
1 pansareptk101@gmail.com, 2 sankararaman05@gmail.com
(corresponding author), 3 hemantghate@gmail.com
Editor: Anonymity requested. Date of publication: 26 April 2023 (online & print)
Citation: Pansare, P., H. Sankararaman
& H.V. Ghate (2023). Rediscovery and redescription
of Urolabida nilgirica
Yang (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Urostylididae)
from India. Journal of
Threatened Taxa 15(4):
23123–23130. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.8440.15.4.23123-23130
Copyright: © Pansare 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: Self-funded.
Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.
Acknowledgements: We are indebted to the
authorities of Modern College, Pune for the facilities and encouragements. HS
is grateful to Dr. S. Manickavasagam
(The Indian Agriculture College, Radhapuram,
Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu) for meeting out his travel expenses to various collection
localities. We are indebted to David Redei (National
Chung Hsing University, Taiwan) and Ge Deyan (Chinese
Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China) for providing useful literature on this
family. We also thank Valérie Lemaître
and Mick Webb (NHM, London) for a photograph of the type preserved at NHM.
Abstract: Urolabida nilgirica Yang, 1938 is rediscovered and redescribed from India after 85 years since its original
description. A brief redescription of this species
along with the images of live habitus, various diagnostic characters, and
genitalia are provided.
Keywords: Pentatomoidea, true bugs, Urolabidini,
Western Ghats.
A pair of dark green bugs were
collected from the lower Palani Hills at the Horticultural Research Station
(HRS), Thadiyankudisai, Tamil Nadu. Dark black
marking on overall dark green colouration were
noticeable contrasting colour features in these bugs
(Image 1A,B).
Examination under microscope
revealed that the bugs belong to the family Urostylididae
and the genus Urolabida, as the ocelli are
absent; however, the specimens did not match with any species described by
Distant (1902). The species appeared very close to Urolabida
tenera Westwood, 1837 in some features of colouration but lacked some important features, such as
angulate process on either side of genital segment, mentioned by Distant and as
shown in the images of the type by Roca-Cusachs et
al. (2021).
Search of literature for the
other species of Urolabida indicated
that the species in question is Urolabida nilgirica Yang, 1938, which was then described as a new
species on the basis of two females collected from an unspecified location in
the Nilgiri Hills. Although described in 1938, the
specimens were collected much earlier: one specimen was collected by Lindsay
(on 25.vi.1889) and the second specimen was collected by Andrews (in 1909);
both these specimens are preserved in the The Natural
History Museum, London (BMNH). That means over a century has passed since the
last time this species was collected. Male genitalia of this species were
illustrated and described by Kumar (1971) based on a specimen that was (as per
the author) ‘sent by Prof. Slater from University of Connecticut, Storrs and
determined by Dr. W.E. China’ but the locality / date of collection of this
particular specimen were not stated.
Although this species was
adequately described originally by Yang (1938), only drawings of habitus (in
dorsal view) and female terminalia (in ventral view)
were presented. We are giving brief morphology but providing digital images of
the various morphological features of this bug, including the male genitalia
because the species was originally described on the basis of two females only.
We are also providing the digital image of the female terminalia.
Kumar (1971) gave only details of the phallus (aedeagus) of this species and
shape of the parameres, without commenting on or
illustrating the shape of pygophore while we are
providing details of the structure of pygophore as
well. Thus, we are adding significant new information about U. nilgirica than what is available to date.
Taxonomy
(as per Rider 2006, 2015)
Urostylididae Dallas,
1851
Urostylidinae Dallas,
1851
Urolabidini Stål, 1875
Urolabida Westwood,
1837
Urolabida nigirica Yang, 1938
Material
examined: 2 males, India, Tamil Nadu, Dindigul, Thadiyankudisai, HRS, 10.29514°N , 77.70878° E, 11.vi.2018,
leg. H. Sankararaman, light trap; 1 female, with the
same data as of male. One male and one female preserved at Modern College, Pune
5 (MCZ Uro1 and MCZ Uro2, respectively); one male preserved at Department of
Entomology, Faculty of Agriculture, Annamalai University, Chidambaram, Tamil
Nadu (EDAU Het 1). Image of the syntype preserved at BMNH, London, was
compared.
Redescription
Size and colouration
Medium size
bug, male about 12 mm long, female slightly larger, about 13.5 mm. In life the colour is bright green dorsally and pale greenish-yellow
ventrally. The first antennomere is dark green and the II─V are
brownish with pale basal region of antennomeres 4 and 5. The area of corium
adjacent to clavus along its length and the apical margin of the corium is dark
black. All femora are dark green and tibiae pale green; the apices of all
femora, anteriorly and posteriorly, are marked with black spots. The posterior
margin of pronotum and clavus are pale green and, except the black basal line,
the membrane is translucent, such that in male it is easy to see contour of the
pygophore (Images 1A, 2A, 5A).
After drying, the bug becomes dorsally mostly
brownish-ochraceous with greenish tinge at places, especially on corium; black
areas remain unchanged and the black punctures, especially on posterior part of
pronotum and scutellum, appear pronounced. Ventrally the insect is almost
uniformly reddish-ochraceous, only black spots on apex of femora are different
(Images 2B, 4B).
Structure
i. Head
Head short,
as in most urostylidids, broader than long; eyes
large, width of head at eye level more than width at anterior angles of
pronotum. Clypeus and mandibular plates are distinct. Antenniferous
tubercles situated anterolaterally between eye and mandibular plate, visible
from above. Antennae long, longer than body, first segment thick and slightly
curved and as long as pronotum, remaining segments slender. Labium relatively
stout, reaching about middle of mesosternum (Image
3B).
ii. Thorax
Pronotum trapezoidal, with finely
reflexed margin anteriorly and laterally; black punctures all over the surface
except for calli. Pronotal
anterior margin nearly straight, sides slightly sinuate and posterior margin
slightly convex. Pro-, meso-, and metasternum
smooth; prosternum very narrow, medially sulcate; metasternum
convex, with median depression in anterior one third; metathoracic scent-gland peritreme long, transverse across sternum (Image 4A), evaporatorium not well developed. Procoxae
close together, meso- and metacoxae
well separated (Images 2B, 3B).
Scutellum triangular, as long as
broad, uniformly punctured with black except for narrow median, longitudinal
smooth line. Hemelytra well developed, passing beyond apex of abdomen in both
sexes. In hemelytra, clavus almost impunctate along with adjacent inner area of
corium; outer part of corium beyond media vein finely but sparsely punctate,
punctures black with their margins reddish brown. Membrane with many parallel, colourless veins, almost transparent, in male revealing
outline of large pygophore; width of abdomen at pygophore slightly broader than width at apex of segment
VII (Image 5A & B). All legs with femora and tibiae slightly flattened,
tibiae slightly shorter and slender than respective femora; femora sparsely but
tibiae and tarsi densely setose.
iii. Abdomen
Abdomen in male nearly
parallel-sided for 3/4 of its length thence slightly narrowed and again the
segment IX or pyrophore is slightly broader; median region broadly ridged
between segments III─VII; sternum VIII capacious yet accommodating only 1/3 of
basal portion of pygophore—whole structure looking
like a fan (Images 2B, 5B).
Detached pygophore
(before / after KOH treatment views) in dorsal view appears like a limpet
(Image 6A,B). There are two spiny protrusions on the inner wall in posterior
half, inner one of those is long and strong while outer is more or less like a
tubercle. There are many long setae on this lateral inner wall of pygophore and also on outer rim. Dark black, strong parameres are situated in anterior half and in more dorsal
position. Overall pygophore appears slightly longer
than broad (Image 6A–F). In lateral view pygophore
appears cup-shaped (Image 6C,D); in slightly oblique lateral view it is
possible to see parameres and those spiny protrusions
as well as sinuate and setose margin; position of
phallus is also apparent due to KOH treatment. Ventral view of pygophore appears as in Image 6E; spiny protrusions and
outline of phallus, which is situated in basal half, are visible through KOH
treated, hence translucent, ventral wall (Image 6F).
Dorsal, ventral and lateral views
of partly everted phallus are provided here (Image 7A─C). Phallus is
symmetrical, uniformly cylindrical, dorsally as well as ventrally well
sclerotized. Large, membranous dorsolateral proximal connexival
(DLPC) lobes with lateral sclerotized lobes, ventromedian
distal connexival processes (VMDC) are highly
sclerotized and prominent, dark brown, elongate structures; dorsolateral distal
connexival processes (DLDC) are also sclerotized but
slender and brown (Image 8A). Due to rigid nature and single specimen further
eversion of phallus was not successful to reveal details of vesica
and other lobes. Parameres sclerotized, curved, with
tooth like structure distally and also with a spiny projection in opposite
direction, dark brown in distal half, pale brown in basal region (Image 8B).
Female
Identical to male in structure but broader and
larger in size, with abdomen more parallel-sided and slightly narrowed only in
genital region. Female with sternum VII very broad and long; female terminalia as shown in Image 8C. Paratergite
VIII spatulate (labelled as 8pt in Image 8C), projecting distally but not
meeting the opposite paratergite. Paratergite
9 (labelled as 9pt) short and narrow. Gonocoxite VIII
(labelled as 8g) large but gonocoxite IX small and
not clearly seen in ventral view here.
Measurements (mm): male: total
body length, 12.0; head width at eyes, 1.75; interocular distance, 1.0; length
of rostrum, 3.20; length of antennomeres, I, 3.0; II, 3.1; III, 1.5; IV, 3.0;
V. 2.5; pronotum length, 2.25; pronotum width at humeral angles, 4.50; scutellar length, 2.75; scutellar
width at base, 2.75; female: total body length, 12.7; head width at eyes, 2.0;
interocular distance, 1.0; length of rostrum, 2.75; length of antennal
segments, I, 3.0; II, 3.3; III, 1.75; IV & V, lost; pronotum length, 2.5;
pronotum width at humeral angles, 5.2; scutellar
length, 3.25; scutellar width at base, 3.25.
Discussion
The species U. nilgirica was described well by Yang and our specimens
matches exactly with the original description given by Yang (1938). Further,
the structure of the male genitalia (phallus as well as parameres)
of our specimen match with the description and drawings given for this species
by Kumar (1971); similarly female terminalia in our
specimen match very well with the figure given in original description by Yang
(1938). In addition, we have also compared dorsal habitus image of our female
specimen with the identical image of the syntype preserved at the Natural
History Museum (BMNH), London, and again found complete matching. Thus, there
is no doubt that our specimens are Urolabida
nilgirica and that this species has been
rediscovered in Tamil Nadu, but from a different hill range, after a long gap
of over 100 years.
Urostylididae are a small family with only
eight genera, 173 extant species and a few fossil species (Roca-Cusachs et al. 2021; Duan et al.
2023). Rider et al. (2018) recently summarized essential features of this
family and stated that the biological information on this group is still
meagre. Chinese species have been relatively well worked and many of these
works are cited by Roca-Cusachs et al. (2021) and
hence need not be recited. Taiwanese Urostylididae
were also reviewed by Ren & Lin (2003). Work on Indian species is wanting.
We need more surveys to document / illustrate and redescribe
such species but at present no specific efforts are made to understand Urostylididae fauna of India; a paper published on Urolabida histrionica
(Westwood, 1837) (Ranade & Ghate 2023) may be the
only recent paper on this family from India. Earlier, Ahmad et al. (1992)
reviewed and carried cladistic analysis of the various characters of Urostylididae (under earlier name Urostylidae),
gave details of genitalia of some species, provided keys to all known 27
species of the Indian subregion at that time and
discussed relationship of Urostylididae with some Pentatomoidea; however, their list did not include Urolabida nilgirica.
The taxonomy of this family is
still problematic as the genera are not well defined and frequently the
characters used to separate genera are not well-founded making identification
difficult (Roca-Cusachs et al. 2021; Duan et al. 2023; Ranade & Ghate
2023). Even the molecular work involving nuclear 18S and 28S rRNA genes, along
with total mitochondrial genome analysis, of seven genera and 51 species of Urostylididae by Duan et al.
(2023) indicated that the three species-rich genera, Urolabida
Westwood, 1837, Urochela Dallas, 1850 and Urostylis Westwood, 1837 are all polyphyletic
groups; not only that but this analysis even does not support recognition of
the two tribes (Urolabidini and Urostylidini)
that are currently accepted in Urostylididae. It is clear
that much work is required in this family, especially on species found in India
as most Indian species are still poorly known. More knowledge about Indian as
well as southeastern Asian species will help revising the existing
classification. We agree with Duan et al. (2023) who
stated that “…the current classification of tribes and genera within this
family needs to be thoroughly revised”.
Finding this species near its own
type locality, after a gap of a century, is really heartening as this indicates
that the environs of this species are not still damaged beyond repair, in spite
of ongoing deforestation in these areas.
For
images - - click here for complete PDF
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