Banus curvatus, VIRAKTAMATH & WEBB & YESHWANTH, 2025

VIRAKTAMATH, C. A., WEBB, M. D. & YESHWANTH, H. M., 2025, Review of the Monobazus-group leafhopper genera (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae: Deltocephalinae) from the Indian subcontinent with description of five new genera and twenty-eight new species, Zootaxa 5567 (1), pp. 1-105 : 11

Banus curvatus sp. nov.

Figs 1 AB, 8A, 11A, 12A–D, 14A–G, 57A–C

Diagnosis. Aedeagus lacks lateral process of the shaft proximad of gonopore present in other two species and the shaft is asymmetrically curved.

Description.Brownish ochraceous.Crown with brown transverse and oblique markings enclosing pale ochraceous spots, three apical and two subapical and four in basal half ( Fig. 1A ). Face with dorsal marginal brown band visible ventrally, with lateral paler areas in ocello-ocular areas surrounded by brown. Pronotum with short transverse brown spots in anterior submargin. Mesoscutum basal triangles usually brownish. Forewing pale ochraceous with darker veins, apices of claval veins and apex of clavus often with brown spot. Venter and legs brownish ochraceous.

Head about as wide as or slightly narrower than pronotum. Crown 0.8–0.9× as long as interocular distance. Pronotum 1.9–2.2× as wide as long, 1.3–1.5× as long as median length of crown and about as long as or slightly shorter than exposed mesonotum. Female sternite VII posterior margin almost straight.

Male genitalia. Pygofer about 2× as long as wide in lateral view posteriorly conically rounded. Subgenital plate about 3× as long as width at base. Connective stem longer than arms. Aedeagus with dorsal apodeme well-developed, shaft slightly curved dorsally in basal half then strongly laterally curved on left side distad of gonopore making the aedeagus asymmetrical.

Measurements. Male 4.4 mm long, 1.1–1.2 mm wide across eyes and also across posterolateral angles of pronotum. Female 5.1–5.6 mm long, 1.3–1.4 mm wide across eyes and also across posterolateral angles of pronotum.

Material examined. HOLOTYPE ♂ INDIA: Karnataka: Bangalore , 916m, 2.viii.1978, C.A. Viraktamath ( UASB) . PARATYPES: INDIA: Karnataka: 1♂, Bangalore, Bannerghatta , 12.ix.1976, C.A. Viraktamath ; 2♂, 1♀, Mudigere , 7.iv.1975 (1♂), 8.iv.1875 (1♀), 23.v.1975 (1♂), C.A. Viraktamath ; 3♂, Yellapur , 23.ix.1973 (2♂), 14.xi.1977 (1♂), C.A. Viraktamath ; 1♂, Sirsi: Nilkunda , 2.xii.2005, at light, Radhamani, T.R .; 2♂, Sirsi: Navanagere , 27.iii.2006, Radhamani, T.R .; Kerala: 1♂, Walayar 305m, 26.xi.1975, C.A. Viraktamath ; 5♂, 6♀, Thekkady 884m, 27.iii.1977, C.A. Viraktamath ; 1♂, same data but collected by B.Mallik ; Maharashtra: 2♂, Matheran 23.x. 1977, C.A. Viraktamath ; West Bengal: 1♂, Sukna , 1.xi.1981, C.A. Viraktamath ( NBAIR, NPC, UASB) .

Etymology. The specific epithet is the Latin participle curvatus, -a, -um (= curved, bent), referring to the strongly asymmetrically curved aedeagal shaft process distad of gonopore.

Remarks. This species resembles B. umbratus , but differs in the absence of a lateral retrorse process proximad of the gonopore.

Figures

FIGURES 1A–R. Monobazus group of genera, habitus, dorsal and lateral views. A–B, Banus curvatus sp. nov., male; C–F, B. spiculatus sp. nov., male (CD) and female (EF); G–J, B. umbratus (Melichar), male (GH) and female (IJ); K–L, Chandibanus dorsospinosus gen. et sp. nov., holotype male; M–N, Cicurbanus greeni (Melichar), male; O–R, C. serratus sp. nov., holotype male (OP), paratype female (QR).