Mecocephala maldonadensis Schwertner, Grazia and Fernandes, 2002

de Barros, Lurdiana Dayse, Barão, Kim Ribeiro & Grazia, Jocelia, 2022, Taxonomic updates on the Mecocephala group (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae): redescription of Mecocephala Dallas and Paramecocephala Benvegnú, Journal of Natural History (J. Nat. Hist.) 55 (43 - 44), pp. 2691-2747 : 2715-2721

Mecocephala maldonadensis Schwertner, Grazia and Fernandes, 2002 ( Figures 1e , 2d , 7a – 1g , 29 ; Table 1)

Mecocephala maldonadensis Schwertner, Grazia and Fernandes, 2002: 182 , figs 5, 11, 16, 21; Grazia and Schwertner 2008: 234; Coscarón 2017: 228.

Type material examined. URUGUAY: MALDONADO: Holotype, m*, El Betete, 15.xi.1960 // en Caraguatá ( UYIC) .

Other material examined. ARGENTINA: BUENOS AIRES: m*, Parque Tornsquist, S de La Ventana , November 1996, P. Rebagliati leg. // no.97.063 <male illustrated> ( UFRG) .

Diagnosis. Body colour light brown. Mandibular plates and clypeus subequal. All antennomeres dorsally grooved ( Figure 7d ); antennomere 3 slightly flattened dorsally. Proportions of labiomeres 1 <2> 3 <4. Outline of anterolateral margins of pronotum smooth, not punctate. Median furrow of each peritreme of ESES short, reaching less than half of peritreme. Outer margins of metapleural evaporatorium straight; metathoracic spiracles wide. Spiracles of abdominal sternite 2 covered by metathorax.

Male genitalia. Pygophore sub-rectangular ( Figure 7e ). Posterolateral angles rounded ( Figure 7e ). Superior process of pygophore present. Superior layer of ventral rim with a pair of processes ( Figure 7f ). Inferior layer of ventral rim with a pair of processes ( Figure 7g ).

Female unknown.

Measurements. See Table 1.

Remarks. Mecocephala maldonadensis is the smallest species of the genus, and differs from its congeners by mandibular plates and clypeus sub-equal in length, all antennomeres dorsally grooved, outline of anterolateral margins of pronotum pale yellow.

Distribution. Argentina (Buenos Aires) and Uruguay (Maldonado) ( Figure 29 ).

Figures

Figure 1. Head and pronotum of Mecocephala in dorsal view. (a) Mecocephala acuminata; (b) Mecocephala bonariensis; (c) Mecocephala curculionoides; (d) Mecocephala magna; (e) Mecocephala maldonadensis; (f) Mecocephala zikani. Scale bars = 0.5 mm.

Figure 2. Head and prothorax of Mecocephala in lateral view. (a) Mecocephala acuminata; (b) Mecocephala bonariensis; (c) Mecocephala magna; (d) Mecocephala maldonadensis; (e) Mecocephala zikani. Scale bars = 0.5 mm.

Figure 7. Mecocephala maldonadensis Schwertner, Grazia and Fernandes, 2002. Holotype. (a–c) Habitus in dorsal, ventral and lateral view; (d) head in lateral view, detail of dorsal groove of antennomeres; (e–g) pygophore in dorsal, posterior and ventral view. Abbreviations: alvr – area between layers of ventral rim; dg – dorsal groove of antennomeres; dr – dorsal rim; ilvr – inferior layer of ventral rim of pygophore; pilvr – process of inferior layer of ventral rim; slvr – superior layer of ventral rim of pygophore; vr – ventral rim. Scale bars: a–c = 2.0 mm; d = 0.5 mm; e–g = 1.0 mm.

Figure 29. Map showing the geographical distribution of Mecocephala and Paramecocephala species. Yellow star = new record of P. subsolana.