Paramecocephala helenae, de Barros & Barão & Grazia, 2022

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 : 2744-2745

publication ID	https://doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2021.2013970
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15500883
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/7238B639-DD07-FFDF-FE43-FF53FD05FB21
treatment provided by	Luisschmitz
scientific name	Paramecocephala helenae
status	sp. nov.

Treatment

Paramecocephala helenae sp. nov.

( Figures 11i View Figure 11 , 12i View Figure 12 , 13n View Figure 13 , 24 View Figure 24 , 25b, d View Figure 25 , 29 View Figure 29 ; Table 2)

Type material. HOLOTYPE: f*, BRAZIL: SANTA CATARINA: Itapema , 5 January 2002, J. Grazia leg. ( UFRG) <illustrated specimen> .

Description. Colouration: General colour dark brown dorsally; ventral surface dark brown; body densely punctate with ferruginous punctures. Head brown, punctures concolorous. Ocelli brown. Antennomeres uniformly brown, ferruginous in distal half of antennomere 5. Labium brown. Outline of anterolateral margins of pronotum brown; punctures concolorous. Corium reddish brown, callosity of radial vein concolourous with surface of hemelytra. Pro, meso, metasternum and evaporatorium dark brown; lateral margins brown. Legs reddish brown. Connexivum reddish brown with concolorous punctures. Sternites dark brown with concolorous punctures; sub-lateral margin light brown. Trichobothria concolorous to sublateral margin of abdominal sternites. Head: Head longer than wide. Apex of mandibular plates sinuous; lateral margins depressed in relation to the plan of median margins. Apex of clypeus wider than basal width ( Figure 11i View Figure 11 ). Proportions of antennomeres: 1> 2 <3> 4, 5 lacking. Long labium, reaching the middle of abdominal sternite 6 ( Figure 24c View Figure 24 ); proportions of labiomeres: 1 <2 ~ 3 <4. Thorax: Anterolateral margins of pronotum concave, smooth and punctate ( Figure 11i View Figure 11 ). Peritreme of ESES spout, reaching 1/3 of evaporatorium to the outer margin; ostiole guttiform; median furrow of the peritreme short, reaching less than half of peritreme. Evaporatorium punctate, reaching more than half of meso- and metapleuron; anterolateral margin of evaporatorium rounded; outer margins of evaporatorium, on metapleuron, concave, reaching its anterior and posterior angles and the outer margins. Gyrification of evaporatorium with high wrinkles ( Figure 13n View Figure 13 ). Metathoracic spiracles wide. Each basal angle of scutellum with a dark smaller fovea ( Figure 24a View Figure 24 ). Hemelytra surpassing the abdominal apex ( Figure 24a View Figure 24 ). Abdomen: Connexivum poorly exposed. Spiracle on abdominal sternite 2 not visible. Medial longitudinal groove reaching the abdominal sternite 6 ( Figure 24b View Figure 24 ). Posterolateral angles of sternites obtusely produced. Mesial area adjacent to spiracles with callosity. Trichobothria separated by the imaginary longitudinal line tangent to spiracles.

Female genitalia. Valvifers 8 convex, subequal to laterotergites 9 in length, partially covering valvifers 9; posterior margins sinuous; mesial margins not emarginate and juxtaposed. Valvulae 8 not visible. Laterotergites 8 lacking spiracles, posterior margins concave. Valvifers 9 flat, levelled in relation to the position of the segment X; posterior margins convex. Laterotergites 9 spatulate, surpassing abdominal tergite 8, mesial margins divergent, posterior margins obtusely projected ( Figure 24d–e View Figure 24 ).

Male unknown.

Measurements. See Table 2.

Differential diagnosis. Paramecocephala helenae sp. nov. is similar to P. australis but can be easily distinguished mainly by smaller body size, and because in P. australis the colouration pattern of the legs is dark brown ( Figure 14b View Figure 14 ), the anterolateral margins of pronotum are straight and with impunctate outline ( Figure 25a View Figure 25 ), pronotum clearly sloping at the height of the humeral angles towards the head ( Figure 25c View Figure 25 ), labium not surpassing the posterior portion of abdominal sternite 5, connexivum well exposed, and posterior margins of laterotergites 8 straight ( Figure 14g View Figure 14 ), whereas in P. helenae sp. nov. the colouration pattern of the legs is reddish brown ( Figure 24b View Figure 24 ), the anterolateral margins of pronotum are concave and show punctate outline ( Figure 25b View Figure 25 ), pronotum not declivent ( Figure 25d View Figure 25 ), the labium reaching the middle of abdominal sternite 6 ( Figure 24c View Figure 24 ), connexivum poorly exposed ( Figures 24a View Figure 24 , 25b View Figure 25 ), and posterior margins of laterotergites 8 obtusely projected ( Figure 24d View Figure 24 ). A comparison of these species is presented in Figure 25 View Figure 25 .

The connexivum poorly exposed of P. helenae sp. nov. also separates this species from all other known Paramecocephala species.

Etymology. This species is named in honour of Dr Maria Helena Mainieri Galileo, a specialist dedicated to the study of Neotropical Cerambycidae ( Coleoptera ).

Distribution. Brazil (Santa Catarina) ( Figure 29 View Figure 29 ).

Discussion

The close relationship of Mecocephala and Paramecocephala was found in a phylogenetic study by Barros (2021), grouping with Tibraca , Chimerocoris , Liscocephala , Triunfus and Ogmocoris (‘ Tibraca clade̍). This clade was recovered by the following synapomorphies: elongation of head; elongation of antenna and labium, except in Tibraca ; labiomere 2 flattened laterally and smaller than labiomeres 3 and 4 combined; presence of medial longitudinal groove on abdomen, with reversion on Tibraca ; pygophore with genital cup broad; processes on inferior layer of ventral rim and on segment X ( Barros 2021), corroborating the hypotheses of Barros et al. (2020b).