Species Geraldtonia protea Distant, 1910

Geraldtonia protea Distant, adult

© Copyright Murray Fletcher, Orange Agricultural Institute.

Museums

Regional Maps

• Geraldtonia protea Distant, W.L. 1910. Rhynchotal Notes. L. Annals and Magazine of Natural History 8 5: 297-322 [311].

  Type data:

   Lectotype BMNH ♂ (coll: Meek, Tring Museum 1903–62), Geraldton, near Cairns, Queensland.
• Geraldtonia uniformis Distant, W.L. 1910. Rhynchotal Notes. L. Annals and Magazine of Natural History 8 5: 297-322 [313].

  Type data:

   
  Syntype(s) 1907–129 ♂ (coll: F.P. Dodd), Queensland; BMNH ♀ (coll: Meek), Geraldton, near Cairns, Queensland.

Taxonomic Decision for Synonymy

• Fletcher, M.J. 1982. The Australian genus Geraldtonia Distant (Homoptera: Fulgoroidea: Flatidae). Journal of the Australian Entomological Society 21: 269-270 [269] (synonymy of Geraldtonia uniformis Distant)

Introduction

This is the largest Australian flatid and shows some variation in size and colour, females tending to be larger. It was originally described as two species with an additional three unnamed colour variants but these were all synonymised by Fletcher (1982) based on examination of males available in the type series.

Distribution

States

Queensland

IBRA and IMCRA regions

IBRA

Qld: Wet Tropics (WT)

Ecological Descriptors

All stages: phloem feeder.

Diagnosis

Body above virescent or greenish ochraceous; vertex, pronotum, and mesonotum more or less centrally purplish brown; abdomen above greyishly tomentose; body beneath and legs dull ochraceous; lateral and basal margins of face usually narrowly sanguineous, and the short central longitudinal basal ridge of that colour; tegmina bright virescent, with numerous scattered small dull reddish spots, a more prominent and more piceous spot beneath the radial vein near base, on disk above apical area of clavus a large and small white spot, divided from each other and margined with dull reddish, granules to clavus reddish and claval posterior margin from a short distance from base piceous brown, beyond clavus the sutural maigin spotted with castaneous; wings milky white, veins with a slight virescent tint.
Var. a.—The large white spot to tegmina divided into a cluster of some twelve unequal parts by dull reddish lines, outwardly margined with dull reddish as in typical form.
Var. b.—The large white spot as in var. a now totally dull reddish.
Long., excl. tegm., 9-10 mm.; exp. tegm. 26 mm. (Distant 1910)

Head, pronotum, and mesonotum virescent or greenish ochraceous and more or less centrally suffused with purplish brown; abdomen above greyishly tomentose; body beneath and legs pale ochraceous; lateral and basal margins of face narrowly sanguineous and the short central basal carination of that colour; tegmina pale ochraceous, with numerous small scattered dull reddish spots, across disk before apical area a narrow oblique pale fascia containing a series of the dull reddish spots and outwardly margined with pale reddish, granules in clavus mostly dull red, the claval posterior margin at a short distance from base purplish brown, the sutural margin beyond clavus spotted with castaneous; wings milky white, the veins faintly pale virescent.
Var. a.—Tegmina virescent, the pale oblique fascia not outwardly margined with reddish.
Long., excl. tegm., 10 mm. ; exp. tegm. 30 mm. (Distant 1910, of G. uniformis).

Diagnosis References

Distant, W.L. 1910. Rhynchotal Notes. L. Annals and Magazine of Natural History 8 5: 297-322 [312–313]

History of changes