Species Microtartessus idyia (Kirkaldy, 1907)

<I>Microtartessus idyia</I> (Kirkaldy), adult male, pale morph.

Microtartessus idyia (Kirkaldy), adult male, pale morph.

<i>Microtartessus idyia</i> (Kirkaldy), adult male, dark morph.

Microtartessus idyia (Kirkaldy), adult male, dark morph.

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Species Microtartessus idyia (Kirkaldy, 1907)

Compiler and date details

19 January 2012 - Murray J. Fletcher

Tartessus idyia Kirkaldy, G.W. 1907. Leafhoppers — Supplement (Hemiptera). Bulletin of the Hawaiian Sugar Planters' Association Experimental Station Entomological Series 3: 1-186 [44].
Type data:
Holotype BPBM ♂ (coll.: vii.1904), Nelson (= Gordonvale), nr Cairns, Queensland
Comment: Kirkaldy (1907) rarely designated primary types for his new species but, for this species, he noted that the type was from Nelson (=Gordonvale) although he also had specimens from Cairns. Assuming there is only one specimen in BPBM from Nelson, this can be recognised as the holotype.

Generic Combinations

Microtartessus idyia (Kirkaldy, 1907). —
Evans, F. 1981. The Tartessinae of Australia, New Guinea and some adjacent Islands (Homoptera: Cicadellidae). Pacific Insects 23(1-2): 112-188 [123]

Introduction

This species is known from localities in far north Queensland. A redescription of the species was provided by Stevens (1990) who demonstrated that there is significant variation in colour. Kirkaldy's (1907) original description gives the colour as black with some pale yellow on the vertex and the scutellum. Evans (1981) also says that the pronotum and scutellum are black and an example of this is shown here as "dark morph". The specimen described by Stevens (1990), and illustrated here as "pale morph", has the thorax dorsally pale brown with yellowish posterior margins on the scutellum. Stevens (1990) also notes that the key to genera provided by Evans (1981) does not work for this species since there are well developed accessory processes associated with the Xth abdominal segment (also figured by Evans 1981) which causes the appropriate section of the key to be bypassed. However, these processes, which are present in both species of Microtartessus are interpreted by Evans (1981) as being part of the pygophore rather than of the Xth segment.

Distribution

States

Queensland

Extra Distribution Information

Australian Endemic.

IBRA and IMCRA regions (map not available)

IBRA

Qld: Cape York Peninsula (CYP), Wet Tropics (WT)

Ecological Descriptors

All stages: phloem feeder.

Diagnosis

Black; base of vertex and basal half of posterolateral margin of scutellum, pale yellow; a narrow line on the genae contiguous with the lateral margin of the frons, a similar one on the pronotum contiguous with the posterior margin of the eyes, a tiny wedge at anterolateral angles of scutellum, pale ferruginous; labium, fore and middle legs (except basal two-thirds or more of femora) testaceous. Tegmina subhyaline, tinged with ferruginous, veins (somewhat suffusedly in most of them), median third or more of subcostal cell, blackish; basal two thirds of antesubcostal cell, whitish subhyaline. Vertex rounded apically. strongly striate transversely, formed as in T. fulvus [=Brunotartessus fulvus (Walker)], but a little more prominent anteriorly. Eyes as in T. fulvus. Frons basally strongly striate transversely, apically aciculate punctate. Genae with the apical margin less oblique than in T. fulvus, and clypeus shorter than in that species. Tegminal venation much as in T. flavipes [=Neotartessus flavipes (Spångberg)] but the cross-vein on the brachial near the base, and that towards the apex of the subcostal cell are straight, not oblique; there are no cross veins in the clavus. Second subapical cell extending apically beyond the others. Male: genital segments apparently much as in T. pulchellus [=Plexitartessus pulchellus (Spångberg)] but in all the specimens they are rather shrivelled. Length 5½ mm. (Kirkaldy 1907).

Evans (1981) provides illustrations of the male genitalia and Stevens (1990) describes the female.