Family PIESMATIDAE

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Family PIESMATIDAE

Compiler and date details

15 February 2002

Introduction

The Piesmatidae are a small pentatomomorphan family belonging to the superfamily Lygaeoidea (Henry 1997). They are found in all the major zoogeographic regions, predominantly in the tropics. The family contains two subfamilies, six genera and about 44 species (Drake & Davis 1958; Schaefer 1981; Slater 1982; Heiss & Péricart 1983; Froeschner 1988; Zoological Record 2000–2001). The Australian fauna includes one genus and four described species belonging to the nominotypical subfamily.

Amyot & Serville (1843) first recognised the Piesmatidae as a family-group. Stål (1873) and other early workers considered the group to be a subfamily of Tingidae, because of the areolate dorsum and 2-segmented tarsi. Leston et al. (1954) and Drake & Davis (1958) recognised Piesmatidae as a family within the Pentatomomorpha, based on the presence of abdominal trichobothria, pretarsal pulvilli and specialised male genitalia.

Drake & Davis (1958) indicated that piesmatids are most closely related to the Lygaeidae and Berytidae. Heiss & Péricart (1983) speculated that they are closely related to the 'Lygaeidae-Coreidae-Pyrrhocoridae complex'. Schaefer (1975) in a review of trichophoran abdominal trichobothria suggested that piesmatids are related to Štys' 'malcid-line' of taxa. Others (Štys 1961, 1967; Kumar 1968; Slater 1982; Carver et al. 1991) regarded them as more isolated, requiring their own superfamily.

Schaefer (1972, 1981) provided a cladistic analysis of the genera of Piesmatidae. He recognised a sister-group relationship between the Gondwanan genera Miespa Drake and Mcateella Drake, in turn more closely related to Thaicoris Kormilev, than to Piesma Lepeletier & Audinet-Serville. Kormilev (1969) assigned the piesmatids to two subfamilies, the Piesmatinae and Thaicorinae, but Schaefer (1981), Schuh & Slater (1995) and Jorigtoo et al. (1998) did not accept this arrangement.

Henry (1997) established a sister-group relationship between the Piesmatidae and Psamminae (formerly a subfamily of Lygaeidae sensu lato) based on the areolate body, 2-segmented tarsi and reduced abdominal trichobothria. As a consequence he proposed the following classification: Piesmatidae: Piesmatinae and Psamminae and this classification is followed in the Catalogue.

Péricart (1974) divided the nominotypical genus Piesma, into three subgenera: Piesma, Parapiesma Péricart and Afropiesma Péricart. Heiss & Péricart (1975) described the Palaearctic piesmatid species. The genus is restricted to the Nearctic, Palaearctic and Afrotropical Regions. Thaicoris is a monotypic genus found in South-East Asia; Miespa is restricted to Chile.

The Australian piesmatine fauna includes four species in the endemic genus Mcateella. Drake (1924, 1958) and Hacker (1927, 1928) described the species; two species are endemic to Queensland, and South Australia and Western Australia each have an endemic species.

The Psamminae are a small subfamily of three monotypic genera, confined to southern Africa and India. Drake & Davis (1958) described the psammine taxa and Slater & Sweet (1965) regarded them as Lygaeidae sensu lato with uncertain relationships.

Heiss & Péricart (1983) and Narisu (2000) reviewed the biology of piesmatids. They are a phytophagous group that feed on leaves, stems and flowers. Schaefer (1981, 1983) listed their host associations with species of the Amaranthaceae, Caryophyllaceae, Chenopodiaceae, Cistaceae and Fabaceae. Most authors report that Australian piesmatids are known primarily from Acacia species. One of us [GC] has collected undetermined Mcatella specimens on the flowers of many new hosts, including species of Caesalpiniaceae (Senna Mill.), Proteaceae (Hakea Schrad., Isopogon R.Br. ex Knight and Grevillea R.Br.) and Santalaceae (Exocarpos Labill.). These data suggest that Schaefer's (1983) speculations on the evolution of host relationships of piesmatids require review.

Drake & Davis (1958) gave an account of the biology of some of the North American species and recorded Piesma cinereum as a vector of viral diseases of sugar beets. Narisu (2000) discussed the bionomics of economically important species. No Australian piesmatid species has been considered to have economic importance.

Diagnosis

Piesmatids (excluding the psammines) are small compact bugs, usually less than 5 mm in length. They resemble tingids superficially, with the thoracic nota and hemelytra having a reticulate and densely punctate pattern. The head is transverse and the eyes are contiguous with the pronotum. The bucculae are well developed. The ocelli are usually present, but can be obsolete in brachypterous forms. The mandibular plates are strongly produced and at least reach the apex of the clypeus. The antennae and labium are 4-segmented. The pronotum is subquadrate, without a collar, but with the calli distinct. The larvae and adults have dorsal abdominal glands (terga III/IV and IV/V) that remain functional in the adults. The metathoracic glands are absent. The tarsi are 2-segmented. The abdominal trichobothria are reduced with a single trichobothrium placed anteriad to the spiracle on sterna V and VI. All abdominal spiracles are dorsal. Two Malpighian tubules open into the anterior end of the rectum. (Drake & Davis 1958; Slater 1982; Heiss & Péricart 1983; Schuh & Slater 1995; Henry 1997)