A checklist and key to species of the genus Sophonia (Insecta: Auchenorrhyncha: Cicadellidae: Nirvaninae) in China with descriptions of two new species

This paper provides a checklist and a key to the 22 Chinese species of the nirvanine leafhopper genus Sophonia Walker. Two new species, Sophonia transvittata sp. nov. and S. yunnanensis sp. nov., are described and illustrated. The type specimens of the new species are deposited in the Institute of Entomology, Guizhou University, Guiyang, China (IEGUC).


Introduction
Many species of leafhopper (Homoptera: Cicadellidae) are important agricultural pests, either directly damaging crops or as vectors of crop diseases. Thirty-seven species of Sophonia Walker have been reported worldwide and 20 of these are from China. The present paper describes and illustrates two more new species from China and provides a checklist and key to all the Chinese species.
The specimens of the two new species are deposited in the Institute of Entomology, Guizhou University, Guiyang, China (IEGUC).

Description
Head with crown flat or slightly convex, produced anteriorly, crown longer medially than width between eyes, anterolateral margin with marginal ridge; ocelli located laterally on crown, close to anterior corner of eyes; frontoclypeus elongate, basal area evenly convex, with one distinct longitudinal ridge medially, sides obliquely wrinkled, apex flat. Pronotum wider than head. Scutellum with transverse suture extending to lateral margins. Fore wings in repose extending beyond apex of abdomen, venation obscure at base, without pre-apical cells, with four apical cells, appendix narrow and short. Hind wing with three closed cells.
Male genitalia with lateral lobe of pygofer with long macrosetae, often with a variably shaped process; subgenital plate long and broad, median area with a row of long macrosetae and apical part with short fine setae; aedeagus with a complicated arrangement of processes laterally on the basal apodeme; connective Y-shaped; style twisted basally, apex acute.

Remarks
The genus Sophonia is closely related to Kana Distant and Nirvana Kirkaldy, but can be differentiated from these two genera mainly by its shorter male plates and complex aedeagus that has processes on the dorsal apodeme and usually apex of the shaft.
Checklist of the species of Sophonia from China

Description
Body length including wings: male 5.1-5.2 mm, female 5.8-6.0 mm. External characters as in generic description with crown of head acutely produced anteriorly, surface slightly convex, part anterior to eye straight; ocellocular distance about 2.5 times diameter of ocellus; frontoclypeus longer than wide; anteclypeus rectangular, longitudinal convex medially. Pronotum convex, about the same length as crown, anterior and posterior margins almost parallel.
Male pygofer with lateral lobe slightly concave at apical margin, apical area with long macrosetae, apical-ventral corner produced as a long spine; subgenital plate slightly curved dorsally; aedeagus with shaft sinuate in lateral aspect with a pair of spine-like process at mid-length, basal apodeme with lateral arms lamellate; connective Y-shaped; style expanded medially, becoming narrower apically, apex with acutely produced outer process and triangular inner process.
Female seventh sternum longer medially than sixth segment, convex longitudinally and medially, posterior margin concave; ovipositor extending beyond apex of pygofer.
Crown yellowish white, laterally adjacent ocellus orange, eyes light yellow and light brown; face more or less whitish, without spots. Pronotum and scutellum light yellow, sides of pronotum with an orange line. Forewing light yellow, clavus with inner-lateral area, apical margin and median area irregularly marked with orange, medially with a black irregular band margined with orange-yellow, apical area with a black mark, large and irregular (male) or small and triangular (female). Thorax yellowish white, without spots, claws black. HOLOTYPE: male. PARATYPES: one male, three females, China: Yunnan, Pian-ma, (26u039N, 98u249E), altitude 1800 m, 15 August 2000 (Z. Z. Li and X. S. Chen) (IEGUC).

Remarks
Sophonia transvittata sp. nov. is similar to S. rufa, but lacks the orange-red lines on the dorsum and black oblique band anteriorly on the forewing. External characters as in S. transvittata but ocellocular distance about three times diameter of ocellus and pronotum slightly shorter than crown with anterolateral margins straight and slightly oblique.
Male pygofer with lateral lobe broadly produced, apical area with long macrosetae, apical margin with three spine-like processes; aedeagal shaft sinuate in antero-posterior aspect with a pair of elongate apical processes directed ventrally, basal apodeme with a long lamellate process from each basal arm extending beyond apex of aedeagal shaft; connective Y-shaped; style pincer-shaped apically with subapical lobe very long, tapered apically and apical process strongly curved laterally.
Female terminalia as in S. transvittata but posterior margin of seventh sternum almost straight.
Body and forewing milky-white, ocellus light yellow, eyes light brown, face without spots. Scutellum with dark spots at basal corners. Forewing with three fine oblique bands subapically on anterior margin, a blackish brown spot at base of second apical cell, apex of clavus and at middle of posterior margin and apical area of wing and a wide band at median area of clavus, light brown. Thorax with venter yellowish white, without spots, claws black. HOLOTYPE: male. PARATYPES: five females, China: Yunnan, Pian-ma (26u039N, 98u249E), altitude 1800 m, 17 August 2000 (Z. Z. Li and X. S. Chen) (IEGUC).

Remarks
Sophonia yunnanensis is similar to S. albuma but has the forewing with a black spot apically on the clavus and an oblique wide band on the medial area. The two species also clearly differ in the structure of the male genitalia.