Brueelia hesperides Gustafsson & Bush 2021, sp. nov.

Brueelia hesperides sp. nov.

Type host

Pooecetes gramineus confinis Baird 1858 – vesper sparrow.

Type locality

Little Davis Mountain, Tooele County, Utah, United States.

Diagnosis

Brueelia hesperides sp. nov. is most similar to B. angustifrons, with which it shares the following characters: head elongated dome-shaped (Figures 4a and 6a); mesosomal lobes much reduced (Figures 4c and 6c); gonopore flattened crescent-shaped (Figures 4c and 6c); ss absent from male tergopleurite V (Figures 3a and 5a); aps present on male tergopleurite VI (Figures 3a and 5a); ps absent from female abdominal segment III (Figures 3b and 5b). The two species can be separated by the following characters: tps present on male tergopleurite VII in B. hesperides (Figure 5a), but absent in B. angustifrons (Figure 3a); gonopore with antero-lateral projections in B. angustifrons (Figure 4c), but without such projections in B. hesperides (Figure 6c); mesosomal lobes narrowly rounded with slight rugosity near latero-distal margins in B. hesperides (Figure 6c), but widely angular and without rugose area in B. angustifrons (Figure 4c); parameres elongated in B. hesperides (Figure 6d), but not in B. angustifrons (Figure 4d); ps present on male abdominal segment III in B. angustifrons (Figure 3a), but absent in B. hesperides (Figure 5a). There is virtually no overlap in total length in males of these two species, but females are of similar size. Female vulval chaetotaxy overlaps between species, but females can be separated by head shape (Figures 3b and 5b) and pigmentation patterns (see below).

Description

Both sexes. Head elongated dome-shaped (Figure 6a), lateral margins of preantennal area convex, frons rounded to slightly flattened. Marginal carina slender, much displaced and widened at osculum. Ventral anterior plate large, elongate, rounded. Head chaetotaxy as in Figure 6a. Preantennal nodi slender, not bulging. Pre-ocular nodi large, post-ocular nodi moderate. Marginal temporal carina with very irregular median margin. Gular plate broadly lanceolate. Thoracic and abdominal segments as in Figure 5a–b. Base pigmentation pale brown, with head carinae, margins of antennal socket, proepimera, metepisterna, and lateral margins of tergopleurites medium brown.

Male. Thoracic and abdominal chaetotaxy as in Figure 5a; ss absent from tergopleurite V; tps present on tergopleurite VII; aps present on tergopleurites VI–VII; ps absent from abdominal segment III. Basal apodeme narrowing proximally (Figure 6b). Proximal mesosome broad, roughly trapezoidal (Figure 6c). Mesosomal lobes slender, rounded, with narrow lateral thickenings and restricted rugose area near postero-lateral margins; 2 pmes sensilla on each side lateral to gonopore. Gonopore flattened crescent-shaped. penile arms long, reaching to distal margin of mesosome. Parameres broad, elongated, pst1–2 as in Figure 6d. Measurements (n = 2): TL = 1.26–1.37; HL = 0.35–0.36; HW = 0.25; PRW = 0.16; PTW = 0.24–0.25; AW = 0.31–0.33.

Female. Thoracic and abdominal chaetotaxy as in Figure 5b; ps absent from abdominal segment III. Lateral margins of proximal subgenital plate more or less parallel (Figure 6e), with intermediate connection to cross-piece. Vulval margin convergent to rounded median point (Figure 6e), with 3–4 short, slender vms and 3–4 short, thorn-like vss on each side; 4–6 short, slender vos on each side of subgenital plate; distal 1 vos median to vss. Measurements (n = 8): TL = 1.42–1.73; HL = 0.34–0.39; HW = 0.25–0.28; PRW = 0.15–0.18; PTW = 0.24–0.28; AW = 0.33–0.39.

Etymology

The specific name is derived from the ‘ Esperídes ’, the nymphs of the sunset in Greek mythology, and daughters of Hesperos, the Evening Star. This is a reference to the English name of the type host, the Vesper Sparrow.

Material examined

Ex Pooecetes gramineus confinis: Holotype ♂, Little Davis Mountain, Tooele County, Utah, United States, 18 May 1964, E. & E. Branch, 5217 (NHML). Paratypes. 4♀, same data as holotype (NHML); 2♀, Sewerline, vicinity of Dugway valley, Tooele County, Utah, United States, 15 April 1953, W.G. Denzer, 265-B-173 (PIPeR); 2♀, same locality, 15 April 1953, W.G. Denzer, 193-B-174 (NHML); 1♂, 1♀, no locality, 25 December 1935, ‘E.W.S.’, 509 (UMSP).