Waucoris solomonensis Cherot & Malipatil, n. sp.

20.2. Waucoris solomonensis Chérot & Malipatil n. sp.

(Figures 72, 76–78, 79–81)

Material examined. Type specimen: Holotype Ƌ: SOLOMON ISLANDS: ISABEL (island): no locality given, 25.vi.1963, on pigeon pea, M. MacQuillan leg. (NHM) [with handwritten following mentions: “T. Asia” and “5899”]. Paratype ♀: same data than the holotype but with an additional label CIE coll n° 19077.

Diagnosis. Body orange and black, ovate. Vertex orange-brown, ecarinate, faintly sulcate. Antennal segments dark brown, second medially stramineous, third and fourth basally stramineous. Labium reaching hind coxae. Pronotal collar orange laterally, brown to black medially. Pronotal disk rugulose, very narrowly and shallowly punctate, laterally orange, with medial black stripe. Legs yellow to orange. Tibial spines yellowish-brown. Hemelytra slightly exceeding abdomen, dark reddish-brown to black.

Description. Elongate ovate, contrastingly orange and black, hemelytra with short, recumbent white setae. Head rounded, brown, eyes gray, touching pronotum. Mandibular and maxillary plates orange brown. Tylus vertical, black. Frons brown, slightly striate laterally. Vertex orange brown, reddish posteriorly in female, ecarinate, sulcus short and thin. Antennae thick; first segment slightly more incrassate than other segments, slightly club-like near apex, dark brown, except yellowish base; second segment dark brown (medially stramineous on right antenna in female paratype); third segment stramineous on basal third, dark brown apically; fourth segment stramineous basally, dark brown apically. Labium reaching hind coxae, orange, apex brownish. Pronotum posterior margin gradually convex, humeral angles rounded. Pronotal collar narrow, orange laterally, brown to black medially. Callosities orange and black, reduced, separated of pronotal lateral margins. Pronotal lateral margin non-carinate. Pronotal disk rugulose, very narrowly and shallowly punctate, laterally orange, with medial black stripe. Legs yellow to orange. Tibial spines yellowish brown. Scutellum slightly swollen, orange brown, mesoscutum partially covered. Hemelytra slightly exceeding abdomen, dark reddish-brown to black, basal areas of clavus and corium orange, connexivium and cuneus reddish-brown, membrane brownish, veins brown. Sternites and pleurites orange, evaporative area yellow. Left paramere sickle-shaped, with a pointed apex of primary apophysis and two small accessory lobes, one pointed on inner margin (LA1) and second (LA2) almost straight on the posterior margin. Sensory lobe (Ls) and tertiary lobe (L3) reduced (Fig. 76). Right paramere with two pointed lobes at primary apophysis (Fig. 77). Phallus devoid of comb or ACH, with a complex, partially wrapped sclerite (Fig. 78, Scl1). Parieto-vaginal rings large, almost contiguous, with anterior and latero-inner margins slightly convex, posterior margin sigmoid, latero-outer margin convex. Ventral labiate plate wide, narrower medially (Fig. 79). Posterior wall elongate, with elongate interramal sclerite and interramal lobes (A and E-structures) and complex median sclerite, devoid of H-structures (Fig. 80). A complex sclerite between fibulae (Fig. 81).

Measurements. (Male holotype followed by female paratype). Total length 8.30, 9.10; maximum width 3.00, 3.40. Head: width across eyes 1.55, 1.55; interocular space 0.40, 0.50; eye width 0.60, 0.50; antennal segments length: I: 1.55, 1.60; II: 3.40, 3.60; III: 3.10, 3.10; IV: 1.65, missing. Labium: length of segments: I: 0.95, 0.95; II: 0.85, 0.75; III: 0.80, 0.6; IV: not measured (hidden by pin), 1.40. Thorax: pronotal length: 1.70, 1.95; width of posterior margin: 2.33, 2.95; scutellum length: 1.35, 1.45; width: 1.50, 1.55. Length of hemelytra: 6.10, 6.30; length of corium 3.45, 4.25; length of cuneus: 1.20, 1.10; width of cuneus: 1.00, 0.90.

Discussion. Waucoris solomonensis n. sp. can be separated from the other Waucoris species by the male and female genitalia but also by the dorsal coloration and pattern (Carvalho, 1987; Chérot et al., in prep.). The medial black patches of pronotal disk is bell-shaped distinctly separated from the humeral angles in W. solomonensis versus sub-tiangular reaching almost the humeral angles in W. papuanus (Poppius, 1915), the area between apical collar and callosities is provide with a half black spots in W. solomonensis absent in W. papuanu (the apex of black triangle reaching the callosities), the scutellum is orange in W. solomonensis versus yellowish in W. papuanus, the base of clavus and corium are orange in W. solomonensis versus dark brown to black in W. papuanus, the cuneus is dark red in W. solomonensis versus brownish in W. papuanus etc. The medial black patches of pronotal disk of several forms of Waucoris wauensis Carvalho, 1987 (a relatively variable species) is relatively similar to the patches of W. solomonensis n. sp. However, hemelytra of W. wauensis are always orange or reddish medially, never totally dark brown to black, with an orange base. Hemelytra of W. keyensis lack a small basal orange area.