Microledrida malpaisa, Haas & Bartlett & Hendrix, 2025

Microledrida malpaisa sp. nov.

( Figs. 1–7 View FIGURE 1 View FIGURE 2 View FIGURE 3 View FIGURE 4 View FIGURE 5 View FIGURE 6 View FIGURE 7 )

Material examined. Holotype ♂: “ Curaçao, Malpais – Path and wetland / 12.170, -68.998, 28.IX.2022 / Leg. M. Speelman, J. Veldboom // Holotypus / Microledrida malpaisa sp. n. ♂ ”. In coll. RMNH. GoogleMaps

Paratypes: " H.J. Mac Gillavry / Curaçao / Porto Marie hofje / 14-21.IV.1930 ”, 1♂ in coll. RMNH ; “ H.J. Mac Gillavry / Curaçao / Sint Kruis hofje / 21-27.IV.1930 ”, 2♀ in coll. RMNH ; “ Curaçao / leg. R.H. Cobben / Christoffel / 21-10 1956 // RMNH Leiden / ex. collectie / WAU 2010”, 2♂, 2♀ in coll. RMNH ; “leg. R.H. Cobben / Hofje Groot Piscadera / 5/11 1956 / Curaçao // RMNH Leiden / ex. collectie / WAU 2010”, 1♀ in coll. RMNH ; “ Curaçao, Malpais – Path and wetland / 12.170, -68.998, 28.IX.2022 / Leg. M. Speelman, J. Veldboom ”, 1♂ in coll. CMH GoogleMaps ; “ Curaçao, CARMABI – Beach / 12.123, -68.969, 30.IX.2022 / Leg. M. Speelman, J. Veldboom ”, 1♂ 2♀ in coll. RMNH GoogleMaps ; “ Curaçao, 15.IX-3.X.2022 / Leg. M. Speelman, J. Veldboom ”, 1♂ in coll. RMNH .

Additional material: “ H.J. Mac Gillavry / Curaçao / Porto Marie hofje / 14-21.IV.1930 // Microledrida malpaisa ”, 1 in coll. RMNH, only the head is left .

Diagnosis. Overall colouration brownish, forewings mainly hyaline, frons appearing tricoloured, with upper margin broadly brown. Aedeagus with three spinal processes, two relatively slender spines originating at the base of the flagellum and one thicker, recurved spine at the ventral side near the centre of the phallotheca. Anal tube short.

Description. Measurements Length: ♂ 2.96-3.28 (average 3.13) mm (n=6); ♀ 2.88-3.60 (average 3.26) mm (n=7).

Colouration. Ground colour of head ( Fig. 2 View FIGURE 2 ) and thorax brownish yellow, irregularly washed with brown and with unevenly placed pale maculations. Lateral vertex disc nearly orange, lateral carinae paler bearing 3 dark maculations on each side (one near posterior margin, second near midlength, distal near apical third). In lateral view, genae (including lateral areolets near head apex) brown, except whitish above eye (with brown maculation near posterior margin of head, and smaller marking near midlength). Frons tricoloured: dorsal margin brown, medially with a broad dirty white transverse band (lateral portions somewhat oblique so that band takes a broad, inverse “V” shape) and the ventral portion orange-brownish. Clypeus completely orange-brown. Antennae brown. Pronotum and mesonotum largely brown to dark-brown (with irregularly placed paler maculations). Forewings of male ( Figs 1B View FIGURE 1 , 3A View FIGURE 3 ) hyaline, veins concolourous and covered with brown granules; irregularly washed with fuscous at base of forewing, two dark irregular stripes in costal cell, and several spots along nodal line. In females ( Fig. 1A View FIGURE 1 ), forewings more darkly and extensively marked, with clavus largely brown, several brown markings in the basal 2/3th of the forewing, and a brown band at the nodal line. In a single female paratype from Christoffel the brown colouration on the forewing is more extensive than in the other females: in addition to dark markings listed above, a broad brown band in the middle of the forewing is present and all brown markings are darker compared to other females. Forelegs and middle legs with tibiae sordid yellow and two brown bands, tarsi white with brown bases. Hindlegs completely yellowish white.

Structure. Head (incl. eyes) as wide as pronotum ( Fig. 2C View FIGURE 2 ). Head and thorax loosely covered in short, pale setae; longest setae on frons, body surface irregularly rugulose. Vertex in dorsal view strongly produced in front of eyes, subtriangular with anterior margin rounded and median carina complete ( Fig. 2C View FIGURE 2 ); hind margin broadly concave, slightly incised medially; lateral carinae foliately raised (disc concavely depressed). Frons very broad, roundly pentagonal with lateral carinae laterally foliate ( Fig. 2D View FIGURE 2 ). Median carina of frons and clypeus complete. Median ocellus small, lateral ocelli conspicuous just below anterior margin of eyes. Eyes obliquely elongate oval, ventrally emarginate above antennae ( Fig. 2A View FIGURE 2 ). Antennae short, scape ring-like, pedicle bulbous bearing irregularly arranged sensory plaques, flagellum long setaceous with bulbous base. Rostrum reaching base of hind-coxae.

Pronotum length at midline about half of that of the vertex, bearing well-developed median carina, lateral carinae following contour of anterior margin of head, with lateral portions (in dorsal view) hidden beneath caudal portion of eyes ( Fig. 2C View FIGURE 2 ); paradiscal region very narrow behind eye, broader at level of antenna, tapering to rounded ventrocaudal point. Tegulae large and conspicuous. Mesonotum ( Fig. 2C View FIGURE 2 ) at midline about 1.3x length of vertex and pronotum combined, with median carina distinct anteriorly, becoming obsolete on scutellum (scutellum not distinctly separated from scutum). Lateral carinae, weakly diverging posteriorly, reaching posterior margin, distinct over entire length. Forewings ( Fig. 3 View FIGURE 3 ) elongate-oval, relatively broad and short, deflexed at nodal line with veins indistinct, veins bearing conspicuous, evenly distributed, setose granules; branching pattern RA 1-branched, RP 3- branched, MP 5-branched, CuA 2-branched. Veinlet icu joins apex of clavus. Hind legs with two spines on lateral margin, both in the basal half of the tibiae; spinulation of hind leg: 6(3+3)-6-6.

Male terminalia. Pygofer in lateral view ( Fig. 4A View FIGURE 4 ) broadest near the middle, dorsal part narrow, midventral portion projected caudally; medioventral process of pygofer (ventrocaudal view, Fig. 4B View FIGURE 4 ) short (wider than tall), obtusely rounded, lateral lobes broad and about ¾ length of gonostyli. Gonostyli relatively simple, club-shaped (ventrocaudal view, Fig. 4C View FIGURE 4 ), widest subapically, apices obliquely truncate, in widest view ( Figs. 5A, 5B View FIGURE 5 ), pediform. Phallotheca ( Figs. 6-7 View FIGURE 6 View FIGURE 7 ) tubular, nearly straight, right lateral side of phallotheca open (right lateral view, Figs. 6C View FIGURE 6 , 7C View FIGURE 7 ), leaving the aedeagus visible; ventral part of phallotheca medially with a strong, recurved spine, apically directed dorsad; base of endosoma (dorsal view), phallotheca bearing two elongate processes, both directed left-laterad, then curving and directed right-laterad; the dorsal process shorter, broad at the base, and slender at the apex; the ventral process is longer, slender throughout, at apex curved ventrally. Anal tube ( Fig. 5D View FIGURE 5 ) short and broad, in dorsal view posterior margin straight (or incised); in lateral view strongly decurved near middle and narrowing towards apex; paraproct short, stout and conical.

Distribution. Curaçao ( Fig. 17 View FIGURE 17 ).

Biology. No host associations are available. The species was collected in low and sparse vegetation in 2022 ( Fig. 8 View FIGURE 8 ).

Etymology. The specific epithet ‘ malpaisa ’ refers to the location where part of the type-material was collected: the Ramsar site ‘Malpais/Sint Michiel’. The Spanish word ‘malpais’ translates to ‘badland’, referring to the arid environment of this landform. Those arid landscapes seem to be the preferred habitat of Microledrida species.

Remarks. The most similar species are Microledrida arida from Puerto Rico from which the novel taxon differs mostly in the male terminalia where the phallotheca bears three spines (versus two spinal processes in M. arida ), and Microledrida olor from southern North America from which the novel taxon is easily distinguished in the colouration of the vertex (with irregular orange stripes in M. olor versus without such stripes in M. malpaisa sp. nov.) and the apex of the anal tube (deflexed in M. olor versus straight in M. malpaisa sp. nov.).

One specimen collected by H.J. Mac Gillavry in 1930 is not included in the type-series, because of the poor state of the specimen.