New paper!

Bloesch Z. et al.: "Phenology of Kleptobiotic Sundew Bugs Tracks Peak Stickiness of Their Carnivorous Host Plants".

Drosera L. (Droseraceae) is a diverse genus of carnivorous plants that is cosmopolitan in distribution, with Australia its centre of diversity (ca. 160 species in Australia). Collectively known as sundews, their leaves are covered with mobile sticky hairs (“tentacles”) that serve as active flypaper-type traps that catch small invertebrates. This prey is then digested with enzymes and absorbed as nutrition for the plant. Not all invertebrates fall prey to sundews, with sundew bug species of the genus Setocoris China & Carvalho, 1951 (Miridae) avoiding capture and stealing the plant's prey, in an unusual case of kleptobiosis. This specialised interaction suggests that the bug and host plant are highly co-adapted, although most aspects of the natural history of this interaction are poorly understood. In this study, field observations made over the course of 3 months show that the undescribed species Setocoris n.sp_BINA are first present on their host plants (Drosera binata Labill. and Drosera peltata Thunb.) when plants are sticky and catching prey. Sundew bugs are observed first on D. peltata and then D. binata, corresponding to the differing phenologies of each host plant species. These observations generated the following hypotheses for future testing: (1) S. n.sp_BINA move between host species to prioritise prey availability, and (2) S. n.sp_BINA eclosion is triggered by the same moisture and/or temperature cues as their hosts so that hatching coincides with prey availability.

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New paper!

Xiong H. et al.: "First record of silk-loving genus Monteithophila (Hemiptera, Heteroptera, Plokiophilidae) from Asia, with description of a new species from China".

The silk-loving bug Monteithophila hainanensis sp. nov. (Hemiptera, Heteroptera, Plokiophilidae) is described from Hainan, southern China, where it was found on the webs of Spinathele sp. (Araneae, Macrothelidae). This new species represents the first record of the genus Monteithophila Schuh, Štys & Cassis, 2015 outside Oceania. The new species can be distinguished from its congeners by its smaller body size, head uniformly colored yellowish brown to reddish brown, fore major claws slightly longer than mid ones with no significant difference, and distinct morphology of corial glands on the hemelytra. A key to the species of Monteithophila is presented. In addition, the ecological characteristics of the new species and the morphology of the genitalia are briefly discussed.

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New paper!

Yin J.-D. et al.: "Phylogenetic Relationships of Plant Bugs Based on Mitochondrial Genomes (Heteroptera: Miridae)".

Miridae is the most species-rich family of true bugs and plays an important role in both natural and agricultural ecosystems. However, contemporary controversies surrounding their phylogenetic relationships and subfamily classification still lack consensus. This study employs molecular systematics to resolve Miridae phylogeny, utilizing mitochondrial genomes from 42 species spanning 39 genera across six of the seven currently recognized subfamilies. Four outgroup species from Tingidae (2 species) and Thaumastocoridae (2 species) were also included in the analyses. Our results demonstrate that: (1) Bryocorinae is paraphyletic as the stem groups of Miridae; and (2) the clade ((Deraeocorinae + Mirinae) + (Orthotylinae + Phylinae)) is consistently and strongly supported as a monophyletic group across all datasets and analytical methods. We report newly sequenced mitochondrial genomes based on high-throughput sequencing platforms for four Miridae genera and species: Chlamydatus sp. (Phylinae), Deraeocoris punctulatus (Deraeocorinae), Scirtetellus sp. (Orthotylinae), and Prodromus clypeatus (Bryocorinae). These findings provide a progressive phylogenetic framework with new significance for the future phylogenetic improvement and taxonomic revision of Miridae.

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