Maiestas pruthii

Maiestas pruthii (Metcalf) (Fig. 4F���L) Deltocephlaus notatus Singh-Pruthi, 1936: 128���129, fig. 139, plate IX, fig. 10 (Prim.hom.: Deltocephalus notatus Melichar, 1896). Deltocephalus pruthii Metcalf, 1967: 1173 (nom. nov. pro Deltocephalus notatus Singh-Pruthi, 1936). Deltocephalus (Recilia) pruthii, Dash & Viraktamath, 1998: 22���23, figs 150���158. Maiestas pruthii, Webb & Viraktamath, 2009: 20, comb. nov.; Khatri & Webb, 2010: 11, plate 2a, fig. 13, misidentification? (see Remarks); Naveed et al., 2019: 286, figs 2A���C (incorrectly cited as M. subviridis, pers. com. Naveed), Fig. 3i, misidentification? (see Remarks). Material examined. No material examined. Distribution. Pakistan, India. (see Remarks) Remarks. The identity of this species is somewhat uncertain. It was described from the holotype male and allotype female from Pakistan, Layallpur [Faisalabad], but the male genitalia slide of the holotype (ZSI) is now missing (pers. com. Chandra Viraktamath). Although the types were examined by Dash & Viraktamath (1998) their figures are from Indian (Dehli) specimens (pers. com. Chandra Viraktamath) and although showing a very slight difference in the style apex to that of Singh-Pruthi���s original they show a similar relatively long apical extension of the aedeagus and rounded shaft apex (Figs 4J���L). Therefore, Dash & Viraktamath���s material is tentatively considered correctly identified but, to be certain, topotypical material of M. pruthii, i.e., from Faisalabad, should be obtained and examined. The Pakistan material identified as this species by Khatri & Webb (2010) with their figures reproduced by Naveed et al. (2019) show a more tapered aedeagus apex and shorter apical process and vertex with a small dot either side of the coronal suture apex, are here considered to be a different species (see Maiestas sp. 2 below). Despite the shortcomings of Singh-Pruthi���s original genitalia figures, his habitus figure of this species is very good and shows a species with a relatively long acute head with a pair of inverted U-shaped markings basally and forewings with extra cross veins. The extra forewing cross veins are also present in M. indica (described from the same type locality as M. pruthii) and Maiestas sp. 1 and 2 (see Remarks under these species). In conclusion, until the type genitalia or topotypical specimens can be found, the identity of this species is based on the figures of Dash & Viraktamath (1998) together with the images given here from the same specimen (Figs 4F���L).
Published as part of Shah, Bismillah, Naveed, Hassan, Webb, Michael D. & Duan, Yani, 2021, Taxonomic review of the grassland leafhopper genus Maiestas Distant (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae: Deltocephalinae: Deltocephalini) from Pakistan with description of a new species and two new records, pp. 401-416 in Zootaxa 5060 (3) on page 406, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5060.3.6, http://zenodo.org/record/5635912
{"references":["Singh-Pruthi, H. (1936) Studies on Indian Jassidae (Homoptera). Part III. Descriptions of some new genera and species, with first records of some known species from India. Memoirs of the Indian Museum, 11, 101 - 131.","Melichar, L. (1896) Cicadinen (Hemiptera-Homoptera) von Mittel-Europa. Dames, Berlin, 364 pp. https: // doi. org / 10.5962 / bhl. title. 8568","Metcalf, Z. P. (1967) s. n. In: General Catalogue of the Homoptera. Fascicle VI. Cicadelloidea. Part 10. Euscelidae Section II. Agricultural Research Service, U. S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C., 1078 - 2074.","Dash, P. C. & Viraktamath, C. A. (1998) A review of the Indian and Nepalese grass feeding leafhopper genus Deltocephalus (Recilia) (Homoptera: Cicadellidae) with description of new species. Hexapoda, 10 (1 & 2), 1 - 59.","Webb, M. D. & Viraktamath, C. A. (2009) Annotated check-list, generic key and new species of Old World Deltocephalini leafhoppers with nomenclatorial changes in the Deltocephalus group and other Deltocephalinae (Hemiptera: Auchenorrhyncha: Cicadellidae). Zootaxa, 2163 (1), 1 - 64. https: // doi. org / 10.11646 / zootaxa. 2163.1.1","Khatri I., & Webb, M. D. (2010) The Deltocephalinae leafhoppers of Pakistan (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae). Zootaxa, 2365 (1), 1 - 47. https: // doi. org / 10.11646 / zootaxa. 2365.1.1","Naveed, H., Sohail, K., Islam, W., Zhang, Y. & Bu, W. J. (2019) A review of the leafhopper tribe Deltocephalini (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae: Deltocephalinae) from Pakistan. Revista Chilena de Entomologia, 45 (2), 283 - 292. https: // doi. org / 10.35249 / rche. 45.2.19.16"]}