The genus Parahypatropis Grazia & Fernandes, with description of two new species and description of a new similar monotypic genus (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae)

Exploring Phylogenetic Relationships of the Mecocephala Group (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) Using Continuous and Discrete Characters, with Notes on Taxonomy

The Mecocephala group comprises about 50 species, restricted to the Neotropics and with the highest species richness in Neotropical South America. Several species use rice as host plants and their identification is facilitated by the presence of exaggerated head proportions and a unique male genitalic morphology. The taxonomy of the group has been extensively explored, but inferring its monophyly and especially its internal phylogenetic relationships has been challenging. Here, we inferred the phylogenetic relationships for the group assembling the most complete taxonomic sampling to date, analyzing discrete and continuous morphological characters through equal and implied weighted parsimony analyses. The monophyly of the group was recovered, but internal relationships varied slightly according to the dataset tested. Thus, we propose internal arrangements for the group and provide a formal description of the Mecocephala group, diagnoses for each genus, a dichotomous key to identify its genera, and illustrations of the morphological characters and type species.

Diversity of stink bugs (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Pentatomoidea) in the Brazilian Pampa and the Parque Estadual de Itapuã, Rio Grande do Sul

Biological surveys represent important contributions to the knowledge of species diversity, conservation, taxonomy, and biogeography. Few surveys of stink bugs and allied groups (Pentatomoidea) were produced in Brazil, especially regarding the Brazilian Pampa, an overlooked biome. Here, a list of Pentatomoidea species of the Brazilian Pampa is presented for the first time, composed of seven families and 152 species. The results of five years of sampling in the Parque Estadual de Itapuã (PEI) are also presented. A total of 693 individuals were sampled, representing 41 species, 29 genera, and five families of Pentatomoidea. Pentatomidae presented a higher richness (28 species), followed by Cydnidae, Scutelleridae, Dinidoridae, and Megarididae. The most abundant species collected in the PEI was Brachystetus geniculatus (Fabricius) sampled in Bromelia balansae Mez (32.76%), followed by Oebalus poecilus (Dallas) found in Persicaria hydropiper (Linnaeus) (11.99%), Pallantia macula (Dallas) collected in B. balansae (10.92%), Dinidor saucius Stål (8.57%) in Smilax cf. campestris Griseb., and Caonabo pseudoscylax (Bergroth) (5.35%) found in Homolepis glutinosa (Sw.) Zuloaga & Soderstrom. This is the first time that a list of species is presented for the Brazilian Pampa and Parque Estadual de Itapuã, providing a baseline to develop further studies with Pentatomoidea in the biome.