Male holotype (Fig. 1A and B). Measurements (n = 1). Body 33.9 mm long. Length of different body parts (mm): head (1.7), pronotum (5.6), mesonotum (6.9), forewing (40.5), abdomen (19.9); width: head (10.2), pronotum (12.7), mesonotum (10.2), forewing (14.1).

Figure 1.  

Polyneura guoliangi sp. n., holotype, male: A habitus, dorsal view; B habitus, ventral view; C fore femur, lateral view.

Abbreviations: a1, 10, 26: apical cells 1, 10, 26; asp: subapical spine; psp: primary spine; ssp: secondary spine. Scale bar 1 for A and B; 2 for C.

Head mostly black, about 4/5 width of pronotum and as wide as mesonotal base. Compound eyes and ocelli brown. Distance between lateral ocellus and corresponding eye about 2.6 times as wide as distance between lateral ocelli. Postclypeus moderately swollen, with setigerous transverse grooves on each side. Anteclypeus and lorum densely covered with yellowish setae. Rostrum black, only brown at apex, extending to hind coxae.

Thorax. Pronotum black, 3.3 times as long as head and about 1.1 times as long as mesonotum excluding cruciform elevation, with transverse yellowish-brown fascia along anterior border. Pronotal collar yellowish-brown, wide, moderately ampliate laterally, lateral margins sinuate, but not dentate, hind corners widely rounded, suface transversely grooved. Mesonotum entirely black. Cruciform elevation black. Thoracic sternites black.

Legs entirely black. Fore femur (Fig. 1C) with wide, curved seta band in middle of lateral surface; primary spine thin, procumbent and pointed; secondary spine trianglular, erect and pointed; subapical spine subtrianglular, short and obtuse.

Wings generally opaque. Forewing with 26 apical cells; nodal line visible; yellowish in radial cell, wide cross band around nodal line and clavus; blackish before cross band and blackish to yellowish-brown after cross band; translucent at wing apex (including apical part of apical cell 2); costa vein and R+Sc vein yellowish-brown to brown. Hind-wing with 10 apical cells; yellowish in costal cell, radial cell and basal parts of apical cells 1–2 or 3 or 5; translucent at wing apex (including apical parts of apical cells 1–6), apical parts of apical cell 10 and cubital cell 1 (including marginal area after them) and anal lobe; other parts brown.

Abdomen entirely black, about 1.4 times as long as length from tip of head to cruciform elevation. Timbal cover large, scalloped, completely concealed timbal. Operculum short, wider than long, overlapping to each other at middle and with rounded apex just reaching posterior margin of abdominal sternite II. Abdominal sternite VII subtrapezoidal, widely emarginate at middle of posterior margin; sternite VIII oblong, narrowly emarginate at middle of posterior margin.

Male genitalia. Pygofer (Fig. 2A and B) subtrianglular, gradually narrowing towards base; anal styles (Fig. 2A–D) less sclerotised, densely covered with short setae; dorsal beak (Fig. 2B) less sclerotised, papillary; basal lobes (Fig. 2A) less developed, short; upper lobes absent; distal shoulders (Fig. 2A–B) strongly developed, large, noticeably divergent, with long hairs in lateral surfaces and sharply curving dorsally in lateral view (Fig. 2C); uncus (Fig. 2D) short and robust, wider than long, surface with hairs arranging in pair of oblique lines, rounded apices bifurcate from each other from half length and slightly deflexed at apex in lateral view (Fig. 2C). Aedeagus (Fig. 2F–G) long and slender, slightly bilobate at apex, with margins gently sinuous.

Figure 2.  

Polyneura guoliangi sp. n., holotype, male. A pygofer, ventral view; B pygofer, dorsal view; C pygofer, lateral view; D pygofer, apical view; E abdominal sternite VIII, ventral view; F aedeagus, ventral view; G aedeagus, lateral view.

Abbreviations: aed: aedeagus; as: anal styles; bl: basal lobe of pygofer; db: dorsal beak; ds: distal shoulder; un: uncus. Scale bar 1 for A–E; 2 for F and G.

Female: Unkown.

The new species is dedicated to the collector of the type specimen, Mr. Liang Guo (Fuzhou, China), an enthusiastic amateur entomologist. The name is a noun in the genitive case. The Chinese name “郭亮网翅蝉” is proposed for the Chinese common name of this new species.

China (Yunnan) (Fig. 3).

Figure 3.  

Map of type localities of Polyneura species.

Note: Type localities of P. ducalis Westwood, 1840 and P. parapuncta Chou & Yao, 1986 are only known at the national level and provincial level, respectively, so they were roughly located at the centre of India and Guizhou (China).

For comparison, the following material was studied: Formotosena montivaga (Distant, 1889). Material examined. THAILAND: 1♂, Doi Saket, IX.2017, local people leg. (CLGF). Angamiana floridula Distant, 1904. Material examined. CHINA: 1♂2♀♀, Yunnan, Baoshan City, Tengchong, Xiaoheishan Nature Reserve [小黑山自然保护区], 2150 m, 9–15.IX.2019, Liang Guo leg. (CLGF). Graptopsaltria tienta Karsch, 1894. Material examined. CHINA: 1♂, Fujian, Nanping City, Wuyishan Nature Reserve [武夷山自然保护区], 21.VIII.2017, Liang Guo leg. (CLGF). Polyneura cheni Chou & Yao, 1986. Material examined. CHINA: 4♂♂6♀♀, Sichuan, Liangshan Prefecture, Mianning, VIII.2020, Wei Xie leg. (MYNU); 2♂♂2♀♀, Yunnan, Baoshan City, Tengchong, Xiaoheishan Nature Reserve [小黑山自然保护区], 2150 m, 9–15.IX.2019, Liang Guo leg. (CLGF).

It is doubtless that this new species belongs to Polyneurina, Polyneurini as indicated by Hayashi (1978), Chou et al. (1997). Most diagnostic characters of the new species are within the genus Polyneura with the peculiar synapomorphy of the wing venations (as an autapomorphy) and the shape of the male opercula. Except for its unique colour pattern on wings, it is also easy to distinguish the new species from other Polyneura congeners by the following characters: in Polyneura guoliangi sp. n.: pygofer with distal shoulders strongly developed, large, noticeably divergent; uncus wider than long, with uncus lobes much wider and stout, divergent from half length. While in its congeners: pygofer with distal shoulders underdeveloped, small; uncus longer than wide, with uncus lobes relatively short and thin, divergent from basal part.

As the new species is really unique in morphological features, we would like to compare the differences between it and allied genera:

In Graptopsaltria Stål, 1866: forewing with eight apical cells; abdomen shorter than length from tip of head to cruciform elevation; uncus of pygofer longer than wide, with uncus lobes widely divergent from basal part, becoming closer to each other at apices. While in Polyneura guoliangi sp. n.: forewing with 26 apical cells; abdomen longer than length from tip of head to cruciform elevation; uncus of pygofer wider than long, with uncus lobes much wider and stout, divergent from half length.

In Angamiana Distant, 1890: forewing with about 13 apical cells; male operculum obviously longer than wide; uncus of pygofer longer than wide, with uncus lobes much long and slender, divergent from basal part and distinctly deflexed at subapex. While in Polyneura guoliangi sp. n.: forewing with 26 apical cells; male operculum wider than long; uncus of pygofer wider than long, with uncus lobes much wider and stout, divergent from half length and slightly deflexed at apex.

In Formotosena Kato, 1925: forewing with eight apical cells; male timbal cover incompletely concealed timbal which is partly exposed in dorsal view; male opercula nearly touching, but separated from each other; uncus of pygofer longer than wide, with uncus lobes relatively short and wide, divergent from basal part. While in Polyneura guoliangi sp. n.: forewing with 26 apical cells; male timbal cover completely concealed tymbal; male opercula slightly overlapping to each other at middle; uncus of pygofer wider than long, with uncus lobes much wider and stout, divergent from half length.

The new species is bright green in life, with rather reddish compound eyes and with more obvious whitish piles on abdominal tergites (especially dense laterally) and sternites, in line before cruciform elevation and along lateral borders of mesonotum (Fig. 4A–C). As mentioned above, the new species was occurring sympatrically and simultaneously with Angamiana floridula Distant, 1904 (Fig. 5) and Polyneura cheni Chou & Yao, 1986 (Fig. 6).

Figure 4.  

Living Polyneura guoliangi sp. n. (holotype, male) at Xiaoheishan Nature Reserve (Yunnan, China). A caught by the collector Liang Guo; B dorsal view; C dorsolateral view.

Figure 5.  

Living Angamiana floridula Distant, 1904 at Xiaoheishan Nature Reserve (Yunnan, China). A aggregated; B dorsal view; C lateral view.

Figure 6.  

Living Polyneura cheni Chou & Yao, 1986 at Xiaoheishan Nature Reserve (Yunnan, China). A dorsal view; B dorsolateral view.