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Family Flatidae Spinola, 1839

Subfamily Flatinae Spinola, 1839

Tribe Nephesini Melichar, 1923

Genus: Leptormenis Melichar 1923.

Type species: (in original combination): Flata relicta Fabricius 1803: 52.

Synonyms:

none.

Distribution:

Neotropical, reported in error from the U.S. (e.g., Bartlett et al. 2014).  Definition and composition of genus in question; Melichar’s definition below..

Recognized species

There are 6 species currently assigned to this genus:

Leptormenis confusa (Melichar 1902: 79) (original genus Ormenis) – Guyana, French Guiana
= Ormenis confusa Melichar 1902: 79.
= Leptormenis confusa (Melichar 1902); comb. by Metcalf, 1945: 134.

Leptormenis exanthema (Melichar 1902: 92) (Ormenis) – Brazil (Para)
= Ormenis exanthema Melichar 1902: 92.
= Leptormenis exanthema (Melichar 1902); comb. by Melichar 1923: 66.

Leptormenis granulata (Melichar 1902: 91) (Ormenis) – Venezuela
= Ormenis granulata Melichar 1902: 91.
= Leptormenis granulata (Melichar 1902); comb. by Melichar 1923: 66.

Leptormenis monticola (Fowler 1900: 53) (Flata) – Mexico (Guerrero)
= Flata monticola Fowler 1900: 53.
= Ormenis ? monticola (Fowler 1900); comb. by Melichar 1902: 99.
= Leptormenis monticola (Fowler 1900); comb. by Melichar 1923: 66.

Leptormenis relicta (Fabricius 1803: 52) (Flata) – Venezuela; also in error: U.S. (“Carolina”)
= Flata relicta Fabricius 1803: 52.
= Poeciloptera relicta (Fabricius 1803); comb. by Schaum, 1850: 72.
= Ormenis relicta (Fabricius 1803);comb. by Stal 1869: 111.
= Leptormenis relicta (Fabricius 1803); comb. by Melichar 1923: 66.

Leptormenis viridana (Melichar 1902: 91) (Ormenis) – Brazil (Espirito Santo, Bahia, Rio de Janeiro)
= Ormenis viridana Melichar 1902: 91.
= Leptormenis viridana (Melichar 1902); comb. by Melichar 1923: 66.

List compiled primarily from FLOW, also Metcalf (1957) and an unpublished list by Lois O’Brien.

Economic Importance:

Evidently limited.

Known host plants:

None recorded.

Hosts – if there were any – from Wilson et al. (1994); plant names from USDA PLANTS or Tropicos.  See also FLOW (recorded hosts, if any, will be at the bottom of the genus webpage).

Recognition:

Melichar (1923) transferred 5 species to his new genus, and Metcalf (1945: 134) transferred confusa.  Little has been done with the genus since.  Medler (1994) reviewed primary type material of L. confusa, granulata, and viridana at the Stockholm Museum.  The available specimens of L. confusa are female.  The lectotype of granulata was illustrated (Medler 1994, figure 5, below).  Leptormenis viridana was commented on, but had been previously illustrated in Medler 1993 (below).  Medler did not comment on the features of the genus.

The type specimen of Flata relicta is at the University of Copenhagen in the Fabricius’ collection.  Some time ago, photos of the type specimen were taken (by Niels Kristensen), which were subsequently given to me by Lois O’Brien. (The lateral photo will be published in Bartlett et al. (in press).  The original description from Fabricius (1803: 52) is as follows:

Fabricius lists ‘Carolina’ as the type locality. Unfortunately, this must be in error, since there is nothing resembling this species north of Mexico, and relicta is either a Neotropical species which I have not encountered, or an Old World species misreported from the New World.  In any case, the composition of the genus is in doubt.

Type specimen of Flata relicta from the Fabricius collection at the University of Copenhagen, Zoological Museum Natural History Museum of Denmark, courtesy Niels Kristensen.

Online resources:

FLOW.
GBIF.
Discover Life.
Encyclopedia of Life.
Leptormenis is not present on Bugguide.  (All these sites have minimal information.)

Collecting

?

Molecular resources: 

None (on GenBank or Barcode of Life).

Selected references:

Bartlett, C. R., L. B. O’Brien and S. W. Wilson. 2014. A review of the planthoppers (Hemiptera: Fulgoroidea) of the United States. Memoirs of the American Entomological Society 50: 1-287.

Bourgoin T. 2018. FLOW (Fulgoromorpha Lists on The Web): a world knowledge base dedicated to Fulgoromorpha.  Version 8, updated 1 Oct 2018. http://hemiptera-databases.org/flow/

Fabricius, J. C. 1803. Rhyngota. Systema rhyngotorum: secundum ordines, genera, species: adiectis synonymis, locis, observationibus, descriptionibus. C. Reichard, Brunsvigae (=Brunswick), Germany. Pp. 1-101.

Fowler, W. W. 1900. Order Rhynchota. Suborder Hemiptera-Homoptera. (Continued). In: Biologia Centrali-Americana. Porter, London. 1: 44-76.

Medler, J. T. 1993. Types of Flatidae (Homoptera) XIX. Lectotype designations and taxonomic notes on species in the Budapest Museum part 2. Annales Historic-Naturales Musei Nationalis Hungarici 85: 37-45.

Medler, J. T. 1994. Types of Flatidae (Homoptera) in the Stockholm Museum with lectotype designations. Part 2. Entomologica Scandinavica 25(2): 215-225.

Melichar, L. 1902a. Monographie der Acanaloniiden und Flatiden (Homoptera) (Fortsetzung.). Annalen des k. k. Naturhistorischen Hofmuseums. 17 :1-253. Plate(s): 1-9.

Melichar, L. 1923a. Homoptera, fam. Acanaloniidae, Flatidae et Ricaniidae. Genera Insectorum. Bruxelles 182: 1-185.

Metcalf, Z. P. 1938a. The Fulgorina of Barro Colorado and other parts of Panama. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard College 82: 277-423.

Metcalf, Z. P. 1945 Fulgoroidea (Homoptera) of Kartabo, Bartica District, British Guiana. Zoologica [Scientific contributions of the New York Zoological Society] 30(3): 125-143.

Metcalf, Z. P. 1957. General Catalogue of the Homoptera. Fascicle IV, Fulgoroidea, Part 13, Flatidae and Hypochthonellidae. North Carolina State College, Raleigh, North Carolina. Pp. 1-565.

Schaum, H. R. 1850. Fulgorellae. Allegemeine Encyklopädie der Wissenschaften und Kunste in alnhaberischen folge von Genannten Schriftstellern bearbeitet und herausgegeben von I. S. Ersch und I. G. Gruber mit Kupfern und Charten. Erster Section A -G. 51:58-73.

Spinola, M. 1839a. Essai sur les Fulgorelles, sous-tribu de la tribu des Cicadaires, ordre des Rhyngotes. Annales de la Société Entomologique de France 8: 133-337.

Spinola, M. 1839b. Essai sur les Fulgorelles, sous-tribu de la tribu des Cicadaires, ordre des Rhyngotes. (Suite). Annales de la Société Entomologique de France 8: 339-454.

Wilson, S. W., C. Mitter, R. F. Denno and M. R. Wilson. 1994. Evolutionary patterns of host plant use by delphacid planthoppers and their relatives. In: R. F. Denno and T. J. Perfect, (eds.). Planthoppers: Their Ecology and Management. Chapman and Hall, New York. Pp. 7-45 & Appendix.