Permalink : http://hdl.handle.net/2115/20009

Keralaspis piperis, gen. et sp. nov., occurring in Kerala, South India, on Piper sp. (probably Piper nigrum), and Himalaspis clerodendri, gen. et sp. nov., occurring in Midland Nepal on Clerodendron infortunatum and C. viscosum, are described. Chionaspis caroli Green, 1919, described from Darjeeling, India, as occurring on tea plant, is transferred to Himalaspis on the basis of the original description. Keralaspis and Himalaspis belong to the tribe Diaspidini, and Himalaspis is referred to the subtribe Chionaspidina on the basis of the second-instar male of the type species. Keralaspis is isolated, whereas Himalaspis is very similar, and probably closely related, to Lineaspis. All these genera are provided with widely separated non-zygotic median trullae, and Keralaspis and Lineaspis are, in addition, characterized by having a pair of gland spines between the median trullae. Keralaspis is tentatively referred to the Chionaspidina by analogy with Himalaspis-Lineaspis context, and supposed to reflect the generalized primitive pattern of the subtribe to a considerable degree.