New records of Heteroptera from the Canary Islands (Spain), IX

Abstract

The first record of Halobates micans Eschscholtz, 1822 (Heteroptera: Gerridae) on the island of El Hierro is reported. This is the first record of the genus Halobates Eschscholtz, 1822 in the Canary archipelago. The known distribution of H. micans in Macaronesia is summarised. Furthermore, the first record of Aradus canariensis Kormilev, 1954 (Heteroptera: Aradidae) on the island of La Palma is reported and the known distribution of the species in the archipelago is summarised.

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ISSN: 1989-6581
van der Heyden (2023)
ARQUIVOS ENTOMOLÓXICOS, 27: 161-163
161
NOTA / NOTE
New records of Heteroptera from the Canary Islands (Spain),
IX
Torsten van der Heyden
Immenweide 83. 22523 Hamburg (GERMANY). e-mail: tmvdh@web.de
Abstract: The first record of Halobates micans Eschscholtz, 1822 (Heteroptera: Gerridae) on the island of El Hierro is
reported. This is the first record of the genus Halobates Eschscholtz, 1822 in the Canary archipelago. The known
distribution of H. micans in Macaronesia is summarised. Furthermore, the first record of Aradus canariensis Kormilev,
1954 (Heteroptera: Aradidae) on the island of La Palma is reported and the known distribution of the species in the
archipelago is summarised.
Key words: Heteroptera, Aradidae, Gerridae, Aradus canariensis, Halobates micans, first records, distribution, El
Hierro, La Palma, Canary Islands, Spain.
Resumen: Nuevas citas de Heteroptera de las Islas Canarias (España), IX. Se presenta la primera cita de Halobates
micans Eschscholtz, 1822 (Heteroptera: Gerridae) en la isla de El Hierro. Esta es la primera cita del género Halobates
Eschscholtz, 1822 en el archipiélago canario. Se resume la distribución conocida de H. micans en Macaronesia. Además, se
presenta la primera cita de Aradus canariensis Kormilev, 1954 (Heteroptera: Aradidae) en la isla de La Palma y se resume
la distribución conocida de la especie en el archipiélago.
Palabras clave: Heteroptera, Aradidae, Gerridae, Aradus canariensis, Halobates micans, primeras citas, distribución, El
Hierro, La Palma, Islas Canarias, España.
Recibido: 13 de diciembre de 2023 Publicado on-line: 30 de diciembre de 2023
Aceptado: 25 de diciembre de 2023
The genus Halobates Eschscholtz, 1822 (Heteroptera: Gerridae) is the only taxon of insects that
contains species which live on the open ocean. Five species of Halobates are completely oceanic in
habitat (CHENG, 1985; ANDERSEN & CHENG, 2004; CHENG & MISHRA, 2022). Among them, only
Halobates micans Eschscholtz, 1822 is present in the Atlantic Ocean (CHENG, 1985, 2006; ANDERSEN
& CHENG, 2004).
So far, in Macaronesia H. micans has been reported from the Azores (RIBES & BORGES, 2005)
and from Madeira (RIBES & HEISS, 2008). In the Azores, H. micans sometimes occurs “in fair numbers
in a bay near the marine station on Faial Island” (Lanna Cheng, pers. comm.).
Now, H. micans can be reported from the Canary Islands, too: On 06-12-2023, a male specimen
(Fig. 1) was found near Arenas Blancas, located at the northwestern coast of the island of El Hierro.
Four photographs of the specimen were uploaded to the online database iNaturalist (see here). Based on
a photo, the identification of the specimen was confirmed by Lanna Cheng (pers. comm.).
     
Up to now, Aradus canariensis Kormilev, 1954 (Heteroptera: Aradidae) has been reported for the
islands of El Hierro and Tenerife (HEISS, 1979; HEISS & BÁEZ, 1990; HEISS & RIBES, 1992;
AUKEMA et al., 2006, 2013; ROCA-CUSACHS et al., 2020).

van der Heyden (2023): New records of Heteroptera from the Canary Islands (Spain), IX
162
The island of La Palma can be added to the list of the distribution of A. canariensis in the
Canary archipelago: On 08-12-2023, a male specimen (Fig. 2) was found near Las Tricias in the
northwestern part of the island. Two photographs of the specimen were uploaded to the online database
iNaturalist (see here). Based on a photo, the identification of the specimen was confirmed by Ernst
Heiss (pers. comm.).
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank Amanhuy Duque Hernández and Ben Jobson for allowing me to use their photos to
illustrate this note. Special thanks to Lanna Cheng for confirming the identification of the specimen of
H. micans and for useful information, as well as to Ernst Heiss for confirming the identification of the
specimen of A. canariensis.
References
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Fig. 1.– Male specimen of Halobates micans
Eschscholtz, 1822, near Arenas Blancas, El Hierro,
Canary Islands, Spain. (Photo: Amanhuy Duque
Hernández).
Fig. 2.– Male specimen of Aradus canariensis
Kormilev, 1954, near Las Tricias, La Palma, Canary
Islands, Spain. (Photo: Ben Jobson).
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