Comments clarify taxonomic status of Rhynocoris costalis and R. fuscipes, suggesting misidentification impacts biocontrol studies.
The two closely related Oriental species of the genus Rhynocoris, R. costalis (Stål, 1867) and R. fuscipes (Fabricius, 1787), exhibit remarkable morphological similarity, particularly in their overall red and black body coloration, including the head, thorax, and abdomen. Based on the examination of type specimens and non-type material collected from various localities of southern China, we found these two congeners were misidentified in many previous publications. Due to the restricted distribution and limited population size of R. fuscipes in China, most taxonomic, biological, and biocontrol studies conducted under the name Harpactor fuscipes or Rhynocoris fuscipes should be instead attributed to R. costalis. To address this confusion regarding these two species, the present study clarifies the taxonomic status of the two controversial species—R. costalis and R. fuscipes. Additionally, a new species, Rhynocoris minutus Liu, Zhao & Cai sp. nov., collected from southwestern China, is described and illustrated. A key to the 13 species in Rhynocoris currently recorded in China is provided.
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Liu et al. (2025) studied this question.
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