﻿STINK BUGS, GENUS MECIDEA — SAILER 



473 



DISTRIBUTION AND ITS SIGNIFICANCE 



The distribution of Mecidea arouses interest because of its remark- 

 ably discontinuous nature. Although the genus belongs to a pre- 

 dominantly Australasian tribe, the Australasian Region is the only 

 one of the sLx major world zoogeographical regions not included in 

 the distribution of the genus. Within these regions the members 

 of the genus are found in arid or semiarid zones lying roughly between 

 latitude 40° N. and latitude 40° S. (See fig. 88.) 



At the present time the center of distribution of the genus appears 

 to be in the Abyssinian and Uganda higlilands of Africa. Of the 14 

 Old World species 5 are found in or adjacent to this area. Of these 

 5 species 2 are widespread, Mecidea pallidissima being found eastward 

 as far as Central India and pallida over the Near East and the drier 

 parts of Africa north of latitude 10° N. Mecidea pallida is, further- 

 more, closely allied to and possibly identical with indica of India and 

 lepineyi of the western Sahara. The distribution of pallida assumes 

 greater interest with the discovery that the North American species 

 major is so closely related that the two may be no more than sub- 

 specifically distinct. Furthermore, longula, which is known from at 



^PAMPEANA 



Figure 88. — Map showing known distribution of Mecidea (in black). Specific names are 

 intended to provide a diagrammatic picture of the distribution of the two principal species 

 groups. Related species are connected by four lines. 



