Discovery of a living fossil: a new xylastodorine species from New Caledonia (Heteroptera: Thaumastocoridae) and first record of the subfamily from the eastern Hemisphere

A new species belonging to the genus Proxylastodoris Heiss & Popov, 2002, P. kuscheli spec. nov., of the subfamily Xylastodorinae Barber, 1920 (Heteroptera: Thaumastocoridae) is described from New Caledonia. It is the first recent record outside the western Hemisphere of the Xyalstodorinae and is the largest known member of the family Thaumastocoridae. The new species was collected on inflorescences of the native New Caledonian palm species Burretiokentia vieillardii (Brongn. & Gris) Pichi-Serm. The habitat, collecting methods, host plant and biology of the new species are described. The biogeography of the Thaumastocoridae and Xylastodorinae is discussed and suggestions for further research are proposed. This discovery is characterised as the discovery of a living fossil as the new species is assigned to the genus Proxylastodoris, previously a monotypic genus described from Baltic amber.