Fidia spuria Lefèvre

Strother, M. S. & Staines, C. L., 2008, A revision of the New World genus Fidia Baly 1863 (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Eumolpinae: Adoxini), Zootaxa 1798 (1), pp. 1-100 : 59-65

Fidia spuria Lefèvre

( Figs. 20 , 62 , 84 ; Map 6)

Fidia spuria Lefèvre 1877: 165 (original description); Jacoby 1882: 166 (faunal treatment); Lefèvre 1885: 76 (catalog); Clavareau 1914: 77 (catalog); Blackwelder 1946: 662 (checklist); Bechyné 1953: 250 (catalog); Wilcox 1975: 57 (checklist); Flowers 1996: 36 (checklist).

It is impossible to know how many specimens Lefèvre had before him when he described this species, but he clearly had more than one because he gave ranges for the length and width measurements. Lectotype here designated (♀, BMNH): "Type [white disc with red border] / Juquila / Type / Mexico Salle Coll. / Fidia spuria E. Lef. Type [handwritten] / Fidia spurius, Lef. apud Salle. [handwritten] / 557 [blue] / Type. Sp. figured / B.C.A. 166.2. / 2. Fidia spuria . [folded] / LECTOTYPE Fidia spuria Lefèvre design. M.S.Strother 1993 [red]". The specimen is rather dirty but otherwise in good condition with all appendages intact. It is pinned through the right elytron, with the wings exserted at the apex. The specimen is clearly teneral with brownish-yellow coloration, the abdomen slightly shriveled, and the left elytron bearing several diagonal and transverse creases. No other specimens of F. spuria were found in the BMNH (S. L. Shute pers. comm.) nor in the Lefèvre collection at the MNHN (N. Berti pers. comm.). The whereabouts of the remainder of Lefèvre's syntype series is unknown, and no paralectotypes are here designated.

Fidia atra Jacoby 1882: 168 (original description) (nec Motschulsky 1860); Lefèvre 1885: 75 (catalog); Clavareau 1914: 76 (catalog); Blackwelder 1946: 662 (catalog); Bechyné 1953: 249 (catalog). New Synonymy.

In his description, Jacoby stated that he had only a single specimen before him. Holotype (♀, BMNH): "Type [white disc with red border] / Oaxaca, Mexico. Hoege. / Fidia atra Jac. type [blue, handwritten in Jacoby's hand by comparison with plate 3 figures I and J of Smith & Lawrence (1967)] / B.C.A. 168.10. / Fidia atra . [folded] / HOLO- TYPE Fidia atra Jacoby [red, added by M. S. Strother]", is the holotype. The specimen is in good condition with all appendages intact. It is glued parallel to the axis of a point, with the point covering the entire ventral surface of the abdomen and much of the metasternum as well.

Description. Males: TL = 4.22–4.67 mm, HW = 1.88–2.06 mm. Females: TL = 4.81–5.33 mm, HW = 2.28– 2.60 mm. Color: Entirely dark red-brown to black, usually with more or less distinct, metallic blue luster, especially on pronotum and elytra; pubescence silvery-white. Pronotum: Length subequal to width, widest posteriad middle, sides more convex basally in dorsal view, dorsum slightly to moderately convex in lateral view; densely, coarsely punctate-reticulate; pubescence moderately dense, uniformly distributed, not obscuring surface sculpture; setae fine, hair-like, recumbent. Mesepisternum: Entirely glabrous. Elytra: Intrahumeral callus prominent, posteriorly bordered by shallow lunate impression; asetose punctate-striae present, less distinct on intrahumeral callus and apical 1/3; punctures larger, coarser, more closely spaced basally than on apical 1/3; interstices flat to feebly convex, moderately densely punctulate; pubescence moderately dense, uniformly distributed, not obscuring surface sculpture; setae fine, hair-like, recumbent. Abdomen: Males: medial area of first three sterna feebly flattened; first sternum with large, impunctate, glabrous area. Females: medial area of all sterna evenly convex, uniformly punctate-pubescent; apical margin of last sternum concave, bearing distinct, acute medial process with pointed apex. Both sexes with pygidium dorsally feebly convex in apical ½ with broadly rounded apex. Legs: Both sexes with femora gradually tapered towards base. Males with all tibial spurs small, lacking visible surface sculpture; pro- and mesobasitarsi moderately expanded; disco-setae on all basitarsi. Penis: In posterior view, sides basally distinctly tapered, apically subparallel; apex with acutely rounded apical process; euventral surface of medial tooth distinctly concave. In lateral view, eudorsal surface of declivitous part distinctly convex; euventral surface feebly concave; apical tooth feebly recurved. Sperm guide composed of upper and lower sclerites. Spermatheca: Basal arm type.

Diagnosis. Medium-sized (4.22–5.33 mm); entirely blackish, often with faint metallic blue luster; sides of pronotum distinctly arcuate in dorsal view; pubescence uniformly distributed on pronotum and elytra; intrahumeral callus well-developed. Males with abdominal sterna lacking distinct modifications; all tibial spurs small, lacking visible surface sculpture; apical process of penis narrow ( Fig. 84 ). Females with apicomedial process of last abdominal sternum acute with pointed apex ( Fig. 62 ).

Fidia spuria is similar to some specimens of F. humeralis , F. marraverpa , and F. pedestris . Characters distinguishing it from these three species are given in the diagnosis of each, respectively.

Distribution (Map 6). Fidia spuria is only known from the Sierra Madre del Sur in Guerrero and Oaxaca,

Mexico. Collecting elevations ranged from 853–2560 m. Specimens Examined (3♂♂, 5♀♀) . MEXICO. GUERRERO: 2 mi. E. Ocotito, vii:11:1985 ( TAMU:1), 4.5 mi. NW. El Ocotito, vii:7:1987

(BYUC:1), 4.5 mi. Ocotito, vii:7:1987 (TAMU:2), 7–10 km. W El Ocotito, ix:15:1989 (RHT:1), 7–10 km W

El Ocotito, ix:15,16,22:1989 (JEWC:1). Temporal Data. Collecting dates ranged from 7 July to 22 September. Natural History. The only habitat data given were "oak, pine, acacia forest." FIGURES 38–41. Right mesothoracic femur (scale bar = 0.5 mm.). 38. F. texana . 39. F. dichroma . 40. F. xanthonioides . 41. F. papillata .

Taxonomic History. Lefèvre (1877) first described this taxon as F. spuria . Jacoby (1882) figured the type of F. spuria and described F. atra (nec Motschulsky 1860) as a new, all black species. The lectotype of F. spuria and the holotype of F. atra share all of the diagnostic characters of the species and differ only in the fact that the lectotype of F. spuria is teneral and not completely melanized. Since F.atra Jacoby is a synonym of F. spuria , the homonymous relationship between F. atra Jacoby 1882 and F. atra Motschulsky 1860 is to be disregarded (Art. 57.8.1, ICZN 1999).

FIGURES 50–52. Leg characters (scale bar = 0.5 mm). 50. Metachroma sp. left meso- and metathoracic tibiae. 51. F. viticida bifid claw. 52. Colaspis louisianae appendiculate tarsal claw.

Figures

FIGURES 17–20. Dorsal habitus of Fidia species. 17. F.pedestris. 18. F. pedinops. 19. F. rileyorum. 20. F. spuria.

FIGURES 61–70. Last visible abdominal sternum of female (scale bar = 1.0 mm). 61. F. rileyorum. 62. F.spuria. 63. F. delilahae. 64. F. pedestris. 65. F. papillata. 66. F. confusa. 67. F. marraverpa. 68. F. dichroma. 69. F. humeralis. 70. F. xanthonioides.

FIGURES 84–86. Distal part of male aedeagus, lateral and dorsal views (scale bar = 0.5 mm). 84. F. spuria. 85. F. pedestris. 86. F. marraverpa.