Morphosphaera albipennis Allard

Lee, Chi-Feng & Bezdĕk, Jan, 2016, Revision of the genus Morphosphaera Baly (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Galerucinae), Zootaxa 4179 (1), pp. 1-41 : 4-6

Morphosphaera albipennis Allard

( Figs 1–2 )

Morphosphaera albipennis Allard, 1889a: 309 (Cambodia) ; Allard, 1889b: 67 (notes); Weise, 1924: 129 (list); Laboissière, 1930: 364 (Vietnam); Wilcox, 1971: 218 (list); Medvedev & Dang, 1982: 91 (host plants); Kimoto, 1989: 97 (Thailand, Laos); Yang et al., 2015: 189 (key, list).

Morphosphaera sumatrana: Jacoby, 1889: 207 (Myanmar) . Misidentification

Galerucida simplex Weise, 1922: 91 ( Vietnam) ; Wilcox, 1971: 206 (list); Kimoto, 1989: 97 (as synonym of M. albipennis ). Synonymy confirmed

Morphosphaera sodalis Chen, 1935: 778 (China: Guizhou); Gressitt & Kimoto, 1963b: 560 (list); Wilcox, 1971: 220 (list); Beenen, 2010: 462 (list); Yang et al., 2015: 189 (key), 190 (list). New synonym

Morphosphaera brunnea Maulik, 1936: 321 ( Myanmar) ; Wilcox, 1971: 218 (list); Takizawa, 1988: 6 ( Nepal); Medvedev & Sprecher-Uebersax, 1999: 315 (list); Kimoto, 2005: 65 (list); Beenen, 2010: 462 (list); Sprecher-Uebersax, 2011: 441 (list). New synonym

Type material. Morphosphaera albipennis . Holotype ♀ (MNHN), labeled: “PP (= Pnomh-Penh) [p, y] // Ex- Musaeo / E. ALLARD / 1899 [p, w] // Morphosphara / albipennis all. [h, y] // TYPE [p, r]”.

Galerucida simplex . Lectotype (NHRS, sex undetermined), here designated, labeled: “Central-Tonkin / Chiem-Hoa [p, w] // Aug. Sept. / H. Fruhstorfer [p, w] // simplex / m [h, w] // Typus [p, r] // NHRS-JLKB / 0 0 0 0 23319 [p, w]”. Paralectotype: 1 ex. (MNHUB, sex undetermined), labeled: “Central-Tonkin / Chiem-Hoa / Aug. Sept. / H. Fruhstorfer [p, w] // Galerucida / simplex / m. [h, w]”

Morphosphaera sodalis . Holotype ♀ ( IZAS, by monotypus), labeled: “ 貴州 (= Kweichow or Guizhou): 平舟 (= Pingzhou) / 1930. IX.16 [h] / 中國科 學院 (= Academia Sinica, China) [p, w] // HOLOTYPE [p, r] // IOZ(E) 215727 [p, b] // Morphosphaera / sodalis Chen [h] // 鑑定者: 陳世驤 (= det. Sicien Chen) [h, w]”.

Morphosphaera brunnea . Holotype Ƌ (BMNH, by monotypus), labeled: “63005 [h, w] // Doherty [p, w] // Type [p, w, circle label with red border] // Tenasserim [p] / Tavoy [h, w] // Fry Coll. / 1905, 100. [p, w] // Morphosphaera / brunnea Maulik [h] / S. Maulik [p] / 1934 Type [h, w]”.

Description. Length 7.0– 7.2 mm, width 4.6– 4.6 mm. Head, meso- and metathoracic, and abdominal ventrites black or blackish brown, meso- and metathoracic, and abdominal ventrites with bluish reflection, sides of each abdominal ventrite and apex of last abdominal ventrite yellowish brown; elytron yellowish brown; scutellum brown ( Figs 1 A–1C); prothorax yellow, pronotum with seven black spots ( Fig. 1 D): two pairs at sides near base, inner pair much larger than outer one, another pair near median line and apical margin, smaller than inner pair but larger than outer ones, one at median line and near base, similar to outer pairs in size. Antenna filiform ( Fig. 2 A), 0.5x as long as body; length ratios of antennomeres II to XI about 1.0: 1.1: 1.8: 1.8: 1.7: 1.9: 1.8: 1.9: 1.7: 2.0, and length to width ratios of antennomeres II to XI about 1.9: 2.1: 2.8: 2.8: 2.7: 3.0: 2.9: 3.0: 2.7: 3.2. Aedeagus ( Figs 2 B–2C) slender in dorsal view, 8.5x longer than wide, parallel-sided; apically tapering from apical 1/7; ventral surface well sclerotized and smooth; almost straight in lateral view; with several stout setae on ventral surface of internal sac; apical processes of endophallic sclerite acute; apico-lateral processes joined internally; without pair of erect processes at apical 1/3; base tubelike. Gonocoxae reduced. Ventrite VIII ( Fig. 2 D) with short spiculum; apex transverse and apically tapering, apical area scattered with long and short setae. Receptacle of spermatheca ( Fig. 2 E) strongly swollen, pump much narrower and longer, sharply curved; proximal spermathecal duct extremely short and narrow.

Diagnosis. Morphosphaera albipennis is characterized by the seven black spots on the pronotum and yellowish brown elytra.

Host plant. Moraceae sp. ( Medvedev & Dang 1982).

Other material examined. CHINA. Yunnan: 1 ex., Cangshan mts. , E slope, 2000–2500m, 21.VI.1992, leg. D. Král ( NHMB) ; 1 ex., Dali-W env., 20–25.VIII.1998, leg. O. Šafránek & M. Trýzna (SMNS); INDIA. Arunachal Pradesh: 1 ex., Mishmi Hills, Mondon , leg. M. Steele ( BMNH) ; Assam: 1 ex., Lohit Valley, Minzang , 25– 27.III.1933, leg. F. K. Ward & R. J. H. Kaulback ( BMNH); LAOS. 5 exs. , Annam ( NHMB, NMPC) ; 1 ex., Vientiane, Ban Van Eue , 15–31.V.1965, leg. Native collector ( BPBM) ; 1 ex., Umgeb. Paksé, 1964 (ZSM); 1 ex., Umgeb. Pakley, 1964 (ZSM); 1 ex., Umg. Vientiane, III.–VI.1 963 ( ZSM) ; MYANMAR. 1 ex., Bhamò , VII.1886, leg. Fea, Morphosphaera sumatrana Jac. , det. M. Jacoby, 1889 ( MCSN) ; 1 ex., Carin Ghecù , 1300–1600 m, II- III.1888, leg. Fea, Morphosphaera sumatrana var? Jac., det. M. Jacoby ( MCSN) ; 6 exs., Meigui , I.1927, leg. R. N. Parker ( BMNH) ; 1 ex., Teinzò , 1886, leg. Fea & Magqio, Morphosphaera sumatrana Jac. , det. M. Jacoby, 1889 ( MCSN) ; THAILAND. 1 ex., Chiang Mai, I.1989, leg. Trautner & Geigenmüller ( SMNS) ; 1 ex., Chiang Mail, Kwai river , 23.XI.1998, leg. N. Hartmann ( NME) ; VIETNAM. 1 ex., Ha Son-Binh, Cho Bo , 16.X.1976, leg. L. Medvedev ( SMNS) ; 1 ex., Haut-Tonkin, Madon, Riviere Claire (IRSB); 1 ex., Phu Lang Thuong , I.1902 [mistakenly labelled as cotype of M. albipennis ] ( ZMUH) .

Distribution. China (Guizhou, Yunnan), Cambodia, India (Arunachal Pradesh, Assam), Laos, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand, Vietnam.

Figures

FIGURES 1. Habitus of Morphosphaera albipennis Allard, 1889. 1 A. Dorsal view; 1 B. Ventral view; 1 C. Head; 1 D. Pronotum.

FIGURES 2. Diagnostic characters of Morphosphaera albipennis Allard, 1889. 2 A. Antenna; 2 B. Penis, dorsal view; 2 C. Penis, lateral view; 2 D. Abdominal ventrite VIII; 2 E. Spermatheca.