Brachiacantha gail Gordon and Canepari, 2014

Gordon, Robert D., Canepari, Claudio & Hanley, Guy A., 2014, South American Coccinellidae (Coleoptera), Part XVI: systematic revision of Brachiacantha Dejean (Coccinellinae: Hyperaspidini), Insecta Mundi 2014 (390), pp. 1-76 : 52

43. Brachiacantha gail Gordon and Canepari , new species

Description. Male holotype. Length 2.0 mm, width 1.6 mm; body rounded, somewhat oval, convex. Dorsal surface with head alutaceous, dull, pronotum and elytron smooth, shiny. Color black except head yellow, pronotum yellow with large, wide mediobasal macula extended 3/4 distance to anterior pronotal margin, macula not indented with yellow on apex, anterolateral angle of macula broadly emarginate with yellow; elytron black with lateral margin narrowly yellow from humeral angle nearly to apex, with single small, reddish yellow spot at apex just inside yellow border ( Fig. 247 ); ventral surface with antenna, mouthparts, legs yellow; abdomen dark brown except ventrites 5–6 yellowish brown. Head punctures small, dense, nearly contiguous, separated by less than a diameter, each puncture about as large as an eye facet; pronotal punctures slightly larger than head punctures, separated by a diameter or less, elytral punctures larger than on pronotum, separated by a diameter or less; metaventral punctures larger than on elytron, separated by less than a diameter. Clypeus emarginate apically, lateral angle rounded, surface with sparse, long pubescence. Eye canthus about 6 eye facets long, angled forward, apically rounded, yellow. Pronotum narrowed from base to apex, basal and anterior angles abrupt, lateral margin weakly rounded, basal margin without trace of bordering line medially. Epipleuron narrow, grooved, not descending externally, deeply emarginate for reception of femoral apices. Protibia narrowly flanged, flange less than width of remainder of protibia, outer margin straight, smooth, basal tooth short, length about 1/6 width of tibia at base, sponda not extended beyond protibial flange ( Fig. 248 ). Carinae on prosternal process narrowly separated at apex, convergent toward base, joined just anterior to middle of prosternum. Metaventrite without setal tuft. Basal abdominal ventrite without setal tuft. Abdomen with postcoxal line on basal abdominal ventrite flattened along posterior ventrite margin, extended forward apically, ventrite with sparse, long pubescence and small, dense punctures; ventrites 2–6 pubescent throughout, punctures fine, dense; ventrite 3 without cusp on each side of middle, ventrites 1–6 emarginate medially with clump of setae on each side of depression; 5th ventrite with apex broadly, weakly emarginate; 6th ventrite with apex broadly emarginate. Apical tergite densely punctured, apex emarginate. Genitalia with basal lobe slightly longer than paramere, symmetrical, sides weakly “pinched” in basal 7/8, widened in apical 1/8, sides angled to acutely rounded apex, dorsal surface with arcuate carina on each side of middle; paramere Psc, wide, nearly straight from base to obliquely truncate apex ( Fig. 249 ); sipho robust, curved in basal 1/2, without visible lateral alae, basal capsule lightly sclerotized, inner arm short, triangular, apex rounded, outer arm wider and longer than inner arm, with accessory piece, basal border broadly, shallowly emarginate ( Fig. 250, 251 ).

Female. Unknown.

Variation. None observed.

Type material. Holotype male; Brazil, Dianópolis, GO, 16-22.I.1962, J. Bechyné col. ( DZUP) . Paratypes; 2, same data as holotype except date “ 11-14.I.1962 ( DZUP) .

Remarks. This species has the same type of male genitalia as B. danielle , but is distinguished from that species and all other Brachiacantha by the elytral color pattern that consists of a narrow, yellow lateral margin and a small, apical spot. This color pattern is slightly similar to that of B. eleanor , and strongly similar to that of the much larger B. buckleyi .

Figures

Figures 247–258. 247–251. Brachiacantha gail. 247) Habitus. 248) Protibia. 249) Phallobase ventral. 250) Apical 2/3 of sipho. 251) Enlarged siphonal apex. 252–254. Brachiacantha appropinquata. 252) Habitus. 253) Protibia. 254) Female genitalia. 255–258. Brachiacantha argentinica. 255) Habitus. 256) Protibia. 257) Female genitalia. 258) Enlarged spermathecal capsule.