Brachiacantha clara 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 : 37

28. Brachiacantha clara Gordon and Canepari , new species

Description. Male holotype. Length 3.0 mm, width 2.4 mm; body elongate oval, convex. Dorsal surface with head and pronotum alutaceous, feebly shiny, elytron smooth, shiny. Color black except pronotum entirely black with small yellow spot on anterolateral angle; elytron black with 1 yellowish red, obliquely oval discal spot ( Fig. 157 ); ventral surface with antenna, mouthparts yellow, fore leg 1 yellow except anterior 1/2 of femur brown, mid and hind legs 2–3 with basal 3/4 of femur brown; abdomen dark brown. Head punctures small, separated by less than a diameter, each puncture as large as an eye facet; pronotal punctures as large as head punctures, separated by less than to 2 times a diameter, elytral punctures larger than on pronotum, separated by less than to twice a diameter; metaventral punctures slightly larger than on elytron, separated by 1 to 2 times a diameter. Clypeus emarginate apically, lateral angle rounded, surface with sparse, long pubescence. Eye canthus about 4 eye facets long, slightly angled forward, apically rounded, black. Pronotum narrowed from base to apex, basal and anterior angles abrupt, lateral margin rounded, basal margin with trace of bordering line medially. Epipleuron narrow, slightly descending externally, deeply emarginate for reception of femoral apices. Protibia narrowly flanged, flange about 1/6 as wide as remainder of protibia, outer margin straight, smooth, basal tooth very small, nearly invisible, sponda slightly extended beyond protibial flange. Carinae on prosternal process widely separated at apex, convergent toward base, joined slightly 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 apical ventrite margin, curved forward at apex, 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; 5th ventrite depressed in median 1/3, apex slightly emarginate; 6th ventrite medially depressed, apex shallowly emarginate. Apical tergite finely, densely punctured, apex weakly emarginate. Genitalia with basal lobe longer than paramere, symmetrical, sides convergent from base to apical 3/4, apical 1/4 barely perceptibly narrower, apex acutely rounded; paramere short, Psc, slender ( Fig. 158, 159 ); sipho robust, strongly curved in basal 2/3, with lateral alae immediately behind apex, with short, bulbous, wide area at apical 2/3, basal capsule strongly sclerotized, inner arm short, narrow, apex widely emarginate, outer arm wider and longer than inner arm, with accessory piece, basal border shallowly emarginate ( Fig. 160 ).

Female. Unknown.

Variation. Unknown.

Type material. Holotype male; ( Brazil) Vila Velha-PR, Brasil 20-XI-1966, Pa. Moure, V. Graf. Mieleke, Azevado. ( DZUP).

Remarks. Brachiacantha clara has a unique dorsal color pattern with a single, large, yellowish red spot on each elytron. Male genitalia have a basal lobe that is more slender than in other species of this group, and the protibial tooth is difficult to detect. Other members of the blandula group have very small protibial teeth, but in B. clara that tooth is essentially absent.

Figures

Figures 157–174. 157–160. Brachiacantha clara. 157) Habitus. 158) Phallobase ventral. 159) Phallobase lateral. 160) Sipho. 161–167. Brachiacantha groendali. 161) Habitus. 162) Phallobase lateral. 163) Phallobase ventral. 164) Sipho. 165) Siphonal apex dorsal. 166) Enlarged siphonal apex obliquely lateral. 167) Female genitalia. 168–174. Brachiacantha eva. 168) Habitus. 169) Protibia. 170) Phallobase ventral. 171) Phallobase lateral. 172) Sipho. 173) Enlarged siphonal apex. 174) Female genitalia.