Brachiacantha groendali (Mulsant) Gordon, Robert D., Canepari, Claudio & Hanley, Guy A., 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 : 37-39

29. Brachiacantha groendali (Mulsant) , new combination

Cleothera billoti groendali Mulsant, 1850: 620 .

Hyperaspis billoti groendali: Crotch 1874: 221 .

Hyperaspis billoti ab. groendali: Korschefsky 1931: 185 ; Blackwelder 1945: 446.

Brachyacantha propria Kirsch, 1876: 119 ; Leng 1911: 292; Korschefsky 1931: 206; Blackwelder 1945: 449. NEW SYNONYM.

Brachyacantha australe Leng, 1911: 292 . NEW SYNONYM.

Brachyacantha australis: Korschefsky 1931: 203; Blackwelder 1945: 448.

Brachyacantha manni Nunenmacher, 1912 ; 150; Korschefsky 1931: 206; Blackwelder 1945: 449. NEW SYNONYM.

Brachiacantha arrowi Brèthes, 1925b: 9 . NEW SYNONYM.

Brachyacantha arrowi: Korschefsky 1931: 203 ; Blackwelder 1945: 448.

Description. Male. Length 2.2 mm, width 1.6 mm; body oval, convex. Dorsal surface with head and pronotum alutaceous, dull, elytron smooth, shiny. Color yellow except pronotum with wide, short basomedian macula extended slightly more than 1/2 distance to anterior pronotal margin, apex of macula deeply, narrowly indented with yellow, lateral 1/3 of macula rectangularly indented with yellow; elytron black with 5 small, yellow spots, all spots more or less rounded except humeral spot triangular, apical spot transversely oval ( Fig. 161 ); ventral surface with head, prosternum, meso- and metaventrites black, legs 1, 2 with outer 1/2 of tibia dark brown, leg 3 entirely dark brown; abdomen dark brown. Head punctures small, separated by a diameter or less, 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 1 to 2 times a diameter; metaventral punctures larger than on elytron, separated by a diameter or less medially, larger and separated by less than a diameter laterally. Clypeus weakly emarginate apically, lateral angle rounded, surface with sparse, long pubescence. Eye canthus about 6 eye facets long, slightly 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, slightly grooved, not descending externally, deeply emarginate for reception of femoral apices. Protibia narrowly flanged, flange narrower than remainder of protibia, outer margin arcuate, smooth, basal tooth large, length about 1/2 width of tibia at base, sponda not extended beyond protibial flange. Carinae on prosternal process narrowly 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 slightly 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; 5th ventrite depressed in median 1/3, apex broadly, weakly emarginate; 6th ventrite depressed medially, apex deeply emarginate. Apical tergite densely punctured, apex slightly emarginate. Genitalia with basal lobe much longer than paramere, penis shaped, slender, symmetrical, sides slightly convergent in basal 1/2, apical 1/2 slightly wider than basal 1/2, sides slightly curved to rounded apex; paramere short, Psc, slender, same width throughout, apex rounded ( Fig. 162, 163 ); sipho robust, strongly curved in basal 1/2, with large lateral alae posterior to apex, basal capsule heavily sclerotized, inner arm short, narrow, apex slightly bifid, outer arm weakly curved, wider and longer than inner arm, with small accessory piece, basal border not emarginate ( Fig. 164–166 ).

Female. Similar to male except head entirely black with small, yellowish red spot at base of frons in middle, pronotum entirely black except narrow, triangular macula on lateral margin yellow. Genitalia with spermathecal capsule short, wide, narrowed from base to apex; bursal cap with arms not sclerotized, apical strut long, widened from base to rounded apex, flat in lateral view ( Fig. 167 ).

Variation. Length 2.0 to 2.6 mm, width 1.4 to 2.0 mm.

Type locality. Of groendali , Brazil; of propria , Peru; of australe , Paraguay; of manni, Independencia, Parahyba , Brazil; of arrowi , Pernambuco, Brazil.

Type depository. Of groendali (holotype), ZMUC ; of propria (lectotype here designated), SNSD ; of australe (holotype), USNM ; of manni (holotype), CASC ; of arrowi (lectotype here designated), BMNH .

Geographical distribution. Bolivia, Brazil, Peru.

Specimens examined. 154. This is a frequently collected species known from Pernambuco, Brazil, south to Argentina and Paraguay. A few specimens have also been seen from Bolivia. Specimens are present in most collections examined. ( BMNH) ( CASC) ( CSCA) ( CMNH) ( DZUP) ( GGC) ( JEBC) ( MKRB) ( USNM) ( ZMHB).

Remarks. Brachiacantha groendali has distinctive male genitalia, but is similar to several other species of Brachiacantha in external appearance. However, the male pronotal color pattern is found in few other species and is useful in distinguishing B. groendali . Examination of type specimens indicated that several synonyms of B. groendali had been named, as indicated below.

Mulsant (1850) described 3 subspecies or variations of his Cleothera billoti , C. groendali, parva , and bourdini . His C. billoti specimens were from the Pilate collection and cannot be located; C. parva specimens were from the Chevrolat collection and are in the UMZC; and C. bourdini specimens came from an unnamed collection and have not been located.

The holotype of B. groendali is labeled “ Brasil, gröndal Billoti M. var. gröndali Muls. (handwritten)/ HOLOTYPE Cleothera (Cyra) billoti grondali Mulsant (red paper).” The lectotype of B. propria is a male labeled “Poznzn Coll Kirsch (green paper) / propria Kirsch (handwritten)/Brachyacantha propria Kirsch (blue paper, handwritten)/Typus (red paper)/Brachyacantha propria Kirsch (handwritten) det. R. Korschefsky 1944/Staatl. museum für Tierkunde, Dresden.” Two other specimens bearing the same labels except the handwritten name on white paper and the Korschefsky det. label are designated paralectotypes. The lectotype of B. arrowi is part of a series of 5 specimens labeled as Type (1) and Syntype (4). Two of these syntypes are females, different species, of unknown ancestry, 3 are males, the type and one syntype have identical male genitalia, the other syntype has radically different male genitalia, a type not seen in any specimens on hand, therefore this one is described as B. pseudoarrowi , n. sp. The lectotype is labeled “Type (orange bordered disc)/Pernam. (handwritten)/type (handwritten)/ Ch.Fry (handwritten)/Fry Coll. 1905.100. /J. Brethes det 1925.” The other 17 specimens are labeled as paralectotypes, although only one is the true B. arrowi . In addition, there are 7 paralectotype specimens in the MBR. The holotype of B. australe is labeled “Sbernardino Paraguay /KFiebrig Collector, U.S. N.M. Paratype 40412.” The holotype of B. manni is labeled “Independencia, Parahyba, Brazil, 1911, Mann and Heath.”

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.