Imatidium Fabricius, 1801

Sekerka, Lukáš, 2014, Review of Imatidiini genera (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Cassidinae), Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae 54 (1), pp. 257-314 : 281-282

Imatidium Fabricius, 1801

( Fig. 4 )

Imatidium Fabricius, 1801: 345 . Type species: Imatidium thoracicum Fabricius, 1801 designated by LATREILLE (1810).

Himatidium Latreille, 1804: 131 (unjusti¿ed emendation).

Himatidiella Aslam, 1966: 690 ; BOROWIEC (1984): 412 (synonymy). Type species: Imatidium thoracicum Fabricius, 1801 by original designation; objective junior synonym.

Distinguishing characters. Imatidium species can be readily recognized by having a broadly explanate margin of the elytra and the pronotum, the latter semicircular and as wide as the base of the elytra ( Fig. 4 ), smooth lateroapical margin of the elytra, interantennal area narrow with deep fovea and without a carina, and by the short and ¿liform antennae.

Remarks. Two type species were designated for Imatidium , by different authors, causing a misapplication of the genus, which was solved by BOROWIEC (1984); for more comments see remarks under Aslamidium .

Imatidium was in the past considered a broadly de¿ned genus containing various groups de¿ned by SPAETH (1938), who also proposed the subgenus Parimatidium . Subsequently, ASLAM (1966) described Spaeth’s groups as independent genera: 1st group – Rhodimatidium (= Demotispa ), 2nd group – Himatidiella (= Imatidium sensu type species), 3rd group – Imatidium sensu Aslam (= Aslamidium ), and 4th group = Pseudimatidium .

Number of species. 14 ( SPAETH 1938, BOROWIEC 2000).

Key to species. SPAETH (1938) covered all presently included species.

Biology. Currently, only two species of Imatidium are associated with host plants: I. ru¿ventre Boheman, 1850 with Fabaceae ( GILBERT et al. 2001) and I. thoracicum with Heliconiaceae and Marantaceae ( SPAETH 1938, MESKINS et al. 2008). Based on our ¿eld work, it seems that most species are associated with various Heliconia species rather than with Calathea (Marantaceae) . The feeding record of I. ru¿ventre on Inga (Fabaceae) is a unique dicot association within Imatidiini , but is correct as we repeatedly collected larvae and adults on this host plant (Windsor & Sekerka, unpubl. data).

Distribution. Costa Rica to Bolivia and Brazil.

Figures

Figs 1–11. Dorsal habitus. 1 – Homalispa batesii Baly, 1858, French Guyana: Mt. Kaw; 2 – Cyclantispa gracilis (Baly, 1885), Panama: La Fortuna; 3 –Xanthispa cimicoides (Guérin-Méneville, 1844), French Guyana: Le Larivot; 4 – Imatidium thoracicum Fabricius, 1801, Ecuador: Cascada San Rafael; 5 – Aslamidium (s. str.) capense (Herbst, 1799), French Guyana: Fourgassie; 6 – Aslamidium (Neoaslamidium) pichinchaensis Borowiec, 1998, Ecuador: Puerto Misahuallí; 7 – Calliaspis sachaensis Borowiec & Stojczew, 1998, Ecuador: Shushu¿ndi; 8 – Spaethaspis lloydi Hincks, 1952, Ecuador: Río Puno. 9 – Xenispa testaceicornis (Pic, 1926), Bolivia: Refugio Los Volcanes; 10 – Xenispa costaricensis (Uhmann, 1930), Panama:La Fortuna;11 – Euxema insignis Baly, 1858, syntype, Panama: Volcan de Barú. All scale bars = 2.5 mm.