Cassida rothschildi Spaeth, 1922

Borowiec, Lech & Świętojańska, Jolanta, 2022, A monograph of the Afrotropical Cassidinae (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae). Part 6. Revision of the tribe Cassidini 3, the genus Cassida L., Zootaxa 5171 (1), pp. 1-250 : 137-139

Cassida rothschildi Spaeth, 1922

( figs. 40 , 234–235)

Cassida Rothschildi Spaeth, 1922: 1002 ; Borowiec, 1999 a: 277; Borowiec & Sekerka, 2010: 377; Świętojańska & Borowiec, 2012: 382 .

Description. L: 3.70–4.40 mm, W: 2.85–3.30 mm, Lp: 1.40–1.55 mm, Wp: 2.40–2.80 mm, L/W: 1.29–1.39, Wp/ Lp: 1.65–1.83. Body distinctly more or less converging posterad (fig. 234).

Pronotum and scutellum yellow. Elytral disc yellow, usually with small reddish to brown spots in postscutellar impression and along suture (fig. 234), in extreme case almost entire surface of postscutellar impression brown and suture mostly brown, occasionally elytral disc uniformly yellow. Explanate margin always yellow. Head, ventrites and legs yellow, antennae uniformly yellow or last segment partly infuscate.

Pronotum elliptical, with maximum width in the middle, anterior margin regularly convex, sides angulate, no basal corners. Disc indistinctly bordered from explanate margin, area above head only slightly impressed. Surface of disc from slightly alutaceous to shiny, with moderately coarse and moderately dense punctation, distance between punctures mostly wider than puncture diameter.Area above head with punctures distinctly smaller than on top or sides of disc, sometimes impunctate. Interspaces mostly regular but in some specimens surface of disc appears slightly irregular. Explanate margin moderately broad, with small punctation, especially on sides, shiny, semitransparent to transparent with more or less visible honeycomb structure.

Base of elytra slightly wider than base of pronotum, humeral angles moderately protruding anterad, subangulate. Disc highly convex, with distinct postscutellar impressions but without principal impressions, angulate in postscutellar area but without H–shaped elevation (fig. 235). Punctation moderately coarse to coarse, mostly arranged in completely regular rows, only in postscutellar impressions and on slope punctures mostly irregular, rows not impressed thus sometimes punctures runs in not straight line, distance between punctures from slightly narrower to twice wider than puncture diameter. Marginal row distinct, its punctures not coarser than punctures in central rows. Intervals flat, second interval distinctly wider than first and third intervals, lateral intervals as wide as to twice wider than rows, marginal interval broad, in humeral area slightly wider than submarginal interval and submarginal row combined, no humeral or lateral folds. Explanate margin narrow, strongly declivous, in the widest part approximately six times narrower than disc, surface from slightly alutaceous to slightly shiny with fine and dense punctation and more or less irregular interspaces, semitransparent with more or less visible honeycomb structure.

Eyes moderately large, gena slightly shorter than length of last palpomere. Clypeus very broad, approximately 1.4 times as wide as long. Clypeal grooves fine but well marked, converging in regular triangle surface of clypeus flat or shallowly impressed, its surface shiny with few very small, setose punctures. Labrum very shallowly emarginate. Antennae stout, segments 9–10 distinctly transverse. Length ratio of antennal segments: 100:65:65:61:56:48:52:56: 56:65:109. Segment 3 approximately as long as segment 2 and only slightly longer than segment 4.

Prosternum narrow in the middle, strongly expanded apically, area between coxa flat, shiny, without special sculpture, expanded apex convex, shiny with few small, setose punctures.

Claws simple.

Host plants. Solanaceae : Lycium socotranum Wagn. & Vierh. , Lycium shawii Roem. & Schult. ( Świętojańska & Borowiec, 2012) .

Distribution. Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Sudan, and Kenya ( fig. 40 ).

Remarks. Cassida rothschildi is the only member of the former subgenus Tylocentra known from Africa south of the Sahara. The most closely related species is C. pellegrini Marseul, 1868 recorded from Cyprus, Israel, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia and Tunisia ( Sekerka & Borowiec 2011). Both taxa belong to the group of species with regularly punctate lateral rows on the elytral disc but C. pellegrini distinctly differs in a more elongate body, less convex elytral disc and coarser and denser pronotal punctation. Cassida rothschildi is the smallest member of the subgenus with body length below 4.5 mm. Other species usually have a length above 4.7 mm, although the smallest specimens of C. pellegrini are 4.4 mm in length.

Types examined. Syntype: [ KENYA]: Rendilé, Lasami, M. de Rotschild ( MNHN) .

Other specimens examined. KENYA: Elsamere, 7 IV 1998, 4 on Lycium shawii, ABD (TD, MNHW) ;.

SAUDI ARABIA: BAC Camp , Khamis Mushayt, 2000 m, 17–18 IV 1976, 1, Wittmer & Buettiker ( NMB) .

SUDAN: Kassala, Abend Pass , 5 XII 1962, 1, Linnavuori ( MNHW) .

YEMEN: Soqotra Archipelago , Soqotra , Noged , Farmihin , Steroh, Wadi, 12.24.26 N 54.08.40 E, 24 X 2000, 1, T. Van Harten ( NMB) ; Socotra Island , Firmihin plato, Dracena tree forest, 12°28′465′′N 54°00′89830′′E, 22.– 25.vi.2009, 21 spec. and 2 larvae, V. Hula leg. (7 spec. and 2 larvae in MNHW, rest in JBCB) ; Socotra Island , Dixam plateau, Firmihin (Dracaena forest), 12°28.6′N 54°01.1′E, 490 m, 15.–16.xi.2010, 28 spec., J. Bezděk leg. ( JBCB) ; same data, but L. Purchart leg., 7 spec. ( JBCB) ; same data, but J. Hájek leg., 8 spec. ( NMP) ; same data, but J. Batelka leg., 3 spec. ( JBCP) ; Socotra Island , Diksam plateau, 12°31′24′′N 53°58′29′′E, 850–920 m, 5.ii.2010, 20 spec., L. Purchart & J. Vybíral leg. (JBCB, 10 spec. in LSCL) ; Socotra Island , Wadi Zirik, 12°29.584′N 53°59.475′E, 12.vi.2010, 2 spec., V. Hula & J. Niedobová leg. ( JBCB) ; Socotra Island , Noged , Farmihin , Steroh, Wadi, 12°24′26′′N 54°08′40′′E, 24.x.2000, 1 spec., T. Van Harten leg. ( NHMB) .

Figures

FIGURE 40. Distribution of Cassida rothschildi (black circles), Cassida satanas (black diamond) and Cassida senegalensis (black squares).