Chrysolina markamensis Daccordi et Ge

Ge, Si-Qin, Daccordi, Mauro, Li, Wen-Zhu & Yang, Xing-Ke, 2011, Seven new species of the genus Chrysolina Motschulsky from China (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Chrysomelinae), Zootaxa 2736, pp. 31-43 : 32-34

Chrysolina markamensis Daccordi et Ge , sp. nov.

( Figs. 1 A–F)

Diagnosis. Metallic bronze; hind wing absent; pronotum lacking setigerous punctures on sides of anterior and posterior angles, depression on lateral side shallow, only present on basal part; elytral punctures forming regular single striae; inner edge of epipleura with 1/3 length bristles; hind tarsomere 3 entirely pubescent beneath in male, pubescent ventro-laterally in female; hypomera without punctures; pygidium without longitudinal depression medially.

Description (based on holotype): Colour: Metallic bronze; compound eyes bronze; underside of body reddish brown; legs reddish brown.

Body length: 5.76 mm; width: 2.88 mm.

Body elongate-ovoid ( Fig. 1 A), moderately large; hind-wing absent.

Head: Frons smooth, with sparse, small punctures; coronal suture and frontal suture present; vertex with sparse, small punctures; compound eyes elliptical, dorso-ventral eye length 0.32 mm, interocular distance 1.12 mm; distance from antennal insertion to eye 0.19 mm; distance from antennal insertion to clypeus 0.11 mm; mandible with two denticles, outer surface with small, sparse punctures and sparse pubescence; third segment of maxillary palpi shorter than fourth, apex of fourth segment truncate; antennae with segments narrow, antennal segment (1–11) lengths (in millimeter): 0.32: 0.16: 0.24: 0.16: 0.16: 0.16: 0.16: 0.16: 0.24: 0.28: 0.32 ( Fig. 1 B).

Pronotum: Length: 1.52 mm; width: 2.80 mm; without setigerous punctures on sides of anterior and posterior angles; disc with small, dense punctures, similar to those of head; without lateral callus; depression on lateral side shallow, only present on basal part, with dense punctures in depression near lateral side; disc with lateral punctures lateral small and sparse.

Scutellum : Sub-triangular, with sparse punctures.

Elytra: Suture length: 4.48 mm; width of elytra: 3.60 mm; elytron with punctures forming 9 regular single striae, sutural stria very short and indistinct, punctures as strong as those on side of pronotum; interspaces of elytral striae with very sparse and small punctures, with transverse wrinkles; inner margin with 1/3 length bristles.

Legs: Femora and tibiae with sparse, moderate punctures, sparse pubescence; tarsomere 1 of male protarsus very large, hind tarsi entirely pubescent beneath, relative lengths of hind tarsomeres: 5>1> 3>2, tarsomere 5 not ventrally toothed ( Fig. 1 F).

Venter: Hypomera smooth, without punctures; middle part of intercoxal prosternal process more than half width of apex; prosternum with dense, moderate punctures, truncate behind, not emarginate behind; mesoventrite shorter than prosternum between coxae; metaventrite with dense, moderate punctures, sparse pubescence, intercoxal process bordered and rounded anteriorly, metaventrite as long as prosternum; mesepisternum, mesepimeron, and metepisternum without punctures; abdomen with moderate, dense punctures; last abdominal sternite of male without emargination; pygidium with arcuate apex, without longitudinal depression medially.

Median lobe of aedeagus ( Figs. 1 D-E): Basal part of median lobe much narrower than apex, with a small angle on each side apically; curved in lateral view; flagellum slender.

Variability. All males of the type series are very similar in size, shape and lustre, tarsomere 1 of protarsi enlarged in male; tarsomere 3 of hind tarsi of female with pubescence beneath only at ventro-lateral areas; spermatheca absent. Measurements of the paratypes are as follows: body length: 5.28–6.40 mm; body width: 2.96–3.44 mm; dorso-ventral eye length: 0.28– 0.2 mm; interocular distance: 1.04–1.36 mm; length of pronotum: 1.28–1.76 mm; width of pronotum: 2.64–3.20 mm; suture length: 4.16–5.04 mm; width of elytra: 3.2–4.24 mm; antennal segment (1–11) length (in millimeter): 0.24–0.32: 0.16: 0.16: 0.20–0.24: 0.16: 0.16: 0.16: 0.16: 0.16–0.24: 0.16– 0.28: 0.32 ( Fig. 1 C).

Remarks. Members of this new species are very distinctive, with the aedeagus angulate apically on each side, a feature not seen in any other species of Chrysolina .

Type material. Holotype: male, Xizang: Markam, 4030 m, 12 August 1982, Alpine grassland, leg. Shu-Yong Wang ( IZAS). Paratypes: 5 males and 1 female, same data as holotype (1 male in CAS, 4 males and 1 female in IZAS); 1 male and 2 females ( IZAS), 9 males and 2 females (MDc), 1 male and 1 female ( BMNH), 1 male (HKc), E Xizang: "Lao Shan" Pass road Markam-Zogang, 10 Km W Markam 4300 m, 29°42'N, 98°32'E, 27–28–VI–1997, alpine meadow, leg. Jaroslav Turna.

Distribution. Xizang (Fig. 8).

Etymology. The new species is named for the locality of the type specimens.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Chrysolina markamensis, sp. nov. A. Habitus; B. Left antenna (male); C. Left antenna (female); D. Aedeagus, lateral view; E. Aedeagus apex, dorsal view; F. Tarsus, male; scale bar: 1.0 mm.