Blepharidina picta (Kolbe)

Iannella, Paola D’Alessandro Mattia & Biondi, Maurizio, 2019, Revision of the Afrotropical flea beetle subgenus Blepharidina s. str. Bechyné (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae), Zootaxa 4545 (1) : -

Blepharidina picta (Kolbe)

( Figs 17 , 32 , 37 , 53 , 65 , 69 )

Blepharida picta Kolbe, 1897b: 336 ; Weise 1902: 160; Ferreira 1963: 517

Blepharidina picta (Kolbe) : Biondi et al. 2017: 132, 144

Type material examined. Lectotype ♂ ( Biondi des. in Biondi et al. 2017): “ D. O. Afrika, ( Tanzania)?Khutu (7°46′32''S, 37°36′10''E), Stuhlmann S.” ( ZMHB). ( Kolbe (1897b: 336) reports Ukami (8°30′00''S, 35′44′00''E) as type locality . Paralectotypes: “ D. Ost. Afrika,?Khutu, 1897, S. Stuhlmann ”, 2 ♂ ( ZMHB) . Africa, 1 specimen ( BMNH) ; Deutsch-Ostafrika, 1 specimen ( NMPC) , 1 specimen ( MNHN) ; ditto, S. Stuhlmann leg., 4 specimens ( ZMHB) . Additional material examined in Appendix 1.

Taxonomic observations. Blepharidina picta is closely related to B. laesa , with which it shares the same shape of the aedeagus. However, B. picta is distinguishable from B. laesa by some external characters ( Figs 12, 17 ): size clearly larger (LB ± 8.38 mm; LB = 6.88 mm in B. laesa ); elytral interstriae flat (weakly but distinctly carinate B. laesa ); elytral yellow patches more rounded (more irregularly shaped in B. laesa ); elytral punctures pale (brownish in B. laesa ), clypeus and labrum yellow (both reddish in B. laesa ). About the median lobe of aedeagus, B. picta shows a more rounded apical part and slightly longer basal part (more clearly trapezoidal apical part and straight and slightly shorter basal part in B. laesa ) ( Figs 48 , 53 ). Spermatheca ( Fig. 65 ) with piriform and very sclerotized basal part; ductus thick, with ventrally oriented proximal part. Both males and females are moderately variable in size, but females generally show higher LE/LP ratio and shorter antennae (see Appendix 2).

Distribution. Kenya, Mozambique and Tanzania ( Fig. 69 ). Eastern Afrotropical (EAF) chorotype.

Ecological notes. The collection sites fall within different vegetation types: Eastern African Dry Semi- Deciduous Forest; Eastern & Southern African Lowland Evergreen & Semi-Evergreen Forest; Afromontane Dry Forest; Southern African Swamp Forest; Indo-West Pacific Mangrove; Miombo & Associated Broadleaf Savanna; Eastern African Salt Pan; Eastern African Xeric Scrub.

Figures

FIGURES 11–19. Blepharidina s. str. species habitus: 11, B. knighti (Bryant), ♂ lectotype; 12, B. laesa (Kolbe), ♂ lectotype; 13, B. macarthuri (Bryant), ♂ lectotype; 14, B. matabelelandensis sp. nov., ♂ holotype; 15, B. ornaticollis (Jacoby), ♂ lectotype; 16, B. partita (Jacoby), ♂ from Solwezi, Zambia; 17, B. picta (Kolbe), ♂ from Mikindani, Tanzania; 18, B. regalini sp. nov., ♂ holotype; 19, B. rudeli (Weise), ♀ lectotype.

FIGURES 26–33. Blepharidina s. str. species pronotum and basal part of elytra, in lateral view: 26, B. aliquantula sp. nov.; 27, B. burtli (Bryant); 28, B. kasigauensis sp. nov.; 29, B. kenyana sp. nov.; 30, B. knighti (Bryant); 31, B. ornaticollis (Jacoby); 32, B. picta (Kolbe); 33, B. regalini sp. nov.

FIGURES 34–37. Blepharidina s. str. species elytra, in lateral view: 34, B. burtli (Bryant); 35, B. carinata (Bryant); 36, B. knighti (Bryant); 37, B. picta (Kolbe).

FIGURES 50–54. Blepharidina s. str. species aedeagus, from left to right in ventral, dorsal, and lateral view: 50, B. matabelelandensis sp. nov., holotype; 51, B. ornaticollis (Jacoby), from Ramisi River, Kenya; 52, B. partita (Jacoby), from Solwezi, Zambia; 53, B. picta (Kolbe), from Mikindani, Tanzania; 54, B. regalini sp. nov., holotype.

FIGURES 55–67. Blepharidina s. str. species spermatheca: 55, B. burtli (Bryant), lectotype; 56, B. carinata (Bryant), paralectotype from Angola; 57, B. delineata (Bryant), lectotype; 58, B. guttulata (Baly) lectotype; 59, B. intermedia (Jacoby), from Bagamoyo, Tanzania; 60, B. macarthuri (Bryant), from Usambara, Tanzania; 61, B. matabelelandensis sp. nov., paratype from Lonely, Zimbabwe; 62, B. ornaticollis (Jacoby), from Ramisi River, Kenya; 63, B. partita (Jacoby), from Huila region, Angola; 64, ditto, from Democratic Republic of The Congo; 65, B. picta (Kolbe), from Lindi region, Tanzania; 66, B. regalini sp. nov., paratype from Taveta, Kenya; 67, B. rudeli (Weise), lectotype.

FIGURES 68–69. Blepharidina s. str. species distribution. Vegetation types are from Sayre et al. (2013).

FIGURES 44–49. Blepharidina s. str. species aedeagus, from left to right in ventral, dorsal, and lateral view: 44, B. intermedia (Jacoby), from Kindwitvi, Tanzania; 45, B. kasigauensis sp. nov., holotype; 46, B. kenyana sp. nov., holotype; 47, B. knighti (Bryant), lectotype; 48, B. laesa (Kolbe), lectotype; 49, B. macarthuri (Bryant), lectotype.