Cybocephalus nigritulus LeConte

Smith, Trevor Randall, 2022, Review of the Cybocephalidae (Coleoptera) of North America and the West Indies with descriptions of two new species of Cybocephalus Erichson, Insecta Mundi 2022 (950), pp. 1-35 : 18

Cybocephalus nigritulus LeConte

( Fig. 101–111 )

Cybocephalus nigritulus LeConte 1863: 64 .

Distribution. In most of North America, this species is found east of the Mississippi River from Ontario, Canada, to Florida, USA. However, in the southern USA, C. nigritulus can be found along the northern coast of the Gulf of Mexico west of the Mississippi River and stretching south into Mexico.

Hosts. Dactylopiidae : Dactylopius sp. ; Diaspididae : Chionaspis pinifolia (Fitch) , Fiorinia theae Green , Pseudaulacaspis cockerelli (Cooley) , Pseudaulacaspis pentagona (Targioni-Tozzetti) .

Remarks. Like C. californicus , this species is commonly found in North American insect collections. Cybocephalus nigritulus is often found in large numbers where plants are heavily infested with the above-mentioned scale insects. Aspirating the beetles directly off the plants is the most effective collecting technique in these circumstances. For a full description of this species, see Smith and Cave (2006a).

Figures

Figures 101–111. Cybocephalus nigritulus LeConte. 101) Antenna. 102) Proleg. 103) Mesoleg. 104) Metaleg. 105) Median lobe, variant. 106) Median lobe, variant. 107) Median lobe, lateral view, variant. 108) Median lobe, lateral view, variant. 109) Basal plate, variant. 110) Basal plate, variant. 111) Metanotum.