Medeopteryx flagrans (Ballantyne) Ballantyne & Lambkin, 2013

Ballantyne, Lesley A. & Lambkin, Christine L., 2013, Systematics and Phylogenetics of Indo-Pacific Luciolinae Fireflies (Coleoptera: Lampyridae) and the Description of new Genera, Zootaxa 3653 (1), pp. 1-162 : 89

Medeopteryx flagrans (Ballantyne) comb. nov.

[ Figs 146 , 158 ]

Pteroptyx flagrans Ballantyne, 1987a:151 .

Holotype. Male. NEW GUINEA: 144.58E, 5.59S, Chimbu District , Catherine Mission ( ANIC).

Other specimens examined. Specimens are in BPBM unless otherwise indicated, and listings extend Ballantyne (1987a). NEW GUINEA: 145.53E, 5.54S, Above Kerowagi, 2300m, vii.6.1955, JLG, male. 144.37E. 5.55S, Minj, W Highlands, ix.8–13.1959, sweeping, T. Maa, 2 males, 2 females. 145.04E, 6.37S, Karimui, 1080m, 13.vii.1963 , male. 146.40E, 7.22S, Wau, Morobe District , Mt Missim, 1100m, 17.i.1963 , H. Clissold , male; 880– 1050m, 8–9.ii.1963 , male; 1450m, 20.iii.1974, on Urticaceae, JLG male. Wau , Bulolo River, 850–900m, 24.viii.1965 , male; 1100–1200m, 25.ix.1968, male NK. Morobe Dist. , Aseki, 1100m, 13.iv.1974 , A. Hart, male. Feramin , 150– 120m, 11–22.v.1959 , WB, male. Chimbu District , Kundiu, Catherine Mission. 26–29.XI.1969 , 8 mating pairs; one MP #6, 13.XI.1969; 1 MP no spect. 8.XI.1969 ( ANIC) .

INDONESIA, West Irian (as New Guinea, Netherlands): 140.10E, 2.48S, Genjam, 40 km W of Hollandia , 100–200m, 1–10.iii. 1963, T. Maa, male. Guega, W. of Swart Valley , 1200m, 15.xi.1958, JLG, 2 males. Swart Valley , W side , 1400–2000m, xi.13.1958, male, JLG. Swart Valley , Karubaka , 1450m, xi.12.1958, male; 1300m, xi.7.1958, 2 males, 3 females, JLG.

Diagnosis. 6.1–7.1mm long; pronotum, MP yellow, MS dusky yellow, darker than pronotum; frons and labrum sometimes orange; elytral apices rounded ( Fig. 146 ); LOs entire in V7; dimple and hump absent; distinguished from M. torricelliensis ( Fig. 183 ) by its smaller size and the outline of the terminal abdomen; from M. hanedai by the uniformly orange pronotum, and M. sublustris by the smooth surface of the pronotum (see Fig. 184 ) ( Ballantyne 1987a Fig. 12 ; Ballantyne & McLean 1970 Figs 14, 15 ).

Female ( Fig. 158 ) (Kundiu specimens). 5.9–7.2 mm long. Colour: as for male except for dusky brown MS, pale LO in V6, and slightly paler brown V7, 8 which may be irregularly marked laterally in darker brown. Abdomen: posterior margin of V6 not medially emarginate, posterolateral corners rounded; posterior margin of V7 broadly, shallowly and evenly emarginated, posterolateral corners rounded; V8 not indented in median line. Bursa with two sets of wide plates.

Remarks. Ballantyne (1987a:152) described the flashing patterns of this species which earned it the common name of "flickerer" used by Lloyd, Buck, Hopkins and others.

Lloyd (1973a) described "3 common and distinctive luminescent patterns" and the female behaviour pattern, where "females are attracted to and land near flashing males. In other species (non Pteroptyx ) studied in New Guinea and elsewhere, it is the males that are attracted to stationary luminescing females".

Figures

FIGURES 139–146. Medeopteryx spp. Males (ANIC). 139–142 M. corusca. 143 M. cribellata. 144 M. effulgens. 145 M. fulminea. 146 M. flagrans. 139, 140 abdomen, ventral (139, anterior margin of V4 arrowed) and dorsal; 141 apices of elytra ventral; 142 tergite 8 ventrolateral, flange arrowed; 143–146 terminal abdomen and elytral apices, ventral. These figures share scale lines: 139, 140.

FIGURES 154–159. Medeopteryx spp. female abdomens ventral (not to scale) (ANIC). 154 M. antennata. 155 M. corusca (mating pair Catherine Mission). 156 M. cribellata (G381 mating pair). 157 M. effulgens (Kah New Ireland). 158 M. flagrans (G535). M. fulminea (Kar Kar Island).

FIGURES 177–184. Medeopteryx spp. Males. 177–182 M. similispupillae sp. nov. paratypes. 183 M. torricelliensis. 184 M. sublustris, diagrammatic representation of pronotal sculpturing. 177, 183 dorsal; 178, 179 abdomen, ventral (178) and dorsal; 180–182 aedeagus dorsal (180), left lateral (181) and ventral (182). These figures share scale lines: 180–182

FIGURES 9–17. Australoluciola anthracina type male, Cyclops (MNHN). 9, 10 dorsal (9) and ventral; 11 V6, 7 ventral; 12 pronotum dorsal; 13 type labels; 14 aedeagal sheath ventral; 15-17 aedeagus, dorsal (15), ventral (16) and lateral. These figures share scale lines: 15–17.