Australoluciola aspera (Olivier) 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 : 46

Australoluciola aspera (Olivier) comb. nov.

[ Figs 18–25 ]

Luciola aspera Olivier, 1910a:344 ; 1913b:417; in Heyden, 1915:177.

Luciola (Luciola) aspera Olivier. McDermott, 1966:99 .

Holotype. Female. NEW GUINEA. (Musée Senkenberg à Frankfort sur le main; (Senckenberg Forschungsinstitut und Naturmuseum).

Other material examined. NEW GUINEA: 3.30 S, 143.34E, East Sepik Province : Amok, 165 m, 6.i.1960, T. Maa, male ( BPBM) . 3.35 S, 143.35E, Wewak , 2–20 m, 11.x.1957, JLG, female ( BPBM) ; Wewak F H Taylor, no date, male ( NHML) .

Diagnosis. The only species of Australoluciola with a wide dark median band on the orange pronotum; elytra dark brown; male V7 trisinuate.

Male. 5.7 mm long. Colour ( Figs 19, 20, 25 ): pronotum orange with a median brown band ( Figs 19, 25 ); MN orange, MS dark brown; elytra medium brown, lateral margin narrowly pale in anterior 1/3; ventral surface brown except for orange underside of pronotum, orange prosternum, pale yellow posterior half of V5, and creamy white V6, 7; legs brown except for pale coxae, trochanters and basal half of femora; basal tergites brown, T6, 7, 8 pale orange, semitransparent; dorsally reflexed margins of V6 and 7 white. Pronotum ( Fig. 25 ): 1.3 mm long; 1.8 mm wide; W/L=1.4; dorsal surface irregular, with ridges and depressed areas; midanterior margin broadly rounded and projecting only a little in front of angulate anterolateral corners; lateral margins diverging posteriorly, C>A, B; posterolateral corners angulate; punctures broad, shallow, most contiguous. Elytra: 4.4 mm long; punctures minute, sublinear in parts of elytra over short distances. Abdomen ( Figs 20, 21 ): V3 strongly, V4 very weakly recurved; anterior margin of V4 projecting into the posterior area of V3; posterior margin of V7 trisinuate; LOs occupying most of V7 and reaching sides but not posterior margin; MPP apically rounded, short; as wide as and slightly longer than PLP ( Fig. 21 ). T8: Ventral surface with well developed lateral ridges and short, wide, apically rounded flanges; anterolateral prolongations of T8 wide, not as long as posterior entire portion. Aedeagus ( Figs 22–24 ): short wide anterior prolongation of ML (view from beneath); lateral margins of LL curved, and expanded along apical 2/5 and visible beside ML; apices of LL slightly obliquely truncate; L/W 2.9.

Female (Type female Fig. 18 ). Macropterous. Genitalia and internal reproductive system not investigated.

Larva. Not associated.

Remarks. Association of males is made on the basis of the similarity of pronotal colour to that of the type female. Olivier’s collection in MNHN has a small water colour of this species showing the dark pronotal markings as two dark patches along the posterior area only (Ballantyne examination 2002).

Figures

FIGURES 18–25. Australoluciola aspera, type female (18), Wewak male NHML 19–25. 18, 19 dorsal; 20, 21 ventral (21 abdomen only); 22–24 aedeagus dorsal (22), right lateral (23) and ventral (lateral projections of LL arrowed in 24); 25 pronotum dorsal. These figures share scale lines: 19, 20; 22–24.