Altica birmanensis ( Jacoby, 1896 )

Reid, C. A. M. & Beatson, M., 2015, Disentangling a taxonomic nightmare: a revision of the Australian, Indomalayan and Pacific species of Altica Geoffroy, 1762 (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Galerucinae), Zootaxa 3918 (4), pp. 503-551 : 524-530

Altica birmanensis ( Jacoby, 1896) stat. rev.

( Figs 3 , 10 , 24 , 35, 36, 50, 51, 65, 66 , 78 )

Haltica birmanensis Jacoby, 1896 (type locality: Burma); Maulik 1926: 422 (junior synonym of A. cyanea ).

Altica birmanensis: Gressitt & Kimoto 1963: 890 (as junior synonym of A. cyanea ). Takizawa 1978 (valid species, as A. birmensis ); Medvedev 2009: 24 (junior synonym of A. cyanea ).

Altica birmaensis [misspelling]: Scherer 1969: 129 (as junior synonym of A. cyanea ).

Altica birmensis [misspelling]: Kimoto 1971: 80.

Haltica indica Shukla 1960: 80 (type locality India) syn. nov.

Material examined (88, * = specimen dissected). Type: Altica birmanensis (Jacoby) : Lectotype (this designation): ♂/ Birma / Haltica birmanensis Jac. / Type 18718/ Jacoby 2nd coll./ ( MCZ).

Non-type material: Indonesia: Bali: ♂*, 4/ Bali, Bedugul, 21.vii.1977, GGE Scudder ( BMH); 1/ Bedugul, 8.28144S 115.16285E, 1277m, ex Polygonum chinense , 15.ii.2012, L Halling ( MZB); Java: ♀*, ♀/ Cibodas NP [sic], 1500m, hand picking off foliage, 26.vii.1990, C Reid ( ANIC); ♀*/ Dieng Plateau, above Telago Warna, 2150m, on low shrub, ii.1991, C Reid ( ANIC); 2♂ *, 3♂, 8♀/ Gede-Panggrango NP, trail head to Cibeureum waterfalls, 26.viii.1989, ROM 893014 DC Darling ( ROM); ♂*, ♀/ Gede-Panggrango NP, c6k SW Cipanas, on climbing Polygonum , rf, 1450–1600m, 14–16.x.1991, C Reid, D Subasli ( ANIC); ♂*, 2♀*, 13/ West Java, Lake Lembang, 1500m, xii.1953, Dressler ( BMH); ♂*/ Malang, vii.1953 Dressler ( BMH); ♂*/ Java, Mt Bromo, at crater, 2000m, 5.v.1984, E Helm ( ANIC); ♂*, 2♂, 2♀/ Y. Salak, Tjiowal, 14.i.1966, J Stusak ( BMH); Sulawesi: ♂*, 3/ Celebes, 30k NW Rantepao, Bulu-Bulu, 1800m, beating sheet, 9–15.v.1966, R Straatman ( BMH); 1, ditto, 1600m ( BMH); Sumatra: ♂*/ North Sumatra, Brastagi, 12.vi.1990, R de Keyzer, GA Clarke ( AMS); ♂*, 3/ West Sumatra, Bengkulu Prov., nr Curup, Bukit Kaba Mt, 3°29’S 102°36’E, 1000–1200m, 30.i–3.ii.2000, J Bezdek (Bezdek); West Papua: 1♂ */ Neth. Ind.- Amer. New Guinea Exp. Baliem Camp 1600m, 16.xii.1938, LJ Toxopeus ( BMH); Taiwan: ♂*, ♀/ 25°05’N 121°33’E, Taipei, Shulin, 4.iv.1987, DCF Rentz, YM Chiang ( ANIC); Timor Leste: ♂*, 4♂, 6♀/ 2.7k N Aileu, 8°42’28”S 125°33’46”, coffee/ Paraserianthes , 950m, 1.vi.2012 C Reid, TL2012/101/587 Polygonum ? nepalense ( AMS); ♂*, 3♀/ Kablaki Mtn, Same-Dili Rd, 8°56’19”S 125°37’22”E, rainforest/coffee 1150m, 18.vi.2011, C Reid site 40 ( AMS); ♂*, ♂, ♀/ 1k SSW Maubisse, R Sara, Same Rd, 8°50’25”S 125°35’36”E, coffee/ Casuarina 1360m , 1.vi.2012 C Reid, TL2012/099/585, Polygonum ?nepalense ( AMS); ♂*, 3♂ / Ermera, 1200–1500m, 29.xii.1963, J Sedlacek ( BMH); Vietnam: 2♂ *, 2♂, ♀/ Vinh-Phu, Tam Dao Hill sta., 3–31.v.1996, B Hubley, DC Darling, M Hanson ROM 961002 ( ROM).

Description. A variably sized species, often relatively large: length: male 5.2–7.1mm; female 5.0– 7.3mm. Colour: dorsum usually bright deep blue, rarely bronze, purplish, dark green or bicoloured with blue pronotum and green elytra; first antennomere variable, black or with red apex, or red base and apex; remainder of antennae black; venter and legs entirely black with duller metallic reflection than dorsum.

Head: ratios ( Tables 1 & 2): male: EG 2.75–5.14; IE 1.32–1.76; HG 7.73–12.14; HN 1.05–1.13; NE 2.05–2.73; female: EG 2.62–4.22IE 1.48–1.93; HG 7.15–10.89; HN 1.03–1.09; NE 2.33–2.70; pubescence: few small setae at inner edge of posterior of orbit, longitudinal row of short setae at sides of frontoclypeal ridge, 3–4 pairs of long setae behind clypeal anterior margin; transverse row of long setae between eye and buccal cavity; face impunctate except strong punctures at bases of orbital setae; vertex without microreticulation; postantennal calli smooth, not microreticulate; eyes small and relatively flat; postantennal calli almost quadrate, with acute triangular anterior angles and truncate bases, calli usually adjacent for most of length; frontoclypeal ridge lanceolate, smooth and broad at base, entirely convex, anteriorly terminating in a narrow keel before clypeal margin; anterior edge of clypeus generally smooth, strongly to weakly raised, sides of clypeus microreticulate, obliquely strigose.

Thorax: pronotum usually with pair of shallow ovate depressions behind anterior border; shining, entirely non-microscuptured; non-glandular puncturation variable, from present only as small sparse punctures at middle of basal field, to anterior and basal field with sparse (separated by at least 2 diameters) larger punctures at sides, but disc always minutely and sparsely punctured; hypomeron without microreticulation, smooth, except anterior angles finely transversely strigose and sometimes with sparse punctures; prosternum finely transversely grooved, shining, or process duller, slightly rugose; scutellum triangular with curved sides to semi-ovate, microreticulate or apical half shining and smooth; elytra shining, without microreticulation (except extreme apices), strongly and closely but irregularly punctured, interspaces mostly 0.5–1.5 diameters, sometimes with smooth elongate intervals on disc; elytra usually distinctly keeled from behind humeri to half elytral length or less, keel low, broadly rounded in crosssection; femora densely microsculptured and pubescent; outer face mid tibia with prominent keel for most of length, on a convex surface, but apical quarter usually flat; male first protarsomere distinctly longer than broad, female 1.5–1.7x longer than broad.

Abdomen: abdominal ventrites densely microsculptured and with recumbent pubescence; male: penis 1.7–2.15mm long; in dorsal view parallel-sided to the right-angled apex, which has a rounded to narrowly truncate tip; dorsal surfaces slightly curved in lateral view, ventral surface almost straight, with extreme tip recurved; shallowly transversely ridged on middle of dorsal surface; venter without transverse or oblique ridges, two long apicoventral depressions present, 0.25–0.3x penis length, ovate, smooth surfaced and laterally smooth edged, separated by a broad flat ridge (ridge may be medially depressed at apex); female: tignum 0.94–1.34mm long, basal part narrow with pointed tip, lateral arms narrowly triangular to threadlike, and apex broadly triangular or spatulate; spermathecal collum of variable length and thickness and containing 1–2 twists; vaginal palpi short and almost conical, length: width ratio 1–1.5, with obliquely truncate apex and concave inner margin; palpal apodemes 2– 4 x length palpi, 0.2–0.5x width palpi.

32 33 34 44 45 Distribution and biology. Altica birmanensis occurs from India in the west, Vietnam and Taiwan in the north, to Timor and New Guinea in the east. The Indian record is based on Shukla (1960). Scherer (1969) correctly illustrated the penis (under A. caerulea ), but listed the host as Ludwigia , which suggests that his account confused A. birmanensis and other species, possibly A. aenea and/or A. caerulea . The New Guinea record is based on a single dissected male collected in 1938 in the Baliem Valley, West New Guinea. This male is typical of A. birmanensis , with black antennae and small eyes. All other Altica specimens examined from New Guinea clearly belong to either A. aenea (many dissected, q.v.) or the more easily distinguished A. caerulea . Altica birmanensis is absent from Australia and islands east of New Guinea.

Altica birmanensis has been found feeding on Polygonaceae ( Sanchez et al. 2011) of the genera Polygonum ( P. chinense ) and Persicaria ( P. nepalensis ?) in Bali, Java and Timor (pers. obs. CAMR; label data, AMS). Published records of hosts for probably correctly identified Altica birmanensis include Persicaria in eastern Indonesia ( Mohamedsaid 2009) and Polygonum in Taiwan ( Takizawa 1978; Lee & Cheng 2007). Gressitt & Kimoto (1963) confused A. aenea , A. birmanensis and A. cyanea therefore their host records are not reliable. Altica birmanensis and A. cyanea have been collected together (Dieng, Java).

Taxonomic notes. Altica birmanensis was described from Burma and only poorly differentiated from “ A. cyanea ” sensu Jacoby (now A. aenea ): bright blue with the elytron laterally grooved and the penis “very nearly identical to that of cyanea ” ( Jacoby 1896: 255). Altica birmanensis was synonymised with A. cyanea sensu auctt. (= A. aenea ) by Maulik (1926), an action followed by many other authors ( Gressitt & Kimoto 1963; Scherer 1969; Medvedev 2009), although Gressitt & Kimoto (1963: 889) illustrated the penis of A. birmanensis as A. caerulea (!). Kimoto (1971) identified A. birmanensis as the correct name for the species he had previously called A. caerulea . Although this action re-established A. birmanensis it is clear that Kimoto’s species concepts were confused, for example his southeast Asian key separated A. cyanea sensu auctt. (= A. aenea ) and A. birmanensis on the presence or absence of a lateral elytral groove, without mentioning the diagnostic genitalic characters ( Kimoto 2000: 256) ( Table 1). Examination of the male syntype of A. birmanensis in MCZ ( Perkins et al. 2010) shows that this is not A. cyanea sensu auctt. ( A. aenea ) but a species close to the true A. cyanea .

Altica birmanensis and A. cyanea are treated as valid species here. However they differ morphologically only slightly, as described in the key, and it could be argued that they represent variation within a single species. The distribution and host plant data (albeit limited) support our treatment of A. birmanensis and A. cyanea as valid species.

Altica birmaensis ( Scherer 1969) and A. birmensis (Kimoto 1971) are incorrect emendations of the original name, which was based on the place name Birmania (Italian for Burma).

Our confirmation of synonymy of the name A. indica is based on the original description and illustrations ( Shukla 1960).

Figures

FIGURE 78. Distribution of Altica birmanensis (Jacoby), open circles = probably correct literature records.

FIGURES 1 – 7. Habitus Altica species: 1, A. aenea (Olivier) (Australia); 2. A. aenea (Sumatra); 3. A. birmanensis (Jacoby); 4, A. caerulea (Olivier); 5, A. corrusca (Erichson); 6, A. cyanea Weber; 7, A. gravida (Blackburn).

FIGURES 8 – 14. Head Altica species: 8, A. aenea (Olivier) (Australia); 9. A. aenea (Sumatra); 10. A. birmanensis (Jacoby); 11, A. caerulea (Olivier); 12, A. corrusca (Erichson); 13, A. cyanea Weber; 14, A. gravida (Blackburn).

FIGURES 23 – 26. Altica species, male genitalia (penis in ventral, dorsal and lateral view): 23, A. aenea (Olivier); 24, A. birmanensis (Jacoby); 25, A. caerulea (Olivier); 26, A. caerulea, lectotype of A. elongata (Jacoby).

FIGURES 62 – 76. Altica species, spermathecae: 62, A. aenea (Olivier) (Northern Territory, Australia); 63, A. aenea (New South Wales, Australia); 64, A. aenea (north Queensland, Australia); 65, A. birmanensis (Jacoby) (West Java); 66, A. birmanensis (Sulawesi); 67, A. caerulea (Olivier) (Northern Territory); 68, A. caerulea (Torres Straits); 69, A. corrusca (Erichson) (New South Wales); 70, A. corrusca (Tasmania); 71, A. cyanea Weber (lectotype, Sumatra); 72, A. cyanea (West Java); 73, A. gravida (Blackburn) (Victoria, Australia); 74, A. gravida (eastern New South Wales); 75, A. gravida (eastern New South Wales); 76, A. gravida (western New South Wales). Drawn to scale.