Ootheca kibonotensis Weise, 1909

Kortenhaus, Sabine & Wagner, Thomas, 2010, Revision of Ootheca Chevrolat, 1837 from tropical Africa — redescriptions, descriptions of new species and identification key (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae), Zootaxa 2659, pp. 1-52 : 31

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.5281/zenodo.276235

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6209557

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03EA500A-FF9A-C94C-84F1-FF3FFAC7DD87

treatment provided by

Plazi

scientific name

Ootheca kibonotensis Weise, 1909
status

 

Ootheca kibonotensis Weise, 1909

( Figs 27 View FIGURE 27 , 41–45 View FIGURES 41 – 44 View FIGURE 45 )

Ootheca kibonotensis Weise, 1909: 199 .

Total length. 4.30–5.90 mm (mean: 5.05 mm; n = 11; Fig. 41 View FIGURES 41 – 44 ).

Head. Yellow, brownish-yellow or darker brownish-red, very rarely dark brown. Antennae pale yellow and either only last one to three antennomeres brownish, or becoming dark brown to black from fifth antennomere towards apex; length ratios: second to third antennomere 0.60–0.80 (mean: 0.71); third to fourth antennomere 0.62–0.83 (mean: 0.79; Fig. 42 View FIGURES 41 – 44 ). Eyes large, ratio of maximal width of eye to minimal distance between eyes 0.57–0.86 (mean: 0.69).

Thorax. Pronotum: pale yellow to brownish-red, very rarely dark brown; very finely punctuated with latero-basal impression absent or indistinct; width 1.75–2.50 mm (mean: 2.04 mm); length 1.00– 1.35 mm (mean: 1.18 mm); width to length ratio 1.60–1.86 (mean: 1.73). Elytral colouration ranges from brownishyellow to brown, very rarely black, about 15% of specimens examined have dark brown to black elytral discs, i.e. elytra have paler brownish outer margins, suture and apex ( Fig. 43 View FIGURES 41 – 44 ); irregularly and somewhat more coarsely punctuated than pronotum, generally with fine punctuation; length 3.70–4.60 mm (mean: 4.06 mm); maximal width of elytra together 3.00– 3.90 mm (mean: 3.31 mm); maximal width of elytra together to length of elytron ratio 0.76–0.85 (mean: 0.82). Scutellum, meso- and metathorax yellow to yellowish-brown. Legs entirely yellowish-brown, in about 30% of specimens examined distal three quarters of tibiae dark brown, in those specimens femora often also darker brownish colour. Length ratio of basi-metatarsus to metatibia 0.22– 0.29 (mean: 0.25).

Abdomen. Yellow to brown.

Male genitalia. Median lobe broad at base, nearly parallel-sided in the middle third, tapering towards non-incised apex. Tectum consists of one pair of short tectorial spurs, broad basally and hooked apically. Endophallus with very broad, short base and pair of slender, down-curved spines ( Fig. 44 View FIGURES 41 – 44 ).

Diagnosis. Only the specimens that are characterized by brownish to black discal spots on the elytra can be reliably assigned to O. kibonotensis by external characters, as these are markings unique to this species. Ootheca kibonotensis is on average significantly smaller (total length 4.30–5.90 mm), and has a finer dorsal punctuation, than the sympatrically occurring O. mutabilis (total length 4.75–6.30 mm) or O. bennigseni (total length 4.75–6.75 mm), and can be distinguished from those species in most cases by its large eyes (maximal width of eye to minimal distance between eyes 0.57–0.86; O. mutabilis 0.39–0.63; O. bennigseni 0.39–0.67), but here also, only the male genitalia allow a reliable identification in most cases.

Distribution. Most specimens known from a restricted area around Kilimandjaro to the coastal region in northern Tanzania southern Kenya including the Taita Hills and Zanzibar, few records far away in Angola and northern Zambia ( Fig. 27 View FIGURE 27 ).

Type material examined. Lectotype: male, “Kilimandj. Sjöstedt / Kibonoto 1’– 1200 m. / 24 april / 3 / Type. / Lectotypus Th. Wagner desig. 2008 Ootheca kibonotensis Wse. / AfriGa specimen ID 866 specimen data documented 4.X.2006 ” ( NHRS; Fig. 45 View FIGURE 45 ). This designation. Type locality: Tanzania, Kibonoto, 3°00’S / 37°20’E. Paralectotypes: 7 ex., same basic data (at least “Kilimadjaro, Sjoestedt 1905”) as lectotype (4 ex. MNHU, 3 ex. NHRS). Weise mentioned eight specimens in his original publication, and a lectotype is herein designated to fix the name to a single specimen.

Additional material examined. Angola: 1 ex., Salazar, 9°18’S / 14°55’E, 9.–15.III.1972, Southern African Exp. ( BMNH). Kenya: 1 ex., Voi, 3°23’S / 38°34’E, III.1911, S. A. Neave ( BMNH); 8 ex., Shimoni, 4°39’S / 39°23’E, XI.1911, Alluaud & Jeannel ( ZMUH); 1 ex., Sekoke, VII.1932, A. Turner ( NMK); 1 ex. Malindi, 3°13’S / 40°07’E, V.1940, G. W. Jeffery ( BMNH). Tanzania: 1 ex., Ramissi, V.1915, Methner ( MNHU); 1 ex., Zanzibar, 6°10’S / 39°11’E, Fairmaire, coll. Clavareau ( MRAC); 1 ex., Kilimandjaro, 5°23’S / 38°03’E, 1905, Sjöstedt ( NHRS); 1 ex., Narobi b. Tanga, 5°07’S / 39°7’E, V.1915, Methner ( MNHU). Zambia: 3 ex., Lake Bangweulu, N’Sumba Island, 11°05’S / 29°45’E, XI.1946, M. Steele ( BMNH).

NHRS

Swedish Museum of Natural History, Entomology Collections

ZMUH

Zoologisches Institut und Zoologisches Museum, Universitat Hamburg

NMK

National Museums of Kenya

MRAC

Musée Royal de l’Afrique Centrale

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Insecta

Order

Coleoptera

Family

Chrysomelidae

Genus

Ootheca

Loc

Ootheca kibonotensis Weise, 1909

Kortenhaus, Sabine & Wagner, Thomas 2010
2010
Loc

Ootheca kibonotensis

Weise 1909: 199
1909
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