Herminella flavocostata, Borowiec, Lech & Wietojañska, Jolanta, 2014

Borowiec, Lech & Wietojañska, Jolanta, 2014, A revision of the genus Herminella Spaeth (Chrysomelidae: Cassidinae: Notosacanthini), with a description of a new related genus and species from Madagascar, Zootaxa 3895 (2), pp. 257-272 : 259

Herminella flavocostata spec. nov.

Type material. Holotype: NAMIBIA, Karibib / Etusis / 11 XI 2002 / R. Rober ( DBET); paratype: „S. Afr. Transvaal / 50 km N of / Pretoria / 4-I-1957 ( DBET).

Description. Length: 2.10–2.40 mm, width: 1.25–1.35 mm, length/width ratio: 1.68–1.78.

Pronotal disc yellow, explanate margin green except transparent external margin. Scutellum yellow. Elytra green except transparent margin and yellow apical transverse costa and longitudinal humeral costa. Head rusty yellow, ventrites in holotype uniformly yellow in paratype external half of metasterna brown. Antennae mostly yellow, in holotype with infuscate club in paratype with dark brown last three segments of club.

Pronotum transverse, approximately two times as wide as long with maximum width in basal 1/3, anterior margin with shallow triangular median emargination, head not visible from above. Transparent margins of pronotum in apex of the emargination slightly overlapped, head not visible from above. Sides from angulate to narrowly rounded, lateral margin before lateral angulation broadly crenulate, behind the angulation sharply crenulate, basal corners well marked, lateral margin before corners distinctly emarginate. Pronotal disc convex, its anterior margin on sides sulcate, surface of disc shiny, on top impunctate, on sides and along the base with few coarse punctures. Explanate margin with very large transparent punctures, approximately the same size, except row of small punctures along the transparent extreme margin of disc.

Elytra as wide as or slightly narrower than pronotum, almost parallel-sided, apex broadly rounded, not emarginate before sutural apex, humeri sharply angulate. Disc slightly convex with very large and dense punctation. Punctures on top of disc only partly arranged in more or less regular rows, mostly appear irregular, also between humeral costa and marginal row disposed mostly irregularly. Elytral sculpture forms two distinct and one indistinct costae. Dorsal costa in form of very narrow and slightly elevated interval. Humeral costa complete, straight only apically slightly runs down, low but sharp, in slope connected with complete, sharp apical transverse costa which runs from humeral costa to the elevated suture. Marginal row with coarse punctures, in humeral part two times to three times coarser than punctures on sides of disc. Explanate margin of elytra very narrow, in the widest part five times narrower than disc, strongly declivous, in anterior half with two rows of coarse transparent punctures, without additional irregular punctures between the rows. Along whole length of the transparent extreme margin runs row of small punctures.

Clypeus as long as wide, clypeal plate in the middle with triangular impression, in position of mid-length of eye the impression very narrow, two times narrower than elevated lateral parts of clypeus, base of the triangle three times narrower than labrum. Eyes large, gena as long as 1/3 width of eye. Labrum transverse, very short with very shallow anterior emargination. Antennae stout, second segment large, globular, approximately as long as third segment. Funicle approximately 1.3 times as long as club, segments 9 and 10 of club transverse, almost two times as wide as long.

Distribution. Namibia and South Africa (Transvaal region).