Nephus (Nephus) voeltzkowi Weise, 1910

Magro, Alexandra, Churata-Salcedo, Julissa, Lecompte, Emilie, Hemptinne, Jean-Louis & Almeida, Lucia M., 2020, A new species of Nephus (Nephus) (Coleoptera, Coccinellidae) described from Reunion Island, ZooKeys 962, pp. 123-137 : 123

Nephus (Nephus) voeltzkowi Weise, 1910 Figs 1 , 4

Nephus (Nephus) voeltzkowi Weise, 1910: 512 (original description); Fürsch 2007: 6 (systematics).

Nephus seychellensis Sicard, 1912: 362 (original description); Chazeau et al. 1974: 272 (synonymy).

Scymnus (Nephus) voeltzkowi : Korschefsky 1931: 153 (catalog); Fürsch 1966: 181 (systematics).

Nephus (Nephus) voeltzkowi : Poussereau et al. 2018: 128 (systematics)

Diagnosis.

Nephus voeltzkowi resembles N. oblongosignatus and N. apolonia in the color of the integument and spots but differs in the shape and size of the spots and the female genitalia.

Description.

Female. Length 1.65 mm, width 1.10 mm. Body oval, with short fine whitish pubescence. Integument of pronotum, scutellar shield and elytra black. Elytra with one yellowish big oval spot on each elytron; elytra apex yellowish (Fig. 4A, C ). Pronotum black, anterior border dark brown (Fig. 4A, D ). Head, antennae and mouthparts light brown (Fig. 4B ). Meso- and metaventrite dark brown. Epipleuron dark brown, without excavations to receive femora. Legs with coxae dark brown and femora, tibiae and tarsi light brown (Fig. 4B, D ). Abdomen dark brown with two last ventrites yellowish; postcoxal line incomplete (Fig. 1O ).

Genitalia. Coxites longer than wide, subtriangular, 3.0 x longer than wide; stylus mamiliform with long bristles (Fig. 4F ). Spermatheca heavily sclerotized, slightly arched, striated, and marked by two strong constrictions in the middle; with sharp base and truncated apex (Fig. 4G ).

Male genitalia according to Chazeau et al. (1974, plate II, figs 6, 7, 9, 10): tegmen, penis guide, phallobase and parameres symmetrical. Penis guide slightly longer than parameres. Parameres slender, articulated with phallobase, distant from each other, with bristles at apex. Penis sclerotized, J-shaped, with membranous apex, penis capsule T-shaped.

Material examined.

Reunion Island: Specimens from a laboratory rearing (Laboratoire Evolution & Diversité Biologique, Université Toulouse III) initiated from field material collected in November 2011 in Manapany-les-Bains, 14 specimens [DZUP].

Remarks.

It should be noted that only female specimens of N. voeltzkowi were observed here. Furthermore, although Magro et al. (2020) performed a large sampling campaign on Reunion, they never found N. voeltzkowi males, and eventually demonstrated that Reunion females are parthenogenetic. As indicated by Magro et al. (2020), the presence of N. voeltzkowi was reported before by Chazeau et al. (1974) in their fauna of ladybirds from Reunion, but the sex of the specimens was not mentioned: although Chazeau et al. (1974) presented an illustration of the genitalia of a N. voeltzkowi male, the possibility that the drawing was based on a Madagascar specimen was not discounted (Chazeau pers. com.). In the absence of the original material, we cannot confirm this information.

Figures

Figure 1. Scanning electron microscopy A-D antennae E-H prosternal process I-L tarsi M-P abdominal postcoxal line A, E, I, M Nephus (Nephus) oblongosignatus Mulsant, 1850 B, F, J, N Nephus (Geminosipho) reunioni (Fuersch, 1974) C, G, K, O Nephus (Nephus) voeltzkowi Weise, 1910 D, H, L, P Nephus apolonia Magro & Almeida, sp. nov.

Figure 4. Nephus (Nephus) voeltzkowi Weise, 1910 A dorsal view B ventral view C lateral view D frontal view E abdomen F, G female genitalia: F coxites G spermatheca.