Luperomorpha biondii, Döberl, 2012

Döberl, Manfred, 2012, Alticinae (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) of Socotra Island, Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae 52, pp. 429-447 : 439-440

Luperomorpha biondii sp. nov.

( Figs. 7 , 20 , 37 )

Type locality. Yemen, Socotra Island, Al Haghier Mts., Skant Mt., 12°34.557′N, 54°01.514′E.

Type material. HOLOTYPE: J ( NMPC), ‘ YEMEN, Socotra Isl., / Hagher Mts., Skant, / N 12°34,557′, E 054°01,514′ / 7.-8.vl.2010, / V.Hula & J. Niedobová leg. [w, p] // collected on / Cephalocroton / socotranus [w, p]’. PARATYPES: 15JJ 35 ♀♀, same data as holotype (3 JJ 12 ♀♀ in NMPC, 4 JJ 15 ♀♀ in JBCB, 4 JJ 4 ♀♀ in MDCA, 4 JJ 4 ♀♀ in MBCA); 2 ♀♀, ‘ YEMEN, Socotra Isl., / Deiqub cave env. / 10.vi.2010, / V. Hula & J. Niedobová leg. [w, p]’ ( JBCB); 1 J, ‘ YEMEN, Socotra Isl., / Firmihin plato, 400-500 m, / N12°28′46′′, E054°00′89′′ / 18.-19.vi.2010, / V. Hula & J. Niedobová leg. [w, p]’ ( JBCB); 6 JJ 10 ♀♀, ‘ YEMEN, SOCOTRA ISLAND / Dixam plateau, TUDHEN / shrubland with Commiphora / planifrons 18.+ 22.vi.2012 / 12°32.7’N, 53°59.9’E, 1135 m [w, p] // SOCOTRA expedition 2012 / J. Bezděk, J. Hájek, V. Hula, / P. Kment, I. Malenovský, / J. Niedobová & L. Purchart leg. [w, p]’ ( NMPC); 1 J 1 ♀, ‘ YEMEN, SOCOTRA ISLAND, 18.vi. / Hagher Mts., WADI MADAR, 2012 / montane shrubland with / Cephalocroton socotranus / 12°33.2’N, 54°00.4’E, 1170 m [w, p] // SOCOTRA expedition 2012 / J. Bezděk, J. Hájek, V.Hula, / P. Kment, I. Malenovský, / J. Niedobová & L. Purchart leg. [w, p]’ ( NMPC); 1 ♀, ‘ YEMEN, SOCOTRA ISLAND / Aloove area, ALOOVE vill. env. / Jatropha unicostata shrubland with / Boswellia elongata trees, / 19.-20.vi.2012, / 12°31.2’N, 54°07.4’E, 221 m [w, p] // SOCOTRA expedition 2012 / J. Bezděk, J. Hájek, V. Hula, / P. Kment, I. Malenovský, / J. Niedobová & L. Purchart leg. [w, p]’ ( NMPC); 12 JJ 20 ♀♀, ‘ YEMEN, SOCOTRA ISLAND, 18.vi. / Hagher Mts., WADI MADAR, 2012 / montane shrubland with / Cephalocroton socotranus / 12°33.2’N, 54°00.4’E, 1170 m [w, p] // SOCOTRA expedition 2012 / J. Bezděk, J. Hájek, V. Hula, / P. Kment, I. Malenovský, / J. Niedobová & L. Purchart leg. [w, p]’ ( NMPC) The specimens are provided with two additional labels: ‘ Luperomorpha / biondii mihi / des. Döberl 2011 [or 2012] [w, p]’ and ‘ Holotypus [Paratypus, resp.] [r, p]’.

Description. Body length/width: males 1.9–2.3/ 0.8–0.9 mm (holotype 2.0/ 0.8 mm); females 2.0–2.6/0.8–1.0 mm.

Male (holotype). Body elongate, sparsely pubescent, dull ( Fig. 37 ). Head orange, vertex with large dark brown spot. Antennae orange, gradually darkened from antennomere V. Pronotum orange. Scutellum black. Elytra orange with two large broad transverse dark brown bands connected in suture but not reaching lateral margins. Basal band covers also humeral calli. Both transverse bands are connected by sutural band. Underside orange. Legs orange, tarsi infuscate.

Anterior part of head lustrous.Antennal calli well delimited, oval, oblique and smooth. Ratio of distances between inner and outer margin of eyes 1:1.7. Vertex very finely wrinkled and sparsely, almost indistictly punctured. Antennae thin, 0.72 times as long as body, proportions of antennomeres are 13:8:7:12:14:13:13:13:13:15:19 (1 = 0.01 mm).

Pronotum transverse, 1.45 times as wide as long, widest in middle. Anterior margin straight, lateral margins rounded, posterior margin straight in midpart, laterally oblique. Anterior margin unbordered, lateral and posterior margins narrowly bordered. Anterior angles almost rectangular, posterior angles obtusely angulate, all angles with setigerous pore. Surface covered with very fine microsculpture.

Scutellum small, subtriangular with rounded apex, semiopaque. Elytra dull, parallel, 0.66 times as long as body, 1.63 times as long as wide (measured at humeral calli). Elytral disc flattened. Winged, humeral calli well developed. Elytra covered with fine microsculpture, indistinct fine punctures and sparsely with long conspicuous raised pale setae.

Underside more or less covered with fine punctures and short pale setae. Anterior coxal cavities open posteriorly, prosternal process narrow and visible between procoxae. Apical ventrite posteriorly with two short incisions, median lobe triangularly impressed.

Protarsomere I short, subtriangular with slightly rounded sides, as wide as protarsomere III, length ratios of protarsomeres I–IV equal to 6-6-5-9. Metatarsomeres moderately thin, length ratios of metatarsomeres I–IV equal to 12-7-6-11.

Aedeagus ( Fig. 7 ) narrow, parallel, in lateral view moderately regularly bent, ventrally with broad gutter.

Female. Elytra at least in basal part lustrous.Apical ventrite subtriangular, even posteriorly. Protarsomere I almost parallel, narrow. Spermatheca ( Fig. 20 ): nodulus subglobular, cornu thin, C-shaped.

Variability. The coloration is variable. The palest specimens have antennae orange with apical antennomeres infuscate; dark spot on vertex is reduced to two divergent elongate spots connected basaly; transverse band on elytra are reduced to thin stripes with irregular margins; sutural stripe connecting both transverse bands is very thin. On the other hand, the darkest specimens have antennae black except for four basal antennomeres, vertex has large circular dark brown spot and elytral bands are extended, covering most of elytral disc.

Differential diagnosis. The genus Luperomorpha Weise, 1887 contains more than 85 species mainly distributed in the Oriental region. Only one species is distributed in Africa: L. vittula (Weise, 1915) from Cameroon (BIONDI & D′ ALESSANDRO 2010), and can be distinguished by black head, pronotum pale with black spot in the middle of anterior margin, and black elytra, each elytron with one pale longitudinal stripe. Western Palearctic Region includes only two Luperomorpha species , both with orange pronotum and bluish black elytra: L. arabica Doguet, 1979 from Saudi Arabia and Yemen (with orange head), and L. xanthodera (Fairmaire, 1888) , a Chinese species recently introduced to the Central Europe (with black head).

Collection circumstancies. Specimens from Scand and Wadi Madar were collected on the flowers of Cephalocroton socotranus (Balf.) (Euphorbiaceae) (J. Bezděk & V. Hula, pers. comm. 2012).

Etymology. Dedicated to Maurizio Biondi (L’Aquilla, Italy), an excellent specialist in Alticinae .

Distribution. Yemen: Socotra Island

Figures

Figs.1–9.Aedeagus (a – ventral view, b – lateral view). 1 – Aphthona pusilla Laboissière, 1942; 2 – A. socotrana sp. nov.; 3 – Bezdekaltica socotrana sp. nov.; 4 – Eriotica sp. B; 5 – Hermaeophaga ruficollis (Lucas, 1849) (specimen from Oman); 6 – Longitarsus buettikeri Doguet, 1984; 7 – Luperomorpha biondii sp. nov.; 8 – Phyllotreta cheiranthi Weise, 1903 (specimen from Yemen); 9 – P. procera (Redtenbacher, 1849). Scale bar: 0.5 mm.

Figs. 13–25. 13 – head of Bezdekaltica socotrana sp. nov. 14 – left hind leg of Yemenaltica furthi sp. nov. 15–25. Spermatheca. 15 – Aphthona pusilla Laboissière, 1942; 16 – A. socotrana sp. nov.; 17 – Bezdekaltica socotrana sp. nov.; 18 – Hermaeophaga ruficollis (Lucas, 1847); 19 – Longitarsus buettikeri Doguet, 1984; 20 – Luperomorpha biondii sp. nov.; 21 – Phyllotreta cheiranthi Weise, 1903; 22 – P. procera (Redtenbacher, 1849); 23 – Podagrica puncticollis Weise, 1902; 24 – Psylliodes persica Allard, 1867; 25 – Yemenaltica furthi sp. nov. Scale bars: 0.5 mm for Figs. 14, 0.2 mm for Fig. 13 and 0.1 mm for Figs. 14–25.

Figs. 32–37. Habitus.32 – Eriotica sp.A (female, 3.6 mm); 33 – Eriotica sp. B (male, 2.9 mm); 34 – Hermaeophaga ruficollis (Lucas, 1847) (female, 2.9 mm); 35 – Longitarsus buettikeri Doguet, 1984 (male, 2.4 mm); 36 – Longitarsus sp. A (male, 2.3 mm); 37 – Luperomorpha biondii sp. nov. (paratype, male, 2.3 mm).