Vedalia sieboldii Mulsant, 1850

Vedalia sieboldii Mulsant, 1850: 905 .— Booth & Pope 1989: 363.

Vedalia sieboldi (sic!): Gemminger & Harold 1876: 3801; Weise 1895: 147; Gorham 1897: 235; Weise 1904: 364; Korschefsky 1931: 103; Blackwelder 1945: 443; Gordon 1987: 30; Duverger 2003: 71.

Rodolia sieboldi: Crotch 1874: 281.

Ortalia lama Sallé in litt. (= nomen nudum).

Type material. Lectotype (Fig. 5a, b; designated by Booth and Pope 1989: 363): ‘ SYNTYPE [thin blue card disc]/ 210 [thin card disc]/ Mex Coffin/ 43. [yellow rectangle]/ EST [on reverse of plain green rectangle]/ W [blue rhombus]/ Vedalia sieboldii Muls. Det. Mulsant / 43 Vedalia sieboldi [Mulsant’s hand]/ SYNTYPE Vedalia sieboldii Muls. det. R. G. Booth, 1986/ Oxford University Museum of Natural History (OUMNH)’ (OUMNH).

Other material. ‘Yolotepec/ 2302 [green card]/ Mexico. Salle Coll./ 43./ B.C.A.,VII. Vedalia sieboldi Muls. [Gorham’s hand]/ Ortalia lama Muls. Apud Sallé’ (1 male, BMNH); ‘ Mexico. Salle Coll./ Yolotepec/ Ortalia lama / B.C.A.,VII. Vedalia sieboldii Muls. [Gorham’s hand]/ Ortalia lama Muls. Apud Sallé / Vedalia sieboldii Muls. Det. R.G. Booth, 1986 comp. with type’ (1 male, BMNH); ‘Truqui Mexico./ 23/63 [green card]/ Fry Coll 1905.100./ 43./ Vedalia sieboldii Mulst’ (1 male, BMNH); ‘Coll. Muls. 7/28/ H Hinton Coll./ Hinton Coll. B.M. 1939-583’ (1 male, BMNH); ‘Tejupilco, Mex. Temescaltepec/ ca. 4000ft. 1933 B.M.1959-100./ H. E. Hinton. R. L. Usinger Collectors’ (1 ex., BMNH); ‘ TYPE [crossed out] Sieboldi, cl. nr 57. Westwood [on reverse]’ (1 male, UMZC); no label data (1 ex., UMZC); ‘ Vedalia sieboldii Muls. det. 1931/ Mexico Koebele/ 1566’ (1 female, USNM); 1566/ ‘ Mexico Koebele’ (1 female, 5 males, USNM); ‘ Aguascalientes, Aguas., Mexico VI-29-1953 / D.Rockefeller Mex.Exp.1953 C.&P.Vaurie/ Vedalia sieboldi Mulsant det. Dieke 1954’ (1 female, AMNH); ‘ Mexico / Vedalia sieboldi Mls. det. R. Korschefsky 1939/ Mus. Zool. Polonicum Warszawa, 12/45’ (1 ex., MIZ).

Diagnosis. As for the genus.

Redescription. TL = 5.0– 6.5 mm; EW = 4.0–5.0 mm. TL/EW = 1.3; PL/PW = 0.5; EL/EW = 1.0. Body (Fig. 1a–c, e, f) bicolored. In living specimens (Fig 1e, f) head black, pronotum with pronotal disc black and sides broadly brick red, scutellar shield black, elytra brick red with two black spots on each elytron: smaller adjacent to scutellar shield and second, much larger occupying apical half of elytron. Ventral side variable in coloration: mouthparts infuscate; antennae brick red, brick red with infuscate club or whole infuscate; hypomera brick red or infuscate; prosternum partially or whole infuscate; meso- and metasternum infuscate; meso- and metaepimera and meso- and metaepisterna partially or entirely infuscate; epipleura brick red; legs dark orange or with partially infuscate femora; abdomen brick red or with partially infuscate ventrite 1. In dried specimens, brick red color turns into dark red (Fig. 1a–c). Antennomere 3 as long as wide; antennomeres 4–8 transverse, antennal club consisting of three antennomeres; antennomeres 9–10 transverse, distinctly prominent laterally; terminal antennomere enlarged, truncate apically.

Male terminalia and genitalia (Fig 4g –l). Sternite IX (Fig. 4g) with base of apodeme membranous, apodeme rod-like, without additional sclerite at base of apodeme; tergite X short, transverse. Tegmen in inner view (Fig. 4k) with penis guide symmetrical, nearly parallel, tapering into rounded point, slightly recurved apically in lateral view (Fig. 4l). Parameres well developed, simple, about 1.4 x longer than penis guide, sparsely setose apically; tegminal strut broad, partially membranous. Penis capsule with outer and inner arms well developed (Fig. 4h); penis of equal diameter along entire length; tip swollen and partially membranous in lateral view (Fig. 4i), symmetrical in inner view (Fig. 4j).

Female genitalia (Fig. 4m –o). Spermatheca (Fig. 4n) vermiform, C-shaped, without clear nodulus and ramus; spermathecal accessory gland short, its opening placed at base of spermatheca; sperm duct short, shorter than spermatheca, its opening broadened, not sclerotized, connected laterally to spermatheca; infundibulum absent. Coxites broadly subtriangular, elongate (Fig. 4m), upturned and obliquely truncate on apices; styli reduced, bearing long setae in the middle of oval, membranous area (Fig. 4o). Proctiger longer than coxites, with hind edge rounded (Fig. 4m).

Distribution. Mexico, states: Aguascalientes, Guanajuato, Estado de México, Oaxaca, Querétaro, Veracruz.