Oenopia conglobata (Linnaeus)

POORANI, J., 2023, An illustrated guide to lady beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) of the Indian Subcontinent. Part 1. Tribe Coccinellini, Zootaxa 5332 (1), pp. 1-307 : 205

Oenopia conglobata (Linnaeus)

( Figs 145 , 146 )

Coccinella conglobata Linnaeus, 1758: 366 (Type locality: Europe?).

Synharmonia conglobata: Mader 1931: 200 .

Harmonia conglobata: Dauguet 1949: 34 .

Oenopia conglobata: Iablokoff-Khnzorian 1982: 416 ; Poorani 2002a: 336; Poorani 2002b: 105.

Diagnosis. Length: 3.50–5.40 mm; width: 2.80–4.60 mm. Form ( Fig. 145a, b ) oval, moderately convex. Head pale creamy yellow with a transverse black marking in basal half. Pronotum creamy yellow with seven black spots, sometimes variously fused or reduced. Ground colour of elytra pinkish or pale yellow, with eight irregular spots; elytral spots variable, fused or reduced or completely absent. Male genitalia ( Fig. 145d–f ) and spermatheca ( Fig. 145c ) as illustrated.

Immature stages. Life stages ( Fig. 146 ) as illustrated.

Distribution. India (Assam, Meghalaya, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir); Pakistan; Afghanisthan; Palaearctic; North Africa; Introduced into North America.

Prey/associated habitat. Aphalaridae : Euphyllura straminea Loginova. Aphidoidea : Adelges sp. , Aphis pomi De Geer , Eriosoma lanigerum (Hausmann) , Hyadaphis tataricae (Aizenberg) , Hyalopterus pruni (Geoffroy) , Macrosiphum rosae (Linnaeus) , Aphis (Toxoptera) aurantii Boyer de Fonscolombe ; Chrysomelidae : Galerucella lineola (Fabricius) , Altica sp. Collected on apple, walnut, pear, Euonymus sp. , almond, Brassica spp. , etc. Numerous hosts recorded from other parts of the world. Associated with tree-dwelling aphids (above 2 m) ( Iperti, 1999). Associated with powdery mildew infesting mulberry ( Khan & Nighat 1991).

Seasonal occurrence. Collected during February and June–July (northwestern region). In Kashmir, adults were observed to emerge in April and started overwintering in October ( Maqbool et al. 2020). Active during April– October in Pakistan ( Hayat et al. 2017).

Natural enemy. Dinocampus coccinellae (Schrank) ( Maqbool et al. 2018) .

Note. It is commonly collected in the colder parts of northwestern Indian states like Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir. Poorani (2002b) briefly described and illustrated the genitalia .

Figures

FIGURE 145. Oenopia conglobata (L.): a, b. adult, dorsal view; c. spermatheca; d–f. male genitalia: d. tegmen, ventral view; e. tegmen, lateral view; f. penis.

FIGURE 146. Oenopia conglobata (L.), life stages: a, b. eggs on silver fir; c. early stage larva; d. full grown larva; e. pupa; f. adult.