Phrynocaria unicolor (Fabricius)

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 : 240

Phrynocaria unicolor (Fabricius)

( Fig. 172 )

Coccinella unicolor Fabricius, 1792: 267 (Type locality: India).

Coelophora unicolor: Mulsant 1850: 413 ; 1866: 275; Crotch 1874: 54; Korschefsky 1932: 297.

Lemnia (Microlemnia) unicolor: Iablokoff-Khnzorian 1982: 262 .

Phrynocaria unicolor: Yu 2010: 80–82 ; Poorani 2002a: 339; Poorani et al. 2021: 128 .

Coccinella congener Billberg , in Scĥnherr, 1808: 179.

Phrynocaria congener: Timberlake 1943: 34 ; Poorani 2002a: 338; Synonymized by Yu 2010: 80.

Phrynocaria nigrilimbata Jing, 1986 .—Synonymized by Yu 2010: 80.

Diagnosis. Length: 3.42–4.62 mm; width: 3.12–4.20 mm. Form round, dorsum convex and glabrous. Head ( Fig. 172h ) with frons narrow, inner margins of eyes strongly divergent. A highly variable and polymorphic species with numerous variants and several intermediate forms. Nominate form uniformly orange yellow to reddish brown ( Fig. 172d ) on both sides; at least eight variants or varieties named, commonly found ones ( Fig. 172a–c, e, f ) as illustrated. Abdominal postcoxal line ( Fig. 172g ) incomplete. Male genitalia ( Fig. 172i–l ) diagnostic.

Distribution. India (Andamans, Assam, Bihar, Delhi, Jharkhand, Pondicherry, Orissa, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh); China; Thailand.

Prey/associated habitat. Hemiptera : Aleyrodidae : Aleurolobus barodensis (Maskell) on sugarcane; Dialeuropora decempuncta (Quaintance & Baker) infesting mulberry. Abundant in the oak forests of northeastern region, feeds on Tuberculatus indicus Ghosh on Quercus acutissima ( Shantibala & Singh, 1991) .

Seasonal occurrence. Collected during May, July–August (Orissa, Eastern India).

Notes. It is a highly variable species with many colour morphs and is commonly collected in northern states of India. Treated by Mader (1935), Kapur (1967), Ren et al. (2009), Yu (2010) and Poorani et al. (2021) with illustrations of the colour morphs.

Figures

FIGURE 172. Phrynocaria unicolor (Fabricius): a–f. adult, variants; g. abdomen; h. head and pronotum; i–l. male genitalia: i. tegmen, ventral view; j. tegmen, lateral view; k. penis; l. penis apex.