Necrophila (Chrysosilpha) formosa ( Laporte, 1832 ) Ruzicka & Schneider & Qubaiova & Nishikawa, 2012

Ruzicka, J, Schneider, J, Qubaiova, J & Nishikawa, M, 2012, Revision of Palaearctic and Oriental Necrophila Kirby & Spence, part 2: subgenus Chrysosilpha Portevin (Coleoptera: Silphidae), Zootaxa 3261, pp. 33-58 : 38-40

Necrophila (Chrysosilpha) formosa ( Laporte, 1832) , comb. nov.

( Figs. 1–2, 7–10, 19–21, 25, 30, 33, 40)

Silpha (Oiceoptoma) Formosa Laporte, 1832: 400 (description, type locality “ Siam ”)

Silpha formosa: Gemminger & Harold 1868: 724 (senior subjective synonym of Silpha tetraspilota Hope, 1835 )

Eusilpha formosa: Portevin 1905: 51 (new combination)

Silpha formosa: Arrow 1909: 190 (new combination, Silpha tetraspilota Hope, 1835 removed from synonymy with S. formosa )

Calosilpha formosa: Portevin 1920: 398 (new combination)

Chrysosilpha formosa: Portevin 1921: 538 (new combination, supplementary description)

Chrysosilpha formosa: Portevin 1926: 105–106 , 150 (key, catalogue)

Silpha (Chrysosilpha) formosa: Hatch 1928: 112 (new combination, catalogue)

Silpha chloroptera Laporte, 1840: 5 (description with reference to Laporte 1832, type locality “Cochinchine”), syn. nov.

Eusilpha chloroptera: Portevin 1905: 51 (new combination, junior subjective synonym of Silpha formosa )

Calosilpha chloroptera: Portevin 1920a: 398 (new combination)

Chrysosilpha chloroptera Portevin, 1921: 538 (new combination, supplementary description, removed from synonymy with Silpha formosa )

Chrysosilpha chloroptera: Portevin, 1926: 106–107 , 150 (key, catalogue)

Silpha (Chrysosilpha) chloroptera: Hatch 1928: 112 (new combination, catalogue)

Chrysosilpha chloroptera var. magnifica Portevin, 1921: 538 (type locality not specified), syn. nov.

Chrysosilpha chloroptera var. magnifica: Portevin 1926: 107 , 150 (key, catalogue)

Silpha (Chrysosilpha) chloroptera var. magnifica: Hatch 1928: 112 (new combination, catalogue)

Type material examined. Lectotype ♀ of Silpha formosa (MNHN) (here designated) (only left two basal antennomeres present on left antenna), labelled ( Fig. 19): “8 / 71 [hw, illegible, round label, yellow on underside] // MUSEUM PARIS [p] / Siam [hw] [= Thailand, until 1939] / MNISZECH 187 [p] 1 [hw] // TYPE [p, red label] // LECTOTYPE / Silpha (Oiceoptoma) / formosa Laporte, 1832 / Jan Růžička des. 2009 [p, red label] // Necrophila (Chrysosilpha) / formosa / ( Laporte, 1832) [p] ♀ [hw] / Jan Růžička det. 200 [p] 8 [hw]”;

Lectotype ♀ of Silpha chloroptera (MNHN) (here designated), labelled ( Fig. 20): “Collection Mniszech [p] // Cochinch. [hw, Laporte’s ms] [= Cochinchine, southern part of Vietnam, centroid ca. 11°00'N 107°00'E] // S. nom / chloroptera / Cast [hw, Laporte’s ms] // TYPE [p, red label] // MUSEUM PARIS / COLL. A. GROUVELLE 1917 [p] // LECTOTYPE / Silpha chloroptera / Laporte, 1840 / Jan Růžička des. 2009 [p, red label] // Necrophila / ( Chrysosilpha ) / formosa / ( Laporte, 1832) [p] ♀ [hw] / Jan Růžička det. 200 [p] 8 [hw]”; 1 paralectotype ♂ ( MNHN), labelled: “Collection Mniszech [p] // Cochinchine [hw, Laporte’s ms] // TYPE [p, red label] // MUSEUM PARIS / COLL. A. GROUVELLE 1917 [p] // PARALECTOTYPE / Silpha chloroptera / Laporte, 1840 / Jan Růžička des. 2009 [p, red label] // Necrophila / ( Chrysosilpha ) / formosa / ( Laporte, 1832) [p] ♂ [hw] / Jan Růžička det. 200 [p] 8 [hw]”;

Lectotype ♀ of Chrysosilpha chloroptera var. magnifica (MNHN) (here designated), labelled ( Fig. 21): “Bedagei. int. / Sumatra’s O.K. / ±600’ 2 de Sem. [18]89, / I.Z. Kannegieter [p] // MUSEUM PARIS / COLL. A. GROUVELLE 1917 [p] // TYPE [p, red characters] // LECTOTYPE / Chrysosilpha / chloroptera var. / magnifica Portevin, 1921 / Jan Růžička des. 2009 [p, red label] // Necrophila / ( Chrysosilpha ) / formosa / ( Laporte, 1832) [p] ♀ [hw] / Jan Růžička det. 200 [p] 8 [hw]”; 1 paralectotype ♀ ( MNHN), labelled “Bedagei. int. / Sumatra’s O.K. / ±600’ 2 de Sem. [18]89 / I.Z. Kannegieter [p] // MUSEUM PARIS / COLL. A. GROUVELLE 1917 [p] // PARALECTOTYPE / Chrysosilpha / chloroptera var. / magnifica Portevin, 1921 / Jan Růžička des. 2009 [p, red label] // Necrophila / ( Chrysosilpha ) / formosa / ( Laporte, 1832) [p] ♀ [hw] / Jan Růžička det. 200 [p] 8 [hw]”.

Additional material examined. See Appendix 1.

Diagnostic description. Body length 13.0–17.0 mm (15.5 mm in the lectotype of S. formosa ), maximum body width 7.0–9.0 mm (8.5 mm in the lectotype). Head with red brown to yellow gular region. Anterior emargination of labrum narrow, deep ( Fig. 30). Pronotum orange with four large spots arranged in quadrate position medially on the disc, posterior pair is larger, or as large as the anterior pair ( Figs. 1–2, 25). Proventrite orange, with metallic green only posteriorly on medial projection ( Fig. 33). Elytra metallic green or rarely metallic blue ( Figs. 1–2).

Male. Apex of elytron regularly rounded, without apical denticle ( Fig. 1). Genital segment with elongate ventrite 9; spiculum gastrale robust, as long as ventrite 9 ( Fig. 8). Length of aedeagus 3.0 mm, median lobe robust, widely rounded apically ( Fig. 7). Parameres robust ( Fig. 7). Basal portion of aedeagus robust ( Fig. 7).

Female. Apex of elytron slightly elongate, straight in posteroapical part, without apical denticle ( Fig. 2). Tergum 10 elongate, with posterior margin wide ( Fig. 9). Tergum 9 narrow and oval in ventral view ( Fig. 10). Stylus distinctly longer than apex of coxite in ventral view ( Fig. 10).

Notes on synonymy. The differences between N. (C.) formosa and N. (C.) chloroptera , described by Portevin (1921, 1926) (proportions and shape of pronotum; relative size of anterior and posterior black spots on pronotum; punctation of elytra), fall within intraspecific variability, with gradual transitions. Originally, Laporte (1840) only refers to Laporte (1832) and repeats the same diagnosis without mentioning any differences between the two taxa. Consequently, Silpha chloroptera Laporte, 1840 is treated here as a junior subjective synonym of Silpha (Oiceoptoma) formosa Laporte, 1832 .

Portevin (1921) described Chrysosilpha chloroptera var. magnifica based only on colour variation of elytra (bluish, with golden shine vs. metallic green). He did not specify a type locality ( Portevin 1921: 538). The same is repeated by Portevin (1926: 106–107). The same colour variability is noticed here in a series of specimens from Malaysia: Cameron Highlands, without any clear geographic separation of the two colour forms. Consequently, Chrysosilpha chloroptera var. magnifica Portevin, 1921 is treated here as a junior subjective synonym of Silpha (Oiceoptoma) formosa Laporte, 1832 .

Ecology. Scarce locality data indicate necrophagous and saprophagous association with decaying tropical vegetation and traps baited with decaying fish. Two specimens from North Indonesia ( Sumatera Utara Province, 25 km N of Sipirok) were found in a secondary forest, in inflorescence of Amorphophallus gigas Teijsm & Binnend (Araceae) (name of the plant provided on locality label is its junior synonym, A. brooksii Alderw. ). Inflorescence of this plant species is known to produce trimethylamine, mimicking the odour of decaying fish ( Kakishima et al. 2011). Miyake (1987) mentioned possible predaceous behaviour of N. (C.) formosa in a tree flower in lowland forest at Batu 19 (Cameron Highlands, Perak, Malaysia). Specimen data indicate that adults are active year round (but there are no vouchers from December), with most specimens collected during January–May and October ( Table 2). The species has been collected from sea level to 2500 m in Sumatera Barat , Indonesia.

month 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 number of specimens 19 7 12 4 15 9 9 4 7 24 6 0

Published records on distribution. Tonkin [northern Vietnam, misidentified or mislabelled specimen(s) (?), not located in MNHN] (Portevin 1920) ; Cochinchina [southern Vietnam] ( Portevin 1920); “Sunda Islands” (Portevin 1920); Malaysia: Malacca [= Melaka] ( Hatch 1928) ; Malaysia: Selangor [Ulu Gombak ( Univ. Malaya Field Studies Centre ) [ca. 03°13'N 101°43'E], 15.vi.2006, Y. Katayama leg. (e-mail to M. Nishikawa from Hiroshi Ikeda)] ( Ikeda et al. 2008 b) .

Distribution. Widely distributed species ( Fig. 40), known from Laos, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur, Johor, Kedah, Perak, Pahang, Melaka, Selangor and a single imprecise record from Sabah), Indonesia (Aceh, Riau, Sumatera Barat , Sumatera Selatan , Sumatera Utara, Bangka-Belitung Islands , Banten, Jawa Barat, Jawa Tengah, Jawa Timur and Bali).