Brachiacantha, Dejean, 1835

Gordon, Robert D., Canepari, Claudio & Hanley, Guy A., 2014, South American Coccinellidae (Coleoptera), Part XVI: systematic revision of Brachiacantha Dejean (Coccinellinae: Hyperaspidini), Insecta Mundi 2014 (390), pp. 1-76 : 36-37

27. Brachiacantha april Gordon and Canepari, new species

Description. Male holotype. Length 2.6 mm, width 2.0 mm; body elongate oval, convex. Dorsal surface with head and pronotum alutaceous, feebly shiny, elytron smooth, shiny. Color yellow except head black with yellow spot on vertex and base of frons, pronotum entirely black except anterolateral angle yellow; elytron black with 5 small, yellow spots, humeral spot triangular, discal spot oval, mediolateral spot irregularly oval, somewhat projected inward, apical spot transversely oval ( Fig. 151 ); ventral surface with head, prosternum, meso- and metaventrites black, legs with basal 3/4 of femora dark brown; abdomen dark brown except ventrites 5–6 yellowish brown. Head punctures small, separated by a diameter or less, each puncture slightly larger than an eye facet; pronotal punctures larger than head punctures, separated by 1 to 2 times a diameter, elytral punctures larger than on pronotum, separated by 1 to 3 times diameter; metaventral punctures larger than on elytron, separated by a diameter or less. Clypeus weakly emarginate apically, lateral angle rounded, surface with sparse, long pubescence. Eye canthus about 6 eye facets long, straight, apically rounded, black. Pronotum narrowed from base to apex, basal and anterior angles abrupt, lateral margin rounded, basal margin without trace of bordering line medially. Epipleuron narrow, not descending externally, deeply emarginate for reception of femoral apices. Protibia narrowly flanged, flange about 1/4 as wide as remainder of protibia, outer margin straight, smooth, basal tooth small, triangular, about 1/5 width of tibia at base, sponda not extended beyond protibial flange. Carinae on prosternal process narrowly separated at apex, parallel, not joined, ended at basal 1/5 of prosternum. Metaventrite without setal tuft. Basal abdominal ventrite without setal tuft. Abdomen with postcoxal line on basal abdominal ventrite flattened along apical ventrite margin, curved forward at apex, ventrite with sparse, long pubescence and small, dense punctures; ventrites 2–6 pubescent throughout, punctures fine, dense; ventrite 3 without cusp on each side of middle; 5th ventrite depressed in median 1/3, apex slightly emarginate; 6th ventrite medially depressed, apex shallowly emarginate. Apical tergite finely, densely punctured, apex weakly emarginate. Genitalia with basal lobe longer than paramere, symmetrical, sides convergent from base to apical 2/3, apical 1/3 narrower, apex rounded; paramere short, strongly Psc, slender, strongly curved, sides almost parallel from base to apex, except upper surface medially emarginate, with patch of setae, apex rounded ( Fig. 152, 153 ); sipho robust, strongly curved in basal 1/2, with lateral alae at apical 1/8, basal capsule lightly sclerotized, inner arm short, narrow, apex widely emarginate, outer arm curved, wider and longer than inner arm, with accessory piece, basal border shallowly emarginate ( Fig. 154, 155 ).

Female. Externally similar to male except genitalia with spermathecal capsule short, wide, narrowed from base to apex; bursal cap without sclerotized arms, apical strut short, strongly widened apically, paddle shaped ( Fig. 156 ).

Variation. Length 2.0 to 2.7 mm, width 1.5 to 2.0 mm.

Type material. Holotype male; ( Brazil) No 666.106 Montevideo So Amer Paras Lab, Date Jan.14.42, swept, Parker , Bras Sao Paulo. ( USNM) . Paratypes; 14, 1, same data as holotype ( USNM) ; 5, Campinas , Brazil, Mar. 19’39, PA Berry ( USNM) ; 2, Campinas 1939, Sao Paulo Brazil, 3.3-9, PA Berry ( USNM) ; 3, Corrientes, Argentina ( USNM) ; 1, Santiago del Estero, Argentina, April 13, 1940, H. L. Parker ( USNM) ; 1, Bolivia- 360m alt., Dept. Cochabamba , San Antonio Rd., VIII.5.1951, sweeping, G.H. Dieke ( USNM) ; 1, Peru- 670m alt., Dept Huanuco , Tingo Maria, VIII.16-25.1951, sweeping, G.H. Dieke ( USNM) .

Remarks. Brachiacantha april is distinguished from other species with 5 yellow spots on a dark background by the black male head, male genitalia with triangular basal lobe, and paramere of male genitalia with dorsal margin medially emarginate with clump of setae. The paramere is similar to those of some species in the sellata group.

The holotype and 1 paratype bear labels that refer to the U.S. Department of Agriculture parasite laboratory in Montevideo in the early 1940s.

Figures

Figures 139–156. 139–145. Brachiacantha jill. 139) Habitus. 140) Protibia. 141) Phallobase ventral. 142) Phallobase lateral. 143) Sipho. 144) Enlarged siphonal apex. 145). Female genitalia. 146–150. Brachiacantha blandula. 146) Habitus. 147) Phallobase ventral. 148) Phallobase lateral. 149) Sipho. 150) Female genitalia. 151–156. Brachiacantha april. 151) Habitus. 152) Phallobase ventral. 153) Phallobase lateral. 154) Sipho. 155) Enlarged siphonal apex. 156) Female genitalia.