Brachiacantha aurantiapleura Nestor-Arriola, Solis & Toledo-Hernandez, 2021

Nestor-Arriola, Jorge Ismael, Toledo-Hernandez, Victor Hugo, Solis, Angel, Gonzalez, Guillermo & Vetrovec, Jaroslav, 2021, The Brachiacantha Dejean, 1837 (Coleoptera, Coccinellidae) of Central America, ZooKeys 1024, pp. 157-196 : 157

Brachiacantha aurantiapleura Nestor-Arriola, Solis & Toledo-Hernandez sp. nov. Figures 46-51

Holotype.

Male, pinned, with genitalia in a separate microvial. Original labels: " COSTA RICA, PUNTARENAS, Monteverde, San Luis, 1000-1400 m, Feb. 1994, col. Z. Fuentes, L N 449250_250850, #2615" ( MNCR).

Paratype.

Costa Rica • 1♀; same data as the holotype; #2771 ( MNCR) .

Diagnosis.

Dorsal color black with the head and the angles of the pronotum yellow in males; both sexes with a large lateral orange macula on each elytron. Dorsal surface with a slightly golden sheen.

Description.

Holotype. Male. Length 2.4 mm, width 1.9 mm; body oval-rounded, convex. Dorsal color black except head pale yellow with black clypeus; pronotum with lateral angles and anterior margin pale yellow; elytron with a large oval orange lateral macula, the macula touches the lateral margin and the humeral angle (Fig. 46 ), the black color shows a slightly golden sheen. Ventral surface with head, prosternum, metaventrite and abdomen dark brown; legs, mouthparts and antennae yellow. Head punctures small, separated by their diameter, each puncture as large as an eye facet; pronotal punctures larger than head punctures, separated by their diameter to 1½× their diameters; elytral punctures larger than pronotal punctures, separated by their diameter; metaventral punctures as large as elytral punctures, separated by 1½× their diameter. Clypeus straight. Prosternal carinae not examined. Protibia not flanged, basal tooth small, sponda extended beyond protibial margin (Fig. 47 ). Basal abdominal ventrite without setal tuft. Abdomen with postcoxal line on basal abdominal ventrite curved, touching the posterior ventrite margin, ventrite with sparse, long pubescence and small, dense punctures. Ventrites II-IV with a tubercle on each side of middle, each pair of tubercles more separated than the anterior ventrite; ventrites V and VI flattened and emarginated (Fig. 48 ). Ventrites II-VI pubescent throughout, punctures fine, dense. Genitalia with penis guide as long as parameres, symmetrical, sides slightly convergent, slightly wider before apex, apex acute (Fig. 50 ); parameres curved, narrowed to apex, apex acute, setae arising from convex side and the apex (Fig. 49 ); penis curved in basal ½, apex without alae, apex with a large apical ampulla, basal capsule without crest, inner arm of basal capsule small and subtriangular (Fig. 51 ).

Female. Length 2.5 mm, width 1.9 mm. Similar to male except head, pronotum and basal part of femurs black; abdomen not modified. Genitalia not examined.

Variation.

The only known variation is shown by the female paratype.

Etymology.

From the Latin word aurantius (= orange) and pleurón (= sides). The name refers to the dorsal color pattern.

Type locality.

COSTA RICA, Puntarenas: Monteverde, San Luis , 10°17'11"N, 84°48'5"W .

Distribution.

Costa Rica.

Discussion.

This species is easily recognizable by its dorsal coloration and the gold sheen on the dorsal surface. The species is very similar to Hyperaspis panzosae Gorham, but the specimen described by Gorham is a female and the author described the specimen having black legs (however, the figure in Gorham’s table has orange legs instead), while the female described here has only the basal half of femurs black; the author did not describe any sheen for H. panzosae , while Brachiacantha aurantiapleura has a gold sheen on the dorsal surface. There are several species of Hyperaspis with similar coloration to Hyperaspis panzosae like H. excelsa Fall and H. cruenta LeConte, so that without examining the original material there is no evidence to assume Hyperaspis panzosae as Brachiacantha instead of Hyperaspis ; therefore, we decided to maintain Brachiacantha aurantiapleura as a separate species.

Figures

Figures 46 - 51. Brachiacantha aurantiapleura sp. nov., male 46 Lateral view 47 Protibia 48 Abdomen 49 Tegmen, lateral view 50 Tegmen 51 Penis.