Chilocorus nigrita (Fabricius)

Nattier, Romain, Jourdan, Hervé, Mille, Christian & Chazeau, Jean, 2015, An annotated checklist of the Coccinellidae (Coleoptera) from New Caledonia, Zootaxa 4058 (3), pp. 301-331 : 302-303

Chilocorus nigrita (Fabricius)

Coccinella nigrita Fabricius, 1798: 79 . Chilocorus nigritus: Mulsant 1850: 463 . Chilocorus nigrita: Booth 1998: 362 .

This species was recorded as an introduction during the early 1980s ( Chazeau 1981b), and further spread across New Caledonia. It is now widespread from west coast of the Grande Terre and Loyalty Islands (Chazeau, pers. obs.). Its arrival appears to be a probable self-introduction from Vanuatu, where this species is widespread ( Chazeau 1981b). It is a diaspid predator, especially Aspidiotini on coconut trees ( Chazeau 1981b; Omkar & Pervez 2003; Ponsonby 2009). This is a widespread and largely promoted species for biocontrol programs of Aspidiotus destructor Signoret ( Hemiptera : Diaspididae ), especially in coconut palm plantations ( Omkar & Pervez 2003). It is widely distributed from India to Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Madagascar, La Réunion, Mauritius, Seychelles, Chagos Islands, Malaysia, Indonesia, Oman, Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, Brazil; but also in the Pacific: Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, Fiji Islands, Kiribati, Tuvalu, Samoa, French Polynesia and Hawaii ( Booth 1998; Chazeau 1983).

Material examined. NEW CALEDONIA: Bouloupari, 20.iv.1988 (Brizard rec.) ( ONNC); Bouloupari, 20.iv.1988 (Brizard rec.) ( ONNC); Nouméa, Vallon du Gaz, 11.iv.1981 (J. Chazeau rec.) ( ONNC); Nouméa, Baie de la Moselle, 20.vi.1987 ( ONNC); Pouébo (around), 23.xi.1987 (J.P. Morin rec.) ( ONNC); Bouraké, 17.viii.2008 (H. Jourdan rec.) ( ONNC).