Calligrapha femorata Jacoby, 1891

Gómez-Zurita, Jesús, 2018, Systematic revision of Central American Calligrapha Chevrolat of the subgenus Erythrographa subgen. nov. (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae, Chrysomelinae), Zootaxa 4531 (1), pp. 1-58 : 15-17

Calligrapha femorata Jacoby, 1891

( Figs 4a , 5 )

Calligrapha femorata Jacoby, 1891 . Biol. Centr.-Amer., vol. vi, pt. 1, suppl., p. 247.

Polyspila femorata: Weise, 1916 . Coleopt. Cat., p. 39.

Calligrapha femorata: Blackwelder, 1946 . U.S. Natl. Mus. Bull. 185, p. 674.

Calligrapha femorata: Wilcox, 1975 . Checklist Chryomelidae, p. 66.

Calligrapha femorata: Benítez-García et al., 2017 . Rev. Mex. Biodiv. 88, p. 339.

This species was described based on a single specimen, as explicitly mentioned in the original description, published in the February 1891 supplement of the Biologia Centrali-Americana (Jacoby 1888–1892). The information provided in the description fits in every detail the only specimen originally labelled as Calligrapha femorata in the beetle collection of the Natural History Museum (London), and this is recognized as Jacoby's holotype for this species.

Holotype, by original designation: Xautipa, Guerrero, H.H. Smith / Calligr. femorata Jac. [blue] / Sp. figured / Godman-Salvin Coll., Biol. Centr.-Amer. ( NHM). Only two basal antennomeres of right antennae remaining, and right meso-onychium and left metatarsus are also missing.

Habitus ( Fig. 4a ): Length: 8.38 mm, width: 5.40 mm. Body ovoid, moderately convex. Head and pronotum dark metallic green; scutellum, dark markings of elytra, epipleura, and apex of mandibes very dark brown, almost black with slight bronzy reflection; ventral surfaces and large frontal and posterior femoral spots (occupying basal 2/3 of femora) black with bluish-greenish metallic reflections; apical margin of clypeus, labrum, mandibles, antennae, mouth segments, ground of femora, tibiae, tarsi and fine margins of abdominal ventrites reddish orange; pale areas of elytra dark yellow.

Head large, deeply inserted in pronotum, rather strongly densely punctured on frons, around frontal and clypeal suture, above antennal calli and around eyes; supraocular furrow as wide impressed region above upper margin of eye. Clypeus punctured apically and at sides. Labrum long (W/L = 1.98), smooth, shiny, with sides regularly round and weakly emarginate anteriorly. Mandibles strong, long, protruding twice length of labrum, weakly concave at sides basally, with few large, deep punctures at sides, umpunctured and shiny frontally. Last palpomere of maxillary palpi strongly dilated apically, apex cut almost straight and sides regularly curved towards narrowed base; previous palpomere as broad at apex as base of last palpomere, markedly narrowing externally towards base; first maxillary palpomere club-shaped. Antennae slender, weakly clavate, reaching behind humeri; scape strongly dilated from very narrow base; pedicel small, as short club, half as long as scape; third antennomere slender, slightly clavate, slightly longer than scape; fourth antennomere slender, 1.5x as long as second; antennomeres 4–6 progressively shorter and more rugose, with sixth antennomere slightly longer than second; antennomeres 7–11 slightly more incrassate but slender, with surface finely rugose and densely pubescent; seventh antennomere as long as fifth, eighth and ninth subequal, slightly longer than fourth, and tenth and eleventh progressively longer, with eleventh as long as third; eighth antennomere about 1.5x as long as wide at apex. Pronotum subtrapezoidal, transverse (W/L = 1.94), narrower than base of elytra; sides nearly straight at basal 2/3, weakly converging and gently curved at apical 1/3 towards moderately protruding anterior angles, finely margined; anterior border feebly concave bewteen angles, narrowly margined; basal border of pronotum bisinuate, unmargined; surface smooth, shiny, with fine microgranulation and sparse, moderately strong punctures on disc, unevenly distributed, stronger and sometimes confluent at sides and angles, elongate and partially aligned with basal border at sides of pronotum. Hypomera weakly convex on disc, smooth and shiny, unpunctured, with some transverse wrinkles basally; hypomeral suture deep and continuous, curved at basal angle and weakly and gradually diverging to base of anterior angles. Prosternum transversely convex at middle, slightly depressed at sides, finely margined anteriorly, with strong, rugose punctures at sides and before procoxae; prosternal process narrow between coxae, convex, slightly spatulate apically, punctured at sides, smooth medially. Mesepimera and mesanepisterna finely microreticulate, punctured at angles. Metanepisterna markedly narrow posteriorly, with strong and elongated scattered punctures. Metaventrite convex, shiny and leathery, with fine scattered punctation on disc, impressed and slightly rugose at sides, punctured at anterior angles. Scutellum longer than wide at base (W/L = 0.84), lancetshaped, glossy, unpunctured. Elytra long and parallel, with humeri marked, widest at middle, and regularly curved at apical third; surface with very fine uneven punctation on pale areas, and with strong punctures around and within dark markings; premarginal row of punctures confused in subhumeral area, regular and gradually approaching margin of elytron toward sutural angle; scutellar row long, with some ten spaced punctures reaching basal 1/3 of elytron. Dark markings on elytra expand clearly beyond associated puncture features: (i) sutural stripe broad, completely surrounding scutellum at base by twice its width, occupying interval between scutellar row and sutural row of punctures, reaching sutural angle; (ii) subsutural stripe entirely confluent with sutural stripe from base, at level with apical 1/3 of scutellum, to apex of elytra, expanded laterally as preapical lobe shortly before sutural angle; (iii) arcuate band entire, externally concave, mostly confluent internally with subsutural stripe except briefly at divergent ends; (iv) humeral spot large, long, nearly reaching middle of elyton and expanded posteriorly, broadly confluent basally with elytral margin and with surrounding features; (v) humeral lunule slightly longer than humeral spot, gently curved inward, broadly confluent basally with margin of elytron, completely fused laterally with humeral spot and confluent apically with basal 1/4 of arcuate band; (vi) subhumeral spot medium sized, elliptic, broadly fused laterally with humeral spot; (vi) spot enclosed by humeral lunule large, subtriangular, broadly confluent with humeral lunule externally and subsutural stripe internally, delimiting two enclosed irregular pale areas, one marginal basal and one postbasal, between base of triangle and confluence of humeral lunule, base of arcuate band and subsutural stripe; spot with strong marginal and insterstitial punctation; (vii) midlateral spot large, irregular, entirely confluent and expanded along margin, narrowing gradually anteriorly, disappearing at level with subhumeral spot, and irregularly narrowing posteriorly almost reaching sutural angle; (viii) spot of apical declivity large, longitudinally elongated and entirely confluent laterally with subsutural stripe; (ix) apical spot large, irregular, broadly confluent laterally with dark marginal expansion of midlateral spot; (x) three additional recognizable spots on disc (right elytron of type); one spot round, large, shortly confluent laterally with broad dark margin of elytron slightly behind midlateral spot; one spot round, slightly smaller (broken into three small spots on left elytron of type), on apical concavity of arcuate band; and one large, irregular elongate spot reaching from near apex of arcuate band to dark lateral margin of elytron at level with base of spot of apical declivity. Epipleura wide at base, microsculptured, glossy, unpunctured. Femora slender, very finely microreticulate, with fine and scattered punctures. Tibiae straight and slender, shorter than femora, gradually widening apically and weakly impressed externally at apical half by apically expanded furrow; smooth, with scattered punctation basally, finely rugose and pubescent apically, with dense golden setae expanding apically on tibiae internally. Tarsi slender, shorter than corresponding tibiae. First abdominal ventrite convex, as long as metaventrite medially, shiny, with sparse fine punctation and short fine hairs; remaining ventrites finely microreticulate, with denser, stronger punctation, feebly impressed at sides.

Distribution. This species is rare in collections and so far it is only known from specimens collected in Mexico, in sthe outhwestern slopes of the Sierra Madre Occidental and Transvolcanic belt ( Fig. 5 ). Until more distribution data becomes available for this species, it can be considered a typical element of the Mexican Transition zone ( Morrone 2006).

Material examined (eight specimens).

MEXICO.

FSCA: (1) one specimen: Mexico, Veracruz, Fortín de las Flores, at Microwave Station, 30.vi.1992, B.K. Dozier. MCZ: (1) one specimen: Juquila, Mexico, Sallé Coll., 1st Jacoby Coll., Calligrapha femorata Jac. J. Gómez-Zurita det. 2010; (2) one specimen: Juquila, Mohr, Jacoby 2nd Coll., Calligrapha femorata Jac. J. Gómez- Zurita det. 2010. NHM: (1) one specimen: Juquila, Mexico, Sallé Coll., 697, Godman-Salvin Coll., Biol. Centr.- Amer. NMB: (1) one specimen: Ventanas, Durango, Höge, Calligrapha suffriani Jac. J. Bechyné det. 1954, Calligrapha nr. femorata Jac. J. Gómez-Zurita det. 2010. NMNH: (1) one specimen: Mexico, Veracruz, Fortín de las Flores, 2900’, iii.7.1966, in bromeliads, George E. Ball, D.R. Whitehead collectors, Calligrapha femorata Jacoby J. Gómez-Zurita det. 2011. TAMUIC: (1) two specimens: [X0533905, X0534193], Mexico, Oaxaca, Hwy131, 15 mi N San Gabriel Mixtepec, 11.vii.1987, Kovarik & Schaffner coll., Calligrapha femorata Jacoby J. Gómez-Zurita det. 2011.

Variation. Martin Jacoby knew a single specimen of his new taxon, which displayed the highly conspicuous dark metallic spots on reddish femora. In fact, among the specimens in the collection of this author currently in the Natural History Museum (London), there was another specimen of this species (I found it mixed with representatives of C. stillatipennis Stål ). Interestingly, the specimen shows remarkable differences to the type, including the lack of darkened spots on femora, but also differences in coloration, heavier and more confluent elytral markings, although humeral markings in particular are basally free from basal margin of elytra. Moreover, this specimen shows hypomeral sutures almost obliterated, and more slender proportions (length: 8.13 mm, width: 4.98 mm), but otherwise it matches the type in important, diagnostic characters, such as the long labrum, the pronotum parallel-sided and much narrower than the elytra, the number and arrangements of markings on elytra, the subhumeral spot fused with humeral marking, and the midlateral spot expanded to form a wide elytral dark margin. In the Museum of Comparative Zoology (Cambridge MA) there are other specimens from the same source and almost identical to the one in London, but they are closer to the type in having their humeral marking confluent with basal margin of elytron and deeply furrowed hypomeral suture, an important diagnostic character for this entire lineage of Calligrapha . One of the specimens at MCZ, however, departs again from the type in the shape of pronotum, with sinuous sides, still narrower at base than base of elytra and slightly cordiform; elytral markings in this specimen are even heavier than those in the type, leaving very reduced pale areas, and their femora, particularly metafemora are largely darkened basally. Finally, the specimen found in the beetle collection of the Smithsonian Institution still has another peculiarity: the specimen is darkened and it is difficult to recognize coloration, but it looks as if its legs were uniformly dark with metallic shine; otherwise, the specimens conforms well to the type.

Figures

FIGURE 4. Dorsal and lateral views of the holotypes of Calligrapha femorata Jacoby (a) and C. synthesys sp. nov. (b).

FIGURE 5. Distribution of Calligrapha femorata Jacoby and C. synthesys sp. nov.