Ora troberti (Guérin-Méneville, 1861)

Epler, J. H. & Gimmel, Matthew L., 2019, Notes on the Marsh Beetle Genus Ora Clark (Coleoptera: Scirtidae) in the Southeastern USA and Central America, The Coleopterists Bulletin 73 (3), pp. 521-527 : 526

Ora troberti (Guérin-Méneville, 1861) ( Figs. 12–15 )

This brightly marked, variably colored species is known from Alabama, Florida, and Texas in the USA ( Epler 2010), Guatemala, Mexico, and Grand Cayman in the West Indies ( Thomas et al. 2013). Additional records are given below.

CUBA: Granma ( USNMNH). MEXICO: Vera Cruz ( USNMNH). USA: TEXAS: Cameron, Hidalgo, Live Oak, San Patricio Counties ( FSCA; LSAM; USNMNH).

KEY TO THE SPECIES OF ORA OF THE USA ( O. depressa is not known from the USA but is included for comparison to O. discoidea and O. cf. marmorata)

1. Head, pronotum, and elytra pubescent; body form wider and more convex .................. 2

1 ʹ. Head, pronotum, and elytra mostly glabrous; body form more slender and slightly depressed ............................................... 5

2. Elytron with brownish longitudinal vittae, with 3 faint, irregular, transverse fasciae, and a light area on a dark background near the scutellar shield ( Fig. 10 ); common over the entire Gulf region of the USA, south to Costa Rica....................... O. texana Champion

2 ʹ. Elytron with large, dark brown discal vitta, bordered on all sides by broad, testaceous margin, no light area on a dark background near scutellar shield; OR elytra yellow/ testaceous, sometimes with some faint darker spots in basal half or scattered over entire elytron ....................................... 3

3. Pronotum light brown to reddish brown; male elytron usually with broad, dark brown discal vitta, bordered on all sides by broad testaceous margin ( Figs. 1 , 5 ), elytron of female and some males predominantly testaceous, often with some faint darker spots in basal half ( Figs. 3 , 6, 7 ); penis apically bifurcated in Y-shape ( Fig. 17 ); Florida to eastern Texas ( Fig. 19 ), south to Costa Rica........... O. discoidea Champion

3 ʹ. Pronotum yellow or testaceous, sometimes with faint discal darkening; elytron yellow/ testaceous, never with dark vitta, sometimes with scattered dark spots ( Figs. 8, 10 ); penis not apically bifurcated in Y-shape ............ 4

4. Elytra mostly yellow, sometimes with scattered dark spots ( Fig. 8 ); penis with subapical process at right angle to main shaft ( Fig. 16 ); southern Mexico, Argentina, Brazil............ ........................... O. depressa (Fabricius)

4 ʹ. Elytra darker yellow/testaceous, with numerous spots, many coalesced, over entire elytron ( Fig. 10 ); penis without subapical process ( Fig. 18 ); southern Texas ................................. ................... O. cf. marmorata Champion

5. Elytra moderately to weakly costate, without definite pattern of vittae, but may be irregularly infuscated between costae ( Fig. 9 ); all known specimens from Florida .................. ........................... O. hyacintha Blatchley

5 ʹ. Elytra not costate, variably patterned with partial or complete longitudinal vittae, with a light, transverse bar adjacent to scutellar shield; body flatter ( Figs. 12–15 ); known from southern Florida, southern Texas, and Alabama, south to Mexico, Guatemala, and Cuba......... O. troberti (Guérin-Méneville)

Figures

Figs. 5–15. Ora species, dorsal habitus. O. discoidea: 5) Male vittate form, Guatemala; 6) Male unmarked form, Mexico; 7) Male lightly marked form, Mexico. 8) O. depressa, Mexico; 9) O. hyacintha, Florida; 10) O. cf. marmorata, Texas; 11) O. texana, Florida. O. troberti: 12–14) Specimens from Florida; 15) Specimen from Texas. Figs. 9 and 11–15 from Epler (2010). Not to scale.

Figs. 1–4. Ora discoidea from Louisiana. 1) Male vittate form, dorsal habitus; 2) Same male, ventral habitus; 3) Female, dorsal habitus; 4) Same female, ventral habitus. Scale bar = 1 mm.

Figs. 16–18. Ora species, apex of male genitalia, penis shaded. 16) O. depressa, Mexico; 17) O. discoidea, Florida; 18) O. cf. marmorata, Texas.

Fig. 19. Distribution of Ora discoidea in the USA.