Hyperaspis praecipua, Gordon & González, 2011

Gordon, Robert D. & González, F. Guillermo, 2011, Additions to the Hyperaspis Chevrolat (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) fauna of South American, descriptions of nine new species, and recognition of Hyperaspis pectoralis Crotch as a valid species, Insecta Mundi 2011 (160), pp. 1-20 : 5-6

Hyperaspis praecipua , new species

( Figure 50-58 )

Description. Male holotype. Length 2.9 mm, width 2.4 mm. Body rounded, convex. Dorsal surface with head alutaceous, dull, pronotum slightly alutaceous, weakly shiny, elytron smooth, shiny. Color black except head yellow; pronotum with median black macula extended 3/4 distance from base to apex, apical margin of macula sinuate, lateral margin medially indented, disc with 2 large, oblique, elongate yellow “eyespots;” elytron with 5 yellow spots arranged in transverse rows of 2 each, with apical spot, median lateral spot extended inward, narrowly connected to discal spot ( Fig. 50-53 ); venter with epipleuron, antenna, labial palpi, inner 1/2 of apical maxillary palpus, outer border and posterior 1/5 of hypomeron, mesepimeron, proleg except basal 1/2 of femur, meso- and metalegs except basal 7/8, yellow. Head punctures small, separated by a diameter or less; pronotal punctures larger than on head, separated by less than to twice a diameter; elytral punctures as large as on pronotum, separated by 1-4 times a diameter; punctures on metaventrite dense, larger than on elytra, separated by a diameter or less medially, becoming contiguous in lateral 1/2; punctures on median portion of abdominal ventrites 1-3 large, separated by less than to twice a diameter, becoming fine, dense in lateral 1/3, ventrites 4-6 finely, densely punctured throughout. Clypeal apex deeply emarginate, clypeus and frons joined at abrupt angle. Epipleuron wide, slightly grooved medially, descending externally, femoral depresssions deep. Antenna with 11 articles. Protibia wide, flanged. Prosternum with intercoxal carinae narrowly separated at apex, convergent toward base, joined at 1/2 distance to prosternal base, and connected to base by single stem. Postcoxal line on basal abdominal ventrite straight in basal 1/3, curved to posterior ventrite margin, and recurved 1/4 distance to lateral margin ( Fig. 54 ). Fifth ventrite broadly, weakly emarginate apically; 6 th ventrite with broad, deep apical emargination. Genitalia with basal lobe long, slender, 3/4 length of paramere, sinuate, apex bluntly acute, one margin with long, narrow median projection; paramere long, slender, tapered from base to apex, apex rounded ( Fig. 57, 58 ); trabes longer than phallobase, apex bent laterally; sipho long, slender, curved in basal 2/3, apex bifid, basal capsule with inner arm long, slender, apically curved, outer arm short, wide, nearly obsolete, without accessory piece, basal border broadly, weakly emarginate ( Fig. 55, 56 ).

Female. Not known.

Type material. Holotype male: Colombia, Valle , nr. Saladito, 6500', July 20, 1970, H. & A. Howden. ( USNM).

Remarks. Hyperaspis praecipua is unique among known Hyperaspis species by the yellow, pronotal “eyespots”; male genitalia with long, slender phallobase, slender, elongate basal lobe; and extremely long sipho having a bifid apex and outer arm of basal capsule nearly obsolete. It will go to couplet 39 in the Hyperaspis key of Gordon and Canepari (2008), where it is separated from choices there by the median, oblique, yellow pronotal spots.

Etymology. The name is from the Latin praecipuus, meaning special, or peculiar, referring to the unique characteristics of this species.

Figures

Figure 50-58. Hyperaspis praecipua. 50-53) Habitus views. 54) Abdomen. 55-58) Male genitalia. 55) Sipho. 56) Enlarged siphonal apex. 57-58) Lateral and ventral views of phallobase.