Charidotis candens ( Boheman, 1855 )

Sekerka, Lukáš, 2016, Taxonomic and nomenclatural changes in Cassidinae (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae 56 (1), pp. 275-344 : 289-290

Charidotis candens ( Boheman, 1855)

Cassida sanguinolenta Swederus, 1787: 193 (original description; primary junior homonym of C. sanguinolenta O. F. Müller, 1776 ).

Psalidonota candens Boheman, 1855: 85 (original description).

Coptocycla suspecta Boheman, 1855: 422 (original description), syn. nov.

Type localities. Cassida sanguinolenta : ‘Brasilia’; Coptocycla suspecta : ‘Brasilia’; Psalidonota candens : ‘Brasilia’.

Type material examined. Coptocycla suspecta : SYNTYPE: pinned, ‘ Brasil [w, p, s] || Reiche [w, hw, s] || NHRS-JLKB | 000022599 [w, p, cb]’ ( NHRS).

Remarks. BOHEMAN (1855) stated ‘Mus. Dom. Reiche’ as the type depository of Coptocycla suspecta . In the supplement to Monographia Cassididarum Boheman did not mark this taxon with an asterisk which indicates it was not present in his collection ( BOHEMAN 1862). Cassidinae described from the collection of Louis Reiche are currently deposited in at least three museums: BMNH (via Hamlet Clark collection), MNHN (mainly via René Oberthür), and NHRS (desiderata retained by Boheman). However, taxa proposed by BOHEMAN (1855) are largely kept in the BMNH, but there is no specimen that might potentially represent the type of C. suspecta . Similarly, I did not find any specimen in MNHN, but the large (and quite poorly organized) Oberthür collection in MNHN. might contain material of this taxon.

I have found a single specimen in NHRS, which Boheman retained from Reiche. It does not bear the typical small printed label ‘Type’, which Boheman usually pinned under the first specimen in the series of species he described. On the other hand Boheman occasionally pinned this label under a specimen he returned to the owner of the respective collection and did not attach it to additional specimens he retained. The NHRS specimen agrees quite well with the primary description and I consider it as syntype.

SPAETH (1914) transferred C. suspecta to Plagiometriona Spaeth, 1899 and since then it was only listed in catalogues (see BOROWIEC 1999a). However, the taxon belongs to Charidotis as it has micropectinate tarsal claws and a third antennomere much shorter than the second. It has elytra with a low postscutellar tubercle and yellow dorsum only with an almost imperceptible small reddish spot on the tubercle, which is unusual in species of Charidotis . Coptocycla suspecta is in my opinion conspecific with C. candens , the only species of Charidotis with a similar combination of characters. It has a variable red pattern on elytra forming red ring extending along suture to apex and central red spot along suture in postscutellar area. The ring is in some specimens completely reduced, with only the spot on the top of elytra remaining. Coptocycla suspecta has the spot very small but otherwise, the convexity of elytra, the shape and size of body, and the structure of antennae and clypeus is exactly the same with C. candens and I synonymize it with the latter species. Since both taxa were described in the same publication I followed the Principle of the first reviser ( ICZN 1999: Article 24.2) and chose the name C. candens as the valid one because it is currently used for Cassida sanguinolenta Swederus, 1787 not O. F. Müller, 1776. I did not examine types of C. candens and C. sanguinolenta but these were studied by SPAETH (1936) who established the synonymy so I follow here his concept of C. candens .

Distribution. Brazil: Rio de Janeiro ( BOROWIEC 1996), São Paulo ( SPAETH 1936); Colombia ( SPAETH 1936).