Novius fumidus (Mulsant)

Poorani, J., 2023, A review of the tribe Noviini (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) of the Indian subcontinent, Zootaxa 5311 (1), pp. 1-47 : 19-24

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https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5311.1.1

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lsid:zoobank.org:pub:0E28EEF2-38B4-412F-80C1-CC958A9B7B26

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8095441

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scientific name

Novius fumidus (Mulsant)
status

 

Novius fumidus (Mulsant)

( Figs 13–17 View FIGURE 13 View FIGURE 14 View FIGURE 15 View FIGURE 16 View FIGURE 17 )

Rodolia fumida Mulsant, 1850: 904 .- Korschefsky, 1931: 101.- Kapur, 1949: 534.

Rodolia roseipennis Mulsant, 1850: 904 .- Crotch 1874: 281; Kapur 1949: 534.

Rodolia chermesina Mulsant, 1850: 905 .- Crotch 1874: 281; Kapur 1949: 534.

Epilachna arethusa Mulsant, 1853: 254 .- Crotch 1874: 281; Kapur 1949: 534.

Epilachna testicolor Mulsant, 1853: 255 .- Crotch 1874: 281; Kapur 1949: 534.

Novius fumidus: Pang et al. 2020 .

Diagnosis. Length: 4.08–5.60 mm; width: 3.36–3.66 mm. Form ( Figs 13a–d View FIGURE 13 , 15a, b View FIGURE 15 ) robust, elongate to somewhat shorter oval, narrowed towards apex in posterior half. Ground colour entirely or partly reddish testaceous or reddish or dull reddish brown or darker brown ( Fig. 13a–c View FIGURE 13 ), elytra rarely bright reddish ( Fig. 15a View FIGURE 15 ) or reddish brown with ill-defined darker patches or all sublateral margins distinctly darker brown or fuscous ( Figs 13c View FIGURE 13 , 15b–d View FIGURE 15 ). Prosternal process ( Fig. 14b View FIGURE 14 ) anteriorly narrow, gradually widened towards posterior, less conspicuously raised anteriorly. Abdominal postcoxal line ( Fig. 14c, d View FIGURE 14 ) complete and shallowly semicircular. Abdominal ventrite 6 posteriorly broadly and weakly emarginate in female, narrowly and more deeply emarginate in male ( Fig. 14c View FIGURE 14 ). Male genitalia ( Figs 14g –i View FIGURE 14 , 15e–g View FIGURE 15 ), female genitalia ( Fig. 14e View FIGURE 14 ) and spermatheca ( Fig. 14f View FIGURE 14 ) as illustrated.

Immature stages. Larva ( Fig. 16a–g View FIGURE 16 ) robust, ellipsoidal to fusiform in outline, dark reddish brown or grayish brown, occasionally with grayish white pruinosity ( Fig. 17a–c View FIGURE 17 ). Pupa ( Fig. 16h View FIGURE 16 ) dark reddish or orange-brown.

Material examined. INDIA: Tamil Nadu: Podavur, NRCB Farm , 2022–23, reared on Icerya purchasi infesting casuarina, banana and guava ( NRCB); several specimens received for identification from Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka, without further data.

Distribution. India: Widely distributed (Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal); Pakistan; Sri Lanka; Nepal; Myanmar; Mauritius; Seychelles; Rodrigues Islands; China (Fujian, Guangdong, Yunnan); Vietnam; Afrotropical Region; Oriental Region ( Pang et al. 2020).

Prey/associated habitat. Drosicha mangiferae Green , Drosicha stebbingii (Green) , Icerya purchasi , I. pilosa , Icerya spp. , Perissopneumon ferox Newstead , Perissopneumon tamarindus (Green) , Perissopneumon sp. (Monophlebidae) ; Aleurodicus dispersus Russell (Aleyrodidae) . Collected on casuarina, sugarcane, mango, citrus, guava, banana, erythrina, tamarind, Emblica officinalis , palmyra palm, and ornamental plants such as Acalypha sp. (label data). Rao & Cherian (1944) studied its biology (as Rodolia roseipennis Muls. ) on I. purchasi and observed “it was...neither sufficiently prolific nor even efficient enough as a predator to exert any control on the pest”.

Seasonal occurrence. Collected almost round the year, particularly common during January–July (based on label data).

Natural enemies. Larvae and prepupae are parasitized by Homalotylus flaminius (Dalman) , Homalotylus eytelweinii (Ratzeburg) and Oricoruna orientalis (Crawford) ( Hymenoptera : Pteromalidae ) ( Srivastava 1973).

Notes. There is a lot of variation in size and coloration among specimens collected from different parts of India (BMNH material). In general, South Indian specimens are smaller and reddish-testaceous whereas specimens from the northern states are much larger and more robust, often with lateral and sutural area of elytra darkly banded or bordered with only the discal area testaceous, occasionally the entire dorsum or the elytra are mostly dark brown. Specimens collected during summer often appear to have darker elytral margins. Record of Novius limbatus from India in the world checklist by Pang et al. (2020) appears to be a case of misidentification of the darker forms of N. fumidus . Novius limbatus is distinctly more elongate and narrower than N. fumidus and can be separated from N. fumidus by its distinctive appearance. Notes on its biology, hosts and predatory potential were given by Stebbing (1903), Subramaniam (1954 -55), Rawat & Modi (1968), Varma et al. (1976) and Rasheed et al. (1986).

Crotch, G. R. (1874) A Revision of the Coleopterous Family Coccinellidae. E. W. Janson, London, xv + 311 pp. https: // doi. org / 10.5962 / bhl. title. 8975

Kapur, A. P. (1949) On the Indian species of Rodolia Mulsant (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae). Bulletin of Entomological Research, 39, 531 - 538. https: // doi. org / 10.1017 / S 0007485300022616

Korschefsky, R. (1931) Coleopterorum Catalogus. Pars 118. Coccinellidae I. W. Junk, Berlin, 224 pp.

Mulsant, E. (1850) Species des Coleopteres Trimeres Securipalpes. Annales des Sciences Physiques et Naturelles, d'Agriculture et d'Industrie, publiees par la Societe nationale d'Agriculture, etc., de Lyon, Deuxieme Serie, 2, 1 - 1104. https: // doi. org / 10.5962 / bhl. title. 8953

Mulsant, E. (1853) Supplement a la Monographie des Coleopteres Trimeres Securipalpes. Annales de la Societe Linneenne de Lyon, Lyon, Nouvelle Serie, 1, 129 - 333. https: // doi. org / 10.5962 / bhl. title. 60609

Pang, H., Tang, X. F., Booth, R. G., Vandenberg, N., Forrester, J., McHugh, J. & Slipinski, A. (2020) Revision of the Australian Coccinellidae (Coleoptera). Genus Novius Mulsant of tribe Noviini. Annales Zoologici, 70 (1), 1 - 24. https: // doi. org / 10.3161 / 00034541 ANZ 2020.70.1.001

Rao, Y. R. & Cherian, M. C. (1944) The fluted scale, Icerya purchasi Mask., as a pest of wattle in South India, and its control by the biological method. Madras Agricultural Journal, 32, 3 - 7, 131 - 140.

Rasheed, S., Mahmood, R. & Mohyuddin, A. I. (1986) Notes on biology and population trends of Sumnius renardi Weise and Rodolia fumida Muls. (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), and their potential as biocontrol agents of Drosicha stebbingi Green (Homoptera: Margarodidae). Proceedings of Pakistan Congress of Zoology, 6, 137 - 142.

Rawat, R. R. & Modi, B. N. (1968) Studies on Rodolia fumida Muls. (Coccinellidae: Coleoptera) as a predator of Perissopneumon tamarindus (Green) in Madhya Pradesh. Mysore Journal of Agricultural Sciences, 2, 294 - 297.

Srivastava, T. N. (1973) Record of Rodolia fumida Muls., as a predator on the sugarcane mealy bug (Icerya pilosa Green), and its parasites. Indian Journal of Entomology, 34 (1972 - 2), 180 - 181.

Stebbing, E. P. (1903) Coleoptera 2. Notes upon the known predaceous Coccinellidae of the Indian region, Part I. Indian Museum Notes, VI (1), 47 - 62.

Subramaniam, V. K. (1954 - 55) Control of the fluted scale in peninsular India. Indian Journal of Entomology, 16 & 17, 391 - 415 & 103 - 120.

Varma, G. C., Bindra, O. S., Singh, G., Sukhija, H. S. & Sandhu, M. S. (1976) A note on Rodolia fumida Mulsant, a predator of mango mealybug, Drosicha stebbingi (Green). Indian Journal of Horticulture, 33 (3 & 4), 243.

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FIGURE 13. Novius fumidus (Mulsant) (BMNH), variants.

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FIGURE 14. Novius fumidus (Mulsant): a. head; b. prosternal intercoxal process; c. abdomen, male; d. abdominal postcoxal line; e. female genitalia; f. spermatheca; g–i. male genitalia: g. tegmen, lateral view; h. tegmen, inner view; i. penis.

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FIGURE 15. Novius fumidus (Mulsant): a–d. darker variants (Tamil Nadu); e–g. male genitalia: e. tegmen, lateral view; f. tegmen, inner view; g. penis.

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FIGURE 16. Novius fumidus (Mulsant): a, b. larva feeding on Icerya purchasi on casuarina; c–e. larval sibling cannibalism; f, g. larva on banana; h. pupa.

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FIGURE 17. Novius fumidus (Mulsant), variant; a–c. larva and pupa with dense greyish pruinosity; d. adult.

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Insecta

Order

Coleoptera

Family

Coccinellidae

Tribe

Noviini

Genus

Novius