Nesolotis laotica Lv & Wang, 2024

Lv, Lanlan & Wang, Xingmin, 2024, A new species of Nesolotis Miyatake, 1966 (Coccinellidae, Coccinellinae, Sticholotidini) from Laos, Biodiversity Data Journal 12, pp. e 129927-e 129927 : e129927-

Nesolotis laotica Lv & Wang , sp. nov.

Materials

Type status: Holotype. Occurrence: catalogNumber: SCAU (E) 10535 ; recordedBy: Wang XM, Telakang and Liang JB; sex: male; occurrenceID: 1A3807F2-9D5E-5775-96EC-0EE16C8FB742; Taxon: scientificName: Nesolotis laotica ; class: Insecta; order: Coleoptera ; family: Coccinellidae ; scientificNameAuthorship: Lv & Wang; Location: country: Laos; municipality: Saleuy; verbatimElevation: 1340 m; decimalLatitude: 20.2316031; decimalLongitude: 104.0049098; Identification: identifiedBy: Lanlan Lv & Xingmin Wang; Event: year: 2007; month: 6; day: 9; Record Level: institutionID: South China Agricultural University; institutionCode: SCAU; basisOfRecord: Preserved Specimen

Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: recordedBy: Wang XM, Telakang and Liang JB; sex: 1 male, 6 females; occurrenceID: 0D7A9781-331C-55E8-819F-0673755CB335; Taxon: class: Insecta; order: Coleoptera ; family: Coccinellidae ; Location: country: Laos; county: Na Khen; locality: Saleuy ; verbatimElevation: 1340 m; decimalLatitude: 20.2316031; decimalLongitude: 104.0049098; Identification: identifiedBy: Lanlan Lv & Xingmin Wang; Event: year: 2007; month: 6; day: 9; Record Level: institutionID: South China Agricultural University; institutionCode: SCAU; basisOfRecord: Preserved Specimen

Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: recordedBy: Telakang; sex: 1 male, 2 females; occurrenceID: 6C391DD6-8167-5D21-8FB2-30E8444BF94B; Taxon: class: Insecta; order: Coleoptera ; family: Coccinellidae ; Location: country: Laos; county: Paksong; decimalLatitude: 15.1771158; decimalLongitude: 106.2337374; Identification: identifiedBy: Lanlan Lv & Xingmin Wang; Event: year: 2005; month: 12; day: 1; Record Level: institutionID: South China Agricultural University; institutionCode: SCAU; basisOfRecord: Preserved Specimen

Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: recordedBy: Lanlan Lv & Xingmin Wang; sex: 6 males, 1 female; occurrenceID: B4BD732F-ECD7-570B-9B14-F2C3480FE113; Taxon: class: Insecta; order: Coleoptera ; family: Coccinellidae ; Location: country: Laos; county: Paksong; decimalLatitude: 15.1771158; decimalLongitude: 106.2337374; Identification: identifiedBy: Lanlan Lv & Xingmin Wang; Event: year: 2006; month: 12; day: 2; Record Level: institutionID: South China Agricultural University; institutionCode: SCAU; basisOfRecord: Preserved Specimen

Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: recordedBy: Telakang; sex: 1 female; occurrenceID: D18AAC6F-CC08-566D-8228-2DFB82E9623A; Taxon: class: Insecta; order: Coleoptera ; family: Coccinellidae ; Location: country: Laos; county: Paksong; decimalLatitude: 15.1771158; decimalLongitude: 106.2337374; Identification: identifiedBy: Lanlan Lv & Xingmin Wang; Event: year: 2005; month: 12; day: 5; Record Level: institutionID: South China Agricultural University; institutionCode: SCAU; basisOfRecord: Preserved Specimen

Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: recordedBy: Telakang; sex: 1 male; occurrenceID: 6A4E0934-BC1A-59BB-A177-FFCC1323FF5F; Taxon: class: Insecta; order: Coleoptera ; family: Coccinellidae ; Location: country: Laos; county: Paksong; verbatimElevation: 1280 m; decimalLatitude: 15.1771158; decimalLongitude: 106.2337374; Identification: identifiedBy: Lanlan Lv & Xingmin Wang; Event: year: 2006; month: 6; day: 13; Record Level: institutionID: South China Agricultural University; institutionCode: SCAU; basisOfRecord: Preserved Specimen

Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: recordedBy: Wang XM, Telakang & Liang JB; sex: 1 male; occurrenceID: C3D4E8D6-065B-5D2B-93DB-F19397148D14; Taxon: class: Insecta; order: Coleoptera ; family: Coccinellidae ; Location: country: Laos; county: Vientiane; municipality: Phonghong; verbatimElevation: 115 m; decimalLatitude: 18.5055341; decimalLongitude: 102.4180054; Identification: identifiedBy: Lanlan Lv & Xingmin Wang; Event: year: 2007; month: 5; day: 16; Record Level: institutionID: South China Agricultural University; institutionCode: SCAU; basisOfRecord: Preserved Specimen

Description

TL: 1.54-1.6 mm, TW: 1.43-1.54 mm, TH: 0.95-1.1 mm, TL / TW: 1.04-1.08, EL / EW: 0.84-0.86, PL / PW: 0.40-0.47, HW / PW: 0.63-0.63, PW / EW: 0.71-0.72 EW / HW: 0.58-0.59.

Body brown. Head yellow, reddish-brown on the ventral side, paler than the thorax and abdomen (Fig. 1 a-d, g and h). Prothorax reddish-brown, with anterior and lateral margins dark brown (Fig. 1 g). Elytra dark brown, each elytron with an oval, yellow or yellowish-brown spot in the middle; the size of the spot varies amongst individuals, the larger spot nearly reaching the elytral margin (Fig. 1 a and b). Legs generally yellow, coxa brown (Fig. 1 i-k).

Body relatively small, nearly hemispherical, dorsum strongly convex above, shining without hair on the surface.

Head broad, subtriangular, about 0.45 times of the width of elytra ( HW / EW = 0.7: 1.54), slightly retracted under pronotum, depressed downwards (Fig. 1 d). Facet rough. The antenna expanded on basal and distal regions, with the first antennomere elongated, the second antennomere droplet-shaped and antennomeres 7-9 forming a fusiform club. Mandible robust, bifid at the apex, with one tiny and one larger pointed tooth (Fig. 1 e and f).

Pronotum width about twice of the length, about 0.7 times of the width of the elytra ( PW: EW = 0.7: 1.54), with densely fine punctures, which are similar to those on the head (Fig. 1 g). Scutellum very small. Prosternum short, prosternal process very broad, distinctly broader than coxal diameter, trapezoidal and divergent anteriorly, with anterior corners round (Fig. 1 g). Mesoventrite about as long as metaventrite, anterior margin strongly concave; junction of meso- and metaventrite slightly concave; metaventral postcoxal lines joined at the middle, recurved, present as W-shape; metaventrite with posterior margin slightly arcuate (Fig. 1 g and h). Legs broad, femur and tibiae enlarged; tibiae of front leg strongly expanded on the outer side, slightly expanded on mid- and hind legs, with an abruptly tiny projection (Fig. 1 o-q). Elytral surface polished, with extremely fine punctures, sparser than those on the head and vertex, mainly concentrated in the anterior 1 / 3 of the elytra (Fig. 1 a and b). Hind wings well developed.

Abdominal postcoxal lines incomplete, without branching lines (Fig. 1 a-b).

Male genitalia. Penis short and stout, curved at the basal 1 / 4, abruptly narrowing at tip, with membranous apex (Fig. 1 m). Penis capsule swollen, with short inner and outer arms, almost equal in size (Fig. 1 m). Penis guide stout and straight, slightly shorter than parameres, largely tongue-shaped, unparallel on both sides; in ventral view, slightly expanded in the middle, with obtuse tip; in lateral view, slightly narrowing towards the apex (Fig. 1 n and o). Parameres slender and thin, slightly narrowing in the middle, slightly swollen distally, with a rounded tip, bearing short setae (Fig. 1 n).

Female genitalia. Coxites symmetrically parallel, slenderly elongated, nearly crescent-shaped, about four times as long as wide and slightly narrowing at the tip (Fig. 1 p). Spermatheca absent.

Diagnosis

This species can be distinguished from other species of Nesolotis by its dark brown elytron with an oval, yellow or yellowish-brown spot in the middle, the polished elytral surface with extremely fine punctures concentrated in the anterior 1 / 3 of elytra (Fig. 1 a and b), the stout and short penis, the short inner and outer processes of penis capsule (Fig. 1 m) and the tongue-shaped penis guide slightly shorter than parameres (Fig. 1 n and o).

Etymology

The specific epithet “ laotica ” refers to the country, where the species has been discovered.

Distribution

Laos (Paksong, Na Khen, Vientiane).

Remarks

The genus Nesolotis was recorded from Laos for the first time. Amongst all the species of Nesolotis , N. laotica sp. nov. is similar to Nesolotis obtusa Wang & Ren, 2010 in having shining surface of the whole body, fine punctures mainly concentrated on anterior region of elytra, abdominal postcoxal lines without branching line and tongue-shaped penis guide, but it can be distinguished from the latter by the brown body with a pair of yellow to yellowish-brown, oval spots and the stout and short penis. In N. obtuse, the body is generally yellow and the penis guide is long and slender ( Wang et al. 2014).

Figures

Figure 1. Nesolotis laotica Lv & Wang, sp. nov.: a dorsal habitus; b lateral habitus; c frontal habitus; d head, ventral; e left mandible; f right mandible; g prothorax; h mesoventrite and metaventrite; i front leg; j mid-leg; k hind leg; l male abdomen; m penis; n tegmen, ventral view; o tegmen, lateral; p coxite (genital plate).