Xanthispa miniacea ( Blanchard, 1843 ) Sekerka, 2017

Sekerka, Lukáš, 2017, Taxonomic changes within Imatidiini and Hybosispini (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Cassidinae), Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae (Acta. Ent. Mus. Natl. Pragae) 57 (2), pp. 351-380 : 367-368

Xanthispa miniacea ( Blanchard, 1843) comb. nov.

( Fig. 13 )

Cephaloleia miniacea Blanchard, 1843 : pl. 24, Fig. 1 (original illustration). BLANCHARD (1847): 211 (description).

Type locality. ‘province de Chiquitos ( Bolivia)’.

Type material. Not studied, see Remarks.

Additional material examined. BOLIVIA: BENI: José Ballivián Province: Rurrenabaque, i.–ii.2000, 1 spec., C. Tello lgt. ( MCSNM). SANTA CRUZ: Andrés Ibáñez Province: Reserva privada Potrerillos del Guendà, 17°40.26′S, 63°27.45′W, 370 m, 18.–25.xi.2011, 15 spec., D. Windsor & L. Sekerka lgt. ( LSPC, MNKM, NMPC). Ñuflo de Chávez Province: Concepción-FCBC Alta Vista, 16°08.1′S, 61°56.1′W, 425 m, 28.xi.–5.xii.2011, 1 spec., D.Windsor & L. Sekerka lgt. ( LSPC).

Remarks. WEISE (1910) transferred C. miniacea to the genus Homalispa based on the original figure and description, and stated that it seems to be most similar to Cephaloleia cimicoides Guérin-Méneville, 1844 . BALY (1859) did not mention Cephaloleia miniacea but proposed the genus Xanthispa Baly, 1859 for C. cimicoides and differentiated it from Homalispa by the shape of labium and relative lengths of the three basal antennomeres. WEISE (1910: 67–68) in a footnote considered Xanthispa a subgenus of Homalispa and subsequent authors accepted this classification (e.g. WEISE 1911, UHMANN 1957a, STAINES 2002). Most recently I have restored the genus status of Xanthispa based on morphological characters ( SEKERKA 2014).

Cephaloleia miniacea was validated by the figure 1 on plate 24 published on 15 th December 1843 and all names are attributed to Emile Blanchard ( BLANCHARD 1843, SHERBORN & GRIFFIN 1934). A short description was published four years latter by the same author but unfortunately its utility is limited to the colouration of the species: ‘Aurantiaco-miniacea, infra dilutior; antennis nigris, articulo primo rufo; pedibus rufo-miniaceis, tarsis piceis; elytris immaculatis, striato-punctatis. Long. 7 mill.’ [= Orange-like, underside paler; antennae black, antennomere I red; legs red-like, tarsi pitch black; elytra immaculate, striato-punctate. Length 7 mm.] ( BLANCHARD 1847: 211).

The material from the Voyage dans lʼAmérique méridionale by dʼOrbigny was deposited in the MNHN. Some specimens were incorporated in the main collection (nowadays in boxes labelled as ‘collection historique’) while many others remained in the original boxes and are provided only with rounded green labels with number referring to the register of the Orbigny collection from his voyage to South America. In November 2016 I have searched all respective boxes and unfortunately did not find any specimen of C. miniacea . Nevertheless there is still possibility that the specimen was misplaced and exists somewhere in MNHN.

During recent research in Bolivia we found a species of Xanthispa feeding on palms of the genus Attalea (Windsor & Sekerka, unpubl. data), which has similar colouration, size and shape of body as the original figure of C. miniacea . The new material was also collected from the same region as the type of the latter species. Therefore I assume our specimens belong to C. miniacea and hereby transfer it to the genus Xanthispa .

Xanthispa miniacea and X. cimicoides are superficially quite similar but can be easily separated by the shape of pronotum, which is strongly trapezoidal in X. cimicoides ( Fig. 14 ) and subquadratic and more or less parallel-sided at least in basal 2/ 3 in X. miniacea ( Fig. 13 ). Also, X. cimicoides has broadly oval elytra in outline due to broader explanate margin of elytra while X. miniacea has narrower explanate margin of elytra and thus its body appears more ‘rectangular’.

Distribution. Bolivia: Beni: Santa Cruz ( BLANCHARD 1847, present paper).

Figures

Figs 9–14. 9 – Cephaloleia fouquei sp. nov. (holotype, 7.1 mm); 10 – Cephaloleia renei sp. nov. (holotype, 8.1 mm); 11 – Cephaloleia kolbei Weise, 1910 (Colombia: Río Dagua, LSPC, 9.5 mm); 12 – Serratispa quadricostata Staines, 2002 (holotype, 4.2 mm); 13 – Xanthispa miniacea (Blanchard, 1843) (Boivia: Potrerillo del Guenda, LSPC, 6.4 mm); 14 – Xanthispa cimicoides (Guérin-Méneville, 1844) (French Guyana: Le Larivot, LSPC, 6.5 mm).

Figs. 1–8. 1 – Cephaloleia apertura (Staines, 2013) (holotype, 4.3 mm); 2 – Cephaloleia atripes (Pic, 1926) (holotype, 5.1 mm); 3 – Cephaloleia fernandoi (Bondar, 1940) (paratype, LSPC, 6.3 mm); 4 – Cephaloleia opaca Baly, 1859 (Rio de Janeiro: Trinidad, LSPC, 6.0 mm); 5 – Cephaloleia impressa Uhmann, 1930 (holotype, 3.5 mm); 6 – Demothispa clermonti Pic, 1934 (holotype, 3.5 mm); 7 – Cephaloleia jataiensis (Pic, 1923) (holotype, 4.2 mm); 14 – Xenispa aeneipennis (Baly, 1859) (holotype, 3.7 mm).