Morphosphaera maculicollis Baly

Lee, Chi-Feng & Bezdĕk, Jan, 2016, Revision of the genus Morphosphaera Baly (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Galerucinae), Zootaxa 4179 (1), pp. 1-41 : 26-28

Morphosphaera maculicollis Baly

( Figs 18–19 )

Morphosphaera maculicollis Baly, 1861: 298 ( India) ; Weise, 1924: 129 (list); Laboissière, 1930: 361 (list); Maulik, 1936: 318 (as synonym of M. japonica , misidentification); Gressitt and Kimoto, 1963: 556 (key, valid species); Wilcox, 1971: 219 (list).

Morphosphaera gracilicornis Chen, 1963: 453 (China: Xizang); Wilcox, 1975: 677 (list); Yang et al., 2015: 189 (key), 190 (list). New synonym

Morphosphaera quadrinotata Chen, 1976: 207 (China: Xizang); Chen and Jiang, 1981: 476 (as synonym of M. gracilicornis ); Ya ng et al., 2015: 189 (key), 190 (list). Synonymy confirmed

Type material. Morphosphaera maculicollis . Holotype ♀ ( BMNH, by monotypus), labeled: “ Morphosphaera / maculicollis / Baly / India / (Type) [h, b] // (one pair of maxillae and labium glued on a label) / Type [p, w, circle label with red border]”.

Morphosphaera gracilicornis . Holotype Ƌ (IZAS, by monotypus), labeled: “ 採集者: 李傳隆 (= Collector: Chuan-Long Li) [p, w] // 西藏: 林芝 (= Tibet: Lin-Tze) / 1960. VI.26. [h] / 中 國科學院 (= Academia Sinica, China) [p, w] // HOLOTYPE [p, r] // IOZ(E) 215726 [p, b] // Morphosphaera / gracilicornis Chen [h] // 鑑定者: 陳世驤 (= det. Sicien Chen) [h, w] // HOLOTYPE [p, r]”.

Morphosphaera quadrinotata . Holotype ♀ ( IZAS), labeled: “ 西藏 [p] 察隅本堆 [h] (= Tibet: Chayubendui ) / 2070 公尺 (= 2070 m) [h] / 中國科學院 (= Academia Sinica, China) [p, w] // 1973. VIII.2 [h] / 采集者: 黃復生 (= Collector: Fu-Sheng Huang) [p, w] // Morphosphaera / quadrinotata Chen [h] // 鑑定者: 陳世驤 (= det. Sicien Chen) [h, w] // HOLOTYPE [p, r]”.

Description. Length 7.9–9.7 mm, width 4.8–6.0 mm. General color black; prothorax yellow, prosternum black; elytra bluish metallic; sides of each abdominal ventrite and apex of last abdominal ventrite yellowish brown ( Figs 18 A–18C); pronotum with two pairs of large black spots in a transverse line across disc, inner pair smaller ( Fig. 18 D). Antenna filiform ( Fig. 19 A), 0.7x as long as body; length ratios of antennomeres II to XI about 1.0: 1.3: 2.3: 2.2: 2.1: 2.3: 2.1: 2.1: 2.0: 2.2, and length to width ratios of antennomeres II to XI about 1.8: 2.0: 3.4: 3.3: 3.4: 3.7: 3.6: 3.6: 3.6: 4.1. Aedeagus ( Figs 19 B–19C) extremely slender in dorsal view, about 10.5x longer than wide, parallel-sided, apex lanceolate; ventral surface well sclerotized and smooth; narrow and moderately curved in lateral view; with several setae near opening of internal sac; apical process of endophallic sclerites curved ventrally; apico-lateral process slightly curved inwards; with one pair of processes erect and recurved outwards at apical 1/3; base tubelike. Gonocoxae reduced. Ventrite VIII ( Fig. 19 D) with long spiculum; apex transverse and depressed at median line; apical area with dense short and long setae mixed together. Receptacle of spermatheca ( Fig. 19 E) elongate and slightly swollen, pump much narrower and strongly curved, proximal spermathecal duct long and narrow.

Diagnosis. Morphosphaera maculicollis is similar to some individuals of M. caerulea with four black spots on the pronotum and bluish metallic elytra. But M. maculicollis adults have larger spots on the pronotum, dark brown or black meso-thoracic and abdominal ventrites, and narrower antennae.

Host plant. Unknown.

Remarks. Specimens collected from China (Xizang) have brown meso- and metachoracic ventrites and femora, and brown or dark brown abdomen.

Other material examined. INDIA. Assam: 1 ex., 1906, leg. W. F. Badgley ( BMNH) ; Darjeeling: 1 ex., Gopaldhara, 1962, H. Stevens (BMNH); NEPAL. 1 ex., Annapurna Mts., Banthanti (Ghorapani to Ulleri), 2300 m, 13.IX.2003, leg. Schmidt ( NME) ; 1 ex., Godawari , 1500 m, 27.IX.1985, leg. J. Plante ( NHMB) ; 2 exs., Phul Choki , 2000 m, 18.IX.1983, leg. J. Plante ( MCSN, NHMB) .

Distribuion. China (Xizang) , India (Assam, West Bengal) , Nepal.

Figures

FIGURES 18. Habitus of Morphosphaera maculicollis Baly, 1861. 18 A. Dorsal view; 18 B. Ventral view; 18 C. Head; 18 D. Pronotum.

FIGURES 19. Diagnostic characters of Morphosphaera maculicollis Baly, 1861. 19 A. Antenna; 19 B. Penis, dorsal view; 19 C. Penis, lateral view; 19 D. Abdominal ventrite VIII; 19 E. Spermatheca.