Cyrea tamara Canepari and Gordon, 2016

Canepari, Claudio, Gordon, Robert D. & Hanley, Guy A., 2016, South American Coccinellidae (Coleoptera), Part XVII: Systematic revision of the genera Cyrea Gordon and Canepari and Tiphysa Mulsant (Hyperaspidinae: Brachiacanthini), Insecta Mundi 2016 (486), pp. 1-180 : 112-113

100. Cyrea tamara Canepari and Gordon , new species

Description. Male holotype. Length 3.0 mm, width 2.4 mm; body elongate oval, convex. Dorsal surface with head alutaceous, dull, pronotum and elytron smooth, shiny. Color yellow except head black with clypeus and anterolateral angle of frons yellow, pronotum with long, narrow basomedian macula extended 5/6 distance to anterior pronotal margin, macula with apex medially indented with yellow, lateral borders sinuate; elytron black without humeral spot, with wide, sinuate vitta on sutural margin from base of elytron to apical declivity (vitta composed of broadly connected sutural and discal spots), mediolateral spot rounded, apical spot irregularly rounded ( Fig. 554 ); ventral surface with head, prosternum, meso- and metaventrites black; abdomen yellowish brown except median portions of ventrites 1-4 black to dark brown. Head punctures fine, separated by less than a diameter, each puncture about as large as 2-3 eye facets; pronotal punctures larger than head punctures, separated by less than to twice a diameter, elytral punctures larger than on pronotum, separated by less than to twice a diameter; metaventral punctures larger than on elytron medially, separated by less than a diameter medially, becoming larger and separated by less than a diameter toward lateral margin. Clypeus weakly emarginate apically, lateral angle rounded, surface with sparse, long pubescence. Eye canthus about 6 eye facets long, angled forward, apically rounded, yellow. Pronotum narrowed from base to apex, basal and anterior angles abrupt, lateral margin weakly curved, basal margin without trace of bordering line medially. Epipleuron narrow, grooved, not descending externally, deeply emarginate for reception of femoral apices. Protibia with narrow oblique angle, outer margin straight, basal tooth absent, sponda slightly extended beyond protibial margin. Carinae on prosternal process narrowly separated at apex, convergent at basal 1/4 of prosternum, connected to base by single carina. Metaventrite without setal tuft. Basal abdominal ventrite without setal tuft. Abdomen with postcoxal line on basal abdominal ventrite flattened medially, extended forward at apex. Ventrites 1-3 with sparse, short pubescence and coarse, sparse punctures; ventrites 4-6 pubescent throughout, punctures fine, dense; 5th ventrite depressed in median 1/3, apex shallowly emarginate; 6th ventrite medially depressed, apex shallowly emarginate. Apical tergite finely, densely punctured, apex emarginate, lateral angle with small, apically acute projection. Genitalia with basal lobe about 3/4 as long as paramere, wide, asymmetrical, sides curved from base to apical 1/4, curved to rounded apex in apical 1/4; paramere Psc, narrowed from base to apex, apex rounded ( Fig. 555, 556 ); sipho robust, strongly curved in basal 1/2, with visible alae at apical 1/6, basal capsule with inner arm short, tapered, apex rounded, outer arm wider, longer than inner arm, curved, narrowed from base to apex, with accessory piece, basal border shallowly emarginate ( Fig. 557, 558 ).

Female. Similar to male externally. Genitalia with spermathecal capsule short, narrow; bursal cap rectangular, with 3 sclerotized arms, apical strut long, widened from base to large, racket shaped apex ( Fig. 559 ).

Variation. Length 2.3 to 3.4 mm, width 1.7 to 2.6 mm. Elytron sometimes with sutural vitta, mediolateral spot, and apical spot all connected.

Type material. Holotype male; Ecuador, Canar Prov., 22 km SE El Triunfo , 200m, 2.III.81, H. Howden. ( USNM) . Paratypes; 15, 2, Ecuador,, 700 m, Pichincha Prov., Sto. Domingo Col. , VIII-4-1956, sweeping, G.H. Dieke ( USNM) ; 2, Ecuador, Pichincha, 3 km. S Union del Toachi , VIII- 27-1997, 900m, Fred G. Andrews ( CSCA) ; 2, Ecuador, Pichincha, 70km. W.Quito, Quito-Santo Domingo Rd. nr Chiriboga , VII-1- 1982, J. Slansky coll. ( CSCA) ; 2, Ecuador, Sto Domingo de los Colorados , Oct. 10, 1958, Vasquez ( USNM) ; 7, Ecuador, Sto. Domingo de los Colorados , 6 Feb.1973, 5 Mar. 1973, M.A. and N. Deyrup ( USNM) .

Remarks. This comparatively large species has a distinctive dorsal color pattern and an Ecuadorean type locality, rendering it easily identified. However, it is very similar to the preceding C. allison in many respects, including the mostly black male head. In fact, the holotypes of each species were collected at the same time and place by the same collector. Cyrea tamara males have an anterolateral projection of the apical tergite that is lacking in C. allison , and male genitalia of the two species differ.

Figures

Figures 554-571. Cyrea spp. 554-559) Cyrea tamara. 554) Habitus. 555) Phallobase ventral. 556) Phallobase lateral. 557) Sipho. 558) Enlarged siphonal apex.559) Female genitalia. 560-565) Cyrea exclamationis. 560) Habitus. 561) Phallobase ventral. 562) Phallobase lateral. 563) Sipho. 564) Enlarged siphonal apex. 565) Female genitalia. 566-571) Cyrea joy. 566) Habitus. 567) Phallobase ventral. 568) Phallobase lateral. 569) Sipho. 570) Enlarged siphonal apex. 571) Female genitalia.