Charidotella (Chapadacassis) paradoxa, Sekerka, Lukas & Borowiec, Lech, 2015

Sekerka, Lukas & Borowiec, Lech, 2015, Subgenera of Charidotella Weise with description of a new subgenus and species from Brazil (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Cassidinae, Cassidini), ZooKeys 506, pp. 61-74 : 68-69

Taxon classification Animalia Coleoptera Chrysomelidae

Charidotella (Chapadacassis) paradoxa sp. n.

Type locality.

The type locality most likely refers to Chapada dos Guimarães (approximately 15°10'-15°30'S, 55°40'-56°00'W), Mato Grosso, Brazil.

Type material.

Holotype, pinned: "BRAZIL, Mato Grosso | Chapada Plateau | XI 1965 | native collector [white, printed and cardboard label]" (preserved at Department of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Taxonomy, Wrocław, Poland). Paratype, pinned: same data as holotype (preserved in collection of L. Sekerka, Prague, Czech Republic). Both specimens are provided with an additional red, printed and cardboard label: "HOLOTYPUS [or PARATYPUS respectively] | Charidotella | Chapadacassis sgen. n. | paradoxa sp. n. | L. Sekerka & | L. Borowiec des. 2014".

Description.

Body 7.6 × 5.9 mm, broadly oval and strongly convex (Figs 1-2).

Dorsum uniformly reddish-yellow. Margins of thoracic segments, trochanters, head, central parts of abdominal ventrites, and tarsi infuscate. Remaining ventral parts yellow. Five terminal antennomeres black, remaining yellow.

Pronotum subpentagonal, 1.9 times wider than long, widest slightly before midlength with obtuse lateral sides. Disc indistinctly separated from explanate margin, strongly convex, without impressions, sparsely and coarsely punctate, punctures laterobasally gradually coarser. Interspaces smooth and shiny, 1-4 times wider than puncture diameter. Explanate margin broad, lateral sides coarsely and sparsely punc tate, transparent, smooth, and shiny, and with honeycomb structure. Anterior margin regularly convex.

Scutellum triangular, smooth, dull, micro-reticulate.

Elytra widest in basal third, then slowly tapering posteriorly. Elytral base distinctly broader than base of pronotum, humeral angles strongly protruding anterad and rounded. Disc strongly convex, with moderate impression on each side of scutellum, thus profile broken in lateral view (Fig. 2). Punctation of elytra overall coarse, mostly irregular only first two rows more or less regular in apical half. Punctures gradually coarser from top of disc to lateral sides. Interspaces 1-5 times wider than puncture diameter, finely micro-reticulate and appear shiny. Marginal row distinct, interrupted by large callosity around midlength, its punctures approximately twice coarser than those on disc (Fig. 2). Explanate margin broad, almost as broad as half width of disc, strongly declivous, sparsely and coarsely punctate, punctures gradually denser towards base and apex. Interspaces 1-5 times wider than puncture diameter, micro-reticulate and appear dull. Extreme outer margin swollen.

Clypeus 1.3 times broader than long, impunctate and shiny, anterior margin micro-rugose and slightly elevated. Antennae slim, length ratio of antennomeres: 100:46:49:59:54:45:57:57:55:56:115. Antennomere III slightly longer than II, VII–X subequal in length and approximately as long as wide (Fig. 3). Labrum oval, its lower margin smooth, not emarginate. Prosternal collar slightly expanded towards mouth. Prosternal process broad with moderately expanded apex, its surface microreticulate, sparsely and coarsely punctate, each puncture with single long seta (Fig. 4).

Legs normal, slim, tarsal claws divergent. Both fore claws appendiculate (Fig. 5). Inner mid claw simple (Fig. 6), outer with small tooth. Inner hind claw with large tooth (Fig. 7), outer with small.

Diagnosis.

At first glance Charidotella (Chapadacassis) paradoxa sp. n. reminds some species of the subgenus Philaspis . Particularly recently described, Charidotella (Philaspis) marginepunctata Borowiec, 2004 (also from Chapada in Mato Grosso) because of quite similar body shape and coarsely punctate explanate margin of elytra and pronotum. The latter distinctly differs in regularly punctate and less convex elytra without postscutellar impressions, subhorizontal explanate margin of the elytra, and the presence of a small black spot on each elytron.

Etymology.

The species epithet from Latin “paradoxus” = peculiar or curious for its unusual combination of morphological characters for Neotropical Cassidini .

Distribution.

Brazil (Mato Grosso).