Notosacantha bertounesquei, Borowiec, Lech & Tirant, Stephane Le, 2013

Borowiec, Lech & Tirant, Stephane Le, 2013, A new species of Notosacantha Chevrolat (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Cassidinae: Notosacanthini) from southern India, Zootaxa 3694 (3), pp. 289-395 : 289-293

Notosacantha bertounesquei sp. nov.

Etymology. This species is named after our friend André Bertounesque (1937–2005). André was a Canadian painter-artist known worldwide and was also an avid collector of spectacular and exotic insects. His collection of birdwings butterflies and beetles is now housed at the Montreal Insectarium, Québec, Canada.

Type material. Holotype: “S-INDIA, Kerala state, / Cardamon hills, Pamba env. / ca 50 km NW of Pathanamthitta / valley of Pambayiar river, 77°05’E / 9°25’N, ca 300 m, 15.–18.v.1999, / Kejval & M. Trýzna leg.” (preserved in the Department of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Taxonomy, University of Wrocław, Wrocław, Poland).

Diagnosis. Notosacantha bertounesquei belongs to the group of species with stout body, almost complete set of dorsal costae, complete apical costa, principal tubercle well marked but not swollen, triangular in profile with anterior and posterior branches of dorsal costa converging at the same point, basal tubercle without connection with humeral costa, furca interna incomplete and not connected with lateral costa or principal tubercle, and with complete costa ultima. The group comprises 12 species distributed in south-east Asia, especially the Indonesian islands, with no previously known members in India. All differ from Notosacantha bertounesquei in smaller body (length at most 7 mm) and dorsal pattern, if present, never forming distinct, separate black spots. Although structure of elytral sculpture places the new species in this group of eastern species, at first glance Notosacantha bertounesquei is more similar to N. quinquecarinata Maulik, 1919 and N. templetoni (Baly, 1859) from Sri Lanka. These three species are amongst the largest (length 7 mm and above) Oriental members of the genus. Notosacantha templetoni distinctly differs in reduced apical costa and dorsal pattern on elytral disc with a large spot at base of elytron between humeral and basal tubercle and second spot at principal tubercle. Notosacantha quinquecarinata has very similar elytral sculpture but differs in more distinct furca interna, connected with principal tubercle, thus it has five radial costae at the top (only four in N.bertounesquei ) and the elytral pattern with black spot below the humerus and a large brownish-black posterolateral irregular area, extending from just behind the middle to the apex of each elytron.

Description. Length: 7.7 mm; width: 6.5 mm; length of pronotum: 2.10 mm; width of pronotum: 5.3 mm; length/width ratio: 1.18; width/length ratio of pronotum: 2.52. Body broad,widest at anterior 1/3, then slightly converging posterad ( Fig. 2 ).

Pronotum and scutellum reddish-yellow, only extreme margin paler, yellowish. Elytral disc reddish-yellow with black pattern forming round black spot on principal tubercle and transverse black spot on and behind the apical costa ( Figs2–4 ). Explanate margin of elytra reddish-yellow, only extreme margin paler, yellowish, no darker humeral or posterolateral spots. Head, ventrites and legs reddish-yellow, antennae uniformly yellowish-red ( Figs. 5, 6).

Frontal plate very short, subtriangular with obtuse top and very shallow median cleft. Clypeus deeply impressed with well marked lateral carinae converging in regular triangle and well marked median keel. Labrum broadly and shallowly emarginate ( Fig. 5).

Antennae moderately elongate, segments 7–11 forming a distinct club, segments 9–10 of club almost twice as wide as long, club 0.56 times as long as pedicel, length ratio of antennal segments: 100:57:50:53:53:47:53:37:32:29:55, segment 3 slightly shorter than segment 2 and 4 ( Fig. 6).

Pronotum with regularly rounded sides, widest slightly anterior to base, basal corners distinct, anterior emargination deep, head clearly visible from above. Margins laterally to head and before base distinctly serrate. Disc moderately convex, with shallow transverse basal and oblique median impressions, on top with a few moderately coarse punctures. Both basal and median impressions with moderately coarse and sparse punctation. Pores of explanate margin mostly slightly transverse, oval. Base of elytra only slightly wider than base of pronotum. Disc with almost complete set of costae and several tubercles. Dorsal costa well developed, sharp but interrupted between basal and subbasal tubercle. Humeral costa low and obtuse, not connected with humeral tubercle but connected with lateral costa. Lateral costa high, sharp and long extending to submarginal row of punctures. Apical costa complete, high and sharp, connected with short but well marked costa ultima and costa terminalis ( Fig. 4 ). Furca interna incomplete, runs from connection of apical costa and costa terminalis to principal tubercle but disappears close to base of tubercle and not connected with any branch of principal tubercle ( Fig. 2 ). Basal tubercle small and low, only slightly marked in profile, subbasal tubercle marked only as a small elevation of dorsal costa, in profile not higher than elytral suture, humeral tubercle very low, in shape of short, sharp costa without distinct branch down to marginal punctures ( Fig. 3 ). Principal tubercle low, twice as wide at base as high but with well marked angulate top, with short sutural costa. Anterior and posterior branches of dorsal costa, lateral costa and sutural costa converging at the same point, thus principal tubercle has four distinct radial costae ( Fig. 2 ). Apical tubercle low, distinct as slightly elevated part of posterior branch of dorsal costa ( Figs 3, 4 ). Punctation of disc coarse and dense, mostly irregular with well marked regular marginal and submarginal rows. Explanate margin at widest part three times narrower than elytral disc, with regularly arranged large pores, without impunctate areas. Pores close to anterior half of margin of disc and in posterolateral part of external row tend to form transverse furrows.

Comments. Currently 17 species of Notosacantha are known from southern India and Sri Lanka. Five of them are endemic to Sri Lanka, one recorded from both southern India and Sri Lanka, one known from central and southern India, Sri Lanka and the Andaman islands, nine restricted to southern India, and only one is wide spread, known from whole India and Thailand (Borowiec and Świętojańska 2012). All the species can be identified by the key given below.

Figures

FIGURES 2 – 4. Notosacantha bertounesquei sp. nov. 2. dorsal view; 3. lateral view; 4. posterior view.