Nephaspi s Casey, 18 99

Chen, Xiaosheng, Xie, Xiufeng, Ren, Shunxiang & Wang, Xingmin, 2016, Discovery of a New World ladybird beetle Nephaspisindus Gordon, 1996 (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae: Scymnini) on the Island of Taiwan, Biodiversity Data Journal 4, pp. 10537-10537 : 10537

Nephaspi s Casey, 18 99

Nephaspis Casey, 1899: 168. Type species: Nephaspis gorhami Casey, 1899, by subsequent designation of Gordon 1972: 148.

Nephasis : Korschefsky 1931: 168; Blackwelder 1945: 445 (misspelling).

Nephaspi s Nephaspis gorhami Casey, 1899 Gordon 1972

Description

Body elongate oval, moderately convex, with dense pubescence, widest around middle of elytra.

Head with mouthparts directed posteroventrally in repose (Fig. 1a), concealing prosternum; frons wide (Fig. 1a), clypeus extended beyond eye, truncate anteriorly with large, apically rounded flange. Eyes large, finely faceted, inner ocular margin slightly arcuate. Antennae composed of 11 antennomeres (Fig. 1d); 1st antennomere strongly enlarged, curved and distinctly rounded on inner side; 2nd shorter and narrower than the 1st; 3rd obviously smaller than the 2nd; 4th to 6th as wide as 3rd; 7th to 11th forming a fusiform club (Fig. 1d). Labrum exposed, transverse, feebly emarginate anteriorly (Fig. 1a). Mandible with single apical tooth (Fig. 1c). Terminal maxillary palpomere stout, moderately securiform, apical margin strongly obliquely truncate (Fig. 1e). Labial palps with 3 palpomeres, terminal palpomere blunt, subcylindrical (Fig. 1f).

Pronotum convex, hind margin wider than anterior one (Fig. 2b, Fig. 2e). Pronotal hypomeron broad without delimited foveae (Fig. 1b). Prosternum short, straplike, slightly longer than anterior coxa, prosternal process very short, transversely oval (Fig. 1b); prosternal carinae narrowly separated, distinctly convergent anteriorly. Scutellum triangular (Fig. 2a). Elytra slightly wider than pronotum at base, surface finely punctate. Elytral epipleuron narrow and nearly horizontal, inner carina apically incomplete, reaching up to 1st abdominal ventrite. Mesoventrite short, tumid medially, anterior margin truncate, intercoxal area with hind margin deeply emarginate. Metaventrite strongly tumid, anterior margin distinctly ridged, median area strongly prominent forward. Abdomen with six ventrites (Fig. 2g). Abdominal postcoxal lines incomplete (Fig. 1j, Fig. 2g). Front leg slender (Fig. 1h), femora of hind leg distinctly enlarged (Fig. 1g); tibiae without apical spur; tarsi with 4 tarsomeres, claws simple without basal teeth (Fig. 1i).

Diagnosis

Nephaspis Casey is similar to the Old World genus Clitostethus Weise, 1885 in general appearance and shares the following characters with the latter: body small, length less than 2 mm; antennae composed of 11 antennomeres (Fig. 1d); prosternum straplike, prosternal process short, transversely oval (Fig. 1b); abdominal postcoxal line incomplete (Fig. 1j, Fig. 2g); abdomen with six ventrites (Fig. 2g). Nephaspis is separated from Clitostethus mainly by the tarsi with 4 tarsomeres (Fig. 1i) and the stout basal antennomere (Fig. 1d). However, Clitostethus has the tarsi with 3 tarsomeres and the slender basal antennomere.

Distribution

This genus is apparently endemic to Neotropical region with a natural geographic range extending from southern United States (Florida, Louisiana and Texas) and Mexico to Argentina ( Gordon 1996). In addition, several species of this genus are specialist predators of the spiralling whitefly, Aleurodicus dispersus . As important biological control agents against the spiralling whitefly, these members of Nephaspis have been introduced into different parts of the world, such as Hawaii, Guam, Fiji, Taiwan and Thailand ( Waterhouse and Norris 1989, Chien et al. 2002, Napompeth 2004).