Laccophilus necopinus Guignot, 1942

Bistroem, Olof, Nilsson, Anders N. & Bergsten, Johannes, 2015, Taxonomic revision of Afrotropical Laccophilus Leach, 1815 (Coleoptera, Dytiscidae), ZooKeys 542, pp. 1-379 : 187-189

Taxon classification Animalia Coleoptera Dytiscidae

Laccophilus necopinus Guignot, 1942 Figs 152-153, 335-336, 482, 569

Laccophilus necopinus Guignot 1942: 15 (original description, faunistics); Guignot 1946c: 264, 266, 313 (description, faunistics); Guignot 1953b: 234 (faunistics); Guignot 1954 a: 26 (faunistics); Guignot 1955a: 29 (discussion); Guignot 1959a: 552, 555 (description, faunistics); Omer-Cooper 1965: 77, 79 (discussion, faunistics); Omer-Cooper 1967: 58 (discussion); Nilsson 2001: 247 (catalogue, faunistics); Nilsson 2015: 214 (catalogue, faunistics).

Type locality.

Uganda: Musisi River.

Type material studied

(3 exs.). Holotype, male: "Prov. d’Ounyoro Albert Nyanza S.-E. Riviere Mousisi Ch. Alluaud 1909 / fevrier / Male symbol / Type / Laccophilus necopinus Guign. Type male" (MNHN). - Paratypes: Same data as holotype, but labelled “Paratype” (1 ex. MNHN); same data as holotype, but labelled “Paratype” and provided with female symbol (1 ex. MNHN, habitus in Fig. 482).

Additional material studied

(98 exs.). Nigeria: "R. Kaduna 4,5 mi. from Jos 13.4. 1963 JOC." (2 exs. AMGS). - Cameroon: "Dschang 7-14.11. 1967" (1 ex. NHMB); "Ngoundere 30.8. 1969" (1 ex. NHMB). - Zaire: "PNG, Pali/8, 22.3. 1952 De Saeger" (1 ex. MRAC); same but "II/gd/11, 10.8. 1952" (1 ex. MRAC); same but "Ndelele/14s, 1.8. 1952" (1 ex. MRAC, 1 ex. MZH); same but "K 117/14s, 19.3. 1952"(1 ex. MRAC); "Elisabethville, à la lumière 1. 1956-1. 1957 Seydel" (3 exs. NHMB); same but “1953-1955” (1 ex. NHMB); "Ruhengeri (s. Kiril) 31.8.-3.9. 1934 G.F. de Witte. Parc Nat. Albert" (2 exs. NHMB). - Uganda: "Kampala 13.Vii. 1929 G.H.E. Hopkins / Laccophilus adjutor Guign. Det. J. Omer-Cooper" (1 ex. AMGS); "Kampala 11.VII. 1929 H. Hargreaves" (1 ex. AMGS); "Monts Ruwenzori (zone Inf.) Roubona 1500-1600 m Alluaud 1909 / Janvier" (2 exs. MNHN). - Kenya: "Bassin du Tana Thika Alluaud 1909 / Laccophilus necopinus Guign. Parartype" (1 ex MNHN [Comment: labelled as paratype but specimen is not mentioned in the original description]); "15 km N Nyahurutu, small lake 6.2. 1995 leg. Travnicek" (1 ex. NMPC); "L. Naivasha, Fisherman’s Camp 14.2. 1995 leg. Travnicek" (1 ex. NMPC). - Rwanda: "Cyangugu Gishoma 14.2. 1983 Mühle” (1 ex. NHMB). - Tanzania: "Rungwe X. 1948 JOC." (3 exs. AMGS); "Kilimandjaro Sjöstedt / Kibonoto 1-1200 m" (1 ex. NHRS); "Usa River 3900 ft. Szunyoghy / light trap 15.11.-31.12. 1965" (1 ex. CGW). - Malawi: "R. Mtiti 1.10. 1948 J.OC." (6 exs. AMGS); "6 mi N of R. Mtiti, stream 2.10. 1948 JOC." (9 exs. AMGS); "Dedza-Lilongwe rd. Stream 30.IX. 1948" (1 ex. AMGS); "R. Diedma Lilongwe rd. 30.9. 1948" (2 exs. AMGS); "dam in lower Lilongwe rd 29.9. 1945" (2 exs. AMGS); "Dedza, hotel dam, 29.9. 1948" (3 exs. AMGS). - Zimbabwe: "Inyanga N. 1948 JOC." (3 exs. AMGS); "Vamba Nat. Park 31.XII. 1962" (3 exs. AMGS); "Stream at Salisbury 17.IX. 1948" (3 exs. AMGS); "Stream at Salisbury 1948" (5 exs. AMGS); "Marandellas 2 N. 1948 JOC." (7 exs. AMGS); "Stream Rusapi 13.XI. 1948 / Laccophilus adjutor Guign. Det. J. Omer-Cooper" (3 exs. AMGS). - South Africa: "Transvaal Ermelo stream 7.Dec. 1948 JOC." (2 exs. AMGS); "Trsvl 5 mi W Warmbad 24-25.2. 1968 Spangler" (1 ex. USNM); "Trsvl, pond, rd to Stoffleberg 10.12. 1995 Challet" (1 ex. CGC, 1 ex. MZH); "Trsvl, Hwy 555 No. Stoffberg 10.12. 1995 Challet" (1 ex. CGC); "Nelspruit, pond 27.4. 2010, S25°32'13,83", E30°59'50,35" Hidalgo, Galiana & Kleynhans leg." (1 ex. CIR); "Kw. Natal, Lions R nr N-29.471, E30.150, 4.70 Dickens" (1 ex. AMSG); "Kw. Natal, Buffalo R. Cloontarf, - 27.630N, E29.98, 23.9. 1974 Metz" (2 exs. AMGS); "Kw. Natal, Ngagne R, Steildrift, N-27.770, E30.02, 24.9. 1974 Metz" (1 ex. AMGS); Kw. Natal, Ngagagne R’ St. 19.3. 1974 Metz" (1 ex. AMGS); "Natal, Dragon Peaks Park, 29°02'S- 29°26'E, 1150-1450 m, 9-12.11. 1993 Deckert leg." (1 ex. ZMHB, 1 ex. MZH); "Nqutu 1953 Newton" (1 ex. BMNH); "Natal, (handwritten, unreadable locality text), 25.9. 1967 Omer-Cooper" (4 exs. AMGS); "E.C.Pr. Dias Cross dune slack pond, 334300S 263730E 27.3. 1994 E. Bruce-Miller" (1 ex. AMGS). - Swaziland: "Mbabane 5.12. 1948 JOC. / Laccophilus necopinus Guignot det. G. Challet 06" (1 ex. AMGS).

Diagnosis.

Laccophilus necopinus resembles most of Laccophilus adjutor and Laccophilus conjunctus . The species is distinguished by apex of penis, which differs clearly from the two other species; extreme apex of Laccophilus necopinus is distinctly broader and clearly expanded on one side. See also diagnosis of Laccophilus adjutor (p. 198).

Description.

Body length: 3.8-4.3 mm, width 2.1-2.4 mm. Elytral colour pattern slightly variable; longitudinal, dark markings sometimes merged into a larger dark area (Fig. 482).

Head: Pale ferrugineous. Posteriorly, with vague, dark ferrugineuos area. Almost impunctate, except at eyes with fine, irregular punctures. Areas with punctures slightly extended towards middle of head-discussion. Rather shiny, finely microsculptured. Reticulation indistinctly double. Large meshes contain 2-5 fine meshes.

Pronotum: Pale ferrugineous. Frontally and posteriorly in middle with dark ferrugineous to dark brown area. Almost impunctate, except laterally and anteriorly, with scattered fine punctures. Submat, finely microsculptured. Reticulation double but size categories in part difficult to separate. Large meshes reduced and only partially discernible.

Elytra: Pale ferrugineous, with dark ferrugineous to dark brown to blackish, longitudinal markings, which sometimes merge into each other. At base, with distinct pale, transverse area (at suture elytra, however, dark coloured). Rarely pale areas strongly reduced; only minor spots present (Fig. 482). Submat, finely and densely microsculptured. Reticulation appears simple, but very fine, scattered fragments of large meshes may be discerned. Almost impunctate; very fine, scattered punctures form a vague, discal, dorsolateral and lateral row of punctures.

Ventral aspect: Dark ferrugineous to ferrugineous, prothorax paler, pale ferrugineous. Almost impunctate. Submat to rather shiny, very finely microsculptured. Abdomen with curved striae. Metacoxal plates with approx. 10 shallow furrows. Prosternal process quite slender, apex extended and pointed. Apical ventrite asymmetric, with lateral, rounded knob (Fig. 152).

Legs: Pro- and mesotarsus slightly enlarged, extended and provided with distinct suckers.

Male genitalia: Penis long, in lateral aspect almost straight; extreme apex produced to a quite broad extension, being somewhat expanded on one side. In apical half externally, with a membranous area (Figs 335-336).

Female: Externally resembles much of male. Pro- and mesotarsus are more slender. Apical ventrite almost symmetric, lateral knob lacking (Fig. 153).

Distribution.

Nigeria, Cameroon, Zaire, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania, Malawi, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Swaziland (Fig. 569).

Collecting circumstances.

Rather insufficiently known. Label data give stream and pond as collecting localities.