Morphosphaera montivaga Maulik

Lee, Chi-Feng & Bezdĕk, Jan, 2016, Revision of the genus Morphosphaera Baly (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Galerucinae), Zootaxa 4179 (1), pp. 1-41 : 29-30

Morphosphaera montivaga Maulik

( Figs 20–21 )

Morphosphaera montivaga Maulik, 1936: 319 ( India) ; Wilcox, 1971: 220 (list).

Type material. Lectotype Ƌ ( BMNH), here designated, labeled: “63851 [h, w] // Doherty [p, w] // India Or / Manipur [p, w] // Fry Coll. / 1905. 100 [p, w] // Type [p, w, circle label with red border] // Morphosphaera / montivaga / Type. Maulik [h, w]” . Paralectotypes: 1♀ (BMNH): “Darjeeling [p, w] // Baly Coll. [p, w] // Morphosphaera / montivaga M [h] / S. Maulik [p] / 1934 [h, w] // Type [p, w, circle label with red border]”; 1♀ (BMNH): “Baly Coll. [p, w] // Morphosphaera / montivaga M [h] / S. Maulik [p] / 1934 [h, w] // Type [p, w, circle label with red border]”.

Description. Length 10.5–12.5 mm, width 5.9–6.6 mm. Head black; elytra and scutellum reddish brown with purple reflection; meso- and methoracic ventrites reddish brown; legs black; abdominal ventrites black but sides of each ventrite and apex of last ventrite yellowish brown ( Figs 20 A–20C); prothorax yellow, pronotum with one pair of large black spots at sides, and one pair of longitudinal black bands, sometimes joined, surrounded by darker brown margins ( Fig. 20 D). Antenna filiform ( Fig. 21 A), 0.6x as long as body; length ratios of antennomeres II to XI about 1.0: 1.3: 2.3: 2.3: 2.0: 2.1: 1.9: 2.1: 1.9: 2.2, and length to width ratios of antennomeres II to XI about 1.6: 2.1: 3.3: 3.6: 3.1: 3.1: 3.0: 3.3: 3.0: 3.5. Aedeagus ( Figs 21 B–21C) slender in dorsal view, about 8.6x longer than wide, parallel-sided, apically tapering from apical 1/5, apex narrowly rounded; ventral surface well sclerotized and smooth; broad and moderately curved in lateral view; with longitudinal row of setae from opening of internal sac to near apex of endophallic sclerites; apical process of endophallic sclerites weakly curved outwards; apico-lateral process bifurcate; with one pair of processes erect and recurved outwards at apical 1/3; base tubelike. Gonocoxae reduced. Ventrite VIII ( Fig. 21 D) with short spiculum; apex transverse and with one pair of short rounded processes near median line; apical area with scattered short and long setae. Receptacle of spermatheca ( Fig. 21 E) elongate and weakly swollen, pump much narrower and strongly curved, proximal spermathecal duct long and narrow.

Diagnosis. Morphosphaera montivaga is similar to M. bimaculata in possessing two black spots on the pronotum and a wide brown band between the black spots. In Morphosphaera montivaga adults the brown band has a black pattern in the centre and elytra are reddish brown (no black longitudinal stripes and bluish metallic elytra in M. bimaculata ), with a longitudinal row of setae on the ventral surface of the internal sac (several setae near opening of internal sac in M. bimaculata ) and acute apical processes of endophallic sclerites (apical processes joined and narrowly rounded in M. bimaculata ).

Host plant. Unknown.

Other material examined. INDIA: 2♀♀ ( BMNH), Darjeeling , Gopaldhara Bw., 4,720 ft . 28-IX-14, H. Stevens, B. M. 1916-218; 1Ƌ, 2♀♀ ( BMNH), Sikkim, Gopaldhara , Rungbong Vall. , 10.V.14, H. Stevens, 1916- 218.

Distribution. India (Manipur, Sikkim, West Bengal).

Figures

FIGURES 20. Habitus of Morphosphaera montivaga Maulik, 1936 (holotype). 20 A. Dorsal view; 20 B. Ventral view; 20 C. Head; 20 D. Pronotum.

FIGURES 21. Diagnostic characters of Morphosphaera montivaga Maulik, 1936. 21 A. Antenna; 21 B. Penis, dorsal view; 21 C. Penis, lateral view; 21 D. Abdominal ventrite VIII; 21 E. Spermatheca.