Revision of the Afrotropical flea beetle subgenus Blepharidina s. str. Bechyné (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae)
Author
Iannella, Paola D’Alessandro Mattia
Author
Biondi, Maurizio
text
Zootaxa
2019
2019-01-16
4545
1
journal volume
27649
10.11646/zootaxa.4545.1.2
d8036fa9-32eb-4c5f-bdb2-428d22250ea8
1175-5326
2618635
1D2EC333-517D-4FC1-A0AA-61EDD8BE8BEE
Blepharidina picta
(Kolbe)
(
Figs 17
,
32
,
37
,
53
,
65
,
69
)
Blepharida picta
Kolbe, 1897b
: 336
;
Weise 1902
: 160
;
Ferreira 1963
: 517
Blepharidina picta
(Kolbe)
: Biondi
et al.
2017: 132, 144
Type material examined
.
Lectotype
♂
(
Biondi
des. in
Biondi
et al.
2017): “
D. O. Afrika
, (
Tanzania
)?Khutu (
7°46′32''S
,
37°36′10''E
), Stuhlmann S.” (
ZMHB
). (
Kolbe (1897b: 336)
reports Ukami (
8°30′00''S
, 35′44′00''E) as type locality
.
Paralectotypes
: “
D. Ost. Afrika
,?Khutu, 1897,
S. Stuhlmann
”,
2 ♂
(
ZMHB
)
.
Africa,
1 specimen
(
BMNH
)
;
Deutsch-Ostafrika
,
1 specimen
(
NMPC
)
,
1 specimen
(
MNHN
)
;
ditto,
S. Stuhlmann
leg.,
4 specimens
(
ZMHB
)
. Additional material examined in Appendix 1.
Taxonomic observations
.
Blepharidina picta
is closely related to
B. laesa
, with which it shares the same shape of the aedeagus. However,
B. picta
is distinguishable from
B. laesa
by some external characters (
Figs 12, 17
): size clearly larger (LB ±
8.38 mm
; LB =
6.88 mm
in
B. laesa
); elytral interstriae flat (weakly but distinctly carinate
B. laesa
); elytral yellow patches more rounded (more irregularly shaped in
B. laesa
); elytral punctures pale (brownish in
B. laesa
), clypeus and labrum yellow (both reddish in
B. laesa
). About the median lobe of aedeagus,
B. picta
shows a more rounded apical part and slightly longer basal part (more clearly trapezoidal apical part and straight and slightly shorter basal part in
B. laesa
) (
Figs 48
,
53
). Spermatheca (
Fig. 65
) with piriform and very sclerotized basal part; ductus thick, with ventrally oriented proximal part. Both males and females are moderately variable in size, but females generally show higher LE/LP ratio and shorter antennae (see Appendix 2).
Distribution
.
Kenya
,
Mozambique
and
Tanzania
(
Fig. 69
). Eastern Afrotropical (EAF) chorotype.
Ecological notes
. The collection sites fall within different vegetation
types
: Eastern African Dry Semi- Deciduous Forest; Eastern & Southern African Lowland Evergreen & Semi-Evergreen Forest; Afromontane Dry Forest; Southern African Swamp Forest; Indo-West Pacific Mangrove; Miombo & Associated Broadleaf Savanna; Eastern African Salt Pan; Eastern African Xeric Scrub.