Redescription of \u3ci\u3eAnovia circumclusa\u3c/i\u3e (Gorham) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae: Noviini), with First Description of the Egg, Larva, and Pupa, and Notes on Adult Intraspecific Elytral Pattern Variation

Anovia circumclusa (Gorham), a neotropical lady beetle, recently was recorded in North America for the first time. Previously, only the adult form of this beneficial predator had been described. This paper provides a redescription of the adult and the first descriptions of the egg, larva, and pupa. Diagnostic characters for the genus and species are given, and intraspecific color variation in Anovia adults is discussed

First Florida records for \u3ci\u3eAnovia circumclusa \u3c/i\u3e (Gorham) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae: Noviini): A natural enemy of \u3ci\u3eIcerya genistae \u3c/i\u3eHempel (Hemiptera: Margarodidae)

Lady beetles in the tribe Noviini (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) are well-known control agents for scale insects. The tribe consists of ~ 80 species divided among three genera, and is represented on every continent except Antarctica. Anovia Casey is native to North and South America, Novius Mulsant is restricted to Australia, and Rodolia Mulsant, while native to Australia, has been widely introduced to other regions of the world

Neotype designation for Rodolia iceryae Janson in Ormerod, 1887 (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae)

Hounkpati, Kwevitoukoui, Forrester, Juanita A., Mchugh, Joseph V. (2019): Neotype designation for Rodolia iceryae Janson in Ormerod, 1887 (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae). Zootaxa 4563 (2): 396-400, DOI: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4563.2.1

Rodolia iceryae Janson in Ormerod 1887

Rodolia iceryae Janson, 1887 (Figs. 1–9) Rodolia iceryae Janson in Ormerod, 1887: 30; original description; Rodolia obscura Weise, 1898: 524; synonymized by Raimundo & Alves, 1978: 35. Type material: NEOTYPE (♂, MRAC) here designated to avoid ambiguity about the identity of this species whose type material is lost. The neotype (Figs. 1–9) has been point mounted on a pin with a genitalia vial and four labels with the following data: “Pietermaritzburg / Natal 3-4-1957 / Hunt // COLL. MUS. CONGO / ex. coll. Dr. Breuning // Rodolia iceriae Jans. / det. H. Fürsch 1973 // NEOTYPE ♂ / Rodolia iceryae Janson ”. The neotype label is on red paper. Type locality: South Africa This specimen was selected as the neotype for several reasons. It was determined by Dr. Helmut Fürsch, a taxonomic authority of Afrotropical Coccinellidae. The specimen closely matches the original description of the species. It was collected from the same region as the originally described type specimen. Diagnosis. Rodolia iceryae can be separated from other species of Novinii by the following combination of characters: length 3-5 mm; body hemispherical, widest just posterior to middle (Fig. 1); shiny; dorsal surfaces pubescent; base of the elytra with a large semicircular blood-red spot, enclosing the scutellum; head concealed from above; humeral angles somewhat produced anteriorly, rounded, and slightly elevated. Rodolia iceryae may be diagnosed by the structure of the male genitalia. The lateral lobes (= parameres) of this species are similar to those of Rodolia insularis Weise, 1895 in that they are medially constricted. However, the setae on the distal 25% of the parameres are notably shorter in R. iceryae than in R. insularis. Rodolia iceryae has a very short, narrow penis (= sipho) with a bifurcation just proximal to the apex. The only other species of Rodolia that have a similar penis are R. argodi Sicard, 1909, and R. occidentalis Weise, 1898. However, R. iceryae is readily distinguished from both of them in that the apex of the penis of R. iceryae is strongly curved, so much so that it almost forms a complete circle.Published as part of Hounkpati, Kwevitoukoui, Forrester, Juanita A. & Mchugh, Joseph V., 2019, Neotype designation for Rodolia iceryae Janson in Ormerod, 1887 (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), pp. 396-400 in Zootaxa 4563 (2) on pages 397-398, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4563.2.12, http://zenodo.org/record/260116

FIGURES 10–13 in Redescription of Anovia circumclusa (Gorham) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae: Noviini), with first description of the egg, larva, and pupa, and notes on adult intraspecific elytral pattern variation

FIGURES 10–13. Anovia circumclusa (Gorham), larval legs. 10. Prothoracic leg, left, dorsal. 11. Mesothoracic leg, left, anterior. 12. Metathoracic leg, left, anterior. 13. Prothoracic tibia, left, anterior

The evolution of food preferences in Coccinellidae

Despite the familiarity and economic significance of Coccinellidae, the family has thus far escaped analysis by rigorous phylogenetic methods. As a result, the internal classification remains unstable and there is no framework with which to interpret evolutionary events within the family. Coccinellids exhibit a wide range of preferred food types spanning kingdoms, and trophic levels. To provide an evolutionary perspective on coccinellid feeding preferences, we performed a phylogenetic analysis of 62 taxa based on the ribosomal nuclear genes 18S and 28S. The entire dataset consists of 3957 aligned nucleotide sites, 787 of which are parsimony informative. Bayesian and parsimony analyses were performed. Host preferences were mapped onto the Bayesian tree to infer food preference transitions. Our results indicate that the ancestral feeding condition for Coccinellidae is coccidophagy. From the ancestral condition, there have been at least three transitions to aphidophagy and one transition to leaf-eating phytophagy. A second transition to leaf-eating phytophagy arose within an aphidophagous/pollinivorous clade. The mycophagous condition in Halyziini originated from aphidophagy. Our findings suggest that polyphagy served as an evolutionary stepping stone for primarily predaceous groups to adopt new feeding habits. The analyses recovered a clade comprising Serangiini plus Microweiseini as the sister group to the rest of Coccinellidae. The subfamilies Coccinellinae and Epilachninae are monophyletic; however, Sticholotidinae, Chilocorinae, Scymninae, and Coccidulinae are paraphyletic. Our results do not support the traditional view of phylogenetic relationships among the coccinellid subfamilies. These results indicate that the current classification system poorly reflects the evolution of Coccinellidae and therefore requires revision