Megascelis spinipes (Jacoby, 1888)

Gómez-Zurita, Jesús & Maes, Jean-Michel, 2022, New Genera and Species Records of Nicaraguan Eumolpinae (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) Including a New Species in a New Generic Record for Central America, Neotropical Entomology 51 (5), pp. 705-721 : 713

Megascelis spinipes (Jacoby, 1888)

( Figs. 2b , 4f , 5d )

New species record: JGZC: (1) female ( JGZC-1490 ), Estelí, Reserva Natural Miraflor, Finca Las Flores , 13.189271 -86.325221, 926 m, March 2010, A. del Socorro & B. Nimia leg., Megascelis spinipes Jac. J. Gómez-Zurita det. 2022; (2) female ( JGZC-1510 ), Granada, Reserva Silvestre Privada Domitila , 7 November 2010, J.-M. Maes leg., Megascelis spinipes Jac. J. Gómez-Zurita det. 2022. MEL: (1) male, Carazo, Reserva Chacocente , 11–13 November 1992, bosque tropical seco, Maes, Martínez & López leg., Megascelis sp. C. L. Staines det. 1993; (2) 2 exx., Granada, R. S. P. Domitila , UTM 16P 0,558,750— 1,334,939, 230 m, 25 November 2003, J.-M. Maes leg.; (3) 1 ex., idem, 14–18 April 2004; (4) 1 ex., idem, May 2005; (5) 1 ex., idem, 12–15 December 2006; (6) 1 ex., Granada, Volcán Mombacho, Finca El Progreso , 30 May 1999, trampa Malaise en cafetal con tratamiento químico, J.-M. Maes leg.; (7) 1 ex., Managua, La Chinampa , UTM 16P 0,558,750— 1,334,939, 230 m, 26–29 September 2001, J.-M. Maes leg.

This is a member of another large, taxonomically complicated group of mostly Neotropical Eumolpinae ( Lacordaire 1845) , which is also relatively diverse in Nicaragua, where up to four species have been reported so far ( Maes and Staines 1991). This would be the first Nicaraguan report of M. spinipes , a species cited from Guatemala and southern Mexico ( Flowers 1996), and we are confident on our identification based on the male, displaying a pronounced tooth in metafemora ( Fig. 2b ), and two female specimens ( Fig. 4f ) compared with one of the species syntypes in the Museum of Comparative Zoology (Harvard, USA). There are several distinguishing traits for the species, apart from the notorious metafemoral modification in males, including the dark, relatively dull green color of dorsum with a broad ocher lateral stripe on elytra, tight transverse punctures and dense golden pubescence of elytra, or the finely transversely rugose texture of pronotum among others. We also illustrate the spermatheca of the species ( Fig. 5d ), which would have a much larger range than originally assumed.

Figures

Fig. 2 Ventral view of the holotype of Caryonoda funebris n. sp. where the apomorphic prosternal furrows of Cary- onoda can be appreciated (a). Other panels showing details of other species discussed in the text, including the metafemoral tooth of the males of Megascelis spinipes Jacoby (b), and of an abnormal development in the right mesotarsus of Tijucana vitticollis (Jacoby) (c)

Fig. 4 Dorsal views of some of the new records of Nicara- guan Eumolpinae in the tribes Eumolpini and Megascelini, including Allocolaspis gran- dicollis (Blake) (a), Nodoco- laspis femoralis (Lefèvre) (b), Colaspis jalapae (Bechyné) (c), Rhabdopterus uncotibialis (Blake) (d), Talurus tortonesei Bechyné (e), and Megascelis spinipes Jacoby (f). Scale bar=1.0 mm

Fig. 5 Spermathecae of Brachypnoea modesta anima- toria (Bechyné) (a), Chrysodi- nopsis cupriceps (Lefèvre) (b), Colaspis jalapae (Bechyné) (c), Megascelis spinipes Jacoby (d), Metachroma panamense Blake (e), Nodocolaspis femoralis (Lefèvre) (f), Paria nigritar- sis Jacoby (g), Rhabdopterus uncotibialis (Blake) (h), Spintherophyta ignita (Lefèvre) (i), S. minuta (Jacoby) (j), Talurus tortonesei Bechyné (k), Typophorus apicicornis Jacoby (l), T. cyanipennis Lefèvre (m), and T. subbrunneus Jacoby (n). Scale bar=0.2 mm