Skip to main content Skip to main navigation menu Skip to site footer
Responsive image
Issue: Vol. 5862 No. 2: 5 Aug. 2026
Type: Article
Published: 2026-08-05
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5862.2.2
Page range: 232-244
Abstract views: 263
PDF downloaded: 31

First Indian record of Phrynocaria laeta (Mulsant, 1850) comb. nov. (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), a poorly known Oriental species, with a redescription and distribution notes

Department of Entomology; Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya; Mohanpur 741252; Nadia; West Bengal; India.
National Research Centre for Banana; Thogamalai Road; Thayanur Post; Tiruchirappalli 620102; Tamil Nadu; India.
Coleoptera Coccinelloidea Coccinellini Indian Subcontinent taxonomy nomenclature ladybird beetles

Abstract

Coelophora laeta Mulsant, 1850 (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), is a poorly known Oriental species of Coccinellini, originally described from Java (Indonesia). It is reported from India for the first time based on a series of highly polymorphic specimens collected during recent field surveys in West Bengal. Based on its morphological characters, particularly the presence of a narrow frons, lack of tibial spurs, and the male genitalia, it is transferred to Phrynocaria Timberlake, 1943 (new combination). It is redescribed with the illustrations of the polymorphic forms and other diagnostic characters, including the genitalia. The immature stages are also illustrated, along with notes on its distribution and host plant. The problems in the taxonomy of some Asian Phrynocaria arising from the possible misidentifications of the polymorphic forms are briefly discussed.

References

  1. Crotch, G.R. (1874) A Revision of the Coleopterous Family Coccinellidae. Janson, London, 311 pp. https://doi.org/10.5962/bhl.title.8975
  2. Hoàng, D.N. (1983) Coccinellidae of Vietnam. Part. 2. Nha zuat ban khoa hoc va ky thuat, Hanoi, 159 pp. [in Vietnamese with English summary]
  3. Hodek, I. & Honěk, A. (1996) Ecology of Coccinellidae. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, xvi + 464 pp. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-1349-8
  4. Hodek, I., van Emden, H.F. & Honěk, A. (2012) Ecology and Behaviour of the Ladybird Beetles (Coccinellidae). Blackwell Publishing Ltd., Chichester, 561 pp. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118223208
  5. Iablokoff-Khnzorian, S.M. (1982) Les Coccinelles Coléoptères-Coccinellidae Tribu Coccinellini des regions Palearctique et Orientale. Boubée, Paris, 568 pp.
  6. Jing, X.L. (1986) A new species of the genus Phrynocaria Timberlake (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae). Acta Zootaxonomica Sinica, 11 (3), 307–308.
  7. Korschefsky, R. (1932) Coleopterorum Catalogus. Pars 120. Coccinellidae II. W. Junk, Berlin, 435 pp.
  8. Majerus, M.E.N. (1994) Ladybirds. Harper Collins, London, 367 pp.
  9. Majerus, M.E.N. (2016) A natural history of ladybird beetles. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 403 pp.
  10. Mulsant, E. (1850) Species des Coléoptères Trimères Sécuripalpes. Annales des Sciences Physiques et naturelles, d’Agriculture et d’industrie, publiées par la Société nationale d’Agriculture, etc., de Lyon, Deuxième Série, 2, 1–1104. https://doi.org/10.5962/bhl.title.8953
  11. Pang, X.F. & Mao, J.L. (1979) Coleoptera: Coccinellidae, II. Zhongguo Jingi Kunchang Zhi, 14, 1–170.
  12. Poorani, J. (2023) An illustrated guide to lady beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) of the Indian Subcontinent. Part 1. Tribe Coccinellini. Zootaxa, 5332 (1), 1–307. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5332.1.1
  13. Poorani, J., Sankararaman, H. & Anusree, S.S. (2021) A review of Indian species of Phrynocaria Timberlake (Coleoptera, Coccinellidae) with notes on synonymy and a new species from South India, hitherto misidentified as Coelophora circumusta (Mulsant). Zootaxa, 4926 (1), 117–133. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4926.1.8
  14. Pope, R.D. (1989) A revision of the Australian Coccinellidae (Coleoptera). Part 1. Subfamily Coccinellinae. Invertebrate Taxonomy, 2, 633–735. https://doi.org/10.1071/IT9880633
  15. Ren, S.X., Wang, X.M., Pang, H., Peng, Z.Q. & Zeng, T. (2009) Colored pictorial handbook of ladybird beetles in China. Science Press, Beijing, 336 pp. [in Chinese].
  16. Sasaji, H. (1971) Fauna Japonica. Coccinellidae (Insecta: Coleoptera). Academic Press of Japan, Tokyo, 340 pp.
  17. Seago, A.E., Giorgi, J.A., Li, J.H. & Ślipiński, A. (2011) Phylogeny, classification and evolution of ladybird beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) based on simultaneous analysis of molecular and morphological data. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 60, 137–151. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2011.03.015
  18. Ślipiński, A. (2007) Australian Ladybird Beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae). Their Biology and Classification. Australian Biological Resources Study, Canberra, xviii + 286 pp.
  19. Ślipiński, A., Li, W.J. & Pang, H. (2020) Ladybird Beetles of the Australo-Pacific Region, Coleoptera: Coccinellidae: Coccinellini. CSIRO Publishing, Clayton, 240 pp. https://doi.org/10.1071/9781486303885
  20. Wang, X.M. & Chen, X.S. (2022) Illustrated Handbook of Ladybird Beetles in China. The Straits Publishing & Distributing Group, Fuzhou, 516 pp. [in Chinese]
  21. Yu, G. (2010) Chinese Lady Beetles (The Subfamily Coccinellinae). China Scientific Press, Beijing, 180 pp. [in Chinese]
  22. Yu, G. (2011) The Coccinellidae of Taiwan. Chemical Industry Press, Beijing, 198 pp. [in Chinese with English summary]
  23. Yu, G. & Wang, H.Y. (1999) Guidebook to lady beetles of Taiwan. Shih Pui Ni, Taipei, 230 pp. [bilingual, in English and Chinese]
  24. Zhu, Z.-H., Wang, Z.-Z., Shi, A.-M. & Wang, X.-M. (2026) Taxonomic review of the genus Phrynocaria Timberlake, 1943 (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) from China with description of a new species. Zootaxa, 5760 (1), 94–108. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5760.1.4

How to Cite

Majumder, T. & Poorani, J. (2026) First Indian record of Phrynocaria laeta (Mulsant, 1850) comb. nov. (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), a poorly known Oriental species, with a redescription and distribution notes. Zootaxa, 5862 (2), 232–244. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5862.2.2