Downesia Baly 1858: 107

Synonomys

Hanoia Fairmaire 1888: 375.

Type Species

Downesia insignis Baly.

Diagnosis

Downesia can be distinguished by the following combination of characters:

• lateral margin of pronotumpronotum:
  occupies all of dorsal part of the prothorax; in anterior angles or posterior angles there may be a small tubercle or pore with a seta
  and elytra without long, stiff spines
• body narrow, elongate
• head without frontal horn between antennae, clypeusclypeus:
  usually quadrangular, elongate; joined to the labrum
  well-developed
• pronotum pronotum:
  occupies all of dorsal part of the prothorax; in anterior angles or posterior angles there may be a small tubercle or pore with a seta
  with seta in each posterior angle, as wide as base of elytra
• elytra without scutellar row of punctures, with 8 rows of punctures, reduced to 5 to 7 rows in middle, tricostate
• tarsi with 2 claws

Description

Body elongate, narrow; subparallel; color reddish-brown or black; total length 3.5 to 9.0 mm.

Head: small; clypeusclypeus:
usually quadrangular, elongate; joined to the labrum
well-developed; labrumlabrum:
triangular, joined to the clypeus and the oral orifice
transverse; maxillary palps with palpomere 1 obconic, 2 larger, 3 obconic, elongate, thinner than 1 or 2, 4 oval, attenuate; eyeeye:
elongate, slightly prominent, multifaceted; usually slightly kidney-shaped
large, convex.

Antenna: robust; slightly thickening apically; as long as head and pronotumpronotum:
occupies all of dorsal part of the prothorax; in anterior angles or posterior angles there may be a small tubercle or pore with a seta
combined; with 11-antennomeres; antennomeres 1 and 2 short, rounded; 3 slightly longer than 2, obconic; 4 to 6 very short; 7 to 11 longer; 11 pointed at apex.

Pronotum: as wide as base of elytra; subquadrate; lateral margin straight or slightly sinuate; anterior angle rounded; anterior margin distinctly curved over head; posterior angle acute; posterior margin bisinuate; convex; surface impunctate, with transverse sulcus present medially.

Scutellum: quadrate; apex rounded.

Elytron: lateral margin straight, smooth; apex broadly rounded; with 8 rows of punctures, reduced to 5 or 7 rows medially; tricostate, costae more produced apically.

Leg: short; robust; femurfemur:
largest part of the leg; more or less cylindrical, attached at base to trochanter and at apex to tibia
swollen medially; tibiatibia:
variable in length; joins femur and tarsus
short; tarsi with 2 claws.

Distribution

Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, Congo, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam.

World Fauna

Described species: 41 (Staines 2012). Key: Maulik 1919, Uhmann 1949a, Gressitt 1950, Gressitt & Kimoto 1963a, Chen et al. 1986, Kimoto 1999.

Hosts

Bambusa, Neyraudia, Phragmites, Sinocalamus, Thysanolaena (Poaceae).

References

Baly, J. S. 1858. Catalogue of Hispidae in the collection of the BritishMuseum. London, 172 pp.

Chen, S. H., P. Y. Yu, C. H. Sun, C. H. T'an, & Y. Zia. 1986. Fauna Sinica (Insecta: Coleoptera: Hispidae). Science Press, Beijing. 653 pp.

Fairmaire, L. 1888. Notes sur les Coléoptères des environs de Pékin. Revue d’Entomologie 7:111-168.

Gressitt, J. L. 1950. The hispine beetles of China (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae). Lingnan Science Journal 23(1-2):53-142.

Gressitt, J. L. & S. Kimoto. 1963a. The Chrysomelidae (Coleopt.) of China and Korea. Part 2. Pacific Insects Monograph 1B:301‑1026.

Kimoto, S. 1999. Chrysomelidae (Coleoptera) of Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. VI. Hispinae. Bulletin of the Institute of Comparative Studies of International Cultures and Societies 23: 59-159.

Maulik, S. 1919. Hispinae and Cassidinae of India, Burma and Ceylon. The fauna of British India. Taylor & Francis, London. 439 pp.

Staines, C. L. 2012. Tribe Gonophorini. Catalog of the hispines of the world (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Cassidinae). http://entomology.si.edu/Collections_Coleoptera.html

Uhmann, E. 1949a. Palaearktische Hispinae. 105. Beitrag zur Kenntnis der Hispinae (Coleopt. Chrysom.). Koleopterologische Zeitschrift 1:3-12.