Mecistomela Jacobson 1899: 246

Synonomys

None.

Type Species

Alurnus marginata Thunberg.

Diagnosis

Mecistomela can be distinguished by the following combination of characters:

• the lateral margin of the 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 the elytra lacking long, stiff spines
• the head lacking a frontal horn
• the 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
  having a tuft of setae in each angle
• the antennae having 11-antennomeres, subserrate, with antennomere 4 nearly as long as 3
• the elytral punctures being large, rugose
• the elytra lacking costae
• the elytra being subparallel

Description

Body large (23-34 mm), elongate ellipse.

Head: flat or slightly convex between eyes; fronsfrons:
upper anterior portion of head capsule above the clypeus
with small depressions on anterior margin; interantennal keel absent; sulci near eyeeye:
elongate, slightly prominent, multifaceted; usually slightly kidney-shaped
faint; punctation dense and irregular.

Antenna: with 11-antennomeres, short, sparsely pubescent, each antennomere with ventral asymmetrical apical expansion which diminishes in size from base to apex; antennomere 4 almost as long as 3.

Pronotum: transverse, slightly narrowing anteriorly; lateral margins almost parallel; densely punctate; slight basal impression present on each side of middle; with tuft of setae in each angle.

Scutellum: triangular.

Elytron: wider than 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
; finely, densely punctate, punctures not in regular rows; no costae; margined laterally.

Leg: trochanters with tufts of setae.

Black, 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 with orange markings.

Distribution

Brazil.

World Fauna

Number of species: 1 (Staines 2012). Key to the species: Fischer (1935).

Hosts

Alagoptera, Copernicia, Cocos, Diplothemium, Elaeis, Lantania, Livistona, Phoenix (Arecaceae).

References

Fischer, C. R. 1935. Os coleopteros phytophagos da tribu Alurnini, pragas das palmeiras (Chrysomelidae, Hispinae). Revista de Entomologica Rio de Janiero 5:257-292.

Jacobson, G. G. 1899. De genere Alurno (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae). Annuaire du Musée Zoologique de l'Académie Impériale des Sciences St. Pétersbourgh 4:245-256.

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