Pteroptyx Ho 2019, s. str.
Creators: name: Ho, - Z.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2019
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Lampyridae
Pteroptyx

description: Pteroptyx s. str. Olivier 1902
Figs 87−91, 94
Pteroptyx Olivier 1902: 72; 1907: 55; 1909a: 319; 1909b: lxxxii; 1910a: 47; 1911a: 102; 1913b: 58. Olivier & Pic 1909: 139. McDermott 1959: 10 (partim); 1964: 46 (partim); 1966: 117 (partim). Ballantyne & McLean 1970: 223 (partim). Bal- lantyne 1987a: 117; 1987b: 171; 2001: 51. Ballantyne et al. 2011: 8 (partim). Ballantyne et al. 2015: 35. Yiu 2017: 103. Jusoh et al. 2018: 1. Nec Ballantyne in Calder 1998: 180. Nec Ballantyne & Lambkin 2000: 68. Type species: Luciola testacea Motschulsky designated by Lucas 1920. (ZMMU). See discussion in Ballantyne et al. 2015. Poluninius Ballantyne 2013: 100. Jusoh et al. (2018) synonymy. Type species: Poluninius selangoriensis Ballantyne 2013: 101.
Diagnosis. Repeated with some modification from Ballantyne et al. (2015). Pteroptyx is an oriental genus with a dorsal colouration of pale brownish or yellow with black tipped elytral apices. It belongs in a group of genera with males characterized by: an elongate slender aedeagus with apices of LL concealed behind the ML when viewed from beneath, pronotal width less than width across elytral humeri, parallel-sided elytra, aedeagal sheath elongate slender, widest across middle, with posterior half of sternite not emarginate on either side, and tapering evenly towards a narrow entire apex. Males of all species of Pteroptyx except Pt. testacea have a MFC. Most species have deflexed elytral apices, aedeagal sheath with bulbous paraprocts, and bipartite LOs in V7. Three species not having deflexed elytral apices, and with entire LO in V7 are: Pt. surabayia, Pt. sayangia and Pt. galbina. Pteroptyx Testacea is without deflexed elytral apices, has bipartite LO in V7 and incurving lobes arising along the posterior margin of V7 at the sides of the MPP. Males are distinguished from Australoluciola which has entire LOs in V7 and no MFC and no deflexed elytral apices; from Colophotia which has a median carina on V7, expanded and oblique PLP and elongate slender aedeagal sheath, no MFC and no deflexed elytral apices; from Pyrophanes (which has a MFC) which has incurving lobes along the posterior margin of V7, bipartite LO in V7, but no deflexed elytral apices; from Trisinuata and Medeopteryx which have no MFC and no bulbous aedeagal sheath paraprocts. Pteroptyx s. str. differs from Inflata which has no deflexed elytral apices, no MFC and entire LOs in V7 most obviously in being without the bulbous ML.
Remarks. The first revision of this genus by Ballantyne & McLean (1970) included 17 species from both New Guinea, Australia and S. E. Asia. (three were species incertae). Ballantyne (1987a) further expanded the genus including 21 species, Ballantyne (2001) addressed mainly Asian species, and Ballantyne et al. (2011) added Pt. maipo from Hong Kong.
Subsequently the arrangement of species with deflexed elytral apices in the male was completely reorganised. Ballantyne & Lambkin (2013) split species with deflexed elytral apices into three genera. Pteroptyx s. str. was restricted to oriental species having a MFC and aedeagal sheath paraprocts, and was redefined and keyed from 12 species. At the same time Ballantyne and Lambkin erected two other genera (Medeopteryx Ballantyne and Trisinuata Ballantyne) to accommodate species without a MFC.
Ballantyne et al. (2015) expanded the limits of the Pteroptyx morphologically to include three further S. E. Asian species with MFC, but without deflexed elytral apices and having entire LO in V7. They redescribed Pteroptyx from 17 species, and addressed problems with the determination of many of the morphological features of the type series of Pt. testacea (Motsch.).
Jusoh et al. (2014) using DNA barcoding addressed Malaysian mangrove fireflies including Pteroptyx and confirmed the morphological taxonomy as well as being able to reliably associate several females and two larval morpho-species. Jusoh et al. (2018) revised the genus from morphological and some molecular characters, indicating it appears to be a morphologically variable assemblage, consisting of three clades. Importantly they were able to describe features of the type species Luciola testacea.
description: Published as part of Ho, - Z., 2019, The Luciolinae of S. E. Asia and the Australopacific region: a revisionary checklist (Coleoptera: Lampyridae) including description of three new genera and 13 new species, pp. 1-174 in Zootaxa 4687 (1) on pages 117-119, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4687.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/3508098