A NEW GENUS AND SPECIES OF FLEA BEETLE (COLEOPTERA: CHRYSOMELIDAE: ALTICINAE) FROM THE RAINFOREST CANOPY IN COSTA RICA

摘要

Laselva, n. gen, and Laselva triplehorni, n. sp., are described and illustrated from the canopy of a lowland Atlantic rainforest in Costa Rica. The genus belongs to the "Sphaeronychini" of the Alticinae. This new genus belongs to an unusual group of genera of the Alticinae often called the "Monoplatini or Sphaeronychini." This group has tradtitionally been placed near the end of the Alticinae in checklists (e.g., Seeno and Wilcox 1982) and cataloges (e.g., Heikertinger and Csiki 1939-40, Riley et al.2003) -a kind of "cataloge phylogeny" without any explanation as to the reason for such placement.