Luciola ruficollis (Boisduval)

Lampyris ruficollis Boisduval, 1835:128. Guérin-Méneville, 1838:75. Motschulsky, 1854: 53.

Luciola ruficollis (Guérin-Méneville). Lacordaire, 1857: 338. Olivier, 1902:85; 1907:54; 1910b:45. Nec Girard, 1873, plate xxxv, figs 9, 9a, 9b.

Luciola (Luciola) ruficollis (Guérin-Méneville). McDermott, 1966:112. Ballantyne, 1987a:131.

Type. NEW GUINEA. not located.

Remarks. This species has not been reliably identified in collections. Based on its original description as a small species (ca 6 mm long) with orange pronotum, dark brown elytra, and V7 trilobed Ballantyne (1987a:131) considered that Pteroptyx antennata Olivier could have been based on similar specimens. No reference to ruficollis mentions deflexed elytral apices in the male. The described ventral colouration of yellowish thorax and abdomen is approached by Australoluciola australis which lacks a trisinuate V7.

This species has been attributed to Guérin-Méneville (1830). The actual publication date of this work was 1838, and the species is here attributed to Boisduval (1835) as the first description to be associated with the name.