Aquatica ficta (Olivier)

Figs 2–7

Luciola ficta Olivier, 1909:249. Pic, 1911:188. McDermott, 1966:104. Ho & Jiang, 1997:42. Yeh, 1999:1. Jeng et al. 2003:545. Chen, 2003:163.

Luciola ovalis Hope. Matsumara 1918:84 misidentification. Chang 1994:1 misidentification.

Type. Lectotype female. CHINA: Guizhou (designated by Jeng et al. 2003:545). Not examined by these authors.

Specimens examined. CHINA. Fujian province, Fuqing, 14.v.2008, XH FU, male, 4 females (ANIC). Taiwan, Miyaoli, breeding, 7.ii.1981, N Ohba, 2 males (ANIC). Taiwan Taihoku, 6.v.1928, F Hadden, male (SAM).

Diagnosis. Males with orange pronotum (Fig. 3), dark brown elytra having very narrow pale margins which are prominent along the suture, and extend from humerus to mesoscutellum; margins extending narrowly around elytral apex and along lateral margin; ventral surface of epipleuron pale; aedeagus (Figs 6, 7) similar to that of A. leii with LL apices inturned and hooked; inner basal margins of LL not toothed; ML slender along most of its length with base bulbous; aedeagal sheath (Fig. 5) with sternite apically entire and slightly produced, consistent with Jeng et al. (2003 Fig. 29), anterior half slightly bent to the right, posterior half strongly bent to right (margins may appear angulate where anterior and posterior halves join); sheath sternite about as wide in posterior half as anterior half; females (Fig. 14) macropterous and coloured as for males. Jeng et al. (2003) indicated this species frequents still water and is common around rice paddies in Taiwan.

Remarks. Adequate characterisation of this species is important as Jeng et al. (2003) found no males in the Musée National d'histoire Naturelle, Paris when they designated a female Lectotype, and any subsequent identification of males is based on similarity of colour to the female. Males from Taiwan were identified by Pic (1911) as belonging to this species. While the colour pattern is very useful, the few specimens scored by Ballantyne and Lambkin (2009) differed slightly from Jeng et al. (2003) and further study of the variability of this species is necessary.