Synonyms
Pharellus Sicard, 1928: 300. TS: Pharellus minutissimus Sicard, 1928.
Diagnosis
Pharellus is easily confused with Paraphellus and Scymnomorphus because of similar general appearance, but the antennal club is 1-segmented in Paraphellus and 2-segmented in Scymnomorphus.
Description
Body minute, not exceeding 1.3 mm, distinctly convex; winged. Dorsal vestiture consisting of hairs or bristles of uniform length. Head transverse with clypeal and frontal regions usually prominent. Antenna 10-segmented with large 3-segmented club. Pronotum with distinct ridge separating anterior corners from pronotal disc. Prosternum reduced, forming raised parallel or somewhat triangular process between coxae. Mesocoxae broadly separated. Elytral punctures dense and completely confused; epipleuron narrow, usually complete to apex, without cavities; lateral part of elytron without an epipleural carina along elytral edge. Abdomen with 6 visible ventrites, ventrite 5 arcuate or truncate posteriorly usually leaving tip of 6th ventrite exposed. Postcoxal line of abdominal ventrite 1 reaching lateral margin of ventrite with associated additional lines and pores. Male terminalia. Parameres and phallobase asymmetrical; penis guide asymmetrical; parameres fused to penis guide. Penis stout, consisting of single sclerite; basal capsule weak to absent. Apodeme of male sternum 9 very narrow and rod-like. Female terminalia. Coxites triangular, about as long as broad; styli terminal, well developed, with apical setae; infundibulum absent; sperm duct simple, uniform in diameter. Spermatheca multi-cameral, sclerotised; spermathecal accessory gland absent.
Distribution and Biology
Genus known from Indonesia and Australia; biology unknown.
Genus References
Miyatake M. 1994. Revisional studies on Asian genera of the subfamily Sticholotidinae (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae). Memoirs of the College of Agriculture, Ehime University, 38: 223-292.
Sicard A. 1928. Description de quelques espèces nouvelles de Coccinellides. Annals and Magazine of Natural History, 10 Series, 1: 299-301.
Slipinski, S.A. 2007. Australian Ladybird Beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) their biology and classification. ABRS, Canberra. 286 pp.
Slipinski, A. and W. Tomaszewska, 2005. Revision of the Australian Coccinellidae (Coleoptera). Part 3. Tribe Sukunahikonini. Australian Journal of Entomology, 44: 369-384
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