Abstract
BACKGROUND: The genus Coccinella is reviewed with seven species found in Pakistan: C.luteopicta (Mulsant, 1866), C.marussii Kapur, 1973, C.iranica Dobzhansky, 1926, C.transversalis Fabricius, 1781, C.septempunctata Linnaeus, 1758, C.transversoguttatatransversoguttata Faldermann, 1835 and C.undecimpunctata Linnaeus, 1758. Information on prey, host plants, distribution and an identification key for Coccinella species in Pakistan is provided. Additionally, newly-sequenced partial COI (cytochrome-c-oxidase subunit I) for C.luteopicta and C.marussii were used to determine their phylogenetic positions within the genus Coccinella. NEW INFORMATION: This study comprehensively reviews the genus Coccinella in Pakistan and highlights Coccinellaluteopicta as a new country record. Morphological features of adults, including male genital characters and an identification key to known species in Pakistan are presented. Records of prey, host plants and distributions for all identified species are included. The new data (COI-barcode) shows that C.luteopicta (Mulsant, 1866) was recorded first in Pakistan.