Кавказский энтомол. бюллетень 14(Suppl.): 13–16 © CAUCASIAN ENTOMOLOGICAL BULL. 2018


Acmaeoderella rejzeki, a new species of jewel-beetles from Crete with notes on the species-group composition

of the subgenus Omphalothorax Volkovitsh, 1979 (Coleoptera: Buprestidae: Polycestinae: Acmaeoderini)

Acmaeoderella rejzeki – новый вид жуков-златок с Крита с заметками о составе видовых групп

подрода Omphalothorax Volkovitsh, 1979 (Coleoptera: Buprestidae: Polycestinae: Acmaeoderini)

© M.G. Volkovitsh

© М.Г. Волкович

Zoological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Universitetskaya Emb., 1, St Petersburg 199034 Russia. E-mail: polycest@zin.ru Зоологический институт Российской академии наук, Университетская наб., 1, Санкт-Петербург 199034 Россия


Key words: Coleoptera, Buprestidae, Polycestinae, Acmaeoderini, Acmaeoderella, subgenus Omphalothorax, species- groups, new species, Crete.

Ключевые слова: Coleoptera, Buprestidae, Polycestinae, Acmaeoderini, Acmaeoderella, подрод Omphalothorax, видовые группы, новый вид, Крит.


Abstract. Acmaeoderella (Omphalothorax) rejzeki sp. n. from the Crete Island (Greece) is described, illustrated and compared with closely related A. despecta (Baudi di Selve, 1870). Species-groups adspersula and despecta are established within the subgenus Omphalothorax and a list of species attributed to this subgenus is presented.

Резюме. Представлено иллюстрированное описание Acmaeoderella (Omphalothorax) rejzeki sp. n. с острова Крит (Греция); приведено его сравнение с близкородственным видом A. despecta (Baudi di Selve, 1870). В составе подрода Omphalothorax выделены группы видов adspersula и despecta и составлен список видов этого подрода.

The subgenus Omphalothorax Volkovitsh, 1979 is one of the most widely distributed groups of the Palaearctic genus Acmaeoderella Cobos, 1955 – its representatives occur from Mauritania on the west (A. marcaisi (Descarpentries et Mateu, 1967) to Taklamakan Desert in Xinjiang, China on the east (A. filiformis (Reitter, 1904)). The subgenus comprises 16 species [Kubáň et al., 2016] of which 4 species occur in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Near East. No species-groups were established within this subgenus so far. Recently, R. Rejzek (Prague, Czech Republic), gave me for determination two specimens of unknown species of the subgenus Omphalothorax collected by him by the color traps in Crete; a description of this species is presented below.

Photographs were taken using Leica MZ-9.5 stereomicroscope with mounted Leica DFC-290 camera.

The following abbreviations for institutional and private collections are used in the text:


image

DOI: 10.23885/18143326201814S1316

RRCP – Roman Rejzek collection (Prague, Czech Republic);

ZIN – Zoological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences (St Petersburg, Russia).

Data from locality labels are cited verbatim.

Acmaeoderella (Omphalothorax) rejzeki sp. n.

(Figs 1–9)

Material. Holotype, (ZIN): “Greece, Crete island Chania province 3 km S Alikampo, 650 m 35°19ʹ1ʺN 24°12ʹ41ʺE 14–15.5.2017, lgt. R. Rejzek” (printed). Paratype: 1(RRCP), same label.

Description. Body (Figs 1, 2) small, elongate, 3.21–3.38 times as long as pronotum at base, cylindrical, with poorly defined dorsal inflection; blackish-bronze, occasionally with slight metallic sheen, elytra unicolor, black with feeble bronze sheen; body regularly covered with lanceolate white scales not concealing background. Body length 4.4–4.5 mm, width at pronotal base 1.3–1.4 mm.

Head (Figs 3, 5, 6) broad, flattened when seen from above; vertex weakly convex, with fine medial line; frons slightly convex or flattened, without medial depression or line, with nearly straight, moderately diverging sides. Vertex 2–2.07 times as wide as transverse diameter of eye and 1.13–1.16 times as wide as frons above antennal sockets, bearing alveolate sculpture. Clypeus narrow, with anterior margin shallowly emarginate. Frons covered with reticulate sculpture at low part, medially changing to ocellate sculpture, consisting of large, round or honeycomb-like, superficial umbilicate punctures with well- defined central granules and eccentric micropunctures; intervals equal about 1/4 diameter of punctures; covered with elongate, lanceolate, white scales not concealing background. Antennae of female (Fig. 4) relatively short, 1.48–1.58 times as long as height of eye, expanded from antennomere 5; antennomere 2 irregularly oval, swollen; antennomeres 3 and 4 subequal, 4 slightly expanded toward apex; antennomere 5 triangular, slightly wider than long; antennomeres 6–10 trapezoid, slightly wider than

14 M.G. Volkovitsh


image


Figs 1‒9. Acmaeoderella (Omphalothorax) rejzeki sp. n., holotype, female (body length 4.5 mm).

1 ‒ habitus, dorsal view; 2 ‒ same, lateral view; 3 ‒ body, anterior part, lateral view; 4 ‒ right antenna; 5 ‒ head, frontal view; 6 ‒ head and pronotum, dorsal view; 7 ‒ elytra, posterior third, dorsal view; 8 ‒ right hind tarsus; 9 ‒ ovipositor.

Рис. 1‒9. Acmaeoderella (Omphalothorax) rejzeki sp. n., голотип, самец (длина тела 4.5 мм).

1 ‒ габитус, вид сверху; 2 ‒ габитус, вид сбоку; 3 ‒ тело, передняя часть вид сбоку; 4 ‒ правая антенна; 5 ‒ голова, вид спереди; 6 ‒ голова и переднеспинка, вид сверху; 7 ‒ надкрылья, задняя треть, вид сверху; 8 ‒ правая задняя лапка; 9 ‒ яйцеклад.

Acmaeoderella rejzeki, a new species of jewel-beetles from Crete 15


long; antennomere 11 rhomboid, distinctly longer than wide; dimorphism unknown.

Pronotum (Figs 3, 6) weakly transverse, 1.27–1.29 times as wide at base as long, widest at anterior 1/4; sides nearly rectilinearly diverging toward widest point then abruptly converging anteriorly. Аnterior margin weakly arcuately projecting forward, nearly straight, basal margin straight, bearing two delicate, poorly marked lateral keels opposite humeral swellings. Lateral carina absent. Pronotum moderately convex, with shallow, short medial depression, far not reaching anterior and posterior margins; prescutellar fossa missing, lateral fossae punctiform, poorly marked; anterior margin very shallowly depressed in frontal view (Fig. 5); in lateral view dorsal surface regularly arcuate in anterior half and flattened behind mid-length (Fig. 3). Entire pronotal surface covered with alveolate sculpture of superficial polygonal alveolae without central grains and with distinct micropunctures (Fig. 6) and recumbent white, lanceolate scales not concealing background, discal scales more narrow, short, and semi-erect. Thorax ventrally covered with reticulate sculpture of superficial umbilicate punctures with distinct micropunctures and nearly oval scales not concealing background.

Elytra (Figs 1–3, 7) elongate, 2.43–2.44 times as long as wide at base, cylindrical; sides slightly converging posteriorly of humeral swellings to anterior third, weakly diverging toward posterior third, then arcuately converging to narrowly rounded apices. Subhumeral excision relatively shallow, arcuate (Fig. 3); epipleural serration formed by rather large, sharp, claw-like denticles at posterior fourth. Strial punctures large, elongate, deep, partly merging in sutural stria and posterior parts of other striae. Intervals flat, narrow, 1.5–2 times as wide as striae; 9th interval distinctly elevated and bearing large claw-like denticles in posterior 1/4 (Fig. 7); intervals covered with inconspicuous, superficial micrpunctures on coarsely shagreened background bearing uniceriate, lanceolate, white scales as long as interval width. Elytra dull, unicolor, black with feeble bronze sheen.

Legs (Figs 1, 2, 8) black with bronze sheen; metacoxal plates subparallel with nearly straight posterior margin; covered with dense, widely lanceolate scales. Tibiae slender, slightly expanded toward apices, each with paired spurs, metatibiae with poorly marked comb of white and brownish setae externally. Tarsi nearly as long as tibiae, slender, tarsomeres subequal, tarsomere 5 relatively short, weakly expanded toward apex; tarsal pads poorly developed. Tarsal claws with large, sharp internal tooth near mid- length (Fig. 8).

Abdomen (Fig. 2) dark bronze, covered with reticulate sculpture of superficial umbilicate punctures and widely lanceolate to oval white scales not concealing background.

Ovipositor (Fig. 9) of tubular type, relatively short, approximately 2.3 times as long as expanded apical part, with angularly emarginate apex.

Male unknown.

Differential diagnosis. In having elytral interval 9 bearing distinct denticulation (Fig. 7) Acmaeoderella rejzeki sp. n. belongs to the despecta species-group (see below) of the subgenus Omphalothorax Volkovitsh, 1979; it comes close to A. despecta (Baudi di Selve, 1870), a single species of this group in the Eastern Mediterranean. The new species differs from A. despecta in having unicolorous elytra (Fig. 1), dentate tarsal claws (Fig. 8), and short (2.3 times as long as expanded apical part) ovipositor (fig. 9) in the first place (in A. despecta elytra with variable yellow to orange elytral markings, tarsal claws simple, without internal tooth, and ovipositor long, 3.1–3.4 times as long as expanded apical part). Additionally, in A. rejzeki sp. n. vertex without distinct medial carina, frons with reticulate to ocellate sculpture, pronotum more transverse (1.27–

1.29 times as wide at base as long), and elytral intervals


more narrow, 1.5–2 times as wide as striae (in A. despecta vertex bears distinct medial carina, well visible on lateral view, frons entirely with alveolate sculpture, pronotum less transverse, 1.08–1.24 times as wide at base as long, and elytral intervals wider, 2–4 times as wide as striae).

Host plant. Unknown.

Distribution. Greece: Crete Island: Chania Province. Note. Both specimens of the new species were collected by color traps. No data on their adult/larval host

plants or life circle are known.

Etymology. This species is named after its collector, Roman Rejzek.


Species-group composition of the subgenus Omphalothorax Volkovitsh, 1979

The subgenus Omphalothorax of the genus Acmaeoderella Cobos, 1955 was established for the species having elongated pronotum with basal carinae located opposite the humeral swellings of elytra [Volkovitsh, 1979]. Originally it included 6 species: A. adspersula (Illiger, 1803) (type species), A. despecta (Baudi di Selve, 1870),

A. filiformis (Reitter, 1904), A. longissima (Abeille de Perrin, 1904), A. pharao (Obenberger, 1923), and A. polygonalis (Obenberger, 1916) (currently a junior synonym of

A. despecta); no species-groups were separated so far. Together with A. rejzeki sp. n. the subgenus comprises 17 species and 2 subspecies [Kubáň et al., 2016] and a number of new species is waiting to be described.

Our study has shown that at least two species-groups can be separated within the subgenus Omphalothorax which differ in absence or presence of distinct (frequently claw-like) denticulation on the elevated in posterior third 9th interval of elytra: adspersula species-group (without or with inconspicuous denticulation) and despecta species- group (with distinct denticulation). Additionally, the species belonging to adspersula species-group differ in more elongate body and longer pronotum (frequently almost as long as wide at base, sometimes even longer than wide). Both groups comprise species with simple and dentate tarsal claws.

Species list of the subgenus

Omphalothorax Volkovitsh, 1979

Type species Buprestis adspersula Illiger, 1803.

For synonymy and distribution see Kubáň et al. [2016].

adspersula species-group

adspersula adspersula (Illiger, 1803) adspersula squamiplumis (Peyerimhoff, 1931) arabica Cobos, 1963

argentea Volkovitsh, 2011 densisquammis (Abeille de Perrin, 1904) domenicoi Volkovitsh, 2013

longissima cypraea Krajčík, 2012

longissima longissima (Abeille de Perrin, 1904) nannorrhopsicola Volkovitsh et Bílý, 1979 prosopiphaga Volkovitsh, 2013

samai Magnani, 1995

zygophylli Curletti et Magnani, 1988

16 M.G. Volkovitsh


despecta species-group despecta (Baudi di Selve, 1870) filiformis (Reitter, 1904)

gianassoi Curletti et Magnani, 1988 marcaisi (Descarpentries et Mateu, 1967) pharao (Obenberger, 1923)

rejzeki sp. n.

vayssieresi Cobos, 1984

Acknowledgements

My sincere thanks to Mr. Roman Rejzek for the loan of the specimens of the new species for this study and his kind permission to deposit the holotype in ZIN.

The study was undertaken within the framework of the State Project No. АААА-А17-117030310205-9, is widely based on the Bioresource collection of ZIN and supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (project No. 16-04-00412-A).

References

Kubáň V., Volkovitsh M.G., Kalashian M.Ju., Jendek E. 2016. Buprestidae. In: Catalogue of Palaearctic Coleoptera. Volume 3. Revised and updated edition. Scarabaeoidea, Scirtoidea, Dascilloidea, Buprestoidea and Byrrhoidea. (I. Löbl, D. Löbl eds). Leiden, Boston: Brill: 19‒32, 432‒574. Volkovitsh M.G. 1979. Review of the Palaearctic groups of Jewel Beetles of the tribe Acmaeoderini (Coleoptera, Buprestidae). Entomologicheskoe obozrenie. 58(2): 333–354 (in Russian) [English translation in:

Entomological Review. 1979 (1980). 58(2): 78–99].


Received / Поступила: 24.09.2018 Accepted / Принята: 5.12.2018