Anthaxia (Haplanthaxia) schah Abeille
Creators: name: Baiocchi, Daniele
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2015
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Buprestidae
Anthaxia
Anthaxia schah

description: Anthaxia (Haplanthaxia) schah Abeille de Perrin, 1904
(Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 13, 14, 15, 16, 35, 36, 46, 51, 56, 62, 63, 71, 76, 81, 96)
Anthaxia schah Abeille de Perrin, 1904: 215. Type locality: [Iran] "Bazouf, dans le Haut Karoum"; Jakobson, 1913: 791 (schach); Obenberger, 1914a: 13 (schach); Obenberger, 1914b: 12 (schach); Obenberger, 1917: 6, 18, 32, 78, 110 (schach); Théry, 1925: 175; Obenberger, 1926: 646 (schach); Obenberger, 1930: 529; Modarres Awal, 1997: 133.
Anthaxia (Mesanthaxia) schah: Richter, 1949: 62, 165–166.
Anthaxia (Haplanthaxia) schah: Bílý, 1983: 71, 87; Bílý, 1997: 35, 112; Bílý, 2006: 378; Bellamy, 2008: 1467.
Anthaxia lokayi: Obenberger, 1925: 32. Type locality: [Iraq] "Kut el Amara, Mesopotamia "; Obenberger, 1926: 646; Obenberger, 1930: 498; Richter, 1949: 165 –166; Bílý, 1995: 40 (syn. of A. (H.) schah); Bílý, 1997: 35, 87; Bílý, 2006: 378; Bellamy, 2008: 1467.
Misidentification: Anthaxia (s. str.) schah Abeille de Perrin, 1904 sensu Radjabi (1974: 38): in fact A. (H.) cadusiana sp. nov.; A. (H.) schah Abeille de Perrin, 1904 sensu Borumand (2002: 46): in fact A. (H.) cadusiana sp. nov.
Type specimens studied. Lectotype (by present designation) ♂ of Anthaxia (H.) schah (MNHN) (Fig. 1), original labelling: fig. 4; 1 paralectotype ♀ of A. (H.) schah (MNHN) (Fig. 2), original labelling: fig. 5; 1 paralectotype ♀ of A. (H.) schah: Persia, Susa, IV 1899 Escalera (NMPC); holotype (by monotypy) ♀ of A. (H.) lokayi (NMPC: inv. 22215) (Fig. 3), original labelling: fig. 6.
Additional material studied. IRAN: Chaldée Persane, entre Tcham-i-Kaw et le Sein Mérréh, (alt de 1000m. a 2000m. puis 900m.) [locality not traced, presumably located in Lorestan prov.], J. De Morgan 1904 (2 ♂♂ [one has damaged elytra] MNHN); Didar [locality not traced on map] (Perse) Babault [legit] // Comparé au Type par Théry // Comparé au Type // schah Ab., Théry det. (1♂ IRSNB); Khūzestān prov.: [IRAN] KHUZESTAN, Shush, 25.4.1976, Lavallee (1♀ DBCR); SW Iran, Ahwaz, 14.4.1977 // loc. no. 289, Exped. Nat. Mus. Praha (1♂ NMPC); Persia, Susa, Escalera [legit] IV 1899 (1♂ DBCR; 1♂ DGCC, 1♀ HMCM; 1♀ NMPC); [IRAN] Haut Kharoun, Chindáar (Vallée), Escalera VI-VII 1899 (1♂ DBCR; 2♂♂1♀ NMPC); Persia, Susa (1♂ NMPC); Persia (1♀ NMPC). Kermānshāh prov.: IRAN-NW, Kermanshah prov., Kermanshah (35 km NEE): CHALABEH (15 km W of Bisotun) 31.V–1.VI.2006, S. Prepsl leg. (1♂ DBCR, 2♂♂1♀ MKCN; 25♂♂7♀♀ SPCV; 1♂ 1♀ VKCB). Kordestān prov.: IRAN (Kordestān) 1500 m, 22 km N Kāmyārān, 34°57’20.6“N 46°58’38.4“E, 8–9.V.2009 D.Baiocchi leg. // ex larva Acer sp. 21–30.IV.2010 (2♀♀ DBCR); same data, emerged 19–20.IV.2011 (8♀♀ DBCR); IRAN (Kordestān) 1500 m, 22 km N Kāmyārān, 34°57’20.6“N 46°58’38.4“E, 14–15.V.2010 D.Baiocchi leg. // ex larva Acer sp. 18.V.2010 (2♀♀ DBCR); same data, emerged 5.V.2012 (3♀♀ DBCR). Lorestān prov.: IRAN (Lorestān) 1400 m., SW of Dorud, 33°25'18.53"N 48°59'45.42"E, 21–23.V.2005 D.Baiocchi leg. (1♂ DBCR); IRAN (Lorestān) 1400 m., SW of Dorud, 33°25'18.53"N 48°59'45.42"E, 2.V.2006 D.Baiocchi leg. // ex larva Ficus sp. 6.V.2006 (3♂♂ DBCR); IRAN (Lorestān) 1400 m., SW of Dorud, 33°25'18.53"N 48°59'45.42"E, 7.V.2009 D.Baiocchi leg. // ex larva Acer sp. 12–17.IV.2010 (2♀♀ DBCR); W IRAN, Lorestān, 10 km SW Dorud, 21.5. 2005 m. 1400, Leg. D.Gianasso (2♂♂2♀♀ DGCC); IRAN (Lorestān) 1500 m., 10–15 km SW Dorud, 21.V.2005 D.Gianasso leg. // Ex larva Prunus sp. 29.5.2010 (1♀ DGCC); IRAN (Lorestān) 25 km SW Alaštar, 33°40‘N 48°15’E, 24.V.2005 D.Baiocchi leg. // ex larva Prunus sp. IV.2006 (1♀ DBCR); SW Iran, Pol-e Tang, 60 km NW Andimeshk, 10– 11.4.1977 // Loc. no. 284, Exped. Nat. Mus. Praha (1♂ DBCR); IRAN – Luristan, Pol-e Tang 284, 490 m. 10–11.4.[19]77 (1♀ NMPC); W-Iran/Luristan, Bisheh, 1200–1700 m., 1. – 7.VI. [19]78, leg. ECKWEILER (1♀ HMCM). SYRIA: Al Hasakah prov.: SYRIA: KHAZNEH, JEBEL ABD’ AL’ AZIZ, 36°26’48.5’’N 40°20’32.7’’E, 522 m. n.m. 18.5.2001, lgt. A. REITER (1♂ 1♀ DBCR; 1♂ 1♀ MSCL).
Taxonomic notes. Anthaxia (H.) schah was described by Abeille de Perrin (1904) from Iranian material collected in 1899 by M. M. de la Escalera in Susa [= Shush], in the Hūzestān province, and in Bazouf, in the upper valley of the Karun river, in the Chahārmahāl-o-Bakhtiyārī province. In the description, mainly based on a male, the author does not specify the number of specimens that he studied, and mentions two different localities, actually corresponding to the data labels of one male and one female from the Abeille collection, now incorporated in the general Buprestidae collection of the MNHN.
Based on the material I studied, these were not the only specimens of this species collected in Iran by Escalera, since in the material that he delivered to R. Oberthür, who had commissioned him for this mission (Casados 2005), there were a number of other specimens that I have studied. Among them, I have examined one female, also collected in Susa and conserved in the Obenberger collection in NMPC, which bears a data label identical to that of the female specimen preserved in the Abeille collection. Together with this data label, it also bears a “ type ” label, probably of the same kind that Abeille actually used, and a determination label handwritten by Obenberger, stating that the specimen is a type studied by Abeille, but it is not known when Obenberger actually came in possession of this specimen. Among these three syntypes, the colouration of the male is somewhat unusual, although not unique, and while the normal habitus of this species shows a more or less strong red to purple elytral tinge, this specimen (Fig. 1) has mostly green elytra with the ordinary red tinge reduced to a slight golden shine. Nevertheless, since Abeille had not fixed an obvious holotype, and it being preferable to choose a male to represent the name-bearing type, I designate this male as the lectotype, and the two females as paralectotypes.
Among further material that I have examined, also collected in Susa by Escalera, and possibly unknown to Abeille, there are some specimens bearing slightly different data label which are conserved in DBCR, DGCC, HMCM, NMPC and SBCP. Probably because its dorsal aspect is somewhat similar to that of females of A. (H.) cichorii (Olivier, 1790), A. (H.) schah was sometimes associated in literature to the A. (H.) cichorii species-group (Abeille de Perrin 1904; Obenberger 1917), although in the original description the author had precisely stated the differences that separate the two species, including the fundamental shape of the anal ventrite.
In 1925 Obenberger described Anthaxia lokayi from a single female specimen which shows a deep purple elytral tinge (Fig. 3). It was probably this colouration that led Obenberger to associate his species to the A. (H.) olympica species-group, although at that time he must have certainly been aware also of the existence of A. (H.) schah, having already mentioned this species in some of his papers (Obenberger 1914a; 1914b; 1917). This specimen shows much less developed spines on the protrochanters, actually almost absent.
Because of a probable misprint, the synonymy of A. (H.) lokayi with A. (H.) schah (Bílý 1995), was published only in the abstract of the paper, but I consider this synonymy valid and confirm it.
Morphology and variability. The usual dorsal colouration of Anthaxia (H.) schah varies from bright green to golden green with a widely diffused red to purple tinge on the elytra (Figs. 2, 3, 13, 15). On the pronotum are present two dark maculae, the extension of which is particularly variable, varying from small round spots (Fig. 3) to large maculae extending over the pronotal surface (Fig. 15). The antennae are bluish-black in the male (Fig. 46) and dark green in the female (Fig. 51), while the legs are dark green in both sexes. The ventral colouration is uniformely green with a deeper golden tinge in males (Fig. 14).
Bionomy and distribution. I have reared specimens of this species from Ficus sp. (Moraceae), Prunus sp. (Rosaceae) and Acer sp. (Aceraceae) (all first hostplant records). The adults are flower-visitors and are active from April to June.
Anthaxia (H.) schah is a sporadically distributed species present mostly in Iran, in the western part of the Zagros range, and records from other countries are extremely scarce. Actually, the holotype of A. (H.) lockayi appears to be the only specimen of this species currently known from Iraq, while only four specimens are definitely known from northeastern Syria (DBCR, MSCL). Given its presence in northern Syria and Iraq, this species is also likely to be present in southeastern Turkey.
description: Published as part of Baiocchi, Daniele, 2015, A revision of the Anthaxia (Haplanthaxia) schah Abeille de Perrin, 1904 species-group, with description of two new species from Iran (Coleoptera: Buprestidae: Anthaxiini), pp. 57-91 in Zootaxa 3918 (1) on pages 63-64, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3918.1.3, http://zenodo.org/record/287844