Agrilus giesberti Hespenheide & Bellamy 2009, New Species
Creators: name: Hespenheide, Henry A.
name: Bellamy, Charles L.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2009
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Buprestidae
Agrilus
Agrilus giesberti

description: Agrilus giesberti Hespenheide, New Species
(Figs. 6, 7, 20)
Description. Holotype male: Slender, in cross-section more or less cylindrical, flattened above on elytra, convex below, 4.20 mm long, 1.05 mm wide; above black on occiput and pronotum, pronotum strongly shining, elytra golden, except purplish-red in small sutural spot just posterior to basal depressions and in broad transverse band just beyond middle, beneath greenish-golden, femora and front below occiput metallic green; setae above minute and inconspicuous except silvery, recumbent, and relatively more conspicuous on lower 1/2 of front, on pronotum interior to and anterior to prehumeral carinae, on elytra in basal depressions, in stripe in sutural costae between apical 1/5 and 2/5 and for posterior 1/3, denser apically, beneath short and sparse throughout, very dense on dorsal 1/2 of posterior coxae and posterior 1/2 of dorsal portions of abdominal ventrites 1 and 2; setae longer, moderately dense and semi-erect on prosternal process, anterior 1/2 of midline of metasternum, and anterior portion of abdominal ventrite 1.
Head with front very convex, but with indistinct narrow depression along midline on upper 1/2 becoming stronger on lower half above epistoma, surface finely transversely rugose, shagreened; epistoma shallowly depressed between antennal insertions and below linear depression joining pores at dorsal margin of antennal insertions, 1/3 width of distance between inner margins of eyes, nearly transverse arcuately emarginate below, eyes oval, slightly emarginate on upper inner margins; antennae reaching basal 1/3 of pronotum when laid alongside, serrate from segment 5, segment 5 narrowly triangular, 2x longer than wide, segments 6–11 narrowly rounded-triangular, as wide as long.
Pronotum narrower than elytra at posterior margin, with sides expanded to middle then narrowing slightly to apex; marginal and submarginal carinae nearly straight, very narrowly separated throughout when viewed from side; from above anterior margin produced as narrowly rounded lobe; basal margin weakly emarginate at middle of each elytron, nearly transverse before scutellum; disk moderately convex, with weak transverse depression at base, distinct depression along midline on apica 2/3, and oblique depression interior and anterior to prehumeral carinae at lateral margins; prehumeral carinae arising from posterior angles at very small angle then parallel to lateral margins for 1/3 length of pronotum; surface finely rugose. Scutellum pentagonal, acuminate behind, with strong, fine transverse carina.
Elytra subequal in width at humeri and apical 3/5, lateral margins slightly narrower between, then narrowing to narrowly, separately rounded apices, minutely toothed; disk weakly convex, each elytron with small shallow oval depression at base, separated by slightly raised area from indistinct costa along suture nearly to apex, costa deeper in setose stripes; surface imbricate.
Prosternum with sides of prosternal process slightly narrowing between coxae to truncate apex, prosternal lobe deeply, narrowly emarginate. Posterior coxae with posterior margin nearly straight, upper exterior angles sharply quadrate. Abdomen with suture between ventrites 1 and 2 obsolete, convex along midline of ventrites1 and 2, apex of ventrite 5 broadly rounded, dorsal portions of ventrites1–5 narrow, equal in width. Hind legs with first metatarsal segment equal in length to next three combined, tarsal claws cleft with inner tooth shorter and broader on all tarsi. Genitalia as in Figure 20.
Allotype female: As male except 4.50 mm long, 1.25 mm wide; upper 1/2 of front purplish-red, lower 1/2 golden, femora greenish-golden; setae sparse and appressed on prosternal process, anterior 1/2 of midline of metasternum, and anterior portion of abdominal ventrite 1; abdominal ventrites1 and 2 more convex with suture between them indicated by linear impression at sides.
Type material. Holotype: México: Guerrero, 6 mi E Xochipala, 3500 ft, 5–6.07.1987, Kovarik & Schaffner (TAMU). Allotype. México: Guerrero, 1 mi W Xochipala, 14.07.1985, Jones, Schaffner (TAMU). Paratypes. México: Guerrero, same data as holotype (1F, TAMU), same data as allotype (1F, TAMU), 10–12 km E Xochipala, 795–885m, N17.48 W98.24, 30.06.1992, C.L. Bellamy (1F, CLBC), 4 km W Chilpancingo, 23.07.1987, R. Turnbow (1M, RLTC), 3.4 mi N Chilpancingo, 16.07.1987, B.K. Dozier (2M, FSCA), 3 mi W Chilpancingo, 20– 27.07.1987 (1F, CLBC), 10 km N Chilpancingo, 22.07.1987, R. Turnbow (1F, FSCA) 6 mi SE Petlalcingo, 5300’, 13.08.1974, O’Briens & Marshall (1F, CHAH), 14 km W Iguala, 25.07.1987, R. Turnbow (2F, RLTC), 38 km W Iguala, 25.07.1987, R. Turnbow (1M, FSCA), 3.5 km Zumpango del Rio [sic], 30.06.1992, C.L. Bellamy (1F, CLBC); Morelos, vic. Jonacatepec, 1295 m, 18˚39’06” 98˚49’22”, 11.07.2001, Equihua & Westcott (2M, 6F, RLWE), Canon de Lobos, 15 km E Cuernavaca, 1220–1375m, 3.07.1992, C.L. Bellamy (1F, CLBC); Puebla, Hwy 190, 11.9 km SE Izucar de Matamoros, 22.07.1992, G.H.Nelson (1M, 1F, FSCA), 7 mi S Izucar de Matamoros, 4500’, 8–9.06.1971, H.F. Howden (1F, CHAH), 11 km SE Izucar de Matamoros, Hwy 190 road to Microondas, 1390m, 20.07.2003, C.L. Bellamy, beating foliage Mimosa sp. (CLB:854) (1F, CLBC), 2.5 mi W & 8 mi N I. de Matamoros, 5.07.1992, B.K. Dozier (2M, FSCA), 5 mi S Izucar de Matamoros, 1.08.1963, F.D. Parker, L.A. Stange (2F, UCDC), 12 km NE Tehuitzingo, 21.07.1992, G.H.Nelson (1F, FSCA), 5 km E Acatlan, 5.07.1992, Volkovitsch (2,?), 7 km SSE Acatlan, 1280m, 5.07.1992, C.L. Bellamy (6M, 3F, CLBC), 21.5 km NW Acatlan, 1375m, 4.07.1992, C.L. Bellamy (1M, 9F, CLBC), 5 km NW Petlalcingo, 1400m, N18.04 W97.58, 5.07.1992, C.L. Bellamy (2F, CLBC), 5 km NW Tehuitzingo, 18.22 N 98.18 W, 28.06.1996, Bellamy, Barrera, Brailovsky (CLB:546) (3M, 2F, CLBC), 12.5 km SW San Bartolo Teontepec, 2002m, 18.28 N 97.36 W, 18.07.1996, C.L. Bellamy (CLB:594) (22M, 8F, CLBC), 5 km SSE Chila, 7.07.1992, S. Bily (1M, 1F, SBC). Paratypes also to be deposited in BMNH, CHAH, UNAM.
Host. An adult has been collected on foliage of a Mimosa sp.
Etymology. Named in honor of the late Edmund Giesbert for his collections and study of Mexican Cerambycidae (e.g., Giesbert 1991, 1992).
Discussion. This relatively common species is distinguished by the black, shining pronotum and the pattern of setae (very similar to that of A. melanostictus Hespenheide; see Hespenheide 1989) on the golden and purplish-red elytra. There are a number of undescribed, somewhat similar but smaller species in México that differ in various combinations of pronotal sculpture, patterns of setae and coloration of the elytra, and genitalia. It is possible that many of these are involved in mimicry complexes with ants, although probably not A. giesberti because of its relatively large size. Males measure 3.30–5.00 mm long (mean = 4.14 mm for 33 specimens), and females measure 3.50–5.60 mm long (mean = 4.47 mm for 66 specimens).
description: Published as part of Hespenheide, Henry A. & Bellamy, Charles L., 2009, New species, taxonomic notes, and records for Agrilus Curtis (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) of México and the United States, pp. 50-68 in Zootaxa 2084 on pages 58-59, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.274805