Smilax deneinephyto Chatzimanolis., new species
Creators: name: Chatzimanolis, Stylianos
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2016
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Staphylinidae
Smilax
Smilax deneinephyto

description: Smilax deneinephyto Chatzimanolis. new species
(Figs. 1, 5, 9, 13, 24–25, 33)
Type material. Holotype, here designated: male, with labels as follows: “♂” / Mendés, E. d. Rio, Brasilien, 27.ix.1933 ” / “bei Atta sexdens i. alt. Pilzkammern mit Pilzabraum” / “Ausgrabungsban” / “Dr. Eidmann legit” / “ Cordylaspis cyanea Wasmann det. Scheerpeltz” / “ex col. Scheerpeltz ” / “ Holotype Smilax deneinefyto Chatzimanolis des Chatzimanolis 2016 ”. In the collection of NMW.
Paratypes. 96, with labels as follows: Mendés, E. d. Rio, Brasilien, 27.ix.1933 ” / “bei Atta sexdens i. alt. Pilzkammern mit Pilzabraum ” / “ Ausgrabungsban ” / “ Dr. Eidmann legit” / “ Cordylaspis cyanea Wasmann det. Scheerpeltz” / “ex col. Scheerpeltz ” (19 ♂, 13 ♀ NMW); same labels, UTCI000010978, UTCI000010573 (1 ♂, 1 ♀ UTCI); same labels except collection date 26.ix.1933 (1 ♂ NMW); same labels except collection date 30.ix.1933 (4 ♀ NMW); same labels except collection date 13.x.1933 (1 ♂ NMW); same labels except collection date 28.ix.1933 (28 ♂, 19 ♀ NMW); same labels except collection date 28.ix.1933, UTCI000010600 (1 ♂ UTCI); same labels except collection date 28.ix.1933 and label “ Gift from Vienna Mus. 2008” (2 ♂, 2 ♀ ZMUC); “ Brasilien Virmond S.” / “Orig. from Er. 47,342” / “ Cordylaspis pilosa (F.) MNHUB Berlin ” (1 ♀ ZMHB); “ Brasil, Rio de Janeiro, Guanabara, M. A. Alvarenga. vii. 1966, Malaise trap ” / “ Cordylaspis cyanea Wasm. ” / “ex. coll. Scheerpeltz ” (1 ♂ NMW); “ São Paolo Brasil, Atta, Barbiellin ” / “Dr. Bernhauer donavit” / “ex. coll. Scheerpeltz ” (1 ♂, 1 ♀ NMW). All paratypes with label: “ Paratype Smilax deneinefyto Chatzimanolis des. Chatzimanolis 2016 ”.
Diagnosis. Among species of Smilax with metallic dark blue-brown pronotum, S. deneinephyto can be distinguished from from S. lynchi and S. pilosa due to the shape of the head (Figs. 5, 7–8; in S. deneinephyto posterior angles are sharper while in other two species head is more rounded), the shape of the pronotum (Figs. 9, 11–12; pronotum more explanate than the pronotum of S. lynchi and S. pilosa that appears more “bulky”), the shape of the posterior border of abdominal sternite VIII (Figs. 13, 15–16; deep V-shaped emargination in S. deneinephyto, shallow V-shaped emargination in other two species), and the shape of the paramere (in lateral view paramere straight in S. deneinephyto, strongly or slightly concave in other two species).
Description. Body length 12.1–19.7 mm. Coloration of head and pronotum metallic dark blue-brown. Mouthparts (except mandibles dark brown) and antennae reddish-brown. Ventral surface of head and pronotum brown. Elytra dark metallic blue-brown to dark brown. Legs and abdomen brown to orange [varies among different specimens].
Head (Fig. 5) transverse, with rounded angles anteriorly; posterior angles sharp (head margins between eyes and neck straight, not rounded); width: length ratio = 1.69, widest near middle. Head with medium-sized punctures unevenly distributed on lateral sides; distance between punctures variable; punctures somewhat more sparse medially. Neck with few small punctures and micropunctures. Pronotum: head width ratio = 1.41. Pronotum (Fig. 9) transverse, width: length ratio = 1.55. Pronotum explanate; pronotum disc slightly concave, not appearing like dome (overall appearing less “bulky” than S. pilosa). Pronotum on lateral sides with small, shallow dense punctures; distance between punctures equal to width of puncture. Punctures becoming medium-sized, deeper and scarcer near midline; midline with no punctures but with depression clearly visible as thin line. Pronotum on lateral sides with additional two rows of deep umbilicate punctures giving rise to long macrosetae. Elytra with numerous small shallow uniform punctures; with additional rows (approximately 5–6 per elytron) of large slightly raised umbilicate punctures giving rise to long macrosetae.
Secondary sexual structures. Males (Fig. 13) with shallow, broad emargination on posterior border of sternite VII; posterior border of sternite VIII with deep V-shaped emargination. Females with no apparent secondary sexual structures.
Aedeagus as in Figs. 24–25; in dorsal view paramere converging to narrow rounded tip; paramere much shorter and narrower than median lobe; in lateral view paramere straight, without sensory spinules; paramere with rounded ventral projection. Median lobe in dorsal view wide, parallel-sided, converging to rounded apex; in lateral view becoming narrower near apex.
Etymology. The epithet is a composite word made of several Greek words that together translate in English as “it is not a plant”. Smilax L. is a cosmopolitan genus of plants and one has to search very hard to find a web reference not intended for the plant genus. The epithet is treated as a noun in apposition.
Distribution. Known from the fungus gardens of Atta sexdens (L.) in southern Brazil.
Remarks. A late larva instar of Smilax deneinephyto was described by Paulian (1941) as Smilax cyanea. The larvae specimens came from a colony of Atta sexdens collected by Mendés, so it seems likely that they are indeed Smilax deneinephyto.
Smilax kuntzeni (Scheerpeltz, 1937) (Figs. 3, 6, 10, 15, 26–28, 33)
Cordylaspis kuntzeni Scheerpeltz, 1937: 330.
Smilax kuntzeni (Scheerpeltz); Herman 2001: 3300.
Type material. Holotype, male with labels as follows: “♂” / “Durango, Mexico” / “setosus Sh.” / “Coll. Schubert” / “TYPUS Cordylaspis kuntzeni O. Scheerpeltz ” / “ Cordylaspis kuntzeni nov. spec. Typus”. I have only seen a photograph of the type and label information was provided by José Luis Navarrete Heredia, who currently has the type in his possession. The holotype described by Scheerpeltz (1937) was deposited in ZMHB (see discussion for comments on its availability). It is possible that the type locality of S. kuntzeni is erroneous according to José Luis Navarrete Heredia (personal communication), who mentioned in an email that he has never collected any specimens from Mexico despite his extensive collecting efforts. Additionally, specimens found in other museums are only known from South America.
Additional Material. BOLIVIA: Santa Cruz: 3.7km SSE Buena vista Hotel Flora Y Fauna, 17°29.95’S 63° 33.15W, 400–440m, 3–9.xi.2002, primary forest, FIT, R. Leschen (1 ♀ SEMC); ECUADOR: unknown province: Buckley (1 ♀ BMNH); PERU: Junin: Chanchamayo, 3.ix.1961 (1 ♀ FMNH); Satipo (east of Huancayo), 600m, in nest of Atta cephalotes, ix.1943, Weyrauch (2 ♂ NMW).
Diagnosis. Smilax kuntzeni can be easily distinguished from other species of Smilax by the coloration of the pronotum (metallic green-golden in S. kuntzeni, metallic dark blue-brown in other species) and the distinct shape of the aedeagus (Figs. 26–28) as this is the only species of Smilax with sensory spinules (peg setae) on the paramere. Description. Body length 12.1–19.4 mm. Coloration of head, antennae and mouthparts (except mandibles dark brown) reddish brown. Lateral sides of pronotum reddish brown; disc of pronotum dark metallic green-golden.
Ventral surface of body, elytra and legs reddish brown. Abdomen reddish brown but with patch of dark brown medially on every segment.
Head (Fig. 6) transverse, with rounded angles, width: length ratio = 1.57, widest near temple. Head with large punctures distributed evenly on lateral sides, distance between punctures approximately equal to width of punctures; punctures somewhat sparser medially. Neck with few small punctures and micropunctures. Pronotum: head width ratio = 1.27. Pronotum (Fig. 10) transverse, width: length ratio = 1.33. Pronotum disc concave, appearing like dome. Pronotum on lateral sides with small, shallow punctures; distance between punctures equal to width of 1–2 punctures. Punctures becoming larger, deeper and scarcer near midline; midline with no punctures but with shallow depression visible as thin line. Pronotum on lateral sides with additional single row of deep umbilicate punctures giving rise to long macrosetae. Elytra with numerous small shallow uniform punctures; with additional rows (approximately 5–6 per elytron) of large slightly raised umbilicate punctures giving rise to long macrosetae.
Secondary sexual structures. Males (Fig. 15) with slight emargination on posterior border of sternite VII; posterior border of sternite VIII with shallow U-shaped emargination. Females with no apparent secondary sexual structures.
Aedeagus as in Figs. 26–28; in dorsal view paramere converging to rounded tip; paramere much shorter and narrower than median lobe; in lateral view paramere slightly bended upwards; paramere with sensory spinules away from tip; paramere with thin rounded ventral projection. Median lobe in dorsal view wide, parallel-sided, converging to rounded apex; in lateral view becoming narrower and elongate near apex.
Distribution. Known from Santa Cruz, Bolivia, Ecuador and Junin, Peru. Some specimens have been collected in nests of Atta cephalotes (L).
Remarks. Two male specimens in NMW were labeled by Scheerpeltz as “ Cordylaspis weyrauchi ” but this is a manuscript name and to my knowledge the name was never published.
Smilax lynchi (Bruch, 1928) (Figs. 4, 7, 11, 16, 29–30, 33)
Cordylaspis lynchi Bruch, 1928: 416.
Smilax lynchi (Bruch); Herman 2001: 3300.
Type material. Holotype not examined, in the collection of Museo Argentino de Ciencias Natrulales (MACN); see discussion for comments on its availability.
Additional Material. ARGENTINA: Misiones: Iguazu National Park, 24.xii.1990 – 6.i.1991, FIT, 180m, S&J Peck (1 ♂ 3 ♀ FMNH); same locality and collector, 8.xii.1990 – 6.i.1991 (3 ♀ FMNH). BRAZIL: Espírito Santo: Trijuco Preto, 900m, E. Reitter (1 ♂ NMW); PARAGUAY: Guairá: Independencia, F. Schade (1 ♀ AMNH); Villarica, vi.1923, F. Schade (1 ♀ NMW); same locality and collector, 27.x.1923, (1 ♀ NMW); same locality and collector, i.1927 (1 ♂, 1 ♀ NMW); same locality and collector, xii.1927 (1 ♂, 1 ♀ NMW); same locality and collector, x.1928, (1 ♂ NMW); same locality, collector and date, under fallen fruit (1 ♀ NMW); same locality and collector, xi.1936 (1 ♂ AMNH); same locality and collector, i.1937 (1 ♀ AMNH); same locality and collector, xi.1937 (1 ♀ AMNH); same locality and collector, under fallen fruit, v.1938, (1 ♀ NMW); same locality and collector, x.1938, (1 ♂ NMW); same locality and collector, xii.1938, under fallen fruit (2 ♀ NMW); same locality and collector, i.1939, (2 ♀ FMNH; 1 ♂ NMW); same locality and collector, iii.1939, UTCI 000011581 (1 ♂ UTCI); same locality and collector, v.1939, under fallen fruit (1 ♀ NMW); same locality and collector, i.1941 (1 ♀ AMNH); same locality and collector, 30.xi.1949, (1 ♀ NMW); unknown Department: “Molinoseue” (1 ♀ FMNH).
Diagnosis. Among species of Smilax with metallic dark blue-brown pronotum, S. lynchi is more similar to S. pilosa than to S. deneinephyto. Smilax lynchi and S. pilosa have more rounded head than S. deneinephyto (posterior angles sharper) and the disc of their pronotum is more concave than the disc of the pronotum of S. deneinephyto, which is more explanate. Smilax lynchi can be distinguished from S. pilosa based on the coloration of the head (Figs. 7–8; reddish-brown in S. lynchi, metallic dark blue in S. pilosa), the coloration of the pronotum (Figs. 11–12; lateral sides of pronotum reddish-brown in S. lynchi, metallic dark blue in S. pilosa), and the shape of aedeagus (paramere appears more concave in lateral view in S. lynchi than in S. pilosa), although this last character may not be immediately obvious with just a handful of specimens.
Description. Body length 11.9–19.8 mm. Coloration of head, antennae and mouthparts (except mandibles dark brown) reddish brown. In few specimens, center of epicranium with overtones of dark metallic blue-brown. Lateral sides of pronotum reddish brown; disc of pronotum dark metallic blue-brown. Ventral surface of body, elytra, legs and abdomen reddish-brown.
Head (Fig. 7) transverse, with rounded angles, width: length ratio = 1.44, widest near middle. Head with medium-sized punctures distributed evenly on lateral sides, distance between punctures equal to 0.5–1 width of punctures; punctures sparser medially. Neck with micropunctures and 1–2 small punctures. Pronotum: head width ratio = 1.34. Pronotum (Fig. 11) transverse, width: length ratio = 1.35. Pronotum disc concave, appearing like dome. Pronotum on lateral sides with small, shallow dense punctures; distance between punctures equal to width of puncture. Punctures becoming larger, deeper and scarcer near midline; midline with no punctures but with shallow depression visible as thin line. Pronotum on lateral sides with additional two rows of deep umbilicate punctures giving rise to long macrosetae. Elytra with numerous small shallow uniform punctures; with additional rows (approximately 6 per elytron) of large slightly raised umbilicate punctures giving rise to long macrosetae.
Secondary sexual structures. Males (Fig. 16) with shallow U-shaped (but more demarcated than one on S. pilosa) emargination on posterior border of sternite VII; posterior border of sternite VIII with V-shaped emargination. Females with no apparent secondary sexual structures.
Aedeagus as in Figs. 29–30; in dorsal view paramere almost parallel-sided, converging to rounded tip; paramere shorter and narrower than median lobe; in lateral view paramere strongly concave; without sensory spinules; paramere with rounded ventral projection. Median lobe in dorsal view wide, parallel-sided, converging to broad, rounded apex; in lateral view becoming narrower near apex.
Distribution. Known from Misiones, Argentina, the state of Espírito Santo in Brazil and the departments of Aunción and Guairá in Paraguay. Some specimens were collected under fallen fruit
Remarks. Even though the diagnosis provided above can separate this species from S. pilosa, these two taxa are fairly similar. I am a bit hesitant to synonymize S. lynchi to S. pilosa without examining the type specimen of S. lynchi, although their status should be reevaluated in the future if the type becomes accessible. It is worth mentioning here that Bruch (1928) described S. lynchi as a different species than S. pilosa due to its smaller size (based on the single specimen he had) and the difference in the coloration. However, measuring length of any specimen in Smilax is tricky due to the telescopic abdomen and coloration tends to vary. Having said that, all specimens recognized as S. lynchi above have the same pattern of coloration and tend to distributed in a rather small area between Paraguay, Argentina and Brazil.
description: Published as part of Chatzimanolis, Stylianos, 2016, A revision of the myrmecophilous genus Smilax Laporte (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Staphylininae), pp. 283-303 in Zootaxa 4162 (2) on pages 288-296, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4162.2.5, http://zenodo.org/record/164959