Cyphon flavescens Motschulsky 1858
Creators: name: Ruta, Rafał
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2009
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Scirtidae
Cyphon
Cyphon flavescens

description: Cyphon flavescens Motschulsky, 1858: 63
(Figs. 3–4, 28–39)
= Cyphon infuscatus Motschulsky, 1858: 62 syn. nov.
Type material. Holotype of Cyphon flavescens, female: [small red square label]; [small round yellow label]; [rectangular red label]; “ Cyphon / flavescens / Motsch. / Mt. Nura-El. Ceyl.” [rectangular yellow label, handwritten]; deposited in ZMUM. Holotype of Cyphon infuscatus, male: [small red square label]; [small round yellow label]; [rectangular red label]; “ Cyphon / infuscatus / Motsch. / Mt. Nura-Ell. Ceyl.” [rectangular yellow label, handwritten]; deposited in ZMUM. Severely damaged by pests, head missing, only left marginal part of pronotum, and part of left elytra present.
Additional material studied. Male: “ Ceylon ”, on reverse “67 / 46” [round blue label, handwritten]; “ Cyphon / infuscatus / Ceylon Mots.” [rectangular label, handwritten, probably by Motschulsky]; deposited in NHM. Female: “ CEYLAN Sabaragamuwa / Kalawang 20.I.70 / MUSSARD BESUCHET LÖBL ”; deposited in MHNG.
Diagnosis. Body is small, oval, yellowish-brown, female has reduced hind wings. Penis and tegmen are Y-shaped, last ventrite in male is armed with a pair of small tubercules. Coxites of ovipositor are strongly sclerotized, prehensor is oval.
Redescription. Holotype, female. Measurements: TL 2.30, EW 1.30, EL 1.85, PW 0.95, PL 0.50, HW 0.65, HL 0.35, interocular space 0.50, greatest depth of body 0.85.
Body small, oval, moderately convex, covered with yellowish suberect setae, which are relatively long on elytra. Entire body yellowish-brown. Body length 1.8X width.
Head broad, width 1.9X length, 1.3X width of interocular space, with very indistinct granulate punctation; eyes small, coarsely facetted, slightly protuberant. Only two basal antennomeres present in the holotype; antennomere 1 broad and globular, antennomere 2 smaller, cylindrical; length ratios of antennomeres 1.3: 1.0; L/W ratios of antennomeres 1.4, 2.0. Anterior clypeal margin straight, anteclypeus present. Labrum relatively long, with rounded anterior angles and slightly prominent membranous lobes, somewhat narrower than anterior margin of clypeus. Mandibles symmetrical, mesal mandibular edge with one subtriangular tooth and a sharp basal lamina.
Pronotal width 1.9X length, pronotum widest at base. Pronotal disc with indistinct granulate punctation similar to that on the head. Posterior margin of pronotum bisinuate. Anterior angles rounded, anterior and lateral margins continuous, semicircular; posterior angles more or less straight. Base of elytra evenly wider than base of pronotum. Scutellum subtriangular, slightly wider than long, with indistinct punctation.
Elytra oval, without traces of ridges, length 1.4X width and 3.7X length of pronotum, broadest at its base. Sides regularly converging to apex in posterior half. Humeri indistinct. Punctation sparse, but more distinct than on pronotum, finely granulate, distance between punctures ca. 2.0–3.0 diameters. Epipleura regularly narrowing towards apices. Hind wings reduced, slightly shorter than elytra.
Prosternal process broad, rhomboidal with rounded sides, twice as long as broad. Mesocoxae separated by a subparallel, relatively narrow process (as long as wide), metaventral discrimen present in posterior 2/3. Ratio of ventrites’ lengths: 1.0: 1.7: 1.8: 1.7: 1.9, apex of ventrite 5 regularly rounded.
Female genitalia. Ovipositor (L 1.40, W 0.20) long, coxites broadly triangular, short and strongly sclerotized; prehensor (L 0.33, W 0.20) oval, lightly sclerotized, with granulate surface and small denticles in the inner portion; tergite 8 (L 1.15, W 0.48) with long apodemes, without setation on apical margin; sternite 8 (L 0.65, W 0.35) short, semirectangular, apodemes fused basally, with long setae on strongly sclerotized anterolateral angles.
Male (description and measurements based on the specimen deposited in NHM). Measurements: TL 2.75, EW 1.45, EL 2.30, PW 1.10, PL 0.55, HW 0.80, HL 0.45, interocular space 0.55, greatest depth of body 0.90. Length ratios of antennomeres 1.7: 1.0: 1.3: 1.8: 1.7: 1.7: 1.7: 1.7: 1.7: 1.7: 2.2; L/W ratios of antennomeres 1.4, 1.2, 2.0, 1.8, 1.7, 1.7, 1.7, 1.7, 1.7, 1.7, 2.2. Body more elongate, length 1.9X width. Eyes larger, not as coarsely facetted as in female. Hind wings fully developed. Humeri distinct, epipleura somewhat narrowed behind metaventrite, mesoventral process more elongate, its length ca. 1.5X width. Ratio of ventrites’ lengths 1.0: 1.7: 1.7: 1.7: 1.9. Terminal ventrite with a pair of small tubercules adjacent to porelike structures, probably of secretory function.
Male genitalia. Aedeagus (L 0.35, W 0.22) with penis and tegmen hardly separable; penis Y-shaped, tegmen subrectangular with basal styli; sternite 8 (L 0.18, W 0.18) minute, with few setae at apical edge; tergite 8 (L 0.30, W 0.25) subquadrate, apodemes very short, densely covered with setae in apical portion; tergite 9 (L 0.25, W 0.22) with short apodemes and sparse setae on apical margin.
Remarks. Motschulsky (1858) mentioned the species was collected in very great numbers by M. Nietner. Probably, although not marked as the syntype, the specimen from NHM originates from this particular series and more specimens are likely to be found in other museums. The species seems to be closely related to Biroguineus fortipes Pic. It is tentatively retained within Cyphon, until there are more specimens available to study.
description: Published as part of Ruta, Rafał, 2009, Revision of Scirtidae (Insecta: Coleoptera) described by Victor Ivanovitsch Motschulsky, pp. 26-50 in Zootaxa 2210 on pages 32-34, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.189843