Cycadophila (Cycadophila) discimaculata Mader, new combination
Creators: name: Skelley, Paul
name: Xu, Guang
name: Tang, William
name: Lindström, Anders J.
name: Marler, Thomas
name: Khuraijam, Jibankumar Singh
name: Singh, Rita
name: Rich, Stephen
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2017
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Erotylidae
Cycadophila
Cycadophila discimaculata

description: Cycadophila (Cycadophila) discimaculata (Mader), new combination
Figs. 9 A–F
Pharaxonotha discimaculata Mader 1939: 46; Węgrzynowicz 2007: 536. Pharaxonata [sic] discimaculata: Mader 1955: 65.
Adult diagnosis. A member of Cycadophila (Cycadophila) nigra species group as discussed above, readily distinguished from other member of the genus by the narrowed body, nearly quadrate pronotum, and color pattern. Adult description. Length 4.06–4.29 mm, width 1.53–1.59 mm. Body in dorsal view elongate, sides nearly straight and parallel, greatest width at middle of elytra; in lateral view convex dorsally. General body and appendage color dark reddish-brown, pronotum with orange-brown sides, elytra mostly orange-brown with dark maculation along suture nearly touching base, widening broad central spot, ending 1/3 elytral length from apex; dorsal surface distinctly punctate, surface appearing slightly shiny, dorsal punctation with short procumbent hairs, ventrally mostly covered with short procumbent setae.
Head in dorsal view conical, gradually narrowed apically, surface convex, distinctly punctured; width 1.0 mm; dorsal interocular distance 0.50–0.58 mm, head width/dorsal interocular distance ratio 1.65–1.73, ventral interocular distance 0.38–0.40 mm, head width/ventral interocular distance ratio 2.38–2.53. Eye globular; bordered dorsally with short supraocular stria at basal 1/3 of eye; projected laterally, with large black facets and short, inconspicuous interfacetal setae. Frons with short, dark, subcuticular suture on each side, approximately 1/4 width of frons in length, extending obliquely to lateral margin above and anterior to antennal insertion. Antennal length about 3/4 pronotal width, and slightly longer than head width, antennomere relative lengths from base to end approximately 13:11:13:10:10:10:10:10:15:15:18; antennomere I (scape) fairly large, slightly elongate, antennomere II slightly smaller than III; IV–VIII small, width equals length; club fairly large, IX–XI similar in length, XI globular. Clypeus truncate anteriorly, anterior margin with long setae; densely punctate; somewhat emarginate, with narrow margin. Maxillary palp palpomeres II, III slightly longer than wide; IV elongate oval, apex densely papillate; relative lengths of II–IV approximately 4:3:7. Labium with mentum pentagonal with carina forming triangular plate projecting medially, with distinct lateral pockets; labial palpomere III elongate-oval. Mentum and submentum with moderate punctation and setation, setae short. Gular area smooth, without setae or punctation, except near suture with submentum where a shallow depression present with setose punctures.
Thorax with pronotum transverse in dorsal view, with marginal beads on all sides; length/width ratio 0.70– 0.73, convex, nearly parallel-sided; anterior angles projecting, weakly angulate; lateral carinae nearly straight, with thin bead, bead bearing row of setose punctures; posterior angles sharp, nearly 90o; posterior margin projecting medially; with narrow, short longitudinal furrow posterolaterally, beginning at pore on posterior margin, extending forward and ending abruptly, length of furrows relative to pronotal length 0.16–0.18. Prosternum with anterior margin slightly emarginate, finely denticulate with fringe of long, anteriorly directed setae; posterior prosternal process truncate. Hypomeron with coarse punctures laterally, medially without longitudinal striations. Scutellar shield transverse, posterior margin projected, pentagonal. Elytra elongate nearly parallel sided, convex; length/ width 3.40–3.63, greatest width near midlength; with marginal bead basally, scutellary striole with 8–10 punctures; intervals of striae with distinct punctures. All elytral punctures bearing a single short seta; seta length less than interpuncture distance. Punctation on meso- and metaventrite distinct. Metaventrite long, convex laterally, slightly impressed medially, metathoracic discrimen extending slightly over half metaventrite length. Legs narrow, similar in length; femora compressed laterally; tibiae shorter than femora, weakly dilated to narrow apex. Protibia not dilated at apex, with fine setal fringe on ventral, lateral margin smooth without stout spinules. Meso- and metatibia narrow, similar to protibia.
Abdomen with 5 ventrites bearing fine punctures; anterior margin with intercoxal process narrow, with triangular point anteromedially, lateral edges slightly projected, lateral and posterior margins arcuate, converging posteriorly; anterior and posterior margins of ventrites more or less straight; ventrite I lacking subcoxal line, slightly longer medially than II; I–IV each with pair short hairs located adjacent to midline (often abraded); II–IV subequal in length; V slightly longer than IV with lateral margins converging posteriorly to a rounded apex bearing row of short appressed, densely arranged setae.
Male genitalia (tegmen and median lobe of aedeagus) twisted approximately 45o toward the left side of animal and resting on side. Tegmen sclerotized, triangular, gently twisted; with anterior region ring-like, posterior region sheath-like, posterior margin slightly arcuate; lateral margins gradually converging posteriorly; dorsally with 2 large, elongate, somewhat coniform parameres. Parameres with long setae apically; length/width ratio 2.5 0. Aedeagus with median lobe short, slender, highly sclerotized, apex long and acuminate. Ratio of median lobe length to penile strut length 2:9. Female not notably different externally from male paratype.
Type locality. Tienmuschan, N.W. China.
Range. China. The region cited in the label of the holotype, N.W. China, would correspond in modern China to arid Xinjiang Province and may be an error. The type locality, Tienmuschan, most closely corresponds with Tienmushan, Zhejiang Province in coastal eastern China, which borders the northern boundary of Fujian Province, the other known locality of this species.
Material examined. Holotype female with the following labels (Fig. 9 D): 1) [rectangular; white; printed in black ink] “ Tienmuschan, N.W. China Rtt.”; 2) [rectangular; red, printed and hand written in black ink] “Holo- TYPUS discimaculata M.”; 3) [rectangular; white; hand written in black ink] “ Pharaxanota [sic] discimaculata Mad. ”. Deposited in NHMB (examined). Paratype male with the following labels: 1) [rectangular; white; printed in black ink, with black border] “ Tienmuschan, N.W. China Rtt.”; 2) [rectangular; pink, printed and hand written in black ink] “Para- COTYPUS discimaculata M.” (NHMB, examined). Others examined: CHINA: Fujian Prov., Wuyishan City, Guadun Vill.; 27o 44'N, 117 o 33'E, 1200–1500m; 25-V-2012, PENG & DAI leg. (2). Deposited in SNUC, FSCA.
Remarks. Two species of Cycas are native to Fujian Province, China (Ye 1999; Liu & Qin 2004), one of the known localities for this beetle. Author W. Tang recently visited Wuyishan in Fujian, one of the collection localities and found Cycas cultivated in that city.
description: Published as part of Skelley, Paul, Xu, Guang, Tang, William, Lindström, Anders J., Marler, Thomas, Khuraijam, Jibankumar Singh, Singh, Rita & Rich, Stephen, 2017, Review of Cycadophila Xu, Tang & Skelley (Coleoptera: Erotylidae: Pharaxonothinae) inhabiting Cycas (Cycadaceae) in Asia, with descriptions of a new subgenus and thirteen new species, pp. 1-63 in Zootaxa 4267 (1) on pages 29-31, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.575641