Ropalopus UNGARICUS OSSAE 2020, subsp. nov.
Creators: name: Karpiński, Lech
name: Szczepański, Wojciech T.
name: Kruszelnicki, Lech
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2020
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Cerambycidae
Ropalopus

description: ROPALOPUS UNGARICUS OSSAE subsp. nov.
(FIGS 1G, N, 2O, 3A, M, N, 4N, O, 5M, N, 6K, L, V, W, 7J, K, V, W, 8I, J, S, T, 9F, 10H, O, 11S, T, 12S, T, 13P, Q, 15C, 16H–J, 18E–K, SUPPORTING INFORMATION, FIGS S1K, L, V, W, S 2K, L, V, W, S 3F, N, S 4F, S 5K, L, V, W, S 6K, L)
LSID: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: FDF45041-7065- 4AEC-AA24-94D207C1599C
Type material examined: Fourteen ♂♂ and four ♀♀.
Holotype: Male (Figs 15C 1, 16H), Greece, Thessaly, Stomio (Larissa), Mount Ossa, 1 July 2003, ~ 600 m a.s.l., on Acer sp., C. Cocquempot leg. (from CCC, deposited in ZMB).
Paratypes: Greece, Thessaly, Stomio (Larissa), Mount Ossa: nine ♂♂ and two ♀♀, 1 July 2003, ~ 600 m a.s.l., on Acer sp., C. Cocquempot leg.; two ♂♂, 25 June–14 July 2011, no collector data; two ♀♀, 15 June–1 July 2013, F. Fiedler leg.; one ♂, 11 July 2014, J. Steinhofer leg.; Spilia environs (Larissa), Mount Ossa: one ♂ and one ♀, 5 March 2016 and 30 April 2016 ex larva (12–16 May 2014, Acer sp.), J. Steinhofer leg.; one ♂, 17 April 2016 ex larva (9 July 2014, Acer sp.), J. Steinhofer leg. (deposited in CAW, CCC, CJS and CLKR).
Additional material studied, based on photographs: Central Greece, Thessaly: four ♂♂ and three ♀♀, Mount Ossa; one ♀, Kalabaka.
Description: Body length: males 14.1–23.0 mm (HT 22 mm), females 17.3–24.3 mm. Body width at elytral base: males 4.4–7.0 mm, females 5.3–7.7 mm. Body width behind middle: males 5.3–7.9 mm, females 6.6–8.9 mm. Integument of whole body from dark brown to black; legs and antennae usually lighter; head and prothorax dark brown; elytra constantly dark with greenish brown metallic lustre. Pubescence of whole body made by sparse, short, brown and black hairs, more pronounced on basal part of elytra and sides of pronotum but completely lacking in its central part; on ventral side (Fig. 16H–J) rather constant, fine, dense and barely noticeable on abdomen and thorax, with slightly denser whitish hairs around mesosternal process and on prothorax. Head relatively small, strongly punctured; forehead strongly marked with longitudinal furrow of variable depth between antennal tubercles (Supporting Information, Fig. S1K, L); clypeus and labrum relatively wide and well pronounced; mandibles strong, wide and obtusely toothed (Fig. 1G); eyes large, surrounding antennal tubercles (Supporting Information, Fig. S2K). Antennae thick and robust, long, clearly exceeding elytral length by almost two last joints in males, and reaching two-thirds of elytral length in females; with denser and more pronounced erect setae on inner side. Antennomere 1 densely pubescent with thick recumbent setae; antennomere 2 triangular, about as long as wide at the widest point, with thicker longer and more erect setae (Supporting Information, Fig. S3F); antennomere 3 slightly longer than antennomeres 5–7; antennomere 4 about as long as antennomeres 8 and 9; apical joint ~5.0 times longer than wide in males and ~2.5 times in females; antennomeres 3–8 (sometimes to 9) with pronounced long tooth on inner side. Pronotum evenly tapered towards anterior and posterior margin, in males usually clearly transverse, ~1.6 times (HT 1.55) wider than long, elliptical in shape (Fig. 15C 2), sometimes narrower and more rounded on sides (Fig. 15C 5); in females smaller, narrower than elytra, ~1.6 times wider than long; in both sexes usually entirely punctate, but sometimes with glabrous smooth area near base; punctation variable, punctured or rugose, usually uniformly dense, sometimes more sparse in central part; always dense and fine at sides, forming there more-or-less visible, usually asymmetrical and narrow strips with sparse but clearly visible relatively long hairs (Fig. 3A); pubescence in remaining part of pronotum scant and short, barely perceptible, mainly along upper and lower edges. Prosternum finely and densely punctate, with sparse, short whitish pubescence and row of short, thick, dense erect hairs along upper edge. Prosternal process (Figs 9F, 10H) relatively narrow and rounded at apex. Elytra long, in males ~2.2 times (HT 2.23) longer than wide at base and ~1.9 times (HT 1.88) behind middle; in females ~2.3 and 1.9, respectively; almost parallel sided in anterior third, then clearly expanding towards end; elytral sculpture mainly made by indistinct points with creased and convex surface between them (Fig. 19G, K, L), with gradual change in the depth and density of points towards the end (Fig. 19O); scutellum of variable shape, usually irregularly dotted. Mid and hind femora wide in males, narrower in females; posterior tibiae nearly straight, with distinct erect setae at inner margin.
Male terminalia: Median lobe (Fig. 13P, Q) relatively slender, lanceolate, slightly narrowed before apex. Lateral lobes of tegmen short and robust, adjoining at ends, with external margin convex and relatively short hairs on top (Fig. 12S, T); margin of phallobase roof clearly concave at middle (Fig. 11S, T).
Differential diagnosis: Ropalopus u. ossae can be distinguished from R. u. boreki by its different elytral sculpture, which is additionally more uniform on its whole surface, by its pronotum, which is evenly tapered towards the anterior and posterior margins, and, in males, by constantly longer antennae and clearly different parameres, which are definitely shorter and more robust. The new subspecies is evidently more related to R. u. siculus, from which it is separated by longer antennae, the overall stronger structure of the body and its bigger size, and by the clearly shorter, sparser and less pronounced pubescence on the ventral side of the body (Fig. 16H and 16F, respectively). Moreover, there are differences in the margin of the phallobase roof, which is clearly concave in the middle, and in the lateral lobes with relatively short hairs that are additionally always remarkably twisted together on the top in the newly described subspecies (Fig. 12S–T and P–R, respectively). The prosternal process (Fig. 9F) is closest to R. u. siculus (Fig. 9E). Generally, specimens of R. u. ossae have a darker elytra colour, which is constant in this taxon; therefore, they seem to be blackish even in daylight, whereas specimens of R. u siculus are normally green to brownish.
Remarks: The specimens of R. u. ossae were found at elevations between 500 and 1100 m a.s.l. They were collected on Mount Ossa (mostly on the eastern slopes) from the second half of June to mid-July. There is no doubt that the larvae of this taxon develop in the wood of maples (Acer spp.). Some unpublished records relating to other tree species, such as Platanus sp., have not been confirmed and are not supported herein. It is worth noting that there are independent ecological observations indicating a difference in behaviour between R. u. ossae and R. u. siculus; the taxon from Greece is frequently attracted to wine/ sugar traps, unlike the Sicilian subspecies. There is also a series of peculiar specimens from the southern part of continental Italy (Fig. 18L–Q; Sláma, 2018) that exhibit intermediate characters between these two taxa (see Discussion for more details).
Etymology: The specific epithet is a toponym referring to Mount Ossa (Greek: Όσσα) in the Larissa regional unit, Thessaly, Greece, which is the type locality of this new subspecies.
description: Published as part of Karpiński, Lech, Szczepański, Wojciech T. & Kruszelnicki, Lech, 2020, Revision of the Ropalopus ungaricus / insubricus group (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae: Callidiini) from the western Palaearctic region, pp. 1176-1216 in Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 189 on pages 1202-1204, DOI: 10.1093/zoolinnean/zlz154, http://zenodo.org/record/5721563