Phanaeus panamensis Moctezuma & Halffter 2021, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Moctezuma, Victor
name: Halffter, Gonzalo
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2021
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Scarabaeidae
Phanaeus
Phanaeus panamensis

description: Phanaeus panamensis sp. nov.
urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: C10343D8-4C59-4F57-987F-4234062447E3
Figs 1L, 2H, 10, 16, 18M, 19M
Diagnosis
The new species is easily diagnosed within the P. endymion species group by the dull black colour with bright metallic red-green sheen dorsally (Figs 2H, 10); and elytral striae not strongly impressed basally as distinct fossae (Fig. 10). Phanaeus panamensis sp. nov. is distinguished from P. olsoufieffi by its smaller body size (rarely attaining 20–21 mm in length); and the major males with obsolete keel in the middle of anterior pronotal margin (Fig. 2H); and posterolateral angles weakly developed, widened, slightly projected posteriorly (Fig. 10A). Furthermore, the pronotal disc in P. olsoufieffi is distinctly darker and smoother (Figs 2F, 8A).
Etymology
The specific epithet refers to Panama, where a majority of the type series was collected.
Type material (17 ♂♂, 14 ♀♀)
Holotype
PANAMA • ♂; Panamá, Cerro Campana; “ Cerro Campana, 850m. 8°40’N, 79°56’W. 19 Sept. ’71. Stockwell. Manure trap ”; TAMU.
Paratypes
COSTA RICA – Heredia • 1 ♂; “ Estación La Selva, Río Puerto Viejo, 84°W / 10°28’N. 12-IX-1969. G. Halffter y P. Reyes col.”; GHC • 1 ♂; same collection data as for preceding; VMC.
PANAMA – Chiriquí • 1 ♂; “ Cerro Hornito, 15 km W Gualaca. 17–21 VI 1982. B.Gill. 1200 m ”; TAMU • 1 ♀; “ Cerro Hornito, 15 km W Gualaca. 21 VI-16 VII 1982. B.Gill. 1200 m ”; TAMU. – Coclé • 1 ♀; “ El Valle, VI-10–13–1985, E.Kiley & D.Rider ”; CNMC • 1 ♀; same collection data as for preceding; TAMU • 1 ♂, 1 ♀; same collection data as for preceding; UVGC • 1 ♂; same collection data as for preceding; VMC • 1 ♀; “ El Valle de Antón, VI 5 1945. 2500 ft. C.D. Michener ”; TAMU.– Panamá • 1 ♂; “ Cerro Campana. 5-IX-1966. M.G. Naumann col.”; TAMU • 1 ♂; “ Barro Colorado. Canal Zone. May 1929. Darlington”; TAMU • 1 ♂; “ Canal Zone B.C. I. 6 -XII-1975. Rat carrion trap. Col. O.P.Young ”; TAMU • 1 ♂; “ Canal Zone B.C.I. 1,2- XI-1975. Human feces trap. Col. O.P.Young ”; VMC • 1 ♂; “ Canal Zone B.C. I. 8 -XII-1975. Rat carrion trap. Col. O.P.Young ”; TAMU • 1 ♀; “ Canal Zone, Fort Kobbe, VI-4–21–1985. E.G., Riley ”; IEXA • TAMU: 1 ♂, 3 ♀♀; same collection data as for preceding; TAMU • 1 ♀; same collection data as for preceding; VMC • 1 ♀; “ Chepo-Carti Rd. 1–22- VIII-1982. B-Gill. 400 m ”; TAMU • 1 ♂; “ Chepo-Carti Rd. 6–24-VI-1982. B-Gill. 400 m ”; CNMC • 1 ♂; same collection data as for preceding; IEXA • 2 ♀♀; same collection data as for preceding; TAMU • 1 ♀; “ 9 km SE Bayano Bridge. 9°10’N, 78°46’W. 8 Sept ’74. H. Stockwell. Manure trap ”; VMC • 1 ♂; “ Barro Colo Isld. Canal Zone. 1.7.1929. Collector C. H. Curran ”; GHC • 1 ♂; “ Canal Zone. 1951. F.S. Blanton Collr. ”; VMC • 1 ♂; “ Soberania Nac. PQ. 15–24 Feb 1999. J.E. Wappes ”; TAMU.
Type locality
Panama, Panama, Cerro Campana.
Description
Major male (holotype)
Length 19.3 mm.
HEAD. Clypeus bidentate, black on anterior margin, bright metallic red, with green sheen on posterior portion, roughened sculpture. Genae bright metallic red, with green sheen; roughened sculpture. Front black, bright metallic red on portions adjacent to cephalic horn. Cephalic horn black, curved posteriorly over pronotum (Figs 2H, 10A).
PRONOTUM. Uniformly black, with bright metallic red sheen, becoming completely black posteriorly and on lateral margins of posterolateral angles. Keel absent in the middle of anterior pronotal margin. Disc triangular, flat, with two weakly developed, elongate tubercles on anterior portion. Triangle smooth; scabriculous; impunctate. Sides with smooth sculpture; scabriculous; with almost effaced punctures. Lateral lines of pronotal triangle straight. Posterolateral angles weakly developed, widened, slightly projected posteriorly. Lateral fossae distinctly impressed. Basal fossae obtusely oval, distinctly impressed. Posterior margin impunctate (Figs 2H, 10A).
ELYTRA. Fine striae, smooth, dull black, with dark metallic blue sheen; impressed basally as distinct fossae, scabriculous, with almost effaced to effaced punctation. Interstriae black, smooth, scabriculous, impunctate. Sutural margin without apical tooth (Fig. 10A).
PROTIBIAE. Quadridentate with apical spine.
TERGITE VIII. Bright metallic red, with green sheen, scabriculous; with rough, almost completely effaced punctures. Basal margin with thick, small setae.
GENITALIA. Right lobe of endophallite copulatrix more developed than left lobe. Right lobe obtusely triangular in shape, rounded superiorly, and weakly developed. Left lobe bent posteriorly. Central ridge and column similar in size (Fig. 1L).
Minor male
Like the major male, except for the reduction of the secondary sexual characters (i.e., cephalic horn, pronotal triangle and tubercles, and pronotal posterolateral angles). Occasionally, the pronotal disc is completely bright metallic red, with green sheen.
Female
Similar to the male, except for the head showing a cephalic trituberculate carina; with weakly developed tubercles; carinate middle tubercle, slightly more frontally projected than lateral tubercles; frons with distinctly impressed punctures; pronotal sculpture completely smooth, with superficially impressed punctures; pronotum almost completely dull black in the central portion, laterally and posteriorly bright metallic red with metallic green sheen; pronotal process trituberculate, lacking concavities; pronotal tubercles rounded, nearly aligned, well-spaced; with middle tubercle more developed than lateral tubercles; posterior pronotal midline almost completely effaced (Fig. 10B).
Variation
Mean length 17.8 mm (14.6–21.1 mm). Colour variation was not found.
Distribution
Panama and north-Caribbean Costa Rica (Fig. 16). The distributions of P. panamensis sp. nov., P. malyi and P. pyrois show large areas of sympatry. Nevertheless, all these species are easily recognized.
Remarks
Phanaeus panamensis sp. nov. has frequently been confused with P. olsoufieffi by previous authors (Edmonds 1994; Arnaud 2002b; Edmonds & Zídek 2012, Solís & Kohlmann 2012; Kohlmann et al. 2018). Minor males and females of both species are strongly mimetic. More specimens from western
Panama and northern Colombia are needed to be revised in order to determine if P. olsoufieffi and P. panamensis sp. nov. are sympatric.
description: Published as part of Moctezuma, Victor & Halffter, Gonzalo, 2021, Taxonomic revision of the Phanaeus endymion species group (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), with the descriptions of five new species, pp. 1-71 in European Journal of Taxonomy 747 on pages 36-39, DOI: 10.5852/ejt.2021.747.1333, http://zenodo.org/record/4836744