Cionus oberprieleri Caldara & Košťál 2023, sp. n.
Creators: name: Caldara, Roberto
name: Košťál, Michael
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2023
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Curculionidae
Cionus
Cionus oberprieleri

description: 40. Cionus oberprieleri sp. n. (Figs 40a–e)
Type locality. Grahamstown (Eastern Cape, South Africa).
Type series. Holotype, male: “ SOUTH AFRICA, C.P. Grahamtown, 33.19S 26.32E 29.xi.1983 R. Oberprieler ” (SANC). Paratype: “ SOUTH AFRICA KWAZULU NATAL Michael Košťál leg. / Deepdale env. pr. Underberg 1200 m S 29°45.5’ E 29°56.2’ 1.xii.2015 ” (1 male, MKCS).
Diagnosis. Rostrum stout, apical part tapered in lateral view. Head between eyes narrow with lateral comb of scales. Pronotum with four distinctly prominent protuberances. Elytra covered with light brown and dark brown scales arranged in numerous spots on odd elytral interstriae, interstria 3 more convex at base, striae feebly visible, laterally sinuate. Claws distinctly asymmetrical in male.
Description. Male (holotype) (Figs 40a–b). Body: short, globose (length 2.7 mm). Head: rostrum stout, short (Rl/Rw 3.50, Rl/Pl 1.36), black; in lateral view moderately curved, from antennal insertion to apex tapered, in dorsal view very slightly widened from antennal insertion to apex, distinctly striate-punctate, with subtle longitudinal carina in midline, with moderately dense, recumbent, elongated (l/w 5–7), brown and light brown (latter ones more numerous at midline) scales. Head between eyes narrow, 0.4× as wide as rostrum at base, with distinct comb of pale brown scales around upper margin of eyes. Eyes flat. Antennae dark brown, inserted just behind middle; scape moderately long (l/w 8); funicle moderately shorter than scape, S1 slightly more robust than and as long as S2, twice as long as wide, S2 2.2 × as long as wide, S3–5 as long as wide; club oblongly oval, shorter than funicle, pubescent. Pronotum: dark brown, with slightly irregular, dense, small, moderately deep punctures, almost completely hidden by recumbent, dense, elongated (l/w 6–8), intermixed brown and light brown scales, on sides with two distinct narrow vittae formed by white scales; conical, moderately transverse (Pw/Pl 1.76), widest at base, sides rectilinear, moderately convex on disc, with four distinct, transversely arranged protuberances emphasized by tuft of erect light brown and dark brown scales. Prosternum: anterior margin distinctly emarginated. Scutellar shield: subtriangular, densely covered with light brown and dark brown scales. Elytra: dark brown, globose, short (El/Ew 1.08), widest at middle, distinctly wider than pronotum (Ew/Pw 1.78), humeri prominent, subrounded, sides moderately rounded, slightly convex on disc; interstriae weakly convex, almost straight except interstria 3 sinuate and more convex at base, smooth, somewhat shining, without punctures, almost completely hidden by dense recumbent to subrecumbent, intermixed light brown and dark brown scales arranged on odd interstriae in numerous spots, with rectangular spots formed by yellowish brown scales in apical half of interstria 1; striae feebly visible, lateral ones sinuate and irregular, with moderately deep punctures, 2/3 as wide as interstriae, intervals between punctures situated at same level as interstriae. Venter: mesosternal process slightly convex, moderately emarginated. Metasternum with dense, elongated, thin, brown and grayish scales, latter ones hair-like in middle. Abdomen with somewhat irregular, very small, indistinct, very shallow punctures, moderately visible between elongated, hair-like in middle, intermixed brown and grayish scales; V1 1.8× longer than V2, V1+V2 4.7× longer than V3+V4, which are as long as V5. Legs: densely covered with intermixed brown and light brown scales; femora black, with robust sharp teeth; tibiae brown, without unci; tarsi brown, onychium as long as T1–3 combined; claws asymmetrical, one claw half as long as other. Penis: Figs 40c–e, its body slightly wider in basal half, in apical half with slightly narrowed sides, tip blunted. Flagellum robust, moderately long, bifurcated at base.
Female. Unknown.
Variability. The paratype is similar in length and habitus to the holotype.
Etymology. This taxon is named in honour of our friend and colleague Rolf Oberprieler, eminent specialist in weevils, who collected many interesting specimens including the holotype of this species when he had lived in South Africa.
Remarks. This species is similar to C. natalensis and C. nhlosanicus. It differs from both by smaller size, shorter and in lateral view more tapered rostrum in the male, and less convex elytral interstriae.
Biological notes. No data are available.
Distribution. South Africa (Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal).
Madagascan species
description: Published as part of Caldara, Roberto & Košťál, Michael, 2023, A Taxonomic Revision Of The Afrotropical Species Of The Weevil Genus Cionus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), pp. 1-98 in Zootaxa 5288 (1) on pages 72-74, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5288.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/7958875