Ateralphus variegatus Mendes 1938
Creators: name: Souza, Diego De S.
name: Monné, Marcela L.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2013
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Cerambycidae
Ateralphus
Ateralphus variegatus

description: Ateralphus variegatus (Mendes, 1938)
(Figs. 8–13; 22–25; 31–32; 128)
Alphus variegatus Mendes, 1938: 120; Blackwelder, 1946: 609 (cat.); Zikán & Wygodzinsky, 1948: 48 (holot.); Lane, 1965: 315; Gilmour, 1965: 607 (cat.); Martins & Monné, 1993:138; Monné, 1994: 40 (cat., dist.); Monné & Giesbert, 1994: 233 (check, dist.).
Ateralphus variegatus; Restello et al., 2001: 301; Monné, 2005: 168 (cat., dist.); Monné & Hovore, 2005: 204 (check, dist.); Wappes et al., 2006: 32 (dist.); Wappes et al., 2007: 35 (dist.); Monné & Bezark, 2009: 219 (check, dist.); Monné & Bezark, 2010: 222 (check, dist.); Monné & Bezark, 2011: 228 (check, dist.); Bezark & Monné, 2013: 235 (check, dist.).
Male. Integument dark brown. Body covered with dense and short yellowish-grey setae. Frons (Fig. 22) rectangular; slightly convex, almost flat in lateral view. Upper ocular lobes height almost half of the lower ocular lobe; distance between them three times width of lobe. Lower ocular lobe (Fig. 22) rectangular; height about 1.4 times smaller than malar area. Genae (Fig. 22) parallel to divergent.
Antennae (Fig. 31) reaching elytral apex approximately at antennomeres VIII–IX. Scape with slightly depressed ring on apical fourth. Pedicel with one spot of dark brown setae on apical region. Antennomeres III–XI with one ring of dark brown setae on apical region, gradually longer on distal antennomeres.
Prothorax (Fig. 23) maximum width almost as long as twice the length; coarsely punctate, with setae encircling the inner edge of the punctation pores; anterior margin subequal to posterior margin. Pronotum with a slight longitudinal elevation usually glabrous, only near anterior margin; depressed between median tubercles; with three tubercles on disc: two median elevated, obtuse and glabrous apex; with the third tubercle on midline, situated posterior to median tubercles, smaller and with glabrous apex. Prosternal process width almost one third the diameter of one procoxa. Mesosternal process flat at posterior half and anterior margin decline at an angle of approximately 45° relative to mesosternum. Mesepisternum, mesepimeron and metepisternum covered with yellowish-gray setae.
Scutellum wider than long, semicircular; one slight median longitudinal depression; finely punctate, covered with yellowish-gray setae.
Elytra length about 3.5 times longer than prothorax; with irregularly distributed coarse punctation and with setae encircling the inner edge of punctures as the prothorax; covered mainly with yellowish-gray setae and irregular patches of whitish setae on dorsum; with elevated carinae distinctly pronounced. Basal-crest (Fig. 23) elevated, adorned by pronounced tubercles, inordinate and rounded apex; from crests, one “V”-shaped stain of dark brown setae; region between basal-crests with setae colored as the elytron. Epipleura setae coloration similar to dorsum. Apical margin of elytra obliquely truncate.
Legs entirely covered with yellowish-gray setae. Tibiae (Fig. 25) with one spot of dark brown setae on subapical region. Tarsomere V bicolorous, base with yellowish-white setae and apex dark brown.
Abdomen (Fig. 24) covered with yellowish-gray setae, with glabrous maculae on lateral edges of sternites II– IV. Sternite V wider than long; length about equal or less than length of sternite III and IV together.
Terminalia. Median lobe (Figs. 8–9) curved in lateral view; dorsal and ventral lobes subequal in length, with rounded apex; basal apophysis length subequal to apical portion. Tegmen (Fig. 10) length slightly longer than median lobe; parameres about 3.6 times less than tegmen length, near each other; with long and sparse setae in inner surface; ring piece with one apical projection elongate and curved and apical margin sinuous.
Female. Antennae (Fig. 32) reaching elytral apex approximately at antennomeres X–XI.
Terminalia (Figs.11–13). Sternite VIII (Fig. 11) rounded, with apical region slightly narrower than basal region; sternal apodeme length about three times the sternite VIII. Tergal apodemes concave and narrowing towards basal region. Coxites (Fig. 13) parallel and robust, near each other on two basal thirds and away towards apex; basal region width about 2–3 times wider than apex. Bursa copulatrix elongated and oval aspect, about six times the spermatheca length. Spermathecal duct short. Spermatheca base elongate, gradually wider towards apical region and apex rounded. Spermathecal gland short, length about twice or more than spermatheca.
Variability. Some specimens do not have the spot of dark brown setae on apical region of pedicel. The elytral “V”-shaped stain of dark brown setae may be absent or completely filled like a triangular stain.
Measurements (mm), male/female. Total length, 18.8–22.7/17.0–23.8; prothorax length, 3.3–4.0/3.2–4.1; prothorax maximum width, 5.4–7.1/5.3–7.6; elytral length, 13.5–17.0/12.8–17.8; humeral width, 7.2–9.0/6.8–9.7.
Type-material. Holotype, Alphus variegatus, female, Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil (MZSP).
Discussion. Ateralphus variegatus is similar to A. tumidus new species and to A. lacteus. It is differentiated from A. lacteus by characteristics cited in the above discussion. Ateralphus variegatus is very similar to A. tumidus new species, and is easily recognized by mesosternal process being flat at posterior half and tarsomere V with apical third covered with dark brown setae, while A. tumidus new species has the mesosternal process tumescent at posterior half and tarsomere V with dark brown setae on base and apical third. Moreover, A. variegatus is the largest species of the genus, allowing its easy identification in Ateralphus.
Geographical distribution. Brazil (Minas Gerais, Espírito Santo, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Paraná), Bolivia (Santa Cruz (Wappes et al., 2006)). New state records are added from French Guiana (Cayenne) and Argentina (Misiones) (Fig. 128).
Material examined. FRENCH GUIANA, Cayenne, 1 female, Fry leg. (BMNH). BRAZIL, Minas Gerais: Teófilo Otoni, 1 female, XII.1970, F. M. Oliveira leg. (MNRJ); 1 male, XI.1974, S. P. Nascimento leg. (MNRJ); Espírito Santo: Linhares, 1 female, X.1969 (MNRJ); Rio Bonito, 600 m, 1 female, XI.1963 (MNRJ); Santa Teresa, 1 female, 12.XII.1966, C. T. & C. Elias leg. (MZSP); 1 male, 27.XII.1966, C. Elias & C. T. Elias leg. (DZUP); São Paulo: 1 female, 1985, J. Lane leg. (MZSP); Amparo, 1 male (MZSP); Campinas, holotype, female, XI.1919, Merbach leg. (MZSP); Ubatuba (Praia do Pulso), 1 female, XII.2003, M. L. Monné, J. R. Mermundes & M. A. Monné leg. (MNRJ); Rio de Janeiro: Rio de Janeiro (Corcovado), 1 male, 28.X.1954, D. Zajciw leg. (MNRJ); Paraná: Matelândia, 1 female, I.1962 (MNRJ). ARGENTINA, Misiones: Santa María, 1 male, X.1943, M. J. Viana leg. (MNRJ).
description: Published as part of Souza, Diego De S. & Monné, Marcela L., 2013, Revision of the genus Ateralphus Restello, Iannuzzi & Marinoni, 2001 (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae: Lamiinae), pp. 301-337 in Zootaxa 3736 (4) on pages 308-310, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3736.4.1, http://zenodo.org/record/248455