Odontomelitta apicula Clarke 2016, comb. nov.
Creators: name: Clarke, Robin O. S.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2016
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Cerambycidae
Odontomelitta
Odontomelitta apicula

description: Odontomelitta apicula (Bates, 1885), comb. nov.   
(Fig. 1–3, 7)  
 Odontocera apicula Bates, 1885: 289, pl. 20, fig. 24. Monné 2015: 757 (cat.).   
 Species concept. Based on the original description and figure; and on photographs of the holotype available on Bezark (2015).   
 Measurements (mm). n = 21 males / 8 females; total length, 10.90-14.20/12.00-14.50; length of pronotum, 1.70-2.25/1.90-2.25; width of pronotum, 1.80-2.40/2.15-2.40; length of elytra, 3.90-5.00/4.50-5.00; width at humeri, 1.90-2.65/2.35-2.85.   
 Specimens analyzed. BOLIVIA, Santa Cruz: Hotel Flora & Fauna, 5 km SSE of Buena Vista, 17°29’96”S/ 63°39’13”W, 430m, on/flying to flowers of “Bejuco hoja lanuda”, male, 2.V.2005, R. Clarke & S. Zamalloa col. (RCSZ); ditto, beaten from dry leaves of “Nogal”, female, 13.VII.2005 (RCSZ).   
 Material examined. (all collected by R. Clarke & S. Zamalloa). BOLIVIA, Santa Cruz: Hotel Flora & Fauna, 5 km SSE of Buena Vista, 17°29’96”S/ 63°39’13”W, 430m, on/flying to flowers of “Bejuco hoja lanuda”, 1 male, 2.V.2005, 1 female, 1.V.2005; 2 males, 2.V.2005; 1 male, 4.V.2005; 1 male, 12.V.2005 (RCSZ); on/flying to flowers of “Barbasquillo”, 1 male, 31.VII.2005 (RCSZ); 1 male, 5.VIII.2005 and 1 female 25.VIII.2005 (MZUSP); 1 male, 3.IX.2005 (RCSZ); on/flying to flowers of “Barbasquillo B”, 1 male, 1.XI.2007 (RCSZ); on/flying to flowers of “Piton”, 1 male, 29.IX.2007 (RCSZ); on/flying to flowers of “Ramoneo”, 1 female, 10.VIII.2008 (RCSZ); on/flying to flowers of “Sama blanca”, 1 male, 4.XII,2004 (RCSZ), 1 female, 4.XII.2004 and 1 male, 9.XII.2004 (FSCA); on/flying to flowers of “Sapaimosi”, 1 male, 4.I.2006 and 1 male, 27.VIII.2008 (RCSZ); beaten from dry leaves of “Nogal”, 2 males, 12.VII.2005 (MNKM), 1 male and 1 female in coitus, 13.VII.2005 (RCSZ), 2 males, 13.VII.2005 (RCSZ); ovipositing on felled “Nogal” trunk, 1 female, 15.VII.2005 (RCSZ), ditto (MNKM).   
 BOLIVIA, Santa Cruz: 17°27’S / 63°43’W, 400m, 1km W of Candelaria village, 5 km W of Buena Vista, on/flying to flowers of Gomphrena vaga, 1 male, 21.VIII.2007, R. Clarke & S. Zamalloa col. (RCSZ).   
 BOLIVIA, Santa Cruz: Santa Barbara-Caranda Rd., 13km E Buena Vista, on/flying to flowers of “Sapaimosi”, 1 male 11.XII.2008, R. Clarke & S. Zamalloa col. (RCSZ).   
 Comment. According to Larry Bezark (pers. comm.): “comparison of Odonotocera apicula Bates specimens. Female from Barro Colorado Island, Panama, and female from Ecuador (Yasuni Research Station, Napo). These 2 specimens are virtually identical.” He also has five males from Bolivia, adding some comments about the sexual characters and the minor differences in surface ornamentation and color when compared to the Panamanian and Ecuadorian females.   
 Monné (2015) cites only Panama for the distribution of O. apicula, to this we can add Bolivia and Ecuador. This species is common in the Buena Vista area of Bolivia, where it has been observed ovipositing in the trunks of felled “Nogal” (Machaerium acutifolium Benth.) trees. As best we know there are few records for Panama, and just one from Ecuador. The wood of “Nogal” has been used in the manufacture of furniture, suggesting this species might be endemic to Bolivia, and the paucity of records from elsewhere could represent those of an imported species. Host plant and host flower records for O. apicula are provided in Appendix 1.
description: Published as part of Clarke, Robin O. S., 2016, Bolivian Rhinotragini X. Odontomelitta gen. nov. (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae), pp. 1-8 in Insecta Mundi 2016 (461) on pages 5-6, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.4531751