Rhytiphora amicula White 1859
Creators: name: Ashman, Lauren G.
name: Keyzer, Roger De
name: S ́ Lipińsk, Adam
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2023
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Cerambycidae
Rhytiphora
Rhytiphora amicula

description: Rhytiphora amicula White, 1859 (Figs. 6F, 8C, 9B, 10I)
Rhytiphora amicula White, 1859: 122. TL: Victoria River, Northern Territory
Moved to Rhytiphora (Setomopsis) amicula: Breuning, 1961a: 273
Diagnosis. Two specimens from WA have been sequenced (ANIC 25-066535, 25-066557; Ashman et al. 2022a): R. amicula is closely related to R. garnetensis sp. nov. (see above), R. piperitia and R. collaris, and is also morphologically similar to R. delicatula (Figs. 6–8). Rhytiphora piperitia and R. collaris have mottled or banded antennae (with tubercules slightly closer together: 3.2–3.3 widths apart); R. piperitia and R. delicatula have deeply emarginate eyes (not fully divided); R. collaris and R. delicatula are slightly more elongate (body 3.3–3.4 times as long as wide). Rhytiphora piperitia usually has heavily mottled elytra with dorsal dark patches, but when specimens are faded it can be difficult to distinguish this species from R. amicula; in these cases, the male genitalia may be helpful (R. piperitia has apically tapered parameres and a pointed penis; Fig. 9E). Rhytiphora collaris has a short clypeus (in line with mandibular articulation), striped pronotum, white metanepisternum, dark elytra with heavy ochre mottling and the lateral white stripe usually extending beyond the basal third, and larger sex patches (covering almost whole ventrite). Rhytiphora delicatula has no distinct grooves on the pronotum and brown-mottled elytra with dorsal dark patches.
Description. Body small to medium-sized, elongate: body length 14.5–28.0 mm, width 4.8–6.0 mm. Winged. Dark brown with grey setae and fine ochre mottling (Figs. 6F, 8C).
Head with frontoclypeus rectangular. Eyes moderately faceted, ringed with yellow-white setae, lobes fully divided. Lower lobes separated by 3.3–4.3 times eye width, approximately same length as gena. Upper lobes separated by 2.3 times width of antennal socket, 0.9 times as long as antennal socket. Antennal tubercules fairly prominent, separated by 3.9 times width of antennal socket. Clypeus arcuate, slightly extended beyond mandibular articulation, sometimes covering membranous anteclypeus; mandibles apically pointed, maxillary and labial palps fusiform. Frontoclypeus grey mottled with ochre, gena yellow-white below eye, occipital suture with ochre outline. Antennae extending slightly beyond elytral apices in male, with ventral fringe of long, dense setae on antennomeres 2–11. Scape smooth, expanding apically, 2.3 times as long as wide, 4 times longer than pedicel, shorter than antennomere 3, posteriorly extending to anterior margin of pronotum. Antennomere 3 longer than 4. Antennomeres covered with fine grey setae.
Prothorax subquadrate, 0.8 times as long as wide, base distinctly narrower than humeri. Lateral margins with small anterior tubercule; pronotal disc finely punctate with transverse grooves, setae grey with fine ochre mottling. Prosternal process narrow, arcuate. Procoxae without spiniform projection in males.
Elytra finely punctate, granulate in basal third, without distinct basal projections. Elytral setae grey with fine, even ochre mottling; thin, curved white line on lateral margin with dark grey above, not extending beyond basal third. Elytral apices truncate.
Legs covered with fine grey setae; male protibial tubercule absent. Mesoventrite arcuate without anterior projection. Metaventrite twice as long as mesoventrite, setae grey with ochre mottling and central white strip.
Ventrite 2 with broad yellow-grey sex patches in male, covering half of ventrite length and mostly overlaid by thick fringe of ventrite 1. Ventrite 5 slightly longer than 4 in female, with slight apical divot and endocarina.
Male genitalia: parameres narrowly separated, thick, apically blunt and setose; penis tip rounded (Fig. 9B).
Types examined. Lectotype male, here designated: “Type” // “ Victoria R. Depot ” // “ North Austr ” // “ Rhytiphora armicula [sic] ³ (Type) White” // “NHMUK 010799834” (BMNH; Fig. 10I).
Other material examined: 128.2555°E 15.7144°S, WA, Wyndham, The Grotto, 70m a.s.l., 3 APR 2014, MVlamp, Cocking, Su & Zwick leg (1 specimen, ANIC 25-066535; Figs. 6F, 8C); Kununurra, WA 9 Apr. 1962, I. F. B. Common (1 specimen, ANIC; male genitalia dissection, Fig. 9B); 128.7122°E 15.6543°S, WA, Kununurra, Research Stn, 40m a.s.l., 31 MAR 2014, MV-lamp, Cocking, Su & Zwick leg (1 specimen, ANIC 25-066557); 6.4km S-SW of Victoria River Downs, NT (above Wickham River) 19 June, 1973, L. P. Kelsey (2 specimens, ANIC); 9 mi. SSE of Gordon Downs H. S. / 25 mi. ESE of Broome, WA 13/16 iv. 1963, L. J. Chinnick (6 specimens, ANIC).
Distribution and host plants. Western to central north coast (Western Australia and Northern Territory), potentially extending east to Queensland border. Localities include: Broome, Gordon Downs, Kununurra, Victoria River, (Musselbrook Mining Camp). Host plants unknown.
description: Published as part of Ashman, Lauren G., Keyzer, Roger De & S ́ Lipińsk, Adam, 2023, The Australian genus Rhytiphora (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae: Lamiinae) with a revision of the Rhytiphora collaris group, pp. 1-62 in Zootaxa 5312 (1) on pages 15-16, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5312.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/8129680