Anthaxia (Anthaxia) mancatula Abeille, syn. nov.
Creators: name: Baiocchi, Daniele
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2013
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Buprestidae
Anthaxia
Anthaxia mancatula

description: Anthaxia (Anthaxia) mancatula Abeille de Perrin, 1900
(Figs. 10, 11, 12, 13, 19, 20, 23, 32, 36, 37, 40, 41, 42, 53, 54, 58)
Anthaxia mancatula Abeille, 1900: 5; LT [here designated]: MNHN; TL: Vallée de l’Araxe [Arax river valley]. –Théry 1926: 162; synonym of manca.
–Bílý 2006: 59, 372; (in Löbl & Smetana: Catalogue of Palaearctic Coleoptera. Volume 3); resurrected name. Anthaxia aurulenta f. intermedia Obenberger, 1913: 64 syn. nov.; ST: NMPC; TL: Persien: Astrabad [= Iran: Gorgan]. Anthaxia aurulenta subsp. intermedians Obenberger, 1935: 111; (sic!, subsequent incorrect spelling). Anthaxia aurulenta ab. babajanidesi Obenberger, 1935: 111; unavailable name (Bílý 1997); ST: NMPC; TL: Caucasus:
Jelizavetpol (Babadjanides), Daghestan: Temir-Chan-Šura.
I have examined the type of this species (Figs. 19, 20, 40). The specimen had already been examined and dissected by the late P. Svoboda before his premature death, and was designated as the lectotype by him. Thus, since the number of syntypes is actually unknown, following Svoboda’s unpublished designation I hereby designate this specimen as the lectotype. The specimen, the smallest among all those I have studied, is in a rather good state of preservation, though largely missing the long pubescence typical of most species of this group. As usually happened at that time, and though focused on the most salient morphological features, Abeille’s description was given in a rather short paragraph, as did Obenberger (1913) in describing his A. intermedia. I therefore give a more detailed description of the species:
Description of the male lectotype (Fig. 19). Body subparallel, rather flat; colouration of head and pronotum reddish brown; frons bright green; pronotum reddish brown with two broad, longitudinal, slightly diverging purplish-brown bands; scutellum golden-reddish; elytra dark purplish-brown, widely reddish along lateral margins and apex; elytral base, circumscutellar area and short basal border of suture golden-reddish with green shine; legs reddish brown with strong greenish tinge; antennae black with golden-green tinge on basal antennomeres; ventral colouration golden-reddish with rather strong greenish tinge; remnants of pubescence long, white.
Head slightly narrower than anterior pronotal margin; vertex flat, narrow, 0.33 times as wide as width of head, frons moderately wide, feebly depressed; eyes large, drop-shaped; inner ocular margins distinctly S-shaped, slightly divergent on lower 1/3, strongly convergent on upper 1/3; sculpture of head areolate, consisting of deep, irregular, subpolygonal cells with unsculptured bottoms and sharp, central setigerous pores on the frons, and irregularly elongated cells converging to the middle on the vertex; clypeus rather short, about 0.3 times as wide as total width of head, lateral margins subparallel, anterior margin bisinuate, deeply emarginate in middle; remnant of frontal pubescence very long, white.
Antennae long, slender, 1.4 times longer than pronotum in midline; scape and pedicel bearing long pubescence; antennomeres 4–11 moderately flattened; scape club-shaped, 2.8 times longer than wide, slightly bent, strongly convex on inner margin; pedicel subconical, 1.6 times longer than wide; antennomere 3 slightly conical, 1.3 times longer than pedicel; antennomeres 4–10 subtrapezoidal, slightly longer than wide; antennomere 11 elongated, nearly 2.0 times longer than wide.
Pronotum transverse, 1.6 times wider than long, widest in posterior 1/2, slightly depressed in mid anterior part; anterior margin distinctly bisinuate, central lobe rather narrow, moderately pronounced; lateral margins weakly arched, slightly narrowed before the right angled lateroposterior angles; posterior margin weakly arched backwards in middle; lateroposterior depressions wide, shallow; sculpture of central 1/3 transversely areolate-rugose, somewhat convergent to the middle posteriorly; sculpture of lateral portions irregularly areolate, consisting of rather deep cells with thick borders; cell bottom unsculptured, very shiny, with well pronounced central setigerous grain; lateral pronotal carina reaching 3/4 of pronotal length; remnant of pronotal pubescence long, white.
Scutellum subpentagonal, convex.
Elytra moderately vaulted, 1.9 times longer than wide, abruptly narrowed at base, subparallel on basal 2/3, rather rectilinearly tapering till the separately, widely rounded apices; elytral base slightly bisinuate, as wide as posterior pronotal margin; basal transverse depression coarsely wrinkled, moderately deep, not reaching scutellum; humeral swellings poorly developed; lateral elytral groove narrow, deeper at base, disappearing at midlength; elytral epipleura narrow, disappearing before apex; lateral margins progressively more strongly serrate on distal 1/ 3; elytral sculpture coarsely imbricate at base, along lateral margins and on apical area, more sparsely imbricatepunctulate in middle.
Ventral surface glossy, very shiny; anterior margin of prosternum slightly arched; prosternal process wide, lateral margins strongly curved, posterior angles and apex well developed, acute; sculpture of prosternum and mesosternum imbricate, deep, coarser on central part of prosternum and on prosternal process, transversally stretched along anterior margin, largely areolate on lateral prosternal margins, proepisternum and metepisternum; mesepisternum glossy, largely smooth; pro- and mesocoxae shallowly imbricate; sculpture of metasternum more imbricate-foveolate in middle, widely, shallowly imbricate on lateral parts and on metacoxal plates; posterior margin of central metasternal suture slightly divergent for a short distance; all trochanters unarmed; sculpture of legs shallowly imbricate, with fine basal microsculpture; abdominal surface glossy, with shallow, widely imbricate sculpture and very fine basal microsculpture; whole ventral surface, including legs, covered with very long, white pubescence.
Anal ventrite 1.7 times wider than long, poorly depressed along lateral margins; lateral margins moderately serrate on distal 1/2; apex wide, clearly tuncate.
Legs long, rather thick; tarsomeres moderately elongated, wide; protibiae subcylindrical, slightly bent at base, strongly serrate on inner-posterior margin; protarsi 1–5 subequal; mesotibiae subcylindrical, straight, strongly serrate on inner margin, mesotarsomere 1 longer than each of 2–4, tarsomere 5 as long as 1; metatibiae flattened distally, deeply, acutely serrate on inner margin, metatarsomere 1 much longer than each of 2–4, tarsomere 5 shorter than 1 and longer than each of 2–4; tarsal claws brown, thick, moderately long, distinctly enlarged at base, sharply pointed.
Aedeagus (Fig. 40) slightly fusiform, subcylindrical at base, 5.3 times longer than wide, widest at 2/3 of its length; phallobase large, representing nearly 1/4 of total length; parameres strongly chitinised, sinuately, strongly narrowed on apical 1/3, setigerous area located laterally, on the narrowest preapical portion of parameres, with margins finely serrate; apical part of parameres slightly enlarged before the obtuse apex; apex of lower lamina sharp, feebly protruding; median lobe subparallel, 7.2 times longer than wide, strongly vaulted at base, and more thin apically; basal apodemes extending for nearly 1/3 of total length; dorsal surface unsculptured at base, with a strong V-shaped gibbosity at mid-length, and a median, narrow, slightly elevated area on apical 1/2; lateral parts of apical 1/2 strongly rugulose, irregularly covered with a number of scattered, backward directed teeth; apical part smooth, subtriangularly narrowed; apex slightly subrounded, slightly depressed in middle.
Variation. Medium to large size species, length: 5.5 – 9.0 mm; body subparallel to slightly wedge-shaped; the size of males ranges from 5.5 mm x 2.2 mm (lectotype) to 8.4 mm x 3.3 mm, while the females vary from 6.9 mm x 2.7 mm to 9.0 mm x 3.6 mm. Sexual dichromatism absent. The lectotype, in addition to the unusually small size, differs from most of the material I have studied, having a slightly different shape of head, with eyes not projecting beyond outline of head as seen in most males (Fig. 12). Possibly this is due to the methods used to kill and preserve specimens which were not optimal, and may have partly affected the freshness of the material itself, during the extended collecting trips at the end of the 19th century. With regard to intraspecific variability, the most important character in this species is the presence of pronotal bands, which in most specimens are completely absent (Fig. 13), independent of sex. In specimens missing the pronotal bands there is an increase in the golden and green pronotal tinge (Fig. 13). The slightly different aspect of the genitalia of the lectotype (Fig. 40), in particular the apex of median lobe, is due to the position in which the aedeagus was preserved, showing the ventral side instead of the more diagnostic dorsal part.
Type specimen studied. Lectotype 3 here designated: (MNHN): data labels illustrated (Fig. 20).
Further specimens studied. AZERBAIJAN: Kasp. Meer-Geb., Lenkoran, 1897 Korb (DBCR). GEORGIA: Gruzia [Georgia], Džvari, Tbilisi (GMCC, MKCN). IRAN: Eşfahān prov.: 13 Km S Eşfahān, 1584 m. (DBCR, DGCC, GMCC). Gilan prov.: Masule, M. Tales, 750–1000 m. (GMCC); Siahrud, 32 km S Rasht, 120 m. (DBCR). Golestān prov.: Astrabad [= Gorgan, Iran] (2 ST and several specimens of A. intermedia Obenberger, 1913 in NMPC); road Āzād Šar–Shāhrūd, SW Til Abad, 1380 m. (DBCR); 40/ 70 km E Minudast, 700/ 900 m. (GMCC).
Markazī prov.: Ala Dagh (IRSNB: coll. Herman). Mazandaran prov.: Chahsavar [= Tonekabon] (PPDRI). Tehrān prov.: 10 Km N Ziaran, 2100 m. (DBCR, DGCC, GMCC). TURKMENISTAN: Ahal prov.: Firjuza (DBCR); Firjuza-Vanovaki [= Vanovskiy] (DGCC); Firjuza, Moral, Kopet-dag (DGCC); Ashabad (DGCC). Additional examined material in NMPC (Obenberger coll.), MNHN (Théry coll.), MKCN, SBCP, HMCM, MNCA.
Bionomy and distribution. I have reared this species only from Zelkova sp. and Ulmus sp., but its larva was reported by other authors to feed also on Celtis, Pyrus and Malus (Volkovitsh & Alexeev 1994, as Cratomerus intermedius; Davatchi et al. 1959, as C. intermedius) and I suspect that it may also attack Salix. Specimens were mostly obtained from small and medium sized branches of Zelkova, though I also found an adult in its pupal cell, at the base of a trunk of Ulmus. The larval development usually lasts two years. Adults of this species are not attracted to flowers, and usually settle on sun-exposed leaves, however on one occasion a specimen was surprisingly found on a yellow flower of Asteraceae, at Tilabad, in northern Iran. Such flower-visiting behaviour, unusual and occasional for species of this group, was also reported by other authors (Théry 1942; Schaefer 1949; Bílý 1982). A. mancatula is a rather widespread species in Iran, more commonly found in the northern part of the country (Barimani et al. 2009; Borumand 2002, sub A. intermedia), and its normal period of activity usually lasts from mid April to mid June. The species is currently reported from Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Kirgizstan, Tadjikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, and is likely to be found also in southern Russia, Afghanistan, Kazakhstan and western China. In consideration of this wide distribution, this species can be classified in the Turano-Centralasiatic chorotype (Vigna Taglianti et al. 1999).
Other species of Anthaxia that were reared from the same samples of Zelkova sp., together with A. mancatula, are Anthaxia (Cratomerus) diadema ssp. shelkovnikovi Obenberger, 1940 (first record on Zelkova) and Anthaxia (Haplanthaxia) beludjistana Bílý, 1983 (first record on Zelkova), while from Ulmus sp. I obtained Anthaxia (Cratomerus) krueperi Ganglbauer, 1885 (first record on Ulmus).
Comments. The study of the type confirmed that, as Obenberger (1935) stated, the most diagnostic and reliable morphological character that separates A. mancatula from A. senicula, is the shape of the median lobe of male genitalia, which in A. senicula shows a rather widely, transversally truncate apex (Fig. 46), while in A. mancatula it is more narrowly, subroundly pointed (Fig. 40, 42). The same difference was described and illustrated by Richter (1949:185). Females, especially those missing well developed pronotal bands, are more difficult to identify, and the most obvious character, though showing intraspecific variability, is the shape of the anal ventrite, which in A. senicula (Fig. 39) is slightly more transverse, rather deeply depressed along the lateral margins, and widely emarginate at apex. By contrast in A. mancatula, the anal ventrite is weakly depressed along the lateral margins, and has a more widely rounded apex (Fig. 37), with a narrower deep notch. In addition, in A. senicula the pronotal sculpture is usually deeper, with better defined cell borders, the elytra are usually slightly more narrowly tapered and more coarsely sculptured, and the prosternal process (Fig. 33) is proportionally wider than in A. mancatula (Fig. 32). In males, the pubescence of frons is much denser in A. senicula (Fig. 24) than in A. mancatula, in which it is usually more concentrated along the ocular margins (Fig. 23). Populations of A. mancatula from Central Asia, usually show a slightly finer surface sculpture.
description: Published as part of Baiocchi, Daniele, 2013, The Anthaxia (Anthaxia) manca (Linnaeus, 1767) species-group in Iran, with description of a new species and a new synonymy (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), pp. 455-481 in Zootaxa 3613 (5) on pages 473-479, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3613.5.3, http://zenodo.org/record/247248