Paragrilus heliocarpi Hespenheide, new species
Creators: name: Hespenheide, Henry A.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2002
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Buprestidae
Paragrilus
Paragrilus heliocarpi

description: Paragrilus heliocarpi Hespenheide, new species
(Figs. 17, 33)
Holotype male: Agriliform, shallowly convex above, black throughout, with faint golden reflections above, reflections reddish purple in some lights, pronotum strongly shining; front somewhat densely silvery setose on lower 2/3 except in V­shaped area along midline; 3.5 mm long. Head with front very weakly convex, slightly impressed along midline on middle 1/3; ventral margin indistinctly emarginate; surface finely punctate, except for impunctate polished areas lateral to midline at middle 1/3. Pronotum convex, widest at apical 2/3; prehumeral callosity small but prominent, strongly indicated by broad lateral depressions that extend obliquely to lateral margins; prehumeral callosity narrowly produced outward and anteriorly to form ridge above and roughly parallel to marginal carina, ridge carinate; anterior angles obtusely angulate; disc strongly depressed along basal margin between bases of lateral depressions; surface finely rugose, finely punctate. Scutellum small, broadly triangular. Elytra with fine posthumeral carina extending as far beyond hind coxae as before, surface rugose, sparsely short setose; apices rounded­subtruncate. Hind coxae very narrow, posterior angles subquadrate. Male genitalia conspicuously bicolored, basal 3/4 brownish yellow, apical 1/4 black (Fig. 33).
Allotype female: As male, except front glabrous, epistoma sparsely short setose, 3.6 mm long.
Holotype male: Panamá: Canal Zone [= Panamá Pr.], 3.5 km WNW Paraiso, 09° 02’ N 79° 40’ W, 13.VII.1974, H.A. Hespenheide, on Heliocarpus (USNM).
Allotype female: Same data as Holotype (USNM).
Paratypes: Panamá: Canal Zone, same data as Holotype (13, CHAH), 8.IX.1974, H.A. Hespenheide, (4, CHAH); Jct. K­9 and K­6 rds., 9.VI.1976, E.G. Riley (1, GHNC); Lago Alajuela, area del Canal, 29.V.1978, A. Arauz (1, GBFM); La Pita signal station rd., 8.VI.1976, E.G. Riley (1, GHNC); Madden Forest; 24.XII.1969, H.P. Stockwell (1, STRI); Madden Dam, 11.V.1978, C.W. & L.B. O’Brien & Marshall (1, RLWE); 3 mi SE Gamboa, 31.VIII.1974, A.R. Ramirez (1, CHAH); 4.5 km W Cocoli, 08° 58’ N 79° 38’ W, 22.VII.1970, H.A. Hespenheide (2, CHAH); 3 mi W Paraiso, 14.XII.1969, 4.VII.1970, H.P. Stockwell (2, STRI); Chiva Chiva Road, 09° 03’ N 79° 34’ W, 16.VII.1970, H.A. Hespenheide (3, CHAH); Madden Forest, mi 5.0, 09° 07’ N 79° 38’ W, 17.VI.1971, H.A. Hespenheide (4, CHAH); 3 mi NW Gamboa, 09° 09’ N 79° 43’ W, 1.VII.1970, H.A. Hespenheide (6, CHAH); Panamá Pr., 9 mi W Chepo, 09° 09’ N 79° 13’ W, 9.VII.1971, H.A. Hespenheide (1, CHAH); Pipeline Rd, Km 4.0­6.0 nr Gamboa, 40 m, 21.VI.1995 ­38, R.S. Anderson, tropical lowland forest (1, CMNC). In addition to borrowed material, Paratypes from CHAH deposited in AMNH, BMNH, CNCI, LACM, NMPC, MNHN.
Host: Adults have been collected on Heliocarpus.
Etymology: Named for adult host.
Discussion: This species is quite similar to the next one, but differs conspicuously in the sculpture of the pronotum, as well as in the shape of the male genitalia. Male specimens vary from 3.1­3.65 mm in length (mean = 3.41 mm, N = 20); females vary from 3.1­ 4.05 mm in length (mean = 3.80 mm, N = 23).
description: Published as part of Hespenheide, Henry A., 2002, A review of North and Central American Paragrilus Saunders, 1871 (Coleoptera: Buprestidae: Agrilinae), pp. 1-28 in Zootaxa 43 on pages 24-25, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.155677