Afrocosmoderes Johnson and Jordal

Johnson, Andrew J., Hulcr, Jiri, Knížek, Miloš, Atkinson, Thomas H., Mandelshtam, Michail Yu., Smith, Sarah M., Cognato, Anthony I., Park, Sangwook, Li, You & Jordal, Bjarte H., 2020, Revision of the Bark Beetle Genera Within the Former Cryphalini (Curculionidae: Scolytinae), Insect Systematics and Diversity 4 (3), No. 1, pp. 1-81 : 25-27

Afrocosmoderes Johnson and Jordal gen. nov. ( Fig. 13 )

LSID: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:A1A4E099-E2A7-41AE-BC63-5CF6898B9932

Type of genus

Miocryphalus pennatus Schedl, 1953 .

Diagnosis

Antennal club large without, or barely, visible sutures; pronotum with asperities, lateral margin with carina, hair-like setae present on the hypomeron; mesocoxae narrowly separated, third tarsal segment cylindrical, wings fully developed in males.

Female

Frons simple, convex. Eye distinctly emarginated above midlength. Antennae with two to four funicle segments including the pedicel. Antennal club flat, oval, with barely visible procurved sutures. Pronotum weakly declivous with summit on posterior half to two-thirds; with four to eight marginal asperities, small asperities on the pronotal declivity; a short carina marks the dorsolateral edge of the pronotum. Elytra simple, broadly rounded, with the posterolateral margin barely raised. Interstrial setae scale-like, with additional shorter ground vestiture fine to bristle-like. Scutellum visible, flat, U-shaped. Postnotum not fused to metanotum. Mesocoxae narrowly separated. Metatibiae with lateral, socketed denticles on at least apical quarter. Tarsal segments cylindrical Metanepisternum with its posterior margin barely visible below elytra. All setae on metanepisternum hair-like, not bifurcating. Proventriculus with developed apical plate occupying nearly half of the sclerotized area, divided by a median suture carrying sutural teeth.

Male

Very similar to female. The fifth ventrite is emarginated and the last tergite is visible ventrally. Penis apodemes shorter than rest of body, and ribbon-like, not fused at apex. Tegmen open dorsally. Tegmen with a median ventral apodeme. Spiculum gastrale weakly forked, and of a similar diameter to tegmen. Basal sclerites developed.

Distribution

Southeast Africa, Madagascar.

Etymology

The Latin name is composed by the adjective afer (stem afr -, and linking vowel - o -), in reference to the distribution in East Africa and Madagascar, and Cosmoderes , based on the morphological similarity to this genus. Gender masculine.

Remarks

Seven species known. Afrocosmoderes can be most easily distinguished from the sister group Hypothenemus by the antennae having a very short funicle, club without visible sutures and septum, and by the morphology of the male which is of a similar size of the female and has fully developed eyes and wings. This genus can be separated from the morphologically similar Cosmoderes by the sharp carina on the dorsolateral margin of the pronotum, and by the narrowly separated mesocoxae, and the much larger apical plate of the proventriculus with a median suture.

The transfer of Erioschidias pellitus Schedl, 1953 to this genus is based on overall appearance since the diagnostic characters are obscured on the type specimen. Several species are transferred from the genus Afromicracis Schedl, 1959 (Micracidini) . There are a dozen undescribed species from Madagascar (Jordal, unpublished).

Type material examined

Holotype and paratype of Hypocryphalus caplandicus Schedl, 1965 , holotype and paratype of Miocryphalus grobleri Schedl, 1961 ( SANC, NHMW) , holotype of Ptilopodius madagascariensis Schedl, 1961 (MNHN) , paratype of Ptilopodius madagascariensis Schedl, 1961 ( NHMW) , holotype of Miocryphalus pennatus Schedl, 1953 ( NHMW) , paratype of Euptilius madagascariensis Schedl, 1963 ( NHMW) .

Included species

Afrocosmoderes caplandicus ( Schedl, 1965f: 115) (Hypocryphalus) comb. nov. [ Hypocryphalus ].

Afrocosmoderes grobleri ( Schedl, 1961c: 349) (Miocryphalus) comb. nov. [ Afromicracis ].

Afrocosmoderes madagascariensis ( Schedl,1961b: 133) (Ptilopodius) comb. nov. [ Ptilopodius ].

Afrocosmoderes niger ( Schedl, 1961b: 131) (Erioschidias) comb. nov. [ Cosmoderes ].

Afrocosmoderes pellitus ( Schedl, 1953c: 79) (Erioschidias) comb. nov. [ Cosmoderes ].

Afrocosmoderes pennatus ( Schedl, 1953c: 79) (Miocryphalus) comb. nov. [ Afromicracis ].

Afrocosmoderes schedli Johnson nom. nov. [ Cosmoderes ].

= Euptilius madagascariensis Schedl, 1963c: 65 syn. nov. (secondary homonym).

Remarks: A replacement name is proposed for Euptilius madagascariensis Schedl, 1963c due to the conflict with Ptilopodius madagascariensis Schedl, 1961b following the transfer of both species to Afrocosmoderes . The replacement name is a noun in the genitive case, honoring the original author.

Figures

Figure 13. Images of Afrocosmoderes sp.:A) Dorsal, lateral and ventral photo of A. pennatus. B) Aedeagus of A. pennatus, C) Proventriculus of A. pennatus, D) Frons, eye, and antennae of A. pennatus.