Parastasia asahi Wada, 2008

Hongsuwong, Thitipong & Phothaworn, Chayaphol, 2025, Notes on the Genus Parastasia Westwood, 1841 from Thailand (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae, Rutelinae), Fragmenta entomologica 57 (1), pp. 91-102 : 91-92

Parastasia asahi Wada, 2008 แมลงนูนขาโตสีตาลเรียบี

(Figs 1, 6–8)

Parastasia asahi Wada, 2008: 2 , Figs 1–8 (original description; type locality: Borneo).

Material examined: Thailand: Yala Prov., Betong Dist. , 5°53’07.5”N, 101°01’17.6”E, S. Sae-Liang leg., 28.III.2022, 1♂ ( CTH) .

Remarks and distribution. The species was originally reported from Borneo Island ( Wada 2008) and has now been discovered in South Thailand for the first time. It is therefore likely its presence in the Malaysian mainland.

Parastasia burmeisteri Ohaus, 1898 แมลงนูนขาโตทรงรี (Figs 2–3, 9–11, 22–23, 50)

Parastasia burmeisteri Ohaus, 1898: 10 (original description; type locality: Sumatra); Ohaus 1900: 253 ( P. marginata group); Ohaus 1918: 36 ( P. westwoodii group); Ohaus 1934: 104 ( P. westwoodii group); Machatschke 1972: 43 (catalog); Kuijten 1992: 45, figs 37–38 (re-description, key, parameres). Parastasia nonfriedi Ohaus, 1898: 10 [original description; synonym of P. burmeisteri by Arrow (1899: 495)].

Material examined: Thailand: Nakhon Si Thammarat Prov., Phrom Khiri Dist. , Phrom Lok Subdist., C. Phothaworn leg., 18.XI.2021, larval instar 3 in rotten log, 16.II.2022, emerged, 1♂ ( CTH) ; Nakhon Si Thammarat Prov., Phrom Khiri Dist. , Thon Hong, Wang Lung Waterfall, C. Phothaworn leg., 2.IV.2023, 1♀ ( CTH) .

Remarks and Distribution. The species has been report- ed from Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines ( Kuijten 1992). The current record represents the northernmost distribution of this species. In addition, the aedeagus of the above reported male specimen slightly differs from Kuijten’s description of Sundaic specimens: the concavity of the parameres in lateral view is very shallow, and the apices of the parameres are not curved downward as depicted in Kuijten’s figures.

Parastasia dimidiata Erichson in Westwood, 1845 แมลง นูนเขาแคระชายเลน

(Figs 4, 12–14, 45)

Parastasia dimidiata Erichson in Westwood, 1845 a: 98 (original description; type locality: Batum, Riau Archipelago); Erichson in Westwood 1845 b: 101 (description); Ohaus 1900: 258 ( P. heterocera group); Ohaus 1918: 37 ( P. heterocera group); Ohaus 1934: 105 ( P. heterocera group); Machatschke 1972: 95 (catalog); Kuijten 1992: 58 (re-description, key, clypeus and parameres).

Parastasia nitidula Erichson in Westwood, 1845 a: 98 (original description; synonym of P. dimidiata by Kuijten (1992: 58)).

Urleta ometoides Westwood, 1875: 238 [original description; synonym of P. dimidiata by Arrow (1899: 486)].

Parastasia heterocera Ohaus, 1898: 27 [original description; synonym of P. dimidiata by Kuijten (1992: 58)].

Material examined: Thailand: Nakhon Si Thammarat Prov., Nopphitum Dist. , C. Phothaworn leg., 6. V .2023, 1♂ ( CTH) .

Remarks and distribution. The species was originally described in two separate publications. The first description appeared in Transactions of the Royal Entomological Society of London, Vol. 4, Part 1, authored by Erichson in

Westwood (1845 a: 98). The second was published in the Proceedings of the Entomological Society of London, also by Westwood (1845 b: 101). While the Transactions and Proceedings were usually published together, an exception occurred between 1840 and 1846, during which they were issued separately. This irregular publishing practice led to discrepancies between the two sources, prompting later authors to treat their publication dates independently (Wheeler 1912). The Proceedings recorded a date range from 1 January to 4 March 1844, but its actual publication date was 1 October 1845. Meanwhile, Transactions Vol. 4, Part 1 was made publicly available on 7 April 1845.

Kuijten (1992) reported that the species was previously known to inhabit small islands or coastal regions in India, Myanmar, Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia. Its wide distribution is likely linked to its bionomics, particularly its association with rotting Rhizophora L. ( Rhizophoraceae ) wood during the larval stage. This study officially report a new record of this species from South Thailand. Additionally, a photograph by Kunut Polwichai (2017) from Chumphon Province, Thailand, showed a P. dimidiata specimen with primarily yellowish elytra (Fig. 45), whereas the specimen examined in this study was completely dark.