Pityogenes scitus Blandford, 1893a

Buhroo, Abdul Ahad, 2024, A taxonomic monograph of subfamily Scolytinae (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) in the Western Himalaya, Zootaxa 5533 (1), pp. 1-82 : 39-40

29. Pityogenes scitus Blandford, 1893a

( Figure 38)

= Pityophthorus coniferae Stebbing, 1909

This species is easily diagnosed by the following morphological characters: ♂ frons broadly convex, surface shining, punctures rather small and dense, feebly granulate and with fine sparse hairs; epistomal margin convex with rows of minute hairs; pronotum slightly longer than wide (1.09×), anterior margin uniformly round with weak carina bearing small asperities in a row; lateral sides feebly convex; summit indistinct, placed almost at the middle; anterior slope of pronotum with crescentric rows of asperities, asperities gradually becoming smaller postero-laterally; a distinct shining median line running from summit to posterior margin; disc smooth, shining with small punctures; elytra elongate, 1.4× as long as pronotum and 1.7× as long as wide, anterior margin substraight, lateral sides subparallel, weakly converging posteriorly terminating into convex posterior margin; elytral disc convex, glabrous, striae feebly marked with small shallow punctures in rows, sutural striae depressed, distinctly marked upto posterior margin, other striae running upto declivity; interstriae flat with scattered punctures; elytral declivity with three almost equal sized, broad based tubercles on both margins, more prominent than in females; head and pronotum blackish brown, elytra light brown; body length: 2.02–2.16 mm, 2.66× as long as wide.

Females are somewhat smaller than males, frons with three deep cavities in triangular position larger one on vertex, other two are smaller on either side at lower level on the vertex; elytral declivity less broadly impressed, lateral tubercles smaller and almost of equal size; body length: 2.0– 2.07 mm.

Material examined: New records: India: 14 ♂ ′s, 6 ♀ ′s. Kashmir, Budgam , Yousmarg (33° 50.015′ N, 074° 40.131′ E, 7955 ft.), A.A. Buhroo, 29.06.2011 ( KUIC) . Himachal Pradesh, Shimla, Summer Hill (31° 06.720′ N, 077° 08.355′ E, 6877 ft.), A.A. Buhroo, 20.07.2011 ( KUIC) . Jammu, Batote, Shampa (33° 07.952′ N, 075° 18.453′ E, 4225 ft.), A.A. Buhroo, 21.05.2017 ( KUIC) . Kashmir, Kupwara, Marsary (34° 27.264′ N, 074° 00.987′ E, 6750 ft.), A.A. Buhroo, 09.07.2017 ( KUIC) . Kashmir, Kupwara, Tangdhar (34° 23.527′ N, 073° 51.894′ E, 6525 ft.), A.A. Buhroo, 10.07.2017 ( KUIC) . Kashmir, Anantnag, Daksum (33° 36.120′ N, 075° 27.595′ E, 8975 ft.), A.A. Buhroo, 08.09.2017 ( KUIC) . Jammu, Kishtwar, Padder (33° 18.820′ N, 076° 04.492′ E, 7000 ft.), A.A. Buhroo, 09.09.2017 ( KUIC) . Kashmir, Baramulla, Boniyar (34° 07.405′ N, 074° 10.717′ E, 5715 ft.), A.A. Buhroo, 30.09.2017 ( KUIC) . Kashmir, Bandipora, Mastan Gurez (34° 37.728′ N, 074° 50.378′ E, 8410 ft.), A.A. Buhroo, 17.08.2018 ( KUIC) . Kashmir, Srinagar, Hazratbal ( University Campus ), (34° 07′51.10 ′′ N, 074° 50′ 01.09′′ E, 5220 ft.), A.A. Buhroo, 30.06.2018 ( KUIC) . Kashmir, Ganderbal, Baltal Sonamarg (34° 16.018′ N, 075° 23.794′ E, 10080 ft.), A.A. Buhroo, 31.08.2018 ( KUIC)

Distribution: India: Himachal Pradesh, Kashmir, Punjab, Uttarakhand. China, Nepal, Pakistan

Hosts: Abies pindrow and Pinus halepensis ( Pinaceae ) (new host records). Cedrus deodara , Picea smithiana , Pinus bungeana , P. gerardiana , P. wallichiana ( Pinaceae )