Mimasyngenes lineatipennis Breuning, 1950

Clarke Abstract, Robin O. S., 2007, Synopsis of the Bolivian species of MIMASYNGENES Breuning, 1950 (Coleoptera, Cerambycidae, Desmiphorini) with two new species Robin O. S. Clarke ABSTRACT, Papéis Avulsos de Zoologia 47 (26), pp. 359-368 : 364-365

Mimasyngenes lineatipennis Breuning, 1950

( Fig. 4)

Redescription: Male. General colour chestnut, head and pronotum with slight coppery reflection, antennae and hind edge of urosternites darker, elytra, legs and underside palest. General pubescence uniform, very short, almost squamous, grey and recumbent, transverse on pronotum, brownish and arranged in rows on elytra, longer and denser at sides of urosternites. Setae very long, ratio of longest ones to scape 1:1. General puncturation small and dense, especially on pronotum; elytra with rows of medium-sized punctures, interstices finely reticulate (40x); metasternum impunctate but with dense transverse rows of microsculpture (40x); urosternites finely punctato-reticulate (40x).

Head below and behind inferior lobes moderately tumescent; frons with short, recumbent, brownish pubescence, moderately closely punctured with larger (20x) and very small (40x) punctures; eyes large, convex, superior lobes with 4-5 ommatidia/row, relatively narrow and close together, separated by about their own width. Antennae robust, reaching apex of elytra at apex of antennomere IX; scape (0,6 mm) parallel sided; antennomere III (0,5 mm) much shorter than IV and protibia (both 0,8 mm), V-IX (0,50- 0,45 mm) subequal, X+XI (both 0,4 mm).

Prothorax convex, slightly transverse, front margin slightly wider than hind margin; sides almost straight from lateral tubercle to front margin, strongly constricted behind tubercle; lateral tubercle small, represented by a backwardly directed, very short, blunt spine situated just behind middle of side. Pronotum: surface very finely reticulate (40x) punctures rounded or transverse, disc with smooth, glabrous line; elsewhere with sparse, fine, brownish pubescence, the hairs lying transversely.

Elytra, parallel sided, slightly wider at humeri, convex, with broad, slightly raised area around scutellum; with seven rows of very small, almost squamous hairs; and seven more or less regular rows of punctures, those of humeral row (4 th) larger, those of innermost rows becoming smaller and evanescent towards apex.

Femora equally enlarged, peduncles short, one third length of femora, those of metafemora slightly longer, metafemora with apical patch; metatibia enlarged, parallel sided, the lateral surface with differentiated pubescence; metatarsus (0.7 mm) shorter than metatibia (0,9 mm).

Urosternite V slightly longer than IV, with small notch at centre of hind margin.

Sexual dimorphism: Female: superior lobes slightly wider apart, separated by slightly more than their own width; antenna reach apex of elytra at middle of X; urosternite V slightly longer than III+IV, with broad transverse depression before apex.

Variation: Base of antennomeres III-VIII, apex of elytra and legs may be pale chestnut; spine surmounting lateral tubercle may be almost perpendicular to side of prothorax.

Measurements (mm): 2 males / 2 females respectively: total length 4,1-4,4/4,7-5,4; width of pronotum 1,1/1,3; length of pronotum 1,0/1,0-1,1; length of elytra 2,9-3,0/3,8; width at humeri 1,4-1,5/1,7-1,8.

Specimens examined: BOLIVIA, Santa Cruz, Hotel “Flora & Fauna”, 5 km SSE Buena Vista, 17°29’96”S/ 63°39’13”W, 440 m, R . Clarke / S. Zamalloa col., at white light, 3 males 20.X.2004, 1.XI.2004, 3.II.2006 and 1 female 2.XI.2004 ( RCSZ) .

Discussion: Group 1 species. M. lineatipennis is readily separated from the other two species of group 2 by the proximity of the superior lobes and the short tooth surmounting lateral tubercles.

Galileo & Martins (1996:877) state that the photograph they examined of the holotype of M. lineatipennis (from Pernambuco) showed that it differed from their Goiás examples (1 male / 2 females) by its discretely longer spine on the lateral tubercles. Brief comparison of Bolivian examples with those from Goiás appeared to present minor differences of colour and, maybe, significant differences of puncturation. The pronotal punctures are said by Galileo & Martins (1996:877) to be “pontos alongados e transversais, alguns anastomosados”, those of Bolivian specimens are contiguous, at least on the upper surface; and in their key, “to take on the appearance of fine transverse wrinkles”, which is true, but the important word is “appearance”, because the punctures do not constitute transverse wrinkles, but the transverse pubescence overlying them gives this impression. A closer look at this species may indicate the presence of more than one.

This species was recently recorded for Bolivia (Wappes, et al., 2006).