Onthophagus notiodes Solís & Kohlmann, 2003

Solís, Ángel & Kohlmann, Bert, 2003, New species of dung beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae) from Costa Rica and Panama, Zootaxa 139, pp. 1-14 : 3-4

Onthophagus notiodes Solís & Kohlmann , sp. nov. ( Fig. 2 )

Diagnosis. This species is distinguished by the following combination of characters: pronotal surface without setae; body colour uniform, reddish­brown with cupreous red or green metallic reflections, meso­and metafemora not yellow in their central part; setae of the apex of the metatibia always thick, forming a comb, stiff, always the same size and with fine setae alternating within them and with a size never exceeding 2.5 times the size of the stiff setae; elytra surface much sharpened and punctate; males have small teeth at the base of the head; short, broad, massive clypeal horn; a very square angle exists between the clypeal tooth and the gena; pronotal male process with lamellae that point slightly inwards and upwards.

Description. Holotype. Male: Length: 7.8 mm. Humeral width: 4.1 mm. Head and pronotum cupreous red with intense golden­green reflections, elytra burgundy colours, rest of the body a dark reddish­brown with greenish cast.

The head has a clypeal horn, thick set at its base and broadening toward the apex. The frontal area rugosely punctate, eyes small. There is a pair of small horns, teeth like, between the eyes and toward the base of the head. The angle between the clypeal tooth and the gena is 90°.

Pronotum slightly shagreened and uniformly punctate, prominences broadly bladelike, slightly pointing upwards, parallel and slightly converging at the apex.

Elytra with eight striae evident, each with large punctures, intervals flat and covered with fine punctation, surface shagreened.

Pygidium shagreened and covered with regular punctation, carina running through the middle.

Protibiae long and slender, with tarsi present and four external teeth. Meso­ and metatibia dilated toward the apex. First metatarsus very long and almost rectangular in shape.

Allotype. Female: Length 6.9mm. Humeral width: 3.9mm. Similar to male but unarmed, with a transversal carina at the middle of the head and the anterior border of the clypeus shows two well developed teeth separated by an open “v” notch, there are also two pointed small teeth, at the base of the head between the eyes. Pronotal process formed by two small blunt teeth. Foretibia short and broad.

Variation. Length: 6.1­7.8mm. Humeral width: 3.2­4.9mm. Specimen body colour can vary from an intense cupreous red to cupreous green. Males vary from having a well developed clypeal horn to just a small lamella; head horn and pronotal projections also vary from well to feebly developed. Less developed males lack the strongly developed angle between the clypeal teeth and the gena. Pygidium can go from a fine to a strong punctation.

Examined material (22 specimens). Holotype, male: COSTA RICA. Grano de Oro, 1120 m, Chirripó, Turrialba, Prov. Cartago, Feb, 1993, P. Campos. Allotype, female: ibidem, Mar., 1993. Paratypes. Cartago: Grano de Oro, 1120 m, Chirripó, Turrialba, Marzo 1993, P. Campos, 2 specimens; 13­15 Abril, 11 specimens; Septiembre 1992, 1 specimen; Octubre 1992, 1 specimen; Febrero 1993, 1 specimen. Heredia: Estación 1070 m, transecto altitudinal Finca la Selva a Volcán Barva, Parque Nacional Braulio Carrillo, trampa de foso, 17 abril 2001, D. Brenes, 2 specimens, 18 abril 2001, 2 specimens.

Habitat. O. notiodes w as collected in cloud forest at elevations ranging from 1070 to 1120 m.

Geographical distribution. This species is known so far from Grano de Oro, in the province of Cartago and along the Atlantic slope of Barva volcano.

Chorological affinities. The new species occupies higher terrain on the Caribbean slope, whereas O. praecellens is found at lower altitudes on both slopes.

Taxonomic relationships. O. notiodes keys to O. praecellens in Kohlmann and Solís (2001). The males are easily distinguished by their short, broad, massive and not strongly backwardly curved clypeal horn, whereas O. praecellens has a finer, slender and backwardly curved clypeal horn. The new species has a sharp angle between the clypeal tooth and the gena, whereas O. praecellens has a rather open angle. O. notiodes has the pronotal process with lamellae that point slightly inwards and upwards, while those of O. praecellens are parallel and level. In females the clypeal teeth are well developed, but the head horns are smaller than in O. praecellens . Elytra are much more shagreened in O. notiodes than in O. praecellens .

With the exception of elytral shagreenation, there are no characters separating the females of both species.

Etymology. Notiodes () , a Greek word in apposition, meaning wet or damp, making reference to the very humid tropical forests, where this species lives.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Dorsal habitus of Onthophagus notiodes Solís & Kohlmann, sp. nov. (holotype).