Xylosandrus woodi Dole & Beaver, 2008

Dole, Stephanie A. & Beaver, Roger A., 2008, A Review of the Australian Species ofXylosandrusReitter (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae), The Coleopterists Bulletin 62 (4), pp. 481-492 : 481-492

Xylosandrus woodi Dole & Beaver , new species

( Fig. 4 )

Description. Female: 2.3–2.4 mm long, 2.1 times as long as wide, dark brown, head and apical part of elytra blackish, antennae and appendages yellowish brown. Frons convex, matt, strongly reticulate, weak median ridge extending from the epistoma to about middle of eyes, punctures shallow, rather coarse, fairly sparse becoming denser, finer and deeper toward epistoma, each with long, erect hair. Eyes emarginate. Antennal funicle 5-segmented, with sparse erect hairs on scape and funicle, club obliquely truncate with first segment sclerotised forming circular costa (type 1, Hulcr et al. 2007), oblique part of club densely pubescent, second segment not corneous, posterior face of club sclerotised with first segment covering entire face (type 1, Hulcr et al. 2007). Pronotum 0.8 times as long as wide, rounded in dorsal aspect (type 1, Hulcr et al. 2007), basal angles broadly rounded, sides convex, widest about one-third from base, anterior two thirds broadly rounded, anterior margin slightly projecting with 6–8 larger asperities, anterior slope with numerous small, transverse asperities, tending towards concentric arrangement, decreasing in size towards summit situated onethird from base, discal punctures often weakly granulate, more closely placed than in X. monteithi , and with stronger reticulation between punctures, but also lacking median patch of dense punctures at base; lateral aspect of pronotum rounded (type 1, Hulcr et al. 2007), with lateral costa extending about half pronotal length, not carinate; vestiture of moderately long erect or semi-appressed hairs. Scutellum triangular, shining, impunctate. Elytra 1.3 times as long as wide, about 1.6 times as long as pronotum, sides subparallel on basal two-thirds, then broadly rounded to apex, declivity commencing behind the mid-point, gradually sloping, not angularly separated from disc; striae not impressed on disc, much narrower than interstriae, regularly, shallowly punctured, punctures separated by little more than their own diameter, bearing fine semi-appressed hairs, becoming longer towards declivity, interstriae wide, irregularly bi- or tri-seriate, punctures finer than on striae becoming granulate towards declivity, hairs similar to those of striae, but longer and more erect; declivity convex, striae weakly impressed in upper part of declivity, punctures similar to disc, punctures on interstriae confused, with moderately long fine hairs, lateral margin of declivity with discontinuous row of small tubercles, some of these towards elytral apex with carinate tip. Procoxae widely separated. Protibiae with 4–5 socketed teeth on lateral margin, meso- and metatibiae with 7–8 socketed teeth. Abdominal ventrites quite densely, coarsely punctured, the punctures with fine hairs of varied lengths.

A total of 5 specimens were examined for this description.

Type Material. Holotype (female): [ AUSTRALIA], NEQ[ueensland], 16 ° 30 9 S x 145 ° 19 9 E, Mt Demi summit, 1,100 m, flight intercept, 17.xii.1995 – 22.i.1996 (Monteith, Thompson & Ford). In QMB (Accession # T144404).

Paratypes (4) (female): [ AUSTRALIA], NEQ, 19 ° 07S, 146 ° 23 9 E, Mt Halifax summit, 1,050 m, heath, pitfalls & intercepts, 21.iii.–10.v.1991 (D. Cook) ( NHML) ; as previous except: rainforest, pitfalls, 19–21.iii.1991 (G. Monteith & D. Cook) ( MSU) ; N.Qld, Mossman Bluff track, 5–10 km W Mossman, site 10, 1,300 m, flt. intercept, 17–31.xii.1988 (Monteith, Thompson & ANZSES) ( RAB) ; N.Qld, Windsor Tableland , site 5, flt. intercept, 27.xii.1988 – 9.i.1989 (E.Schmidt & ANZSES) ( QMB) .

Male: Unknown.

Etymology. This species is named for the distinguished entomologist, Stephen L. Wood (Brigham Young University, Utah), who has contributed so much towards the study of bark and ambrosia beetles.

Discussion. The species appears to be most closely related to X. monteithi from which it may be distinguished by the characters given in the key. Both species lack the tuft of hairs, indicating the presence of a pronotal-mesonotal mycangium, at the base of the pronotum, which is characteristic of other species of Xylosandrus . Both species also lack a declivital carina, having rounded or finely tuberculate declivital margins, distinguishing them from most other species of Xylosandrus sensu stricto, which have declivital margins marked by a distinct carina. Since it was not possible to obtain DNA sequence data for this species, its relationships to other members of Xylosandrus sensu stricto are currently being tested in a phylogenetic analysis of morphological characters (S. A. Dole and A. I. Cognato, in prep.). X. woodi appears to be a montane species recorded so far only from altitudes between 1,050 and 1,300 m.

New Combinations

Figures

Fig. 4. Lateral (A) and dorsal (B) views of Xylosandrus woodi, new species, 2.3–2.4 mm, female paratype.