Euphoria leprosa Burmeister, 1842

Orozco, Jesús, 2012, Monographic Revision of the American Genus Euphoria Burmeister, 1842 (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Cetoniinae), The Coleopterists Bulletin (mo 11) 66, pp. 1-182 : 49-50

Euphoria leprosa Burmeister, 1842

(Appendix 4: Fig. 19 )

Euphoria leprosa Burmeister 1842: 379 . Original combination.

Lectotype at MNHN, here designated. Other syntypes not found; no paralectotypes designated.

Description (n = 51). Length 10.6–14.0 mm; width 6.2–7.8 mm. Color: Dorsal surface tomentous, black to dark brown. Head, pronotum, scutellum, and elytra variably covered by cretaceous markings. Pronotum with white to light yellow, cretaceous lines at center and on sides; cretaceous lines whitish to yellowish, thin to thick. Scutellum and elytra with white to light yellow cretaceous markings; markings irregular in shape, small to large. Pygidium frequently entirely covered by cretaceous layer. Ventral surface, including legs, shiny, black to dark brown, variably covered with cretaceous markings. Head: Frons densely punctate to strigopunctate; punctures moderate to large, round, deeply impressed, frequently coalescent, glabrous to densely setose; setae moderate to long, whitish to yellowish. Clypeus short, lateral margins moderately to strongly raised, moderately convergent at apex; apex strongly reflexed in males, weakly to moderately reflexed in females, truncate in dorsal view, moderately to strongly sinuate in frontal view; surface densely punctate, strigopunctate or strigose; punctures small to moderate, round, glabrous to densely setose; setae yellowish to whitish, short to long. Antennal club longer than stem in males, shorter in females. Pronotum: Surface strongly rugose at sides, moderately densely to densely punctate at middle; punctures round to lunulate, small to moderate, sparsely to densely setose; setae short to moderate, yellowish. Sides moderately to strongly angulate. Base vaguely sinuate to weakly emarginate in front of scutellum. Scutellum longer than wide, densely punctate, punctures moderate, lunulate, bearing setae. Elytra: Surface moderately densely punctate, striae composed of 1 row of lunulate to irregular punctures surrounded by 1 row of grooves. Surface glabrous to densely setose; setae minute to short, whitish to yellowish. Costae moderately to strongly defined. Posterior half of sutural costa strongly raised in lateral view. Pygidium: Surface subconcentrically striate, striae discontinuous, moderately impressed, sparsely to moderately densely setose; setae short to moderate, yellowish. Legs: Protibial teeth well developed, basal tooth frequently subobsolete in males. Metatibial carina moderately developed. Venter: Mesometasternal process extended well beyond mesocoxae, glabrous on mesosternal lobe, sides occasionally subparallel, apex variably rounded. Mesepimera, metasternum, and metacoxae setose, setae as on legs. Metasternum rugose, setose laterally, glabrous, impunctate at middle. Median sulcus vaguely to moderately impressed. Abdominal sternites sparsely setose laterally, glabrous to sparsely setose medially, setae distributed along entire width of segment; setae moderate to long in size, whitish to yellowish; sternites 1–3 strongly ridged, sternites 4–6 moderately to weakly ridged. Abdomen in lateral view flat in males, strongly convex in females. Male genitalia: Parameres as in Fig. 19c .

Diagnosis. Adults are easily separated from other members in the group based on the presence of a medial, cretaceous line on the pronotum, densely punctate scutellum, abdominal sternites 1–3 strongly ridged laterally, and form of the parameres.

Taxonomic History. Burmeister (1842) described the species from a dark male from Mexico. Bates (1889) included this species in its own group (Section V) based on the shape of the clypeus being intermediate between those of his sections IV and VII.

Natural History. Adults have been observed feeding on blossoms of woody plants. A large proportion of the specimens examined (∼ 30) were captured in flight intercept traps. Reyes and Morón (2005) collected the species using plantain and beer traps in Tzucacab, Yucatán, Mexico.

Temporal Distribution. April (21), May (6), June (4), November (2) ( Fig. 19e ). Reyes and Morón (2005) recorded nine specimens captured during May.

Geographic Distribution. Known from the lowlands in southeastern Mexico through Belize, northern Guatemala, and Honduras ( Fig. 19f ).

Specimens Examined (51). Type material: Lectotype at MNHN here designated labeled “ Mexico // Mnisxech //Ex Musaeo/ Van Lansberge” and my lectotype label . Other material: BELIZE (30): ORANGE WALK: Rio Bravo Conservation Area (30); GUATEMALA (1): No data (1). HONDURAS (1): CORTÉS: San Pedro Sula (1). MEXICO (17): QUINTANA ROO: Puerto Felipe Carrillo (4), San Felipe (1), no data (1); TABASCO: Cárdenas (6); VERACRUZ: Córdoba (2), Cotaxtla (1), Fortín de las Flores (1); YUCATÁN: Pisté (1). NO DATA (1): “Santa Bárbara” (1).

Figures

Fig. 19. Euphoria leprosa. a) Habitus, b) Head, c) Parameres, d) Color variation, e) Temporal distribution, f) Geographic distribution in Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico; open square indicates country record only.