Pseudomeira doderoi F. Solari, 1955

Bellò, Cesare & Baviera, Cosimo, 2011, On the Sicilian species of Pseudomeira Stierlin (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Entiminae), Zootaxa 3100, pp. 35-68 : 43-44

Pseudomeira doderoi F. Solari, 1955

( Figs. 13 , 39 , 57 , 69 )

Pseudomeira doderoi F. Solari, 1955: 52 ; Pierotti & Bellò, 1994: 114; Abbazzi et al., 1995: 23; Pierotti & Bellò, 1998: 106; Sparacio, 1999: 138; Colonnelli, 2003: 48; Osella et al., 2005; Pierotti, 2006: 25; Pierotti, 2009: 482; Abbazzi & Maggini, 2009: 61.

Type locality: Sicily, Pachino.

Diagnosis: Small to middle-sized (2.8–4.0 mm), elongate-oval. Epistoma impressed, clypeus almost flat and a shallowly impressed in middle. Elytra clothed by earth-brown scales and thick with almost suberect setae. Aedeagus ogival with blunt apex ( Fig. 69 ).

Description: Middle-sized, quite robust. Elytra longer than wide, disc quite flat. Dorsal vestiture of largely overlapping earth-brown scales and half-lifted short thick more or less suberect setae; paler small markings are on both elytra and pronotum.

Rostrum, particularly that of females, transverse, sides not or hardly narrowing towards apex. Epistoma depressed with feebly bulging edges; pterygia just slightly protruding; clypeus slightly enlarged basally, with a longitudinal depression usually continuing that on frons; frons almost twice as wide as clypeus between antennae. Eyes slightly convex. Antennae robust; scape curved near the base and progressively thickening towards apex; all funicular segments with clubbed setae; segments 4–7 pearl-shaped; club not so thick, with the first segment widely conical and with sharp apex.

Pronotum transverse, sides sinuate, disc with punctures usually hidden by the scales.

Elytra longer than wide, flattened on disc. Striae conspicuous, interstriae feebly convex and bearing short apically enlarged lifted setae.

Legs robust; external margin of protibiae straight up to the blunt apex.

Aedeagus: see Figs. 57 , 69 .

Distribution: Sicily ( Pierotti & Bellò 1994).

Material: The male holotype ( SOL) bears the following labels: [transparent label with dry genitalia], "Pachino, Sicilia, 13/ 17.V.1906 " [white, handwritten], " doderoi holotypus " [white, handwritten], " P. doderoi Solari i. litt." [white, handwritten]; "foto Bellò 2011" [yellow, handwritten]. A total of 180 specimens were examined. Genitalia of 35 were studied, and molecular data were obtained from 4 males and 2 females.

Localities: Siracusa: Buscemi ( BAV, BEL, PIE); Ferla (OSE, PIE, BAV, BEL); f. Marcellino ( BEL, OSE); f. Cassibile ( BEL, PIE); Melilli ( BEL, PIE); Pachino (BIN, DOD, HOF, MAN, SOL); Pantalica ( BAV, BEL, MAG); Sortino ( BAV, BEL, OSE, PIE, STU); Vendicari ( ANG); Zocco ( BEL, PIE); Palazzolo Acreide ( ANG, BAV, BEL). Ragusa: Giarratana ( BAV, BEL).

Ecology: We collected adults in spring by sifting leaf-litter beneath Quercus sp., Rubus sp. and Olea europaea europaea L. The weevils aestivate, and can be found again from the beginning of to late autumn.

Reproduction: Amphigonic.

Figures

FIGURES 10 – 18. Habitus of Pseudomeira ssp. (scale bar: 1 mm).

FIGURES 36 – 44. Lateral view of Pseudomeira ssp. (scale bar: 1 mm).

FIGURES 53 – 64. Aedeagus of Pseudomeira ssp.

FIGURES 65 – 76. Apex aedeagus of Pseudomeira ssp.