Bothynus thrix Hardy, 2017

Hardy, Martin, 2017, Description of a new species of Bothynus Hope from Argentina and Bolivia (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Dynastinae), Zootaxa 4362 (1), pp. 141-145 : 141-145

Bothynus thrix Hardy , new species ( Figs. 1–5 )

Type material. Holotype male, allotype female, 5 males paratypes, and 4 females paratypes. Holotype male ( CMNC) labeled " ARGENTINA / Salta / Dpto. San Martìn / Pocitos / coll. Martinez / Feb. 1964 ", // " Howden coll. Ex. / A. Martinez coll." . Allotype female ( CMNC) labeled " BOLIVIA / Dpto. Sta Cruz / Pua. Ichilo / Buena Vista / coll. Martinez / Feb. 1950 ", // " Howden coll. Ex. / A. Martinez coll." . Paratypes: one male ( MAHC) and one female ( MAHC) labeled " BOLIVIA: Santa Cruz / Buena Vista vic. / Flora&Fauna Hotel / 17-20/X/00. R. Morris " . Paratype: one female ( CERPE) labeled " BOLIVIA Santa Cruz / 4-6k SSE Buena Vista / F&F Hotel 14-16 Oct. / 2000 Wappes & Morris" . Paratype: two males ( ACM) labeled " BOLIVIA Santa Cruz / 4-6k SSE Buena Vista / F & F Hotel Nov 1-8 / 2002 J.E. Wappes " . Paratype: one male ( RFMC) and one female ( RFMC) labeled " BOLIVIA: Santa Cruz / Buena Vista vic. / Flora&Fauna Hotel / 22-26/X/02, Morris / Wappes " . Paratype: one male ( CERPE) labeled " BOLIVIA: Santa Cruz / 5k ESE Warnes, Hotel / Rio Selva, 20-21/X/00 / Morris / Wappes " . Paratype: one female ( CMNC) labeled " ARGENTINA / Salta / Dpto. San Martìn / Dique Itiyuro / coll. Martinez / Dic. 1970 ", // " Howden coll. Ex. / A. Martinez coll." .

Description of holotype ( Figs. 1A–C ). Male. Length 19.5 mm; width at elytra humeri 10.5 mm. Color reddish brown, the pronotum and head slightly darker.

Head: Clypeus triangular, sides straight and weakly carinate, apex with anterior margin slightly emarginate, anterior angles bidentate with both teeth broadly separated and weakly reflexed. Clypeus and frons coarsely rugopunctate, punctures on frons setose. Frontoclypeal ridge weakly marked, feebly elevated not reaching sides of eyes. Interocular width equals 4 transverse eye diameters. Ocular canthus small, rounded. Antenna with 10 antennomeres, club slightly longer than antennomeres 2–7 (funicle without scape), club round. Mandibles tridentate, the 2 anterior teeth pointed, third tooth rounded on the side.

Pronotum: Anterior angles acute, posterior angles very obtuse, rounded. Marginal bead completes anteriorly and laterally, incomplete basally. Anterior two thirds of pronotum with a transversally declivous area, almost flat, not delimited on side; behind anterior margin with a strong, pointed tubercle. Surface covered with large rounded punctures, dense and equally spaced, smaller on posterior third; punctures behind tubercle, in anterior angles and on sides setose. Row of setae also present on the basal margin.

Elytra: Surface shiny, with indistinct row of small to moderate punctures, ocellate; covered with long, pale setae. Sutural stria indistinct, marked with small punctures equal in size. Intervals flat.

Propygidium: Surface finely and transversely rugose on sides, with a large stridulary band in the middle, completely covered with small setae.

Pygidium: Surface completely finely rugopunctate, less on disc; covered with small setae, longer on sides. Convex in lateral view.

Legs: Protibia tridentate, teeth equally spaced; protarsis not thickened, claws elongate and equal in size; inner claw not incised. Metatibia with apex truncate, with 32 small bristles.

Venter: Metasternum rugopunctate and densely setigerous, setae long. Prosternal process short, rounded, densely covered with numerous setae.

Parameres: In caudal view ( Fig. 3A ), enlarge at base then slightly tapering, apex dilated; in lateral and oblique views ( Figs. 3B–C ) with a distinct, small tooth at middle.

Variation. Allotype female ( Figs. 2A–C ): length 20.5 mm; width at elytra humeri 10 mm. Female allotype as holotype except in the followings characteristics. Head: Antenna club the same size as antennomeres 2–7. Pronotum: Tubercle behind anterior margin absent, reduce to a low gibbosity. Surface covered with larger and denser punctures, becoming confluent on disc. Elytra: Setae more abundant over entire surface. Pygidium: Pilosity longer and denser on disc. Flat in lateral view. Paratypes: length 19.5–22.0 mm. Characters similar to holotype male and allotype female.

Etymology. This species name is based after the Greek adjective thríx , meaning hairy or pilose, referring to the pubescence covering the elytra and part of the pronotum.

Distribution ( Fig. 5 ). Bothynus thrix is known from the northern part of Argentina in Salta Province and from the Department of Santa Cruz in Bolivia.

Temporal data. February (2), October (6), November (2), December (1); these dates coincide with the beginning of the rainy season in October.

Diagnosis. Bothynus thrix will key to the couplet 37(36) for B. striatellus (Fairmaire, 1878) in Endrödi (1985) , although it is easily distinguished from it based on the combination of characters listed in Table 1.

The genital structure of males of Bothynus species is reliable for species identification even if some general similarities are sometimes observed between some species. The parameres of the new species are similar to those of Bothynus striatellus (Fairmaire, 1878) , but they are shorter and have no visible tooth on the side, whereas they are more elongate and with a distinctive lateral tooth in B. thrix ( Figs 3B–C ).

Given the particular appearance of this new species of Bothynus , (the only species with such abundant setae on the elytra and part of the pronotum), it is surprising that B. thrix has remained unknown until now. This eastern part of the Bolivian and Argentinean Andes from which the specimens originate are known for their high endemism and biodiversity ( Swenson et al. 2012).

Figures

FIGURES 1A–C. Bothynus thrix new species, holotype male. A, habitus, dorsal view; B, habitus, ventral view; C, habitus, lateral view.

FIGURES 2A–C. Bothynus thrix new species, allotype female. A, habitus, dorsal view; B, habitus, ventral view; C, habitus, lateral view.

FIGURES3A–C. Bothynus thrix new species,male parameres.A,caudal view;B, lateral view;C, oblique view.

FIGURES 4A–B. Bothynus striatellus (Fairmaire, 1878), holotype male. A, habitus, dorsal view; B, labels. Photographs courtesy of A.Mantilleri, Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, Paris, France.

FIGURE 5. Distribution map showing currently known localities in South America for Bothynus thrix (black dots).