Praocis (Praocis) Eschscholtz, 1829

Flores, Gustavo E. & Pizarro-Araya, Jaime, 2014, Towards a revision of the South American genus Praocis Eschscholtz (Coleoptera, Tenebrionidae), with estimation of the diversity of each subgenus, ZooKeys 415, pp. 53-80 : 57-59

(1) Subgenus Praocis (Praocis) Eschscholtz, 1829 Figs 2, 15-16

Type species.

Praocis rufipes Eschscholtz, 1829, subsequent designation by Guérin-Méneville (1834: 8-9).

Diagnosis.

Clypeus with anterior margin extending beyond to lateral expansion of frons, width of anterior margin not exceeding half the interocular width, clypeal suture as a vertical groove, not covered by frons, clypeus and frons at same level; antennomere 10 wider than long, antennomere 9 longer than antennomere 10, antennomere 11 longer than antennomere 10; apical tomentose sensory patches on antennomere 10 in a dorsally continuous semicircle, on antennomere 11 on distal half; prosternum with a narrow edge on anterior margin; lateral margin of elytron well defined; ventral surface of profemora with a row of setae on anterior edge; protibiae explanate.

Distribution.

Species of Praocis s. str. are endemic to central and southern Chile and occur from 26°South (Quebrada el León, Atacama Region) to 42°South (Carelmapu, Los Lagos Region) in the biogeographic provinces of Atacama, Coquimbo, Santiago, Maule and Valdivian Forest ( Morrone 2006) (Fig. 15).

New records.

We present new records for some Pacific islands. We recorded Praocis (Praocis) spinolai Gay & Solier for Damas (29°13'S, 71°31'W), Gaviota (29°15'S, 71°28'W) and Choros (29°15'S, 71°32'W) islands ( Alfaro et al. 2009), Praocis (Praocis) subaenea Erichson and Praocis (Praocis) curta Solier for Chañaral Island (29°02'S, 71°36'W) (pers. obs), and Praocis (Praocis) costata Gay & Solier was recorded for Mocha Island (38°23'S, 73°52'W) ( Flores and Pizarro-Araya 2012).

Diversity.

This subgenus contains 18 species of which 2 species were recently described ( Flores and Pizarro-Araya 2012), increasing 13 percent the number of species (Fig. 33).

Habitat.

The distribution range of the subgenus extends from sea level to an altitude of ~1300 m. Most species are distributed between the Huasco coastal desert and the coastal shrub steppe ( Gajardo 1994), with 4 and 10 species each, and are ecologically related to shrub and herbaceous vegetation (perennial and annual) characteristic of the Chilean Coastal Desert (CCD), in sandy soils or clayey, poorly-permeable soils ( Flores and Pizarro-Araya 2012; Cortés-Contreras et al. 2013; collection data FMNH, IADIZA, LEULS, and pers. obs.). One species ( Praocis (Praocis) costata Solier) inhabits deciduous woodlands of Nothofagus spp. ( Gajardo 1994) in the Valdivian Forest biogeographic province ( Morrone 2006) (Fig. 16).

Species included.

Praocis rufipes Eschscholtz, 1829 (= Sternodes mannerheimi Fischer, 1844, male, synonymy by Motschulsky 1845) (= Praocis interrupta Solier, 1851, synonymy by Kulzer 1958); Praocis costata Gay & Solier in Solier, 1840 (= Praocis ciliata Germain, 1855, synonymy by Kulzer 1958); Praocis sanguinolenta Gay & Solier in Solier, 1840 (= Praocis audouini Solier, 1840, synonymy by Flores 2007); Praocis quadrisulcata Germain, 1855; Praocis curta Solier, 1840 (= Praocis nigroaenea Solier, 1840, synonymy by Kulzer 1958) (= Praocis rugipennis Germain, 1855, synonymy by Kulzer 1958); Praocis hirtella Kulzer, 1958a; Praocis sulcata Eschscholtz, 1829 (= Sternodes mannerheimi Fischer, 1844, female, synonymy by Motschulsky 1845) (= Praocis rotundata Laporte, 1840, synonymy by Flores and Pizarro-Araya 2010); Praocis subsulcata Gay & Solier in Solier, 1840; Praocis spinolai Gay & Solier in Solier, 1840; Praocis aenea Gay & Solier in Solier, 1840; Praocis parva Gay & Solier in Solier, 1840; Praocis tibialis Gay & Solier in Solier, 1840 (= Praocis rufitarsis Gay & Solier in Solier, 1840, synonymy by Flores 2007) (= Praocis aenipennis Germain, 1855, synonymy by Kulzer 1958); Praocis subaenea Erichson, 1834 (= Praocis submetallica Guérin-Méneville, 1834, synonymy by Flores 2007) (= Praocis laevicosta Curtis, 1845, synonymy by Kulzer 1958); Praocis marginata Germain, 1855; Praocis elliptica Philippi & Philippi, 1864 (= Praocis angustata Philippi & Philippi, 1864, synonymy by Kulzer 1958); Praocis bicentenario Flores & Pizarro-Araya, 2012; Praocis medvedevi Flores & Pizarro-Araya, 2012; Praocis bicostata Philippi & Philippi, 1864 (type lost, assigned to ( Praocis ) by Kulzer 1958).