Lalagetes seminulum Fåhraeus, 1871

Borovec, Roman & Skuhrovec, Jiří, 2018, Revision of the species related to Lalagetes subfasciatus Boheman and transfer of remaining Lalagetes species to other genera of Embrithini (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Entiminae), Zootaxa 4374 (1), pp. 71-90 : 83-85

Lalagetes seminulum Fåhraeus, 1871

( Figs 8A–E )

Lalagetes seminulum Fåhraeus, 1871: 31 (original description). Lalagetes seminulum: Lona 1937: 357 (catalogue).

Type locality. Caffraria [ South Africa, Eastern Cape].

Type material. Lectotype (here designated), 1 spec. ( NHRS): ‘Caffraria [p] / I. Vahlb. [p] / Type. [p] / Typus [red, p] / seminulum Boh. [hw] / seminulum Bohem. n. sp. [hw] / 6494 E91 + [blue, p] / NHRS-JLKB 0 0 0 0 20764 [p] / LECTOTYPUS Lalagetes seminulum Fåhraeus, R. Borovec & J. Skuhrovec desig. 2017’ [red, p].

Additional material examined. 1 ♀, ‘[ South Africa, KwaZulu-Natal], Hluhluwe Game Reserve Zululand , 1. Dez. [December] 1971, leg. Zumpt’ ( MFNB).

Redescription ( Figs 8A–E ). Body length 1.97–2.31 mm, lectotype 1.97 mm.

Body ( Fig. 8A ) dark brownish; antennae and legs paler, reddish brown, including clubs. Elytra with moderately large, dense, isolated rounded appressed scales, finely longitudinally striate, 3–4 across width of one interval; pronotum and head with rostrum with similar, but slightly smaller, in middle depressed appressed scales. Elytral setae semiperpendicular, subspatulate, apically rounded, at apex only indistinctly more slender than diameter of one appressed scale, distance between two setae about as long as length of one seta, slightly shorter width of one interval; scapes and outer side of tibiae with semiappressed, short, inconspicuous, subspatulate whitish setae. Elytral vestiture with irregular, moderately large, transverse greyish white and dark brownish spots, pronotum with two wide longitudinal, dark brownish stripes.

Rostrum ( Figs 8A–C ) in females 1.12–1.14 × as wide as long, widest at base, at base 1.12 × as wide as at apex, with weakly concave sides. Epifrons narrow, widest at base, tapered anteriad with concave sides. Antennal scrobes dorsally pit-shaped at anterior half.

Antennae ( Fig. 8A ). Antennal scape moderately enlarged apicad, at apex 1.1 × as wide as club. Segments 1 and 2 long and slender, conical; segment 1 1.8 × as long as wide and 1.2–1.3 × as long as segment 2, which is twice as long as wide; segments 3–6 1.1 × as long as wide; segment 7 isodiametric; club 1.8–1.9 × as long as wide.

Pronotum in females 1.47–1.52 × as wide as long.

Elytra in females 1.18–1.19 × as long as wide; when cleared of scales with striae creating deepend lines.

Legs ( Figs 8A, D ). Tarsal segment 2 1.2–1.3 × as wide as long; segment 3 1.2–1.3 × as wide as long and 1.2– 1.3 × as wide as segment 2; onychium equally long as segment 3.

Male genitalia. Penis unknown.

Female genitalia. Gonocoxites with very small and short, hardly visible styli. Sternite VIII with apodeme 4.8 × as long as plate; plate subtriangular, isodiametric. Spermatheca ( Fig. 8F ) with moderately large rounded corpus, ramus and nodulus equally long but of different shape, ramus oval, weakly longer than wide, nodulus subtriangular with slightly curved tip, about as long as wide.

Biology. Unknown.

Distribution. South Africa, KwaZulu-Natal ( Fig. 4 ).

Differential diagnosis. By its slender pronotum and narrow epifrons this species is similar only to L. howdenorum sp. nov., from which it is distinguished by elytral setae short and subspatulate, apically rounded, plate of sternite VIII in females isodiametric and subtriangular nodulus, placed just next to ramus.

Remarks. Fåhraeus (1871) described this species from “Caffraria”, but he did not specify more precise details of the locality or the number of specimens, he had at his disposal. The lectotype is a pinned, well preserved specimen, lacking right antennal funicle with club and complete right posterior leg.

Figures

FIGURE 4. Distribution of Lalagetes species in South Africa; Lalagetes andersoni sp. nov. (green round); Lalagetes howdenorum sp. nov. (pink round); Lalagetes sarkae sp. nov. (yellow rounds); Lalagetes seminulum Fåhraeus, 1871 (red round); Lalagetes subfasciatus Boheman, 1842 (blue rounds); Lalagetes zitae sp. nov. (brown rounds).

FIGURE 8. Lalagetes seminulum Fåhraeus, 1871. A—habitus, dorsal view, female; B—rostrum, female, dorsal view; C— rostrum, female, lateral view; D—protibia,female; E—spermatheca.Scales bars: 1 mm (A), and 0.3 mm (E).