Lagocheirus giesberti Hovore, 1998

Toledo, Víctor H. & Hovore, Frank T., 2005, Notes on the genus Lagocheirus Dejean: records and descriptions (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae: Lamiinae: Acanthocinini), Zootaxa 1021 (1), pp. 29-36 : 35-36

Lagocheirus giesberti Hovore

(Figures 4a, b)

Material examined: COSTA RICA, Guanacaste Province: one male, “Est. Los Almendros, 300 m, 26 ­ 30 ABR 1995, E.E. Lopez ” (INBio); one female, Santa Rosa National Park , Guanacaste Prov., 9–11 May 1980, D.H. Janzen, W. Hallwachs (INBio) .

Remarks. This species was originally described from a unique male specimen from Monteverde, Puntarenas Province, Costa Rica. Two additional specimens provisionally assigned to this species have been seen, including a female, permitting characterization of that sex and discussion of additional characters for species recognition. These specimens are from lower elevation sites, and both are much less distinctly marked than the holotype, but the male shares the specific diagnostic characters of the type, and there is little doubt as to its identity. Lagocheirus giesberti superficially resembles very­lightly marked specimens of L. o. obsoletus (Figure 6), with which it may be sympatric in Costa Rica; however, it differs from that species immediately by the simple sixth antennal segment (o. obsoletus has a thumb­like apical appendix internally), much smaller upper and lower eye lobes, and slightly more distinctly penicillate elytral disk.

The specimen determined to be a female giesberti is marked as in the male, and further differs by the usual generic characters: unmodified fore tarsi, shorter antennae, stouter body form, slightly elongated terminal abdominal sternite. It differs only slightly from female o. obsoletus , however, and lacking association with a male from the same site, the following comparison should be regarded as tentative, pending further specimens. From typical o. obsoletus females it differs by the almost wholly pale dorsal coloration, without darker lateral maculae or distinct discal fasciae, less­distinctly maculate antennal segments, broader, shorter, unmarked scutellum (narrowly ligulate, and usually dark­maculate in o. obsoletus ), and less­distinctly emarginate apical sternite; length: 16 mm; humeral width: 6 mm. The male specimen examined is considerably smaller than the holotype (22 mm), at 16.5 mm.

Most Lagocheirus species exhibit variation in dorsal coloration and pattern extent within and between samples, but the evanescent dorsal pattern and broader scutellum should distinguish female L. giesberti from those of L. o. obsoletus . Female L. simplicicornis Bates have much larger lower eye lobes, distinctly costate elytra, usually clearly darkmaculated laterally, and the femora whitish pubescent, finely, evenly maculate with black (unmarked in giesberti ); female L. araneiformis ypsilon have stouter, longer, evenly yellow­brown pubescent antennae, boldly patterned elytra, and finely black­maculate femora.