Cionus notatus Rosenschoeld, 1838

Caldara, Roberto & Košťál, Michael, 2023, A Taxonomic Revision Of The Afrotropical Species Of The Weevil Genus Cionus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), Zootaxa 5288 (1), pp. 1-98 : 42-44

21. Cionus notatus Rosenschoeld ( Figs 21a–f )

Cionus notatus Rosenschoeld, 1838: 735 .

Cionus nigropunctatus Fåhraeus, 1871: 250 (syn. n.)

Type locality. “Caffraria” ( South Africa).

Type series. This species was described based on an unspecified number of specimens collected in “Caffraria” ( South Africa) without more precise data. In NHRS we examined one specimen labelled “♁ / Typus / Caffraria in Scaparia, Eckl. & Zeyr.”, which we designated as the lectotype by adding the label “ LECTOTYPE Cionus notatus Rosenschoeld des. Caldara & Košťál 2014”.

Synonyms. Cionus nigropunctatus was also described based on specimens collected in “Caffraria”. In NHRS we examined four syntypes labelled “Caffra-ria / I. Vahlb. / Typus / Cionus nigropuncta-tus Boh. / Cionus nigropunctatus Bohem. n.sp. 16–19” (♁), and “Caffra–ria / I. Vahlb. / Paratypus ” (2 ♁♁, 1 ♀). First specimen (here designated as the lectotype by adding the label “ LECTOTYPUS Cionus nigropunctatus Fåhr. Caldara des. 2006”), and another male specimen (which we labelled as the paralectotype) perfectly correspond to the original description where Fåhraeus wrote “Torax ….dense albido tomentosus, dorso maculis 6–8 atris notato…”. These specimens do not show differences from the lectotype of C. notatus . On the contrary, the other two specimens (one male and one female) do not correspond to the original description having only two small black spots on the pronotum. They are conspecific with here newly described C. oculatus .

Diagnosis. Rostrum stout, short. Head between eyes distinctly narrow. Pronotum distinctly transverse, with two distinct lateral protuberances. Elytra short, strongly convex, densely covered with grayish white scales, with many large blackish maculae on odd interstriae, and striae hidden by scales. Claws asymmetrical in male.

Redescription. Male ( Figs 21a–b ). Body: stout, globose. Head: rostrum stout, short (Rl/Rw 3.00–3.10, Rl/Pl 0.97–1.04), black; in lateral view weakly curved; in dorsal view parallel-sided; to near apex with moderately dense, recumbent, moderately elongated, elliptical (l/w 5–8), grayish white scales. Head between eyes narrow, 0.3× as wide as rostrum at base. Eyes flat. Antennae blackish brown, inserted at apical 1/3; scape long (l/w 10); funicle shorter than scape, S1 as robust and as long as S2, 2.3× as long as wide, S2 2.5 × as long as wide, S3–5 transverse; club oblongly oval, as long as funicle, uniformly pubescent. Pronotum: black, with small, shallow regular punctures, intervals among punctures shining, smooth, with two distinct lateral protuberances, almost completely hidden by recumbent, dense, imbricated, moderately elongated (l/w 4–7), grayish white scales, with four transversely arranged black spots in median third (two covering protuberances formed by erect scales) and two less distinct spots at middle more apically; conical, strongly transverse (Pw/Pl 1.82–1.88), widest at base, with rectilinear sides, weakly convex, almost flat on disc. Prosternum: anterior margin distinctly emarginated. Scutellar shield: large, with dense whitish scales. Elytra: black, short (El/Ew 1.07–1.12), globose, widest at middle, distinctly wider than pronotum (Ew/Pw 1.74–1.77), humeri rounded, weakly prominent, sides moderately rounded, strongly convex on disc; interstriae flat, wide, with small, shallow regular punctures, intervals between punctures shining,smooth, interstriae with dense, recumbent grayish white scales, odd interstriae with many subquadrate to subrectangular maculae of blackish scales; striae invisible, with moderately deep punctures, half as wide as interstriae, intervals between punctures narrow, situated slightly lower than interstriae, with scales similar to those on interstriae. Venter: mesosternal process almost flat, slightly emarginated. Metasternum covered with moderately dense, elongated, in middle partly hair-like grayish scales. Abdomen with moderately dense, irregular, moderately shallow punctures slightly visible between dense, elongated, grayish scales, slightly more elongated and partly hair-like in middle, without tuft on V2; V1 1.9× as long as V2; V1+2 5.0× as long as V3+4, latter ones as long as V5. Legs: completely black, covered with moderately dense elongated, grayish scales; femora with robust sharp teeth; tibiae without unci; tarsi with onychium twice longer than T3; claws asymmetrical, one claw 1/2 as wide as other. Penis: Figs 21d–f , its body gradually narrowed from base to apex, tip shortly blunted. Flagellum robust, moderately long, bifurcated at base.

Female. Rostrum moderately longer (Rl/Rw 3.10–3.15, Rl/Pl 1.03–1.07) ( Fig. 21c ), claws almost symmetrical.

Variability. Length 3.3–3.9 mm. Dark spots on elytra moderately variable in number, size and shape.

Remarks. Due to the shape and the vestiture of elytra and the shape of the rostrum this species is similar to C. vicarius and C. tristis , from which it clearly differs by the presence of two protuberances and four transversely arranged spots of dark scales on the pronotum and narrower space between eyes.

Biological notes. This species was collected on Microdon sp. (Scrophulariaceae) by J. Haran at Stellenbosch.

Distribution. South Africa (KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape, Western Cape).

Non-type material examined. SOUTH AFRICA: KwaZulu-Natal: Cedara, V.1949, leg. Munro (1, SANC); Durban (Bluff), 6.X.1934, leg. Munro (1, BMNH); Malvern, leg. Barker (2, BMNH); Margate, 30°51’S 30°22’E, 23.IV.1977, leg. Cilliers (1, SANC); Untentweni, III.1961 (1, RCCM; 3, SANC);Weza, 30°37’S 29°42’E, 25.XI.1989, leg. Endrödy & Klimaszew (1, TMSA). Eastern Cape: north fork of Mkambathi river, 31°25’S 29°95’E, 30.I.2008, leg. Hamer (2, TMSA); above Mosquito Bay, 31°26’S 30°03’E, 25.I.2008, leg. Hamer (2, TMSA); Mtentu river area, 31°23’S 29°97’E, 30.I.2008, leg. Hamer (2, MKCS; 1, RCCM; 6, TMSA); Port St. John, Pondoland, 18.– 31.III.1924, leg. Turner (1, BMNH). Western Cape: Stellenbosch, 33°94’S 18°87’E, 29.IX.2018, on Microdon cf. dubius , leg. Haran (2, CBGP).

Figures

FIGURES 21–22. FIGURE 21. Cionus notatus. a: body in dorsal view (male), b: body in lateral view (male), c: rostrum in lateral view (female), d: penis in ventral view, e: penis in lateral view, f: apex of penis in dorsal view. FIGURE 22. Cionus pustulatus. a: body in dorsal view (male), b: body in lateral view (male), c: rostrum in lateral view (female), d: penis in ventral view, e: penis in lateral view, f: apex of penis in dorsal view. Not to scale.