Cryptogenius westwoodi, Costa-Silva & Vaz-de-Mello, 2023

Costa-Silva, Vinícius & Vaz-de-Mello, Fernando Z., 2023, Not everything is what it seems: the study of type specimens of Cryptogenius Westwood, 1842 species (Coleoptera: Hybosoridae: Anaidinae) reveals a new species and new synonyms, Journal of Natural History 57 (1 - 4), pp. 175-192 : 184-189

Cryptogenius westwoodi sp. nov.

( Figures 1a–f , 4 )

Cryptogenius miersianus [error]: Westwood 1846 (not 1842a): 171 (pars); Lacordaire 1855: 153; Harold 1869: 1091; Preudhomme de Borre 1886: 78; Arrow 1909: 501, 1912: 63; Blackwelder 1944: 219; Scholtz 1982: 19; Scholtz et al. 1987: 193–194, 1988: 215; Ratcliffe 2002: 7; Ocampo 2006: 156–157; Ocampo and Ballerio 2006: 181; Hielkema and Hielkema 2019: 15.

Types

HOLOTYPE (Ơ, CEMT) ( Figure 1a–f ). First label [white with black border, printed]: ‘ ECUADOR: Pastaza | Chuyayacu. 810 m. V-1999 | Fumigación dosel. PAraujo̍. Second label [red with black frame; printed]: ‘ Cryptogenius westwoodi | des. Costa-Silva & | Vaz-de-Mello, 2022 | HOLOTYPE Ò̍ ( Figure 1f ). Type locality: Ecuador: Pastaza: Chuyayacu .

PARATYPES (17 specimens): First label [white, typeset]: ‘ Venezuela | Bolivar | St. Elena-Paui | 10.- 12.9.1977 ̍. Second label [white, typeset]: ‘leg.Lindemann̍. Third label [yellow with black frame; printed]: ‘ Cryptogenius westwoodi | des. Costa-Silva & | Vaz-de-Mello, 2022 | PARATYPE Ò̍ (1 Ơ CEMT). First label [white with black border,printed]:‘ ECUADOR: Pastaza,Arajuno,| B.P. Oglán, 640 m, 25-VI-2009, | Plato Amarillo. WChamorro y | GGallo̍. Second label [yellow with black frame; printed]: ‘ Cryptogenius westwoodi | des. Costa-Silva & | Vaz-de-Mello, 2022 | PARATYPE ƪ̍ (1 ♀ CEMT). First label [white with black border, printed]: ‘ ECUADOR: Orellana, | Yasuní, Río Rumiyacu, | Apaica 2, 220 m, 76° | 42ʹ0̍W, 0°48ʹ36̎S, 10-X- | 2000. P Araujo fum̎. Second label [white]: ‘ COLEOPTERA | Scarabaeidae-Hybosorinae | Cryptogenius | miersianus | West, 1846 | Det: William Chamorro̍. Third label [yellow with black frame; printed]: ‘ Cryptogenius westwoodi | des. Costa-Silva & | Vaz-de-Mello, 2022 | PARATYPE ƪ̍ (1 ♀ CEMT).First label [white, printed]:‘ ECUADOR: Orellana,| Yasuní,Río Rumiyacu,| Apaika, 220 m, 76°25̍ | 48̍W, 0°41ʹ16S, 08-X- | 2000, P Araujo fumig̍. Second label [yellow with black frame; printed]: ‘ Cryptogenius westwoodi | des.Costa-Silva & | Vaz-de-Mello,2022 | PARATYPE Ò̍ (1 Ơ CEMT). First label [white with black border, printed]: ‘ Brasil (MA), Bom Jardim | REBIO-Res, Biol. Gurupi | Armad. Luminosa Base̍. Second label [white with black border, printed]: ‘ 05–15. vi. 2010, J. C. Silva, J. A. Silva, A. A. Santos, T. T. A. Silva̍. Third label [yellow with black frame; printed]: ‘ Cryptogenius westwoodi | des.Costa-Silva & | Vaz-de-Mello,2022 | PARATYPE ƪ̍ (1 ♀ CEMT). First label [white with black border, printed]: ‘ BRASIL: Mato Grosso, | Cotriguaçu, Faz. São | Nicolau, PPBio 2, | 09°49ʹ12̍S, 58°15ʹ57̎W, | decayed log, 27.x.2018, | Costa-Silva et al.̍ Second label [yellow with black frame; printed]: ‘ Cryptogenius westwoodi | des. Costa-Silva & | Vaz-de-Mello, 2022 | PARATYPE ƪ̍ (1 ♀ CEMT). First label [white, aged with black border, printed]: Brasilien | Mato Grosso | Gleba Arinos – 350 m | 31.X.1967 | leg. Viehmann̍. Second label [yellow with black frame; printed]: ‘ Cryptogenius westwoodi | des. Costa-Silva & | Vaz-deMello, 2022 | PARATYPE ƪ̍ (1 ♀ CEMT). First label [white, aged, handwritten]: ‘NG*̍. Second label [white, aged, handwritten]: ‘ Cryptogenius | miersianus | Westw-̍. Third label [white with red border]:‘TYPE | WESTWOOD | Trans.Ent.Soc.| 4. P.171. | T.12.1.1 | Coll.Hope.Oxon̍. Fourth label [white, unknown handwriting]: ‘ lectotype ̍. Fifth label [white with black border]: ‘TYPE COL:353 ½ | Cryptogenius | miersianus | Westw.| HOPE DEPT.OXFORD̍.Sixth label [yellow with black frame]: ‘ Cryptogenius westwoodi | des. Costa-Silva & | Vaz-de-Mello,2022 | PARATYPE ̍ (1 OUMNH – Figure 3a–c ). First label [white, aged, typeset]: ‘Serra de Baturité | (Céara) | Gounelle 1.1895̍.Second label [white, aged,typeset]:‘MUSÉUM PARIS | 1895 | COLL.E GOUNELLE̍.Third label [white, aged, handwritten]:‘ Cryptogenius | miersianus | Westw̍.Fourth label [yellow with black frame, Vinícius Costa-Silva̍ s handwriting]: ‘ Cryptogenius | westwoodi | Costa-Silva & Vazde-Mello | 2022 | PARATYPE ̍ (1 ♀ MNHN). First label [white, printed]: ‘ GUYANE | Approuague | Saut Mapaou | Battage̍. Second label [white, printed]: ‘ 17.VIII.2016 | J. Touroult leg̍. Third label [yellow with black frame, Vinícius Costa-Silva̍s handwriting]: ‘ Cryptogenius | westwoodi | Costa-Silva & Vaz-de-Mello | 2022 | PARATYPE ̍ (1 C]BH). First label [white with black frame, printed]: ‘ GUYANE F., Saül, Grand | Boeuf Mort, xi-2007, | vitre [flight interceptation trap], P.-H. Dalens leg̍. Second label [yellow with black frame, Vinícius Costa-Silva̍s handwriting]: ‘ Cryptogenius | westwoodi | Costa-Silva & Vaz-de-Mello | 2022 | PARATYPE ̍ (1 C]BH). First label [white, printed]: ‘ BOLIVIA: Santa Cruz | Amboro National Park | Los Volcanes, c. 1000 m | S 18° 06̍: W 63° 36̍| 20/xi-12/xii/2004 ̍.Second label [white,printed]: ‘MV Light Sheet | Barcley.M. V.L. | & Mendel, H. | BMNH(E) 2004–280̍. Third label [yellow with black frame, Vinícius CostaSilva̍s handwriting]: ‘ Cryptogenius /westwoodi/des. Costa-Silva & Vaz-de-Mello/ PARATYPE 2022̍ (1 Ơ and 3 ♀ BMNH). First label [white, handwritten]: ‘Fr. Guyane: Saint-Lourent | du-Maroni, Mont Itoupé, | 03°01ʹN, 53°05ʹW, | I.2016, SEAG leg̍. Second label [yellow with black frame, Vinícius Costa-Silva̍ s handwriting]: ‘ Cryptogenius ƪ | westwoodi | des. Costa-Silva & Vaz-de-Mello | PARATYPE 2022̍ (1 ♀ CEMT). First label [white, printed]: ‘ Brasil, RO, Itapuã do Oeste / Flona Jamari, Trilha Pedra / Grande, 09°11̍39.4̎S – / 63°04̍55.3̎W, 06.x.2014 ̍. Second label [white, printed]:‘Facheamento,J.A. Rafael / F.F. Xavier F, R.M. Vieira & / R.H. Aquino̍. Third label [yellow with black frame, Vinícius Costa-Silva̍s handwriting]: ‘ Cryptogenius | westwoodi | des. Costa-Silva & Vaz-de-Mello | PARATYPE 2023̍ (1 INPA).

Note

The populations previously known as C. miersianus (sensu Scholtz et al. 1987; Ide et al. 1990; Ocampo 2006) are now named C. westwoodi sp. nov.

Diagnosis

Size of holotype: Length: 6.4 mm; width: 3 mm. ( Figure 1a–c ). Cryptogenius westwoodi sp. nov. can be recognised as follows: clypeus deflexed, forming right angles with frons; pronotal disc flat and with surface densely areolate; lateral margins crenulate; diagonal carinae extended from the centre of disc into an acute projection near the posterior angles ( Figure 1a , white arrows). Elytra with surface flat and densely areolate; with three acute carina, the third extending from the humerus to declivous area ( Figure 1c , white arrow). Outer margins of meso- and metatibiae serrate, with nine or more acute teeth pointed laterally ( Figure 1a,b ). Male genitalia distinctive: parameres symmetrical and partially sclerotised; lateral margin not constricted near the apex; apex rounded and covered by sparce micropunctation. Further morphological details can be found in Westwood (1846), Scholtz et al. (1987) and Ocampo (2006).

Sexual dimorphism

Males of Cryptogenius westwoodi sp. nov. have the fourth ventrite with the same length as (or slightly shorter than) the third ( Figure 6a ), while the female has the fourth ventrite longer than the third ( Figure 6b ). For additional characters, see Ide et al. (1990).

Distribution

Certainly present throughout the Amazon, with recorded presence in Brazil, Bolivia, Ecuador, French Guiana and Venezuela ( Figure 4 ). Ratcliffe (2002) and Ocampo (2006) also mentioned records under the name of C. miersianus (now C. westwoodi ) from Costa Rica and Panama, without further information. Also, Ocampo (2006) mentioned a record from Colombia, but no information about the specific locality or point on the map is given for this country. During this study, we were unable to find specimens from these countries and thus confirm the records.

Additionally, Ide et al. (1990) mentioned a record of Cryptogenius fryi from Peru that we believe to be a C. westwoodi ( Figure 4 ). Since we did not examine this specimen personally, we consider Peru a potential record for this newly described species.

The specimen found in Serra do Baturité (Ceará, Brazil) is the only record of C. westwoodi outside of the Amazon. The region where this specimen was collected, named ‘Brejo de Altitude̍, is a refuge for forest species that are typically found in areas with higher humidity (i.e. Atlantic Forest and Amazon) ( Porto et al. 2004). This find, even unusual for the Amazonian fauna, is not a particularity of Cryptogenius species. Several groups (e.g. dung beetles) were also reported for these isolated forests ( Araújo et al. 2020; Cupello et al. 2020) as an effect of a temporary connection between the Amazon and the Atlantic Forest in the last glacial cycle ( De Oliveira et al. 1999). With the end of interglacial periods and the consequent retraction of these forests, some relict forests and populations of fauna and flora were isolated ( Sobral-Souza et al. 2015).

Etymology

The specific name westwoodi , a masculine noun in the genitive case, is an eponym after the English entomologist John Obadiah Westwood (1805–1893), who described the genus Cryptogenius and countless other insects.

Figures

Figure 1. Holotype of Cryptogenius westwoodi sp. nov. (Ò CEMT) in (a) dorsal (white arrow showing the diagonal carinae in the pronotum), (b) ventral and (c) lateral views (white arrow indicates the third carina extending from the humerus to declivous area). Habitus of male genitalia in (d) dorsal and (e) ventral view. (f) labels. Scale bars: a–c = 1 mm; d, e = 0.5 mm.

Figure 3. Paratype of Cryptogenius westwoodi sp. nov. (1 OUMNH) in (a) dorsal and (b) lateral views. (c) labels. Scale bars: 1 mm. Photographs (a, b): Keita Matsumoto, BMNH.

Figure 4. Distribution map of known records of Cryptogenius species: C. miersianus (red circles) and C. westwoodi sp. nov. (blue circles). Red and blue stars represent records from the literature that possibly refer, according to the known geographical distribution, to C. miersianus and C. westwoodi sp. nov., respectively, found in Ide et al. (1990), Ratcliffe (2002) and Ocampo (2006). These records illustrated with stars represent specimens not personally examined by the authors.

Figure 6. Extracted abdomen of two paratypes of Cryptogenius westwoodi sp. nov. showing the sexual dimorphism between (a) male, with V3 and V4 of equal length; and (b) female, with V4 longer than V3. Abbreviations: V1–4, first to fourth ventrites. Scale bars: 1 mm.