Drycothaea stictica stictica Bates, 1881

Heffern, Daniel, Nascimento, Francisco E. De L. & Santos-Silva, Antonio, 2018, Descriptions, redescription, notes, and new ranks in American Cerambycidae (Coleoptera), Zootaxa 4531 (1), pp. 59-80 : 65-67

Drycothaea stictica stictica Bates, 1881

( Figs. 13–16 )

Drycothea stictica Bates, 1881: 193 ; 1885: 422; Chemsak & Linsley, 1970: 409 (lect.); Noguera & Chemsak, 1996: 408 (checklist).

Drycothaea stictica ; Lameere, 1883: 76 (checklist); Aurivillius, 1923: 601 (cat.); Blackwelder, 1946: 626 (checklist); Franz, 1954: 228 (distr.); Gilmour, 1965: 648 (cat.); Galileo & Martins, 1991: 251; Chemsak et al., 1992: 161 (checklist); Cools, 1993: 96 (types); Monné & Giesbert, 1994: 298 (checklist); Monné, 1995: 84 (cat.); Turnbow et al., 2003: 42 (distr.); Monné, 2005: 324 (cat.); Hovore, 2006: 378 (distr.); Monné & Hovore, 2006: 231 (checklist); Galileo & Martins, 2010: 74 (key); Swift et al., 2010: 51 (distr.); Maes et al., 2010: 839 (distr.); Santos-Silva et al., 2016: 165 (distr.); Monné, 2018: 442 (cat.); Bezark, 2018b: 271 (checklist).

Redescription. Male. Integument mostly black; mouthparts mostly dark reddish-brown, brown or dark-brown on some areas; protarsi reddish-brown (yellowish-brown depending on intensity of light); meso- and metatarsi reddish-brown, I–II slightly darker; apex of abdominal ventrites I and IV narrowly reddish-brown.

Head. Frons coarsely, moderately abundantly punctate; with yellowish-brown pubescence (more yellowish depending on intensity of light) forming dense tufts obscuring integument interspersed with nearly glabrous areas; with long, erect, moderately abundant dark setae throughout. Vertex with sculpturing, pubescence and erect setae as on frons, but pubescence distinctly sparser along centro-longitudinal area. Area behind eyes with yellowishbrown pubescence behind upper eye lobes, gradually yellowish-gray toward ventral side of lower eye lobes (nearly glabrous toward prothorax behind lower eye lobes); with long, erect dark setae close to eye. Antennal tubercles moderately finely, sparsely punctate, especially toward apex; with yellowish-brown pubescence basally, gradually yellowish-gray toward apex; with long, erect, sparse yellowish and whitish setae. Median groove distinct from clypeus to area between antennal tubercles. Genae micropunctate except smooth apex; with sparse pale yellow pubescence except on glabrous smooth area. Gulamentum smooth, glabrous on large posterior area, depressed, with sparse yellowish-gray pubescence anteriorly; with a few long, erect yellowish and brownish setae. Labrum with minute, sparse yellowish-gray pubescence posteriorly, interspersed with long, erect dark setae close to anterior inclination; with short, sparse, erect yellowish setae anteriorly. Distance between upper eye lobes 0.29 times length of scape (1.3 times width of one lobe); in frontal view, distance between lower eye lobes 0.71 times length of scape. Antennae 1.4 times elytral length, reaching elytral apex at middle of antennomere XI. Scape with yellowish-gray pubescence dorsally not obscuring integument, more yellowish on some areas, with grayish-white pubescence ventrally; with long, erect yellowish and dark setae throughout. Antennomeres III–XI with narrow grayish-white pubescent ring basally, with minute, slightly conspicuous yellowish-white pubescence on remaining surface; antennomeres III–X with long, erect, sparse dark setae ventrally, gradually shorter, sparser toward X, and a few long, erect dark setae at apex of dorsal side. Antennal formula (ratio) based on length of antennomere III: scape = 1.06; pedicel = 0.18; IV = 0.79; V = 0.69; VI = 0.63; VII = 0.57; VIII = 0.55; IX = 0.51; X = 0.49; XI = 0.53.

Thorax. Prothorax 1.35 times wider than long (including lateral tubercles); lateral tubercles moderately small, placed slightly after middle, with acute apex. Pronotum with large, slightly elevated gibbosity on each side of anterior half; coarsely, moderately abundantly punctate; with yellowish-brown pubescence not obscuring integument (grayish-white on narrow sides between lateral tubercle and posterior margin), slightly denser laterally and centrally, interspersed with long, erect yellowish-white setae (some of them, dark-brown basally). Sides of prothorax coarsely, moderately abundantly punctate toward pronotum, smooth toward prosternum; with grayishwhite pubescence not obscuring integument. Prosternum smooth except for moderately coarse and sparse punctures centrally close to prosternal process; with grayish-white pubescence not obscuring integument. Ventral side of meso- and metathorax with grayish-white pubescence, dense laterally, sparser centrally, interspersed with long, erect grayish-white setae. Mesosternal process longitudinally tuberculate centrally (gradually elevated from apex to anterior area). Scutellum with pale yellow pubescence nearly obscuring integument. Elytra. Longitudinally striate dorsally; punctures coarse, aligned within longitudinal striae; apex slightly rounded; with dense yellowishbrown pubescence interspersed with abundant, irregular glabrous or nearly glabrous areas; with moderately long, erect, abundant dark setae throughout. Legs. Femora with grayish-white pubescence not obscuring integument, interspersed with long, erect pale yellow (grayish-white depending of light intensity) setae, longer, more abundant ventrally. Tibiae with grayish-white pubescence nearly obscuring integument, gradually bristly, yellowish on meso- and metatibiae; with long, erect yellowish setae.

Abdomen. Ventrites with moderately sparse and coarse, shallow punctures; ventrites I–IV with grayish-white pubescence partially obscuring integument, interspersed with long, erect, sparse setae of same color. Ventrite V with long, erect, sparse grayish-white setae anteriorly and laterally, with dense, erect pale yellow setae on center of posterior half (this area widened toward apex); posterior margin of ventrite V almost truncate.

Female. Antennae shorter, reaching from posterior fifth of elytra to nearly reaching apex. Abdominal ventrite V longitudinally sulcate centrally, without long and abundant erect setae on center of posterior half, and with apex distinctly emarginate.

Variability. Elytra from dark reddish-brown to black; mouthparts nearly entirely dark brown; tarsi from entirely yellowish-brown to entirely dark brown (sometimes, basal segments dark brown and distal segments lighter). Body generallyelongate (head + prothorax from about 2.5 times elytral length to about 3.0 times elytral length); pubescence on pronotum distinctly dense, partially obscuring punctation.

Dimensions (mm), male/female. Total length, 7.10–9.95/9.60–12.10; prothoracic length, 1.30–1.80/1.70– 2.20; posterior prothoracic width, 1.45–1.90/1.90–2.50; anterior prothoracic width, 1.30–1.80/1.80–2.25; maximum prothoracic width (between apices of lateral tubercles), 1.75–2.30/2.25–2.90; humeral width, 2.3–3.10/ 3.0–4.05; elytral length, 5.85–6.90/6.80–8.90.

Material examined. MEXICO, Chiapas (new state record): 5 mi. SW El Bosque , 1 female, 4.VII.1969, Champbell & Bright col. ( MZSP) . Veracruz: Lake Catemaco , 1 female, 1-2.V.1969, Bright & Champbell col. ( MZSP) ; Tuxtla , 1 female, VI.1954, Kissinger col. ( MZSP) . GUATEMALA, Izabal: Morales (600 m), 1 male, VI.2000, J. Monzon col. ( DHCO) . Quetzaltenango: Cerro Zunil (4.000 ft), paralectotype male, paralectotype female of D. stictica, Champion ( MZSP) . Zacapa: near La Union (5000’), 1 male, 14-20.IV.1990, Wappes col. ( MZSP) . HONDURAS, Olancho: La Muralla , 1 male, 2 females, 24.V.1995, R. Morris col. ( MZSP) ; Parque Nacional La Muralla , 1 male, 1.VI.1995, Turnbow col. ( MZSP) ; 1 male, 2 females, 24-27.V.1995, Wappes col. ( MZSP) . PANAMA, Chiriquí: Hornito ( Finca la Suzia ), 1 female, 9-15.V.1999, Wappes & Morris col. ( MZSP) .

Remarks. In the key proposed by Galileo & Martins (2010), characters such as color and scutellar pubescence density are used to separate species (translated):

“12(11). Elytral integument black. Guatemala................................................... D. wappesi sp. nov. - Elytral integument reddish with black punctures or irregular, small black spots..................................

....................................................... 13 [leading to D. testaceipes and D. stictica ]”; and, “14(13). Scutellum covered by dense yellow pubescence, contrasting with that of the elytra............................. 15 - Scutellum glabrous or with pubescence not contrasting with that of the elytra. Mexico to Panama. D. stictica Bates, 1881 15(14). Ventral surface black; elytra with large number of black spots. Costa Rica............. D. turrialbae Breuning, 1943 - Ventral surface reddish-brown; elytra with small number of black spots. Mexico.............. D. spreta Bates, 1885 ”

However, these couplets create problems. First, the color of the elytral integument is variable in D. stictica , being more commonly black than dark reddish. Another problem is the pubescence of the scutellum. Although one of the paralectotypes deposited in the MZSP collection has the scutellum glabrous and the other has the scutellum sparsely pubescent, the other specimens examined have very distinct pubescence, obscuring or nearly obscuring the integument. The paralectotype of D. stictica stictica deposited in the MCZ collection ( MCZ 2018), also has the scutellum distinctly pubescent. Furthermore, apparently, based on examination of the photograph, the lectotype of D. stictica stictica also has the scutellum covered with dense pubescence. The color of the scutellar pubescence appears to be variable also, and can be slightly or distinctly contrasting with that of the elytra (more commonly slightly contrasting). According to Bates (1885), D. spreta Bates, 1885 differs from D. stictica by the smaller size and width, with denser, decumbent yellowish or brownish-gray pubescence, and more densely and finely punctate (not aligned in elytra); lower eye lobes less rounded. By examining the photograph of the holotype, it is possible to see that those differences between D. spreta and D. stictica appear to be only variations. Actually, at least regarding the elytral sculpturing it is not true (“elytra not distinctly striate-punctate, confused, with sub-aligned, punctate, not convex interspaces”), because the punctures and striae are very conspicuous. However, although it is not possible to be sure through the photograph of the holotype, the upper eye lobes appear to be narrower and more distant from each other than in D. stictica . Comparing D. spreta with D. turrialbae , they appear to be the same species. We could not find a reliable feature separating these two species, and they are very similar to D. stictica (except, apparently, by the shape and distance of the upper eye lobes). Unfortunately, it is not possible to affirm that D. spreta and D. turrialbae are a single species and, also, it is not possible to affirm that they are really different from D. stictica . However, it is possible to affirm that the features pointed out in the alternatives of couplet “14” and “15” from Galileo & Martins (2010) do not allow the separation of these three species. It is important to note that Bates (1885) also affirmed that D. spreta appears “to be connected with D. stictica … by the intermediate variety, D. lepidiota .”

Drycothaea stictica stictica also resembles D. parva Bates, 1885 , but differs by the dorsal pubescence mostly yellowish-brown (grayish in D. parva ). According to Bates (1885) (translated): “mesosternum narrow, concave.” This suggests that D. parva is not a true Drycothaea , because the mesoventral process is always tuberculate in this genus ( Galileo & Martins 1991).

Figures

FIGURES 9–16. 9–12, Pogonillus panamensis, holotype male: 9, Dorsal habitus, 10, Ventral habitus; 11, Lateral habitus; 12, Head, frontal view. 13–16, Drycothaea stictica stictica, male: 13, Dorsal habitus, 14, Ventral habitus; 15, Lateral habitus; 16, Head, frontal view.