Saudiclytra wittmeri ( Medvedev, 1979 )

Bezděk, Jan, 2018, Contribution to the knowledge of the Clytrini of the Eastern Mediterranean, the Near East and the Arabian Peninsula, with descriptions of four new species (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Cryptocephalinae), European Journal of Taxonomy 481, pp. 1-37 : 23-26

Saudiclytra wittmeri ( Medvedev, 1979)

Fig. 11

Antipa wittmeri Medvedev, 1979: 296 (original description).

Saudiclytra spinifemorata Medvedev, El Torkey & Al Dhafer, 2014: 7 (original description), syn. nov.

Material examined

Type material

SAUDI ARABIA: 1 ♂, holotype of Saudiclytra wittmeri , “Abha Gizan km 28 [p] 22.4 [h] / Wadi Ad Dilla 700 m [w, p] // Saudi Arab. 1976 / Wittmer, Büttiker [w, p] // Holotypus [r, p] // Antipa 19 [p] 77 / wittmeri m. [h] / L. Medvedev det. [w, p]” ( NHMB).

SAUDI ARABIA: 1 ♂, holotype of Saudiclytra spinifemorata , “Saudi Arabia, Baha , Wadhi / Turubah 14.V.2011 A: 918 m / Sweeping Net / N: 20°12.610′ E: 41°17.056′ / H. Al Fadly, A. El Torkey, M. / Sharaf & H. Setyaningrum [w, p] // HOLOTYPUS [p] / Saudiclytra / spinifemorata [h] / L. Medvedev det [p] 2013 [r, h] // Saudiclytra spinifemorata / Medvedev, El Torkey & Al Dhafer [w, p]” ( KSMA).

Other material

OMAN: 1 ♂, Dhofar reg., 7 km after Tawi Atayr, 17°03′46″ N, 54°36′15″ E, 600 m, 9 Mar. 2004, M. Dellacasa leg. ( CIUC); 1 ♂, Dhofar reg., Al Mughsayl , 16°52′53″ N, 53°43′51″ E, 8 Mar. 2004, M. Dellacasa leg. ( CIUC); 1 ♂, Ad Dakhiliyah gov., near Subayb, 30 Mar. 2018, J. Pelikán leg. ( JPCH); 7 ♂♂, 6 ♀♀, Jebel Shams Mt. , 23°14′30.4″ N, 57°09′05.4″ E, 31 Mar. 2018, F. Pavel leg. ( JPCH, NMPC).

Type localities

Antipa wittmeri

SAUDI ARABIA: Abha Gizan km 28, Wadi Ad Dilla.

Saudiclytra spinifemorata

SAUDI ARABIA: Baha, Wadhi Turubah.

Description of females

BODY LENGTH. 5.9–7.0 mm. Colouration ( Fig. 11D ): head black with orange underside, labrum, anterior margin of clypeus, mouthparts and small spot on posterior eye margin; pronotum pale orange with wide transverse black band, posterior and lateral margins with thin orange border, anterior margin with wider orange stripe; scutellum black, often with pale extreme apical margin; elytra orange with four small black spots (one at humeral callus, one subscutellar, two placed behind elytral midlength often connected forming transverse stripe); antennae black with orange antennomeres I–IV; legs completely orange; prosternum orange with black posterior parts, meso-, metasternum and abdomen black.

HEAD. Labrum transverse with shallowly emarginated anterior margin, anterior angles rounded, surface dull, laterally covered with several large setigerous puncture bearing long setae. Clypeus and anterior part of head lustrous with sparse small punctures bearing pale setae, anterior clypeal margin with shallow wide V-shaped emargination. Frons and vertex semi-opaque with larger and denser puncture bearing longer setae more or less covering the surface. Frons slightly impressed, 2.8 times as wide as diameter of eye. Vertex moderately convex, in middle with longitudinal impressed and almost glabrous line. Vertex and frons separated by impressed line. Antennae short, 0.23 times as long as body, length ratios of antennomeres I–XI equal to 11–5–4–6–7–7–6–6–6–6–8, antennomere I club-shaped, II subglobular, III very small, IV shortly elongate, antennae serrated from antennomere V.

PRONOTUM. Pronotum lustrous, transverse, 1.67 times as wide as long, covered with small punctures and long pale setae, in middle with perpendicular more or less glabrous line. Anterior margin widely shallowly concave, lateral margins rounded with anterior parts straight and convergent anteriorly, posterior margin moderately rounded and moderately thickened in scutellar area. Lateral and posterior margins narrowly bordered (border slightly wider in posterior angles), anterior margin bordered only in lateral quarters. Anterior angles obtusangulate, posterior angles widely rounded, slightly elevated but not upon elytral level.

SCUTELLUM. Scutellum subtriangular with transversely cut tip and slightly concave lateral margins, covered with small punctures and short setae, punctation and setae disappearing towards tip, in basal part with indistinct perpendicular glabrous line, scutellar apex elevated upon elytral level.

ELYTRA. Elytra dull, semicylindrical, slightly convergent posteriorly, 0.71 as long as body, 1.4 times as long as wide, covered with very dense confused small punctures and dense short pale setae. Basal margin from humeral callus to base of scutellum with elevated swollen keel, highest in middle, basal elytral border elevated upon pronotum level. Epipleura narrow, visible in basal quarter, then disappearing, covered with sparse setae, nearly impunctate. Lateral margin of elytra moderately concave in lateral view.

PROTARSOMERES. Protarsomeres I and II subtriangular, narrow. Length ratios of protarsomeres I–IV equal to 9–6–7–10, of metatarsomeres I–IV equal to 9–6–4–9. Claws narrow, simple.

SPERMATHECA. ( Fig. 11H ). Cornu U-shaped, thin, apical part gradually narrowed to apex, basal part slightly wider. Nodulus small, cylindrical. Spermathecal duct twice as long as cornu, proximal half very thin and straight, distal half twice curved with wider terminal part. Kotpresse as in Fig. 11 E–F.

Sexual dimorphism

Fore legs of females are not prolonged. Small denticles on profemora are less developed in females compared to well-developed denticles in males.

Distribution

Saudi Arabia ( Medvedev 1979; Medvedev et al. 2014). Newly recorded from Oman.

Comments

Medvedev et al. (2014) gave only superficial characters, such as the colouration of dorsum and the intensity of punctation on the head, pronotum and elytra to separate Saudiclytra spinifemorata and Saudiclytra wittmeri . All these characters are very variable in many species of Clytrini occurring in arid areas. Also the drawing of the aedeagus of Saudiclytra spinifemorata presented in the original description is inaccurate in comparison with the actual specimen. In reality, the aedeagus of Saudiclytra spinifemorata is of exactly the same shape as that of Saudiclytra wittmeri ( Fig. 11G ). Consequently, Saudiclytra spinifemorata is proposed as a new synonym of Saudiclytra wittmeri .

In one of my previous papers ( Bezděk 2016) I tentatively accepted the placement of Antipa wittmeri in the genus Tituboea Lacordaire, 1848 . At that time I was not aware of Saudiclytra Medvedev, El Torkey & Al Dhafer, 2014 . The main diagnostic characters of Saudiclytra are propleura densely covered with long setae, short and strongly transverse second and third antennomere in male, numerous ventral

spines on anterior femora and unusual form of the aedeagus, shortly pubescent epipleura and the unusual structure of the aedeagus ( Fig. 11G ).

The colouration is variable throughout the distributional area ( Fig. 11A , C–D). All the specimens from Oman represent darker aberrations with the black pattern more developed (particularly on the pronotum). The holotype of Saudiclytra wittmeri is the palest aberration, with the black pattern reduced to small spots on the elytra.

Figures

Fig. 11. Saudiclytra wittmeri (Medvedev, 1979). A. Holotype, ♁, 7.5 mm (NHMB). B. Labels of holotype. C. ♁, 6.3 mm. D. ♀, 6.6 mm. E. Kotpresse, dorsal sclerites. F. Kotpresse, ventral sclerites. G. Aedeagus in dorsal and lateral views. H. Spermatheca.