Mecynotarsus ziczac King, 1869

Kejval, Zbyněk, 2013, Taxonomic revision of the Australian Notoxinae (Coleoptera: Anthicidae), Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae (suppl.) 53, pp. 1-98 : 82-95

Mecynotarsus ziczac King, 1869

( Figs 116–118 , 140 , 209 )

Mecynotarsus ziczac King, 1869: 4 .

Mecynotarsus ziczac: Pic (1911) : 15 (catalogue); LEA (1895): 609 (record); UHMANN (2000): 146 (records); UHMANN (2007): 24 (redescription, records).

Type locality. South Australia, Gawler, dried riverbed of the river Gawler.

Type material (not available for study; see Remarks).

Additional material. AUSTRALIA: AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY: 2 ♂♂, Casuarina Sands , 35°19′S 148°57′E, in flood refuse, 1.v.1988, C. Reid leg. ( ANIC) ; 1 ♀, Paddy’s River , 1.6 km S of Cotter Dam, 17.iv.1969, S. Misko leg. ( ANIC) . NEW SOUTH WALES: 1 ♂ 9 km NNE of Coonabarabran, Newell Highway , 24.x.1980, E. Britton leg. ( ANIC) ; 4 ♂♂ 2 ♀♀, Sydney [no date, E. W. Fergusson Collection, bearing label ‘amabilis’ by Lea] ( ANIC) ; 1 ♂, Warrumbungle NP, main camping ground, in flight, evening, 20.–24.xi.1985, C. Reid leg. ( ANIC) ; 1 ♂, Newcastle Grain Terminal , 21.ii.1992, D. Moore leg. ( ANIC) ; 1 ♂, Csiro Laboratory, Chiswick, near Armidale , x.1965, B. Clydesdale leg.( ANIC) ; 1♂ 2♀♀, Narrabeen , 28.x.1983, G. Hangay leg. ( HNHM) ; 1♂, same data, except: 27.i.1985 ( HNHM) ; 7 ♂♂ 4 ♀♀, Pinnocle , village (camping), 13.i.1999, A. Podlussány leg. ( HNHM) ; 1 ♂, Narrabri, Mount Kaputar env., 27.–28.xi.1984, W. H. Muche leg. ( SMNS) ; 2 ♀♀, Eccleston [no date], in flood debris, J. Hopson leg. ( SAMA) . NORTHERN TERRITORY: 6 ♂♂ 7 ♀♀, 48 km SWbyS of Borroloola, McArthur River , 16°27′S 136°05′E, 29.x.1975, M. S. Upton leg. ( ANIC) ; 1 ♀, McArthur River , 14 km SW of Cape Crawford, 16°47′S 135°45′E, 11.iv.1976, J. E. Feehan leg. ( ANIC) ; 4♀♀, 80 km SW of Borroloola, McArthur River , 16°39′S 135°51′E, 13.v.1973, M. S. Upton leg. ( ANIC) ; 2♂♂, 3♀♀, Jasper Gorge , 16°02′S 130°48′E GPS, at light, 15.x.2000, T. Weir & D.Yates leg. ( ANIC) ; 1♂, 14 km NW of Cape Crawford , 16°34′S 135°41′E, 6.xi.1975, M. S. Upton leg.( ANIC) ; 1♂, Cooper Creek, 11 km SbyW of Nimbuwah Rock , 12°17′S 133°20′E, at light, 1.xi.1972, E. B. Britton leg. ( ANIC) ; 2 ♂♂ 4 ♀♀, Nitmiluk National Park, Edit Falls , 14°10′S 132°06′E, 37 m, 3.xii.2008, S. Jakl leg. ( ZKDC) ; 1 ♂, Magela Creek , 2 km N of Mudginbarry Homestead, 14.xi.1972, M. S. Upton leg. ( ANIC) ; 1 ♂, Magela Creek , 9 km SSE of Mudginbarry Homestead, 12°40′S 132°54′E, at light, 6.xi.1972, E. Britton leg. ( ANIC) . QUEENSLAND: 16 ♂♂ 15♀♀, Great Barrier Reef, Swain Reefs, Price Cay , 21°47′S 152°26′E, i.1985, H. Heatwole leg. ( ANIC) ; 9♂♂ 9♀♀, Heron Island , 23°442′S 151°951′E, 0–5 m, pitfall trap, 13.–14.xi.2007 ( QMBA) ; 3♀♀, same data, except: 5.viii.–26.ix.2008 ( QMBA) ; 1♂ 2♀♀, Masthead Island , 23°537′S 151°725′E, 0–5 m, pitfall trap, 17.–18.ix.2007 ( QMBA) ; 4♂♂ 1♀, same locality, beach, 5.–7.x.2008 ( QMBA) ; 1 ♂ 1 ♀, same locality, 7.x.–27.xi.2008 ( QMBA) ; 9 ♂♂ 11 ♀♀, Wreck Island , 23°332′S 151°959′E, pitfall trap, 0–5 m, 15.–16.ix.2007 ( QMBA) ; 1 ♂ 3 ♀♀, same locality, 29.iv.–1.v.2008 ( QMBA) ; 1 ♂, 1 ♀, 1.v.–24.vi.2008 1 ♀, Tryon Island , 23°247′S 151°779′E, 0–5 m, pitfall trap, 18.–22.viii.2007 ( QMBA) ; 1 ♂ 1 ♀, West Fairfax Island , 23°859′S 152°368′E, beach, pitfall trap, 1–5 m, 12.–14.v.2008 ( QMBA) ; 1 ♂ 2 ♀♀, North West Island , 23°296′S 151°708′E, 0–5 m, pitfall trap, 12.–13.ix.2007 ( QMBA) ; 1 ♂, Bucasia , 18.ix.1995, K. J. Sandery leg. ( ANIC) ; 1 ♀, same data, except 16.iii.2003 ( ANIC) ; 2 ♂♂ 1 ♀, 27 km SE Prosperine, Conway Beach , 10.xii.1986, H. & A. Howden leg. ( ANIC) ; 3 ♂♂ 1 ♀, Canungra , ca. 75 km S of Brisbane, 175 m, UV light near creek, 9.–10.i.1991, Pollock & Reichert leg. ( DCDC) ; 4 ♂♂ 2 ♀♀, Warwick [no date], E. T. Smith leg. ( BMNH, DCDC) ; 2 ♂♂, Annan River, 3 km WbyS of Black Mt. , 15°41′S 145°12′E, 27.ix.1980, T. Weir leg. ( ANIC) ; 1 ♂ 4 ♀♀, Townsville , 16.–22.iii.1965, J. Balogh leg. ( HNHM) ; 2 ♂♂ 2 ♀♀, 20 km N of Townsville, Bushmans Beach , at light, 16.–18.i.1998, A. J. Watts leg. ( SAMA) ; 1 ♂, same data, except: 4–5.v.1998 ( SAMA) ; 2 ♂♂ 1 ♀, Maryborough [no date], E. W. Fischer leg. ( SAMA) ; 2 ♂♂ 6 ♀♀, Cooper Creek , near ‘ Dig Tree’, UV light, 22.ii.1998, G. Hangay leg. ( HNHM) ; 1 ♂, Tibrogargan Creek , 18.iv.1965, T. Weir leg. ( QMBA) ; 1 ♂ 1 ♀, Davies Creek , x.1950, J.G. Brooks Bequest leg. ( ANIC) . VICTORIA: 1♂, Melbourne, Clayton , viii.1972, P. Zwick leg. ( MHNG). SOUTH AUSTRALIA: 4 ♂♂ 4 ♀♀, Gawler [no date], Odewahn leg. ( NMPC) ; 1 ♂, 1 ♀, Lucindale [no date], Feuerheerdt leg. ( QMBA) . WESTERN AUSTRALIA: 2 ♂♂ 1 ♀, Millstream , 21°35′S 117°04′E, eucalyptus-paperbark woodland, at light, 28.x.1970, E. Britton leg. ( ANIC) ; 1 spec., same data, except: 1.xi.1970 ( ANIC) .

Redescription (male, Gawler, NMPC). Body length 2.3 mm. Body, legs and antennae reddish to reddish brown.

Antero-lateral margins of frons simple. Gular rugules minute and rather scattered ( Fig. 140 ). Clypeal lobules minute to indistinct. Setation of head rather evenly short and appressed, dense, finer medially on vertex, somewhat coarser to scaly around eyes and ventro-laterally. Antennae moderately long; antennomeres III–V about 1.8 times, X nearly as long as wide; setation mostly rather short and fine, distinctly coarser on basal 2–3 antennomeres.

Pronotum nearly 1.7 times as long as wide, its lateral margins unevenly shaped, moderately convex anteriorly, somewhat angled at widest point and then rather straight while narrowing towards base in dorsal view; posterior collar narrow but distinct, somewhat concealed by scaly setation. Pronotal horn robust, moderately long and wide, its posterior angles obsolete in dorsal view; horn margins armed with 5 rounded lobules on each side (posterior lobules smaller); horn crest distinct, clearly raised, moderately wide, with coarse, rather widely spaced rugules on margins; submarginal rugules minute; about 10 median rugules, unevenly and mostly narrowly spaced. Setation whitish, largely appressed and scaly, including most of dorsal surface of pronotal horn (here somewhat more raised and finer towards apex); scales on pronotal disc of two sizes, smaller and narrower or larger and wider, both elongate, rounded to truncate apically; antebasal paired setae short but distinct (somewhat thickened) laterally and absent medially, another tactile setae absent.

Elytra 1.7 times as long as wide; omoplates and postbasal impression absent. Setation scaly, whitish and reddish to brownish, somewhat mixed dorsally in basal half, and also forming dark markings ( Fig. 209 ), evenly developed / ordered; scales distinctly elongate, nearly linear, rounded to subtruncate apically, very densely spaced (covering nearly entire surface); erect tactile setae absent.

Male characters. Sternum VII moderately produced postero-medially. Tergum VIII and aedeagus as in Figs 116, 118 .

Variation. Body length (♂ ♀) 2.2–2.4 mm. Pronotal horn with 5–6 lobules on each side; 7–12 median rugules, with usually some minute additional granules posteriorly. Markings on elytra usually rather distinct, strongly reduced to absent in all specimens from islands of the Great Barrier Reef in Queensland.

Differential diagnosis. Mecynotarsus ziczac is very close to M. albellus and M. iuvenis sp. nov., as suggested by the similar form of the parameres. It differs from M. iuvenis by the simple male sternum VII (lacking sharply bordered medio-basal impression), and by the short and less raised, scaly setation of male tergum VIII; and from M. albellus by the somewhat narrower crest of pronotal horn, and the evenly narrowing parameres that lack a small preapical denticle / angulation on the outer margin.

Distribution. Australia: Australian Capital Territory (new record), New South Wales ( LEA 1895, UHMANN 2000), Northern Territory (new record), Queensland ( UHMANN 2000), South Australia ( KING 1869, UHMANN 2007), Victoria (new record), Western Australia (new record).

The records from New South Wales and Queensland by UHMANN (2000) are partly based on misidentified specimens of M. albellus (Round Hill, near Lake Cargillego) and M. parvulus sp. nov. (Townsville, single specimen).

Remarks. KING (1869) described all his Mecynotarsus species, M. concolor , M. kreusleri , and M. ziczac , from an unstated number of specimens collected by Marianne Kreusler near Gawler in the South Australia. The type material is deposited in AMSA, however, that of M. ziczac was not available at the time of my studies (probably on loan). For this reason, the redescription is based solely on the topotypic specimens collected by the German naturalist Johannes Odewahn, who had been living in South Australia, who had assisted M. Kreusler in collecting beetles ( JONES 2011), and later sold part of his Australian insect collection to the Czech entomologist Otakar Nickerl ( HORN et al. 1990). The Nickerl Collection is now deposited in NMPC and contains identified specimens of King’s three species. These specimens of M. ziczac were used as the basis for the identification of this species.

Figures

Figs 111–118. 111 – Mecynotarsus speciosus sp.nov., aedeagus in dorsal view. 112–115 – M. weiri sp.nov.:112 – sternum VII, 113 – tergum VIII, 114 – aedeagus in dorsal view, 115 – the same, lateral view. 116–118 – M. ziczac King, 1869: 116 – tergum VIII, 117 – aedeagus in dorsal view, 118 – the same, lateral view. Scale (0.5 mm): A – Figs 111, 116; B – Figs 112, 113; C – Figs 114, 117, 118.

Figs 133–140. 133 – Mecynotarsus setulosus sp. nov., head in lateral view (paratype, Fowlers Gap), 134 – M. excavatus sp. nov., apex of elytra in female (paratype, Aoue-Enga), 135 – M. grandior sp. nov., apex of elytron in male (paratype, Kimberley Research Station), 136 – M. obesus sp. nov., metatibia with tarsus (paratype, Hull River), 137 – M. excavatus sp. nov., male protibia (paratype, Aoue-Enga). 138–140 – head in ventral view: 138 – M. auripilosus sp. nov. (paratype, Kambah Pool), 139 – M. bullatus sp. nov. (paratype, Regans Ford), 140 – M. ziczac King, 1869 (Swain Reefs).

Figs 202–209. Habitus: 202 – Mecynotarsus magelae sp. nov. (Charnley River), 203 – M. mastersii MacLeay, 1872 (Cedar Creek National Park), 204 – M. obesus sp. nov., 205 – M. parvulus sp. nov., 206 – M. pilbarensis sp. nov. (paratype, Millstream Homestead), 207 – M. regalis sp. nov., 208 – M. weiri sp. nov., 209 – M. ziczac King, 1869 (Newcastle Grain Terminal).