Deltochilum orbignyi (Blanchard, 1846)

Rosa, Cecilia Lozano De La, Cupello, Mario & Vaz-De-Mello, Fernando Z., 2024, The dung beetles of Venezuela (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae): catalogue and updated distribution, European Journal of Taxonomy 959 (1), pp. 1-272 : 219

Deltochilum orbignyi amazonicum Bates, 1887

Deltochilum amazonicum Bates, 1887: 37 (original description). Type locality: Peru: Loreto: Mariscal Ramón Castilla: Pebas. Name-bearing type: lectotype (MNHN), designated by González-Alvarado & Vaz-de-Mello (2014), examined by FZVM.

Distribution

The polytypic species Deltochilum orbignyi ( Blanchard, 1846) is widely distributed in South America, ranging from Colombia in the north, crossing the Brazilian Amazon and the Bolivian Chiquitano Dry Forests in the central region of the continent, and extending as far south as the Argentinian provinces of Salta and Corrientes ( González-Alvarado & Vaz-de-Mello 2014). All Amazonian populations ( Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Brazil) have been classified as the subspecies D. orbignyi amazonicum , whereas populations in the south, from Bolivia and Argentina, constitute the nominotypical subspecies, D. orbignyi orbignyi ( González-Alvarado & Vaz-de-Mello 2014; Ratcliffe et al. 2015). Presence in Venezuela is likely, but still to be formally confirmed (see below).

Literature records

Paulian 1938: 262 ( Venezuela). — Vulcano & Pereira 1964: 650 ( Venezuela). — Blanco 1987: 43 ( Venezuela: Táchira). — Larsen et al. 2008: 1294 ( Venezuela: Bolívar: Lago Guri). — Ferrer-Paris et al. 2013: 109 ( Venezuela: Aragua [actually, Guárico]: Altagracia de Orituco; Bolívar: Isla de Anacoco; Yaracuy: Hacienda Guáquira and Zulia: Rosario de Perijá). — Hielkema & Hielkema 2019: 79 ( Venezuela).

Remarks

González-Alvarado & Vaz-de-Mello (2014) unfortunately did not address any of the multiple records of the taxon for Venezuela as found in the literature. Since they also did not examine any specimens from the country, Venezuela was not included in the distribution of Deltochilum orbignyi amazonicum as presented by them. Their nearest records are from Colombia and the Brazilian state of Amazonas. We will wait until someone confirms the presence of the species in Venezuela using González-Alvarado & Vaz-de-Mello’s key before including it in the list of species certainly present in the country.