Pelidnota emerita (Olivier, 1789), 2017

Moore, Matthew R., Jameson, Mary L., Garner, Beulah H., Audibert, Cedric, Smith, Andrew B. T. & Seidel, Matthias, 2017, Synopsis of the pelidnotine scarabs (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae, Rutelinae, Rutelini) and annotated catalog of the species and subspecies, ZooKeys 666, pp. 1-349 : 1

Pelidnota emerita (Olivier, 1789) incertae sedis

Cetonia emerita Olivier, 1789: 71 [original combination].

Rutela emerita (Olivier) [new combination by Schönherr 1817: 152].

Pelidnota emerita (Olivier) [new combination by Burmeister 1844: 409].

Distribution.

SOUTH AMERICA ( Olivier 1789, Schönherr 1817, Burmeister 1844).

Remarks.

Cetonia emerita Olivier was described based on a specimen from “Amérique méridionale” ( Olivier 1789). Olivier (1789) stated that his new species was slightly larger than Cetonia chrysis (= Macraspis chrysis [Fabricius]). The description indicates that the type specimen is hairless, coppery-green dorsally, and green ventrally ( Olivier 1789). The elytra have obvious striae and the sternum (=mesosternal process) is projected forward and pointed ( Olivier 1789). The tibiae are tridentate ( Olivier 1789). Schönherr (1817) transferred the species into Rutela . Burmeister (1844) did not see the type specimen but transferred the species into Pelidnota based on the description. Pelidnota emerita (Olivier) was not mentioned in the literature again until the catalogs of world Rutelinae where it was listed as incertae sedis ( Ohaus 1918, 1934b, Machatschke 1972). We have not examined the type specimen of this species and the validity of this taxon is unknown to us.