Catharsius haroldi, Takano, 2021

Takano, Hitoshi, 2021, Taxonomic notes concerning the genus Catharsius Hope, 1837 (Scarabaeidae Scarabaeinae), Zootaxa 5052 (2), pp. 280-286 : 283-284

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.5052.2.7

publication LSID

lsid:zoobank.org:pub:D8949428-C305-4510-99BB-39498D4421F6

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5568716

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/865687A5-FF94-FFFD-2797-4EEF2527FD69

treatment provided by

Plazi

scientific name

Catharsius haroldi
status

sp. nov.

Catharsius haroldi View in CoL sp. nov. ( Figs. 6–9 View FIGURES 1–9 )

Catharsius harpagus sensu Ferreira, 1960 View in CoL (nec Harold): 225; 1964a: 7; 1967: 234; 1972: 270; Génier & Josso, 2016: 335 View Cited Treatment .

Type material.

Holotype, ♂ ( BMNH): “ MOZAMBIQUE, 2m, Transect 4, / Maputo Special Reserve, / ( Hygrophilous Grassland , 100m / from Sand Forest Ecotone ) / 26°29’8.3”S, 32°45’8.9”E / 5.XII.2016. Human Dung Pitfall / Aristophanous , M., Cristóvão, J., / Laszlo, G., Miles, W. leg. / BMNH (E) 2016–262 / Trip Ref : MZ–001 ( ANHRT 22 ) // NHMUK010367768 [QR code]”. GoogleMaps

Paratypes (16♂♂ 20♀♀):

MOZAMBIQUE: MAPUTO: Maputo Special Reserve, 2m (26°29’S, 32°45’E), 4–5.vi.2017, M.Aristophanous, G. László, W. Miles & A. Vetina (1♂ 3♀♀ BMNH); Maputo Special Reserve, Transect 4, 2m (26°29’S, 32°45’E), 5.xii.2016, M. Aristophanous, J. Cristóvão, G. László & W. Miles (5♂♂ 6♀♀ BMNH); Maputo Special Reserve, Transect 5, 2m (26°29’S, 32°45’E), 5.xii.2016, M. Aristophanous, J. Cristóvão, G. László & W. Miles (2♂♂ 5♀♀ BMNH); Maputo Special Reserve, Transect 6, 2m (26°29’S, 32°45’E), 5.xii.2016, M. Aristophanous, J. Cristóvão, G. László & W. Miles (6♂♂ 4♀♀ BMNH); Maputo Special Reserve, West Gate, 22m (26°30’S, 32°43’E), 21– 30.xi.2016, M. Aristophanous, J. Cristóvão, G. László & W. Miles (2♂♂ 2♀♀ BMNH) .

Description. Male holotype ( Figs. 6–7 View FIGURES 1–9 ). Size: Length 25 mm, width 17 mm. Colour: Black with a reddish undertone; pubescence light brown. Head: Anterior clypeal edge evenly arcuate with continuous clypeal margin. Clypeal surface rugose anteriorly, becoming more granulose posteriorly; genal edge rounded and acutely angled, surface with granules disappearing and becoming glabrous internally. Clypeogenal suture well-defined to base of cephalic horn. Cephalic horn long and straight, wide in basal third, edges of basal portion converging slightly; apicolateral angles rounded and obtuse. Cephalic suture laterally well-defined from base to apex. Pronotum: Anterior margin continuous, obliquely orientated anteriorly on each side of eyes. Lateral edges broadly arcuate. Pronotal disc with short but sharply pointed horns anteriorly, gently diverging and curved upwards, placed evenly between midline and lateral margin; apices of horns in line with edge of clypeogenal suture. Pronotal disc with continuous margin posteriorly; surface of disc covered in fine granules except for a glabrous oviform region on each side of midline; lateral declivity with fovea; surface completely granulate. Surface of anterior declivity glabrous; in frontal view, glabrous area extends from horns to anterior margin. Elytra: Carinate basally; elytral striae welldefined, with weak punctures encroaching slightly on intervals; surface of interstriae glabrous except for 2 mm portion basally of fine alutaceous microsculpture; carina on ninth interval very short. Pygidium: Transverse, fully margined, glabrous centrally, becoming more alutaceous towards edges; fine oviform punctures throughout. Legs: Protibia tridentate; spur curved gently apically; three longitudinal striae ventrally. Metatibial spur long, truncate apically. Aedeagus: Parameres almost as long as phallobase, laterally arcuate, with shallow concavity anteriorly ( Fig. 8 View FIGURES 1–9 ).

Female paratype ( Fig. 9 View FIGURES 1–9 ). Head: Anterior clypeal edge evenly arcuate with continuous clypeal margin. Clypeal surface transversely rugose anteriorly, becoming more granulose posteriorly; genal edge rounded and acutely angled, surface with granules disappearing and becoming glabrous internally. Clypeogenal suture welldefined to base of clypeal carina. Clypeal carina raised, broadly triangular in frontal view and weakly tridentate, central point slightly bifurcate. Pronotum: Anterior margin continuous, obliquely oriented anteriorly on each side of eyes. Lateral edges broadly arcuate. Pronotal disc with short carina anteriorly, arcuate and medially emarginate; carina no longer than distance between eyes. Surface of disc completely granulose except for a small glabrous region on either side of midline; glabrous area rounded internally, tapering to a point laterally. Lateral declivity with fovea; surface completely granulate. Surface of anterior declivity completely granulate. Elytra: Carinate basally; elytral striae well-defined, with weak punctures encroaching slightly on intervals; surface of interstriae glabrous except for 2 mm portion anteriorly of fine alutaceous microsculpture; carina on ninth interval very short. Pygidium: Transverse, fully margined, glabrous centrally, becoming more alutaceous towards edges; fine oviform punctures throughout. Legs: Protibia tridentate; spur curved gently apically; three longitudinal striae ventrally. Metatibial spur long, truncate apically.

Variation. Length: male 20–25 mm, female 21–26 mm. In smaller males the anterior declivity is completely granulose; the pronotal horns are reduced to tubercles and the cephalic horn is reduced to a broad equilateral triangle in frontal view.

Derivatio nominis. This species is named after the coleopterist Edgar von Harold (1830–1886), who described Catharsius harpagus , the species with which subsequent authors have confused this new species.

Diagnosis. This species, although very distinctive, might be confused with the smaller C. tricornutus (De Geer, 1778) with which it is found sympatrically. In the males of the latter, the more conical pronotal horns are longer, placed nearer the midline and diverge strongly. In the females, the clypeal carina of C. tricornutus is strongly bifurcate medially giving it a quadridentate appearance in frontal view, and the pronotal carina is straight, weakly produced and shorter than the clypeal carina.

Distribution. Mozambique and South Africa (e.g., Van Rensburg et al. 1999).

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Insecta

Order

Coleoptera

Family

Scarabaeidae

Genus

Catharsius

Loc

Catharsius haroldi

Takano, Hitoshi 2021
2021
Loc

Catharsius harpagus sensu Ferreira, 1960

Genier, F. & Josso, J. - F. 2016: 335
2016
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