Embates crinipes Prena, 2005

Prena, Jens, 2005, The Middle American species of Embates Chevrolat (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Baridinae), Zootaxa 1100 (1), pp. 1-151 : 1-151

56. Embates crinipes Prena sp. n.

(Fig. 187–190, 252)

Ambates sp. 10. Marquis 1991: 200

Holotype male (dissected), Costa Rica, labeled: “ COSTA RICA, Heredia:/ La Selva Biol. Sta./ 3 km S Pto. Viejo, 100 m / 20°26'N 84°01'W ”, “ 20.IV.2001 / leg. J. Prena ” ( INBC).

Paratypes 56 (35 males, 21 females), Costa Rica and Panama, labeled: as holotype except 16.III.2001 (7 x), 16.IV.2001, 7.IV.2001 (6 x), 20.IV.2001, 21.IV.2001 (4 x), 24.II.2003 (2 x) ( CWOB 2 , HPSC, INBC 2 , JPPC 15 , SNSD); “ COSTA RICA, Pr. Heredia / Pto. Viejo­La Selva B. S./ No. 356 29­IV 1981 / R.J. Marquis coll.”, “ Piper / imperiale”; same label except No. 248, 16­III 1981; No. 692, 25­XI 1981; No. 1002, 6­VI 1982; No. 1249, 29­X 1982; No. 846, 13­II 1982; No 217, 6­III 1981 ( NMNH 7 ); “Costa Rica, HEREDIA: 3/ km S Puerto Viejo, Est./ Biol. La Selva, 100 m,/ 19.– 22.2.2000, leg. Prena ” ( CHAH); “ COSTA RICA: Prov. Heredia:/ 11km ESE La Virgen, 250­/ 350m, 10°21'N 84°03'W / leg. J. Prena, 6.– 11.4.2004 / INBio­OET­ALAS transect” ( INBC 6 , JPPC 6 ), same label except 12.– 18.4.2004 ( JPPC 2 ); “ COSTA RICA, Prov. Heredia:/ 10km SE La Virgen, 450–/ 550m, 10°20'N 84°05'W / Prena, 15.III.2001 / INBio­OET­ALAS transect”, INB0003209998 ( INBC); same data except 8.– 13.4.2003, INB0003230073–74 ( JPPC 2 ); “ COSTA RICA, Prov. Heredia:/ 11km SE La Virgen, 450–/ 550m, 10°20'N 84°04'W / 21.2.2003 / INBio­OET­ALAS transect”, “handcollecting/ leg. Jens Prena ”, INB0003229835 ( JPPC); same data except 12.4.2003, INB0003230142 ( JPPC); 11.– 16.3.2003, INB0003229892 ( JPPC); 16.4.2003, INB0003230225 ( JPPC); “Cuatro Esquinas, P.N./ Tortuguero, Prov. Limon / COSTA RICA. 0 m. Octob./ 1989. J. Solano / 280000, 590500”, CRI000 108429; same label except CRI000 053018, Set. 1989; CRI001 341284, Abr 1993, R. Delgado ( INBC 3 ) “Costa Rica, CARTAGO:/ 7 km N Turrialba, M.N./ Guayabo, 1100 m,/ 4/ 5.4.2000, leg. Prena ” ( JPPC); “ COSTA RICA, Alajuela: R. B./ A. Brenes, Rio San Lorencito ,/ 900m, 10°13'N 84°36'W,/ 4.–6.iv.2003, leg. J. Prena ” ( JPPC); “PortoBello [Portobelo]/ PanFeb 20­11”, “ E.A. Schwarz / Collector” ( NMNH) .

Description. Habitus: Fig. 187, total length 6.0– 7.5 mm (m=6.6, n=36). Color: integument piceous; basic vestiture of minute dark scales intermixed with few yellow scales along elytral striae, yellow scales condensed in broad dorsolateral vitta between head and preapical callus, from there variously expanded to elytral apices; venter with light yellow scales on prosternum and along flank. Head: frontal fovea minute or absent, rostrum moderate, subcylindrical (Fig. 188), sides between apex and antennal insertion not (♂♂) or slightly (♀♀) attenuated, costate dorsomedially, basolateral margin edged, length of rostrum ♂♂ 1.23–1.30 x (m=1.26, n=24), ♀♀ 1.22–1.33 x (m=1.28, n=12) pronotal length,

length of ante­antennal portion ♂♂ 0.43–0.47 x (m=0.46, n=24), ♀♀ 0.47–0.49 x (m=0.48, n=12) total rostral length, dorsal margin of antennal scrobe reaching rostral base before eye; length of funicular segments 1 and 2 subequal, club oblong ovate. Pronotum: length 0.86–0.95 x (m=0.91, n=36) maximum width, sides rounded, widest in basal half, anterior portion tubulate; disk densely punctate, intervals granulose, costate dorsomedially. Elytra: length 1.79–1.90 x (m=1.83, n=36) width at humeri, width 1.28–1.37 x (m=1.31, n=36) maximum pronotal width, sides subparallel in basal third or slightly converging behind humeri, apices rounded conjointly, preapical callus developed moderately, striae fine, punctures indistinct, interstriae flat, 9 costate. Legs: tibiae nearly straight, ventral margin slightly bisinuate, distally with cluster (♀♀) or fringe (♂♂) of yellow hairs, tarsal claws arcuate and separate at base. Male: apex of aedeagus round, middle sclerotized, anterolateral portion membranous (Fig. 189), body of aedeagus of moderate length, basal third angular in lateral view, apodemes 2.2 x longer than body of aedeagus, flagellum thin, as long as apodemes, transition to curved base gradual, basal appendage elongate, fused subdistally with base of flagellum, projecting far beyond base (Fig. 190).

Plant association. Piper imperiale (Marquis 7, Prena 45), P. obliquum (Prena 1).

Distribution. Costa Rica, Atlantic side and central Panama (Fig. 252).

Specific epithet. The name is a Latin compound noun derived from crinis (hair) and pes (foot).

Discussion. Embates crinipes is related to the smaller­sized E. latevittatus and the larger­sized E. polymorphus . All three species have ciliated metatibia in the male sex and occur on species of Piper with the shoot­apex emerging from within the leaf­base at flowering nodes. Typical E. crinipes occur on the Atlantic side of the Cordillera Central in Costa Rica, while the specimen from Portobelo, Panama deviates by the evanescent subapical portion of the dorsolateral vitta (Fig. 187b). The species occurs sympatrically with E. leucopleura discolor , and the identification of the females may pose problems in rare cases of E. l. discolor with microscopic basic vestiture. Both species occur primarily on P. imperiale .