Macrocranius similis Schürhoff, 1935

Ratcliffe, Brett C., 2014, A Review of the Neotropical GeneraAstroscaraSchürhoff, 1937, ChiriquibiaBates, 1889, HadrostictaKraatz, 1892, JansoniaSchürhoff, 1937, MacrocraniusSchürhoff, 1935, andTiaroceraBurmeister, 1842 (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Cetoniinae: Gymnetini), The Coleopterists Bulletin 68 (3), pp. 363-376 : 372-373

Macrocranius similis Schürhoff, 1935 ( Figs. 21–25 )

Macrocranius similis Schürhoff 1935: 25 (original combination). Holotype at ZSMC, examined. Type locality: “ Brasilien.”

Description. Length 11.5–15.0 mm; width across humeri 6.7–8.9 mm. Color of dorsum an opaque straw yellow or ochre with dark reddish brown, piceous, or black markings as follows: clypeal margins and punctures on head (occasionally all of head); pronotum and elytra with large, round, irregularly spaced, mostly coalescing spots surrounding a puncture or striga; pygidium on basal half and punctures on apical half. Venter with piceous ground color and yellow to ochre markings as follows: epimeron, metepimeron, and metathorax variably yellow; abdominal sternites 1–6 in males each with large, transverse band of yellow not meeting at midline except for sternite 1 and 6 that do occasionally connect, band on sternite 6 sometimes absent; abdominal sternites in females similar but yellow bands greatly reduced in length and width. Legs in males with venter of femora and dorsum of tibiae yellow to partially yellow; legs in females similar but yellow greatly reduced, occasionally absent. Head: Surface nearly flat. Frons on piceous areas with large, dense, ocellate punctures. Clypeal surface with small to moderately large, moderately dense punctures; anterior and lateral margins strigulose; apex subtruncate, not reflexed, sides broadly rounded. Eyes moderate in size, interocular width equals 5.0–5.2 transverse eye diameters. Antenna with 10 antennomeres, club slightly longer than antennomeres 2–7. Pronotum: Surface with punctures on yellow area minute to small, moderate in density; large, round, black or reddish brown spot surrounds large, horseshoeshaped, ocellate puncture. Lateral margin with slen- der bead moderate in length, occasionally reaching anterior angle, not reaching posterior angle. Elytra: Surface similar to that of pronotum except some punctures surrounded by spots horseshoe-shaped, others large, transversely arcuate. Apices at suture slightly produced. Pygidium: Surface on basal half transversely strigulose with minute, tawny setae; punctures on apical half vary from small to large, sparse to moderately dense, glabrous. In lateral view, profile nearly flat to weakly convex. Venter: Setae long, tawny. Mesometasternal process, in lateral view, not produced ( Fig. 22 ); in ventral view, process wider than long, basal half at and behind transverse suture with moderately dense setae ( Fig. 23 ). Abdominal ventrites either side of nearly impunctate center with large, dense, mostly horseshoe-shaped punctures; setae short, tawny. Legs: Protibia in male slender, with apical tooth; protibia in female broader, with apical tooth and occasionally with slight swelling suggestive of second tooth. Parameres ( Figs. 24–25 ): In caudal view, form elongate, slender, lateral margins before apices slightly arcuate, apices each with laterally projecting tooth.

Distribution. Macrocranius similis is known from southern Brazil and Paraguay.

Locality Records. 34 specimens from BCRC, CASC, CMNC, CMNH, CSMC, HAHC, MGFT, and UFRJ. BRAZIL (31). BAHIA (7): Itapitinga, No Data. ESPÍRITO SANTO (4): Cariacica, Linhares , Vitória. GOIÁS (6): Jatahy. MINAS GERAIS (1): Corvelo. PARANÁ (2): Curitiba , Rolândia. RIO DE JANEIRO (1): Rio de Janeiro. SÃO PAULO (1): Bragança. NO DATA (9). PARAGUAY (3). AMAMBAY (1): Parque Cerro Corá. CONCEPCIÓN (2): Horqueta .

Temporal Distribution. January (1), February (1), March (3), October (10), November (2), December (2).

Diagnosis. Macrocranius similis is remarkably similar in appearance to Hoplopyga miliaris (Gory and Percheron, 1833) because of color and markings. Macrocranius similis has an elongated clypeus (subquadrate in H. miliaris ); unidentate protibia (tridentate in both sexes in H. miliaris ); a short, non-protruding mesometasternal process that is densely setose on its posterior half (process longer than wide and lacking setae in H. miliaris ); and the parameres are long and slender (subrectangular and stout in H. miliaris ).

Natural History. Nothing is known of the life history of this species.

Figures

Figs. 21–25. Macrocranius similis. 21) Habitus; 22–23) Lateral and ventral views, respectively, of form of mesometasternal process; 24–25) Parameres.