Onthophagus (Eremonthophagus) sticticus Harold, 1867

Ziani, Stefano, Abdel-Dayem, Mahmoud Saleh, Aldhafer, Hathal Mohammed & Barbero, Enrico, 2019, An overview of the Onthophagini from the Arabian Peninsula (Coleoptera: Scarabaeoidea: Scarabaeidae), Zootaxa 4658 (1), pp. 1-36 : 9-10

Onthophagus (Eremonthophagus) sticticus Harold, 1867

[ Fig. 6 ]

Literature quotes. SAUDI ARABIA : “ Arabia ” ( Harold 1867). Makkah Province, “Djedda” (d’Orbigny 1900); “Buraiman”; “Ta’if”; “ Mecca ”; “Al Lith”; “Shi’aera [Al Shaira], antilocust camp north of Qunfidha” (Scott in Paulian 1948). Madinah Province, “ 16 km W Badr Hunayn”. Hejaz, “N Hedjaz” ( Zunino 1981). Yemen: without locality (Scott in Paulian 1948). “Nord Yemen” ( Paulian 1980). Oman: Muscat Governorate, “Muscat” (Scott in Paulian 1948). Without locality ( Janikova 1998). UNITED ARAB EMIRATES: without locality ( Gillett & Gillett 2005).

Material examined. SAUDI ARABIA : 1 ex. with no further data ( JSCS) . Jizan Province, Farasan islands, Al- Sajid , (16.860626°N, 41.932564°E), 17.ii.2017, U.M. Abu El-Ghiet & T. M. Elsheikh leg. 1 ♀ ( KSMA) ; ibidem, 10.x.2017, Abu El-Ghiet & T. M. Elsheikh leg. 3 ♂♂ ( KSMA) . Makkah Province, Hedjas, Buraiman, 12 miles N. of Jidda , 4.xii.1944, A. R. Waterston leg. 1 ♀ (paratype of O. saudensis Frey, 1962 , NHMUK) ; ibidem, 8.xii.1944, A. R. Waterston leg. 1 ♀ (holotype of O. saudiensis Frey, 1962 , NHMB) . YEMEN: Sana’a Governorate, Sana’a, 2400 m, C. Rathjens leg. 1 ex. ( NHMUK) ; Mafhaq , 2350 m (1509′03″N 4357′16″E), 7.x.2005, D. Král leg. 1 ex. ( NMPC) . OMAN: Al Batinah Governorate, Batinah b. Sohar (2425′N 5642′E), 18/ 22.v.1982, M. D. Gallagher leg. 1 ex. ( JSCS) . Al Wusta Governorate, Jiddat al Harasis (1918′N 5707′E, 9.ii.1992, 1 ex. ( ONHM) ; Yalooni (1956′N 5706′E), 25.ii.1990, 1 ex. ( SOIC) ; ibidem, xi.1992, 1 ex. ( SOIC) ; Huqf (2025′42″N 5726′25″E), 18/ 19.iv.1998, M. D. Gallagher leg. 1 ex. ( SOIC) ; Sahil Al Tazir, Sawairah (1808′N 5632′E) 10/ 13.v.1983, M. D. Gallagher leg. 1 ex. ( SOIC) . Dhofar Governorate, Ash-Shuwayiyah , on the beach, 24.xi.2017, T. Lackner leg 1 ex. ( SZCM) . Masqat Governorate, near Fins , 15–25 m, (2256′53N 5911′17E), 4/ 5.iv.1996, M. D. Gallagher leg. 8 exx. ( SOIC) .

Distribution. Arabian Peninsula: Oman and Yemen (Scott in Paulian 1948), Saudi Arabia ( Harold 1867), United Arab Emirates ( Gillett & Gillett 2005). North Africa: Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia ( Baraud 1985). Africa: Eritrea, Somalia ( Balthasar 1963), Kenya ( Tagliaferri et al. 2012). Asia: Iran ( Ziani & Bezděk 2016).

Remarks. Onthophagus saudiensis was described by Frey (1962) from two specimens from Makkah Province, Saudi Arabia , and placed in the d’Orbigny (1913)’s 29 th group, that Frey himself called “29. Gruppe ochreatu s d’Orb.”. Actually, for O. ochreatus d’Orbigny, 1898 and others species, almost thirty years before, Balthasar (1935) erected the subgenus Micronthophagus . For these reasons Zunino (1981), not knowing O. saudiensis , tentatively placed this species in the subgenus Micronthophagus Balthasar, 1963 . As said above, the type series is constituted by two specimens, identified as males by Frey (1962) but actually two females. The author clearly stated ( Frey 1962, p. 619): “Type im Britischen Museum, Paratype im meinem Museum” [Type in British Museum, Paratype in my Museum], discriminating between “Type” [= holotype] and “ Paratype ”. Therefore, article 73.1.1. of the Code ( ICZN 1999) is met and the holotype is the specimen housed in BMNH, while specimen deposited in Frey’s collection is a paratype.

They are labelled as follows:

Holotype, fixed by original designation ( NHMB): 1st, white with a horizontal yellow line, printed in black: “HEJAZ / Buraiman. / 12 miles N. of Jidda. / 8.xii.1944. / A. R. Waterston. / B. M. 1947-349.”; 2nd, red, printed in black: “ PARATYPUS ”; 3rd, white, handwritten in blue and printed in black: “ P. Typus / Onthophagus / saudiensis / n sp / det. G. Frey, 1961”; 4th, white, printed and handwritten in black: “ Onthophagus (Erem.) / sticticus HAR. ♀ / J. SCHEUERN det. 98”; 5th, red handwritten in black: “comb. with / TYPE ♀ / saudiensis FREY / Brit. Mus. 2.99 / J. SCHEUERN vid”.

Paratype ( NHMUK): 1st, white with a horizontal yellow line, printed in black: “HEJAZ / Buraiman. / 12 miles N. of Jidda. / 4.xii.1944. / A. R. Waterston. / B. M. 1947-349.”; 2nd, round, white, encircled of red, printed in black: “Type”; 3rd, red, printd in black: “TYPUS”; 4th, white, handwritten in blue and printd in black: “Typus ♂ / Onthophagus / saudiensis / n sp / det. G. Frey, 1961”; 5th, white, handwritten in blue: “Synonymous / with / O. sticticus ”; 6th, white, printed and handwritten in black: “ Onthophagus (Erem.) / sticticus HAR. ♀ / J. SCHEUERN det. 98”; 7th, white, handwritten and printed in black: “ Onthophagus / sticticus HAR. / S. Ziani det. 19” .

After the examination of both the specimens, we can propose the new synonymy Onthophagus sticticus Harold, 1867 = Onthophagus saudiensis Frey, 1962 new synonym.

Figures

FIGURES 2–7. Onthophagini of Arabian Peninsula. 2, Cleptocaccobius viridicollis (Fåhraeus in Boheman, 1857): YE (Sana’a) Wadi Dhahr; 3, Digitonthophagus eucatta Génier in Génier & Moretto, 2017: SA (Asir) Wadi Marabah; 4, Euonthophagus carbonarius (Klug, 1855) sensu lato: YE (Sana’a) Wadi Dhahr; 5, Onthophagus (Eremonthophagus) infuscatus Klug, 1845: SA (Asir) 10 km N Wadi Reem; 6, Onthophagus (Eremonthophagus) sticticus Harold, 1867: OM (Dhofar) Ash-Shuwayiyah; 7, Onthophagus (Eremonthophagus) transcaspicus König, 1889: OM (Ad Dakhiliyah) Al Ayn. Photos by Gabriele Fiumi.