Brachysomus (Brachysomus) hirtus (Boheman, 1845)

Yunakov, Nikolai, 2022, A review of the genus Brachysomus Schoenherr (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Entiminae), Zootaxa 5193 (1), pp. 1-165 : 38-39

Brachysomus (Brachysomus) hirtus (Boheman, 1845)

Figs. 31, 32 , 63 , 194 , 236A

Strophosomus hirtus Boheman in Schoenherr, 1845: 399. Type locality: ‘England’; Formánek 1905: 169 ( Brachysomus ); Dalla Torre et al. 1937: 173; Pešić 1998: 169; Denosmaison 1999: 130; Podlussány 2001: 239.

Strophosomus setulosus Boheman in Schoenherr, 1845: 400. Type locality: Switzerland, Geneva.

Brachysomus bensae Stierlin, 1893: 57 . Type locality: Torriglia; F. Solari 1948: 27.

Brachysomus bensai (misspelling): Dalla Torre et al. 1937: 173.

Brachysomus var. nigrotibialis Hoffmann, 1950: 330 . Type locality: France, Verneuil-sur-Vienne.

Redescription. Measurements: Body length 1.75–2.55 mm, width 0.95–1.50 mm. Vestiture: Body covered with small dense excised apically, weakly shiny scales and long erect widened apically setae. Scales variable, slender and deeply excised apically or broad and weakly excised apically. Scales denser along sides of pronotum and elytral interstriae. Setae concentrated in straight rows at elytral interstriae, almost as long as width of interstriae. Antennae and abdomen covered with thin pale hairs; legs with widened and apically blunted hairs. Colouration: Body darkbrown, legs and antennae reddish-brown to brown.

Head: Rostrum as long as wide, parallel-sided. Antennal sockets distinctly visible in dorsal view. Pterygia not projecting from outline of rostrum. Antennal scrobes sharply developed and deep, with margins divergent, reaching ventral side of rostrum. Epistome flat, without carina. Epifrons parallel-sided, weakly convex longitudinally, without carina, with deep median longitudinal sulcus, separated from vertex by weak but well visible transverse depression. Vertex weakly convex, finely punctate. Eyes oval (VW/ELD = 2), strongly, almost hemispherically convex, highest at middle. Antennae: Scape gently curved, strongly widened along distal 1/3; funicular antennomeres: 1st 1.85x as long as wide, 2nd 2x as long as wide, 3rd–6th moniliform; 7th weakly transverse; club egg-shaped to oblong-eggshaped.

Thorax: Pronotum transverse [PL/PW = females: 0.81–0.83 (0.82); males: 0.77–0.81 (0.79)], widest posteriad of mid length, strongly and evenly convex at disc and sides, constricted anteriorly and posteriorly, densely and shallowly punctate; disc with well-developed lateral depressions. Elytra: oval to broadly-oval, strongly convex at disc and sides. Interstriae of elytra flat, 2x wider then striae. Punctures well separated; spaces between punctures very weakly concave, somewhat narrower than diameter of puncture. Legs: Fore tibiae straight, with apical external angle not protruding; hind tibiae in male with strong mucro. Second tarsomere weakly transverse. Fifth fore tarsomere extending beyond apical lobes of 3rd by length of the lobes.

Abdomen: Male 5th ventrite flat, truncate, with scattered pale hairs. Male genitalia: Aedeagus heavily sclerotized through entire length. Median lobe 1.3x longer than apodemes, evenly narrowed apically, apex truncate. Endophallus with fields of long spiculae. Ventral membranes triangular, slightly sclerotized. Parameres vestigial, posterior margin of basal piece straight. Spermatheca: ramus and collum connate at base, ramus 2x longer then collum.

Diagnosis. Brachysomus hirtus is very similar to B. fasciatus , differing only in the structure of the genitalia of both sexes. The aedeagus is noticeably shorter than the elytra, whereas in B. fasciatus the aedeagus is only somewhat shorter than the elytra. They are otherwise similar. The body of B. hirtus is usually sparsely covered with scales, less so than in B. fasciatus ; male 5th ventrite is clearly flattened in the apical third; eyes weakly convex, rostrum profile evenly continuous with head capsule.

Distribution. United Kingdom, France, Spain (Ponferrada), Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Slovenia, Greece, Italy, Germany (Thüringen, Brandenburg, Harz Mountain Range, Sachsen, Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria), Switzerland, Austria (Niederösterreich, Burgenland), Czechia, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Moldova, Bulgaria, Ukraine (Zakarpatska Prov., Crimea), Russia (Krasnodar Kray).

Remarks. Brachysomus hirtus was described from ‘England’ and ‘environs of Paris’ (France). Stierlin has described two females of B. hirtus Boh. from Italy as Brachysomus bensae Stierlin, 1893 , which was subsequently synonymyzed by Formánek (1905). A syntype of Brachysomus bensae Stierlin, 1893 has been examined. Lectotype, ♀ (here designated) (SDEI): ‘Italien’, ‘ bensae Type’, ‘Torriglia (Ital.)’, ‘ P. bensae Str. ’, ‘ hirtus det. Formánek’. Paralectotype (SDEI) ‘Italien’, ‘ bensae Type’, ‘Syntypus’, ‘ hirtus det. Formánek’. The paralectotype has lost the left hind leg.

Bionomics. This species inhabits grass and leaf litter of xerothermic deciduous forests in the montane or submontane zone.

Type material. Lectotype, ♀ (here designated) (NHRS): ‘England’.

Additional material examined. AUSTRIA: 1♀, ‘Umgebung Wien, Reitter leg.’ (ZMAN); 1♀, ‘Austria’ (ZIN); 2♀, ‘Wien, Kirsch leg.’ (MTD). BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA: 32♂, 46♀, Mostar, Herzegovina, Metzenauer leg. (NMPC); 1♂, 1♀, ‘Herzegovina, Domanovic D. Grabovski’, ‘Holdhaus’ (NHMUK); 1♂, ‘Caril, Paganetti’ (NHMUK); 2♀, ‘Herzegovina, Driano’ Reitter leg. (ZIN); 1♀, Central Bosnia, Reitter leg. (ZIN); 1♀, ‘Pazaric [= Pazari], 18.VI.1936, Linke leg.’ (MTD); 2♀, ‘Bosnia, Bjelasnica [=Bjelašnica Range, Bjelašnica Mt., h = 1867 m]’ (MTD). 1♀, ‘Herzegovina, Duži, 1903, O. Leonhard’ (MTD); 3♀, ‘Sarajevo, Matzenauer leg.’ (NMPC); 1♀, ‘Nevesinje, IV, Zoufal leg.’ (NMPC). BULGARIA: 2♀, Rodopi: Malko Gradište, 14.iv.1980, Bassamakov leg. (ZMUH); 4♀, Harmanli [= Kharmanli], 14.iv.1980, Bassamakov leg. (ZMUH); 1♀, Kopilevo, 15.iv.1980, Bassamakov leg. (ZMUH); 2♀, Bracigovo, 8.iv.1980 Bassamakov leg. (ZMUH); 3♀, Kössevo–Kardjali, 9.II.1979 Bassamakov leg. (ZMUH); 4♀, Ost. Rodopi, Pelevin [= Plevun], 15.iv.1980, Bassamakov leg. (ZMUH); 2♀, Vitoscha, 800 m, 28.v.1988 P. Mitov leg. (ZMUH); 2♀, idem, 1300 m, 24.vii.1988, P. Mitov (ZMUH); 1♀, idem, 800 m, IX–VII.1985, P. Mitov (ZMUH). CROATIA: 1♀, ‘Ragusa [= Dubrovnik] (NHMUK); 1♂, idem, J. Sahlberg leg. (NHMUK); 1♂, 1♀, idem, E. Reitter leg. (MTD); 6♀, idem, 05. 1899, Flach leg. (MTD); 1♀, ‘Dalmatia, Pridworje’ (MTD); 1♀, ‘Kroatien, Kreutz’ (MTD); 1♂, ‘Istrien, Is. Veglia [= Krk Isl.]’ (MTD); 2♂, 2♀, ‘Castelnuovo [= Hercegnovi], Hummler leg.’ (NMPC). CZECHIA: 1♀, ‘Moravia’ (ZIN); 3♀, ‘Mähren [= Moravia]’ (MTD). FRANCE: 1♀, ‘Gallia’ (NHMUK). GREECE: 7♂, ‘Gravosa [= Gravoúna], Apfelbeck’ (NMPC). GERMANY: 1♀, Baden-Württemberg, Bad Säckingen (Eggberg) (MTD); 3♀, ‘Gotha, coll. Kirsch’ (MTD); 2♀, ‘Thüringen, Linke’ (MTD); 1♀, ‘Berolin [= Berlin], Tiefenbach’ (MTD); 3♀, ‘Harz [mountain range], Märkel’ (MTD); 4♀, ‘Germania, Märkel, Kirsch leg.’ (MTD); 1♀, ‘Krain [= Grain, Bavaria], Ludy leg.’ (MTD); 2♀, Sachsen, Schellenberg, W. Schupp. leg. (MTD); 2♀, Sahsen, Wehlen, Märkel leg., coll. Bauer (ZMUN); HUNGARY: 1♀, ‘Hungaria occ., Vörs, Kisbalaton [=Kisbalatondulő], 1950, Dr. Székessy leg.’ (ZMAN); 1♀, ‘Kisbár Apáti [=Kisbárapáti], Hungaria, V. Stiller leg.’ (MTD). ITALY: 1♀, Sardinia, Aritzu (ZMAN); 18♀, ‘Mte. Pagano, Paganetti leg.’ (MTD, ZIN, ZMAN); 2♀, ‘Castel di Sangro Paganetti leg.’ (NHMUK); 2♀, ‘Berge südlich von Castel di Sangro, Paganetti leg.’ (NHMUK); 1♀, ‘Siena,Toscana, Linke’(MTD); 2♀, ‘Mantua [= Mantova, Lombardia], Linke’ (MTD); 2♀,‘Torriglia (Ital.)’ (SDEI). MOLDOVA: 1♀, Chişinău Distr., Kapriyana, forest, VIII.1982 A.G. Koval leg. (ZIN); 1♀, Kotovsk, forest, 1.v.1989, Matsyuk leg. (ZIN). MONTENEGRO: 1♀, ‘Montenegro westliches, Reitter leg.’ (NHMUK); 1♀, ‘Dalmatia, Cattaro, Reitter leg.’ (MTD); 1♂, ‘Kameno, Paganetti’ (NMPC); 1♂, ‘Montenegro, Lovćen [Mt. and National Park], Rambousek leg.’ (NMPC). NORTH MACEDONIA: 1♂, 2♀, ‘Utovo, Apfelbeck’ (NMPC); SLOVENIA: 4♀, ‘Topla, Paganetti leg.’ (NMPC). ROMANIA: 6♀, ‘Hungaria, Herkulesbad (= Băily Herculane) 1895, Ganglbauer leg.’ (ZMUN); 1♀, ‘Comit., Bihar’ (NHMUK); 4♀, ‘Banat, Mehadia’ (MTD). RUSSIA: 2♀, Northwestern Caucasus, Krasnodar Terr., Goryachy Klyuch, Zolotaya Gora, 6.iv.1952 K.V. Arnoldi leg. (ZIN); 1♀, Ubinskaya, 8.xi.1973 B.A. Korotyaev leg. (ZIN). SPAIN: 1♀, ‘Ponferrada, Paganetti’ (MTD). SWITZERLAND: 4♀, ‘Helvetia, coll. Stein’ (MTD). TURKEY: 1♀, ‘Turchia, Ordu prov., Tekkiraz, 500 m, 18.v.1967, Besuchet leg.’ (OGc). UKRAINE: 2♀, ‘Uzhhorod, Zoufal’ (NMPC); 4♀, ‘Bukovina, Czernowitz [= Chernivtsi]’ (MTD); 2♀, Crimea, 4 km SW of Bolshoi Canyon, Chainyi Domik Locality, 22.v.2000 N.N. Yunakov leg. (ZIN); 1♀, near Yalta, ‘Mys Martian’ Reserve, 28.v.1990 V.I. Gusarov (ZIN); 6♀, Nikita, 29.v.1990, V.I. Gusarov leg. (ZIN); 1♀, near Stary Krym, Agarmish Range, 2.xii. 1980, V.B. Pyshkin leg. (ZIN). UNITED KINGDOM: 18♀, ‘Chatham, Kent.’ (NHMUK); 1♀, ‘Caterham, Surrey. G. C. C.’ (NHMUK).

Figures

FIGURE 194. Brachysomus hirtus: A: aedeagus, dorsal view; B: tegmen; C: spermatheca; D: body; E,F: head of male; G: fore tibia of male; H: hind tibia of male; I: fore tarsus; J: scales of elytra; K: setae of elytra.

FIGURE 236. Occurrence map of Brachysomus: A: B. hirtus; B: Brachysomus hirtus species group. Red triangles indicate occurrence of males of B. hirtus.

FIGURES 31–36. Brachysomus, dorsal habitus:31: B. hirtus, male. 32: B. hirtus, female. 33: B. fasciatus, male. 34: B. fasciatus, female. 35: B. subtilis, male. 36: B. subtilis, female.

FIGURES 63–70. Brachysomus, details: 63: B. hirtus, 64: B. fasciatus. 65, 66: B. ponticus. 67, 68: B. commutatus. 69: B. ponticus. 70: B. commutatus.