Parallocorynus (Eocorynus) schiblii, O’Brien & Tang, 2015

O’Brien, Charles W. & Tang, William, 2015, Revision of the New World cycad weevils of the subtribe Allocorynina, with description of two new genera and three new subgenera (Coleoptera: Belidae: Oxycoryninae), Zootaxa 3970 (1), pp. 1-87 : 53-55

Parallocorynus (Eocorynus) schiblii Tang and O’Brien, new species

Figures: habitus: 89 – 92, 276; antennal pockets: 123; male genitalia: 169 – 170, 195, 211 – 212, 235, 238A–B; female genitalia: 262.

DESCRIPTION—Body medium-sized to large (range 3.7 – 5.1 mm, mean = 4.6 mm, n = 22), not robust, elongate-oval; body and elytra orange-brown, with apex of individuals dark brown.

Male (holotype). Rostrum: long, 1.32 X longer than pronotum, blackish brown; coarsely, scarcely rugosely, substriately punctate from base nearly to apex; weakly expanded in distal half, weakly somewhat evenly curved in lateral view. Head: between eyes, on forehead and behind eyes with few, moderately dense, large punctures, punctures between eyes 2 X diameter of punctures posterior to postocular transverse groove, distance between punctures 2 X width between eyes and 3 X width posterior to transverse postocular groove; forehead with distinct, long, narrow, median sulcus; bare spot without punctures present behind forehead and sulcus with diameter approximately 0.50 X width of eye; forehead strongly narrowed apically, 0.72 X as wide between median basal margin and apical margin of eyes. Antennae: with scape 1.78 X longer than eye and 1.32 X longer than desmomeres 1+2, 1 & 2 elongate, 3 – 5 round, 6 & 7 more transverse and shorter; scape reddish brown, 1 – 7 brown to piceus; club with rhopalomeres 1 & 2 piceus to black, basal 1/3 of apical rhopalomere black and apical 2/3 pale brown. Prothorax: transverse, 1.14 X wider than long; anterior margin emarginate; apex moderately narrow, evenly roundly expanded to distal 1/3, there subparallel to basal 1/5, there strongly rounded to base; lateral margins not denticulate, with large coarse punctures; disc with moderately coarse, moderately separated punctures (distance to nearest puncture 2 – 3 X own width); laterally subrugose; posterior margin of pronotum slightly emarginate; uniform orange-brown. Scutellum: with lateral margins basally subparallel; apically narrowed and rounded, with dense small punctures and short translucent setae. Elytra: 0.55 X as wide as long; subparallel behind rounded humeri to near declivity, there suddenly evenly narrowed to rounded moderately emarginate apices; unevenly coarsely punctured, medially and apically moderately rugosely punctured, apical margin with longitudinal rugose striations; uniformly brown. Legs: very robust, femora orange-brown, tibiae and tarsi dark brown; procoxae weakly convex, lacking processes; protrochanter with sclerotized nub at apex; profemora strongly asymmetrically swollen, proximal to distal apex with large spine located just posterior to imaginary longitudinal line extending from apical pit along ventral inner surface, spine resting against posterior side of protibiae when leg in repose, ventral inner surface granulate at area of greatest swelling; protibiae stout in lateral view, base rounded with strong rounded bend, lacking inner tooth, inner surface weakly medially broadly excavate from base to near apex, subcarinate margins of groove denticulate, apex with small anterior mucro and subequal posteriorly directed tooth. Length, pronotum and elytron: 4.7 mm.

Female. Same as male except: Rostrum: 1.80 X longer than pronotum. Antennae: with desmomeres 1 – 2 elongate, 3 – 5 round, 6 – 7 transverse, 1 – 5 dark brown, 6 – 7 black; club with rhopalomeres 1 – 2 black, apical rhopalomere base black and apical 2/3 light brown. Prothorax: 1.44 X wider than long; apex narrowed, sides more or less evenly rounded to narrowed base. Legs: protibiae normally developed, without basal bend, and without excavation on inner surface or serration on margins. Elytra: 0.58 X as wide as long; apical 1/6 dark brown.

Genitalia and Associated Structures— Male. Length of penis and apodemes together 1.08 – 1.54 mm (n = 5). Penis: robust, in dorsal view sides subparallel in basal portion, slightly converging toward gonopore, with pronounced bulge near gonopore; apodemes slightly shorter than penis (Figs. 169 – 170); apex tapering distad evenly for 2/3 of length with lateral margins concave, then angle of taper becoming more pronounced and lateral margins becoming convex before rounded point (Fig. 195). Internal sac: when fully extruded (Figs. 238A–B) with central half with narrow band of scales, one band on each side, joining dorsally on anterior area in broad patch, scales oriented in anterior direction, in posterior area scales on bands gradually becoming obsolete and bands converging with two pairs of posteroventraly oriented sclerites (“endophallic darts”), central pair of endophallic darts with posteriorly directed setae on inner surface, section of membraneous sac anterior to darts noticeably inflated dorsally. Tegmen: apical plate reaching greatest size for subtribe (Figs. 211 – 212, 235). Female. Sternite VIII: 1.09 – 1.42 mm long (n = 3), arms ~ half as long as apodeme, diverging from apodeme with gradually increasing angle between arms for ~ 7/10 of length, then curved inward but without sharp angulate bend, then converging in final 3/10 of length (Fig. 262).

Intraspecific Variation— Individuals known from two localities display consistent differences in color; those from San Bartolomé Loxicha have uniformly light orange-brown elytra while fully developed individuals from Rancho Limón may have up to the apical half dark brown; the rostrum, antennae, tibiae and tarsi in individuals from Rancho Limón are also darker and range almost to black. The rostral length relative to the pronotal length of males = 1.34 – 1.48 (mean = 1.39, n = 10) and of females = 1.77 – 1.88 (mean = 1.82, n = 10); the pronotal width relative to the pronotal length of males = 1.18 – 1.22 (mean = 1.20, n = 8) and of females = 1.33 – 1.45 (mean = 1.40, n = 10).

Etymological Note— This species is named in honor of the late Leo Schibli, co-founder of SERBO (Sociedad para el Estudio de los Recursos Bióticos de Oaxaca), for his contributions to the ecology and conservation of cycads and other flora of Oaxaca, Mexico .

Remarks— This species is readily distinguished from the other member of the subgenus by its uniformly brown head (exclusive of the eyes and rostrum) versus brown and black in P. chemnicki and by the predominantly brown elytra versus the black elytra of P. chemnicki . The two members of this subgenus can be distinguished from all other members of the genus Parallocorynus by the presence of a large spine at the ventrodistal surface of the forefemora of males.

Biology— Currently known from a single host, Dioon holmgrenii , and has been found together with Parallocorynus (Parallocorynus) salasae in male cones.

Range— Known from Mexico in the Pacific slopes of the state of Oaxaca.

Material Examined— Holotype (by designation) male with the following labels: 1) [rectangular; white; printed in black ink] MEXICO, Oax. San Bart-/olomé Loxicha, ex ♂ cone/ Dioon holmgrenii , 5-XII-/2008, F.Maldonado-Ruiz; 2) [rectangular; red; printed in black ink] HOLOTYPE ♂ / Parallocorynus (Eocorynus) / schiblii/ Tang & O’Brien 2015 CAS. Paratypes: same label data, (24). MEXICO: Oaxaca: Rancho Limón, [GPS coord. omitted], 620m, ex Dioon holmgrenii ♂ cone, 12-XI-2012, W. Tang (113). Paratypes (137) are deposited at ANIC, ASUT, BMNH, CAS, CMNC, CSCA, CWOB, EMEC, FMNH, FSCA, IADIZA, IEXA, MIUP, STRI, UNAM, USNM, ZMHB.