Ancognatha erythrodera (Blanchard, 1846)

Mondaca, José & Rothmann, Sergio, 2022, First record of Ancognatha erythrodera (Blanchard, 1846) (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Dynastinae: Cyclocephalini) in the altiplano of Chile, Insecta Mundi 2022 (936), pp. 1-4 : 2-4

Ancognatha erythrodera (Blanchard, 1846)

( Fig. 1–4 )

Material examined. 6 specimens (1 male, 5 females) at SAGC from: CHILE, Provincia de Parinacota , Visviri, 28-II-2018 (4 females), 17-VII-2018 (1 male), col. C. Avila ; Visviri , 14-II-2022, col. M. Arias (1 female). 5 specimens were collected at an ultraviolet light trap, and 1 specimen at a funnel trap .

Other material examined. Ancognatha erythrodera: Frontera tripartita Perú, Chile, Bolivia, 3-IV-2015, col. J. Mondaca E. (1 JMEC). ARGENTINA, Jujuy, Iturbe 3.412 m, 7-II-2009, col. V.M. Diéguez y G. Arriagada (1

VMDC). BOLIVIA, Departamento Oruro, Caracollo 3790 m, 3–4-II-2008, col. M. Ferrú (2 JMEC, 3 VMDC) ; Challapata, 1–2-II-2008, col. M. Ferrú (5 VMDC). BOLIVIA, Departamento La Paz, Patacamaya , 4-II-2008, col. M. Ferrú (1 VMDC) ; Viscachani , 19-III-1995, col. D. Jackson (2 VMDC) ; Tiahuanaco , 9-II-2008, col. M. Ferrú (1 JMEC) .

Diagnosis (n = 9). The species most similar to Ancognatha erythrodera is A. aymara Mondaca , but these species have different body color patterns; males and females of A. aymara are unicolored, castaneous or reddish-brown, and are smaller (body length 13–19 mm). Ancognatha erythrodera is larger (17–27 mm) and dorsally bicolored in both sexes with the pronotum reddish-brown to brown and the elytra dark-brown to black. The pronotum of A. erythrodera generally has a longitudinal dark line down the middle that may be either continuous or interrupted; this dark line is entirely absent in A. aymara . The head, scutellum, and legs are dark brown in A. erythrodera ( Fig. 2 ) and not reddish brown as in A. aymara . The head and male genitalia ( Fig. 3–4 ) are similar in both species.

Distribution and habitat. This species lives at high elevations (3,300 –4,080 m) in the altiplano of Argentina (Jujuy, Tucumán), Bolivia (La Paz, Oruro), Peru (Arequipa, Puno) ( Moore et al. 2018b), and northern Chile (Parinacota province) (new record) (Fig. 5d). This distribution corresponds to the biogeographic province of the Puna of the Andean Region proposed by Morrone (2015). Ancognatha erythrodera has been collected in a semi-arid steppe environment dominated by low and resinous scrubs of Adesmia sp. (Fabaceae) , Parastrephia sp. (Asteraceae) , and coarse grasses as Stipa sp. and Poa sp. (Poaceae) (Fig. 5b, c). The adults are nocturnal and often attracted to lights at night and emerge during the rainy season (highland winter) that occurs between the months Figure 5. Distribution of Ancognatha erythrodera . a–c) Montane habitats of A. erythrodera in northern Chile. d) Collecting sites of Ancognatha erythrodera in the altiplano of Chile (blue circles). e) Location of the Región de Arica y Parinacota in northern Chile. of December and April. In Chile, adults were collected at an elevation of 4,080 m. The immature stages of this species are not described; the larvae feed on roots of coarse grasses known as “paja brava” and have been cited as a pest of potato in Bolivia ( Mellini and Verenini 1986).

Remarks. This contribution increases the number of Ancognatha species found in Chile to two. The new finding of A. erythrodera extends the distributional range to the west by 17 km from the Tripartite milestone (the border between Peru, Chile, and Bolivia; Fig. 5a) and 4.8 km to the east from the Bolivian locality of Charaña (Fig. 5d). Ancognatha erythrodera is found at high elevations (3,300 –4,080 m) on both sides of the Andes mountain range of Peru, Chile, Bolivia, and Argentina, while Ancognatha aymara Mondaca, 2016 is a similar species that lives at slightly lower elevations (3,000 –3,600 m) in the Andes of northern Chile and northwestern Argentina ( Mondaca 2016, 2020).

Figures

Figures 1–4. Ancognatha erythrodera (Blanchard, 1846). 1) Male, dorsal habitus. 2) Female, dorsal habitus. Scale bar: 1.0 mm. 3–4) Parameres. 3) Lateral view. 4) Caudal view. Scale bar: 0.5 mm.