Azotoctla migueli, Cardona-Duque, Juliana & Franz, Nico M., 2012

Cardona-Duque, Juliana & Franz, Nico M., 2012, Description and phylogeny of a new Neotropical genus of Acalyptini (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Curculioninae) associated with the staminodes of Cyclanthaceae, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 166 (3), pp. 559-623 : 603-606

AZOTOCTLA MIGUELI CARDONA- DUQUE & FRANZ SP. NOV. ( FIGS 27 , 28 )

Diagnosis: Dark yellowish to dark reddish brown; rostrum distinctly tumescent above the antennal insertion, punctulate and laterally rugulose between the antennal insertion and eyes; metanepisternal width similar throughout; protarsus nearly half as long as protibia; humeri slightly protruded; elytral apices contiguous; aedeagal pedon with a subapical, inverted Y-shaped sclerite. Azotoctla migueli most closely resembles A. gomezi , yet may be differentiated from the latter species by the apically rounded, shortly and widely projected aedeagus; and by the longitudinally orientated aedeagal plates, which are apically subcontiguous. In contrast, the aedeagal apex of A. gomezi is conical, slightly longer, and more widely projected, and the aedeagal plates are apically separated.

Description: Male ( Fig. 27A ): small, length 1.8– 2.1 mm, width 0.8–1.1 mm, oval l/w = 2.0–2.1 (N = 2). Colour dark yellowish to dark reddish brown, legs yellowish brown; vestiture long, golden, most conspicuous on rostrum, prothorax, elytra, thoracic sternites, femora, tibia, and ventrites. Rostrum short, 0.4–0.5 mm; r/p = 1.0–1.1, dark reddish brown, distinctly tumescent above antennal insertion; in dorsal view slightly pilose, punctulate and laterally rugulose between antennal insertion and eyes; antennal insertion near apical third, scrobe subrectate, basally deep. Antennal club oval, I similar in length to II + III, II and III similar. Head dark reddish brown; ventrally slightly pilose, dorsally pilose. Eyes distant from pronotal margin by nearly one third of their diameter. Pronotum l/w = 0.7, dark reddish brown, in dorsal view subcircular, anterior margin 0.5¥ width of posterior margin, lateral margins rounded, greatest width near midregion, shallowly punctulate, vestiture short; posterior margin slightly bisinuate; in lateral view conical. Mesepimeron ventrally not projected; metanepisternal width similar throughout. Prosternum scarcely pilose; procoxal cavities inserted at middle; prosternal process acute, flattened; metaventrite densely pilose, punctulate, centrally slightly concave, sulcus running along its posterior half; metacoxal cavities separated by distance similar to 1.5¥ mesocoxal diameter. Ventral vestiture dense. Prothoracic legs yellowish brown; procoxa distinctly pilose; profemur f/p = 1.1–1.4; protibia t/f = 0.9, anteroventrally pubescent along apical quarter; protarsus nearly half as long as protibia. Meso- and metatibiae anteroventrally pubescent along apical quarter. Scutellum triangular, dark yellowish brown. Elytra semicircular, elongate, l/w = 1.4–1.5, anterior margins sinuate; humeri slightly protruded; lateral margins subparallel throughout anterior half, thereafter nearly straight and converging, apices contiguous; in lateral view dorsally flattened throughout anterior half, thereafter slightly convex; striae subequal to intervals, shallow, indistinct; strial punctures large, dark brown, suboval; intervals dark yellowish brown, vestiture short. Abdomen nearly two times length of lateral margin of metaventrite, vestiture long, similar to that of metaventrite, sparser anteriad; sternites 1 and 2 centrally concave; 1 and 2 similar in length; 5 slightly longer than 2. Tergites 1–6 incomplete; tergite 7 complete posteriad; tergites 5–6 lateroposteriorly and tergite 7 lateroanteriorly with paired strigate-sculptured regions. Tergite 8 completely covered by elytra; distinctly wider than long (width nearly 1.5¥ its length), posterior margin straight, plicate, laterally rounded. Distal angle of sternum 8 with four to five large setae. Sternum 9 ( Fig. 27B ) with basal portion of basal plate straight, T-shaped; apodeme nearly one times width of aedeagal apodemes. Tegminal plate reduced, basal piece Y-shaped; tegminal apodeme deflexed, nearly one-third length of aedeagus. Aedeagus ( Fig. 27C ) medium, l/w = 3.0–3.3 (N = 3); longitudinal plates elongate-triangular; basal margin narrowly rounded, apex rounded, slightly projected (projection wide); tectum membranous, partially closed by the lateral sclerites near to apex, tissue papillate, dense; pedon with an inverted Y-shaped sclerite subapicad; endophallus mesally with ten to 14 weakly sclerotized, spine-like sclerites; in lateral view slender, ventral margin deflexed, apex upturned; aedeagal apodemes in lateral view very slightly sinuate at apex, in dorsal view slightly widened near to apex.

Female: length 2.0– 2.1 mm, width 1.0– 1.2 mm, l/w = 1.8–2.0 (N = 2). Rostrum 0.5 mm; r/p = 1.3, slightly tumescent above antennal insertion, pilose throughout, dorsally slightly rugulose, dorsolateral margins darkened; antennal insertion near apical two fifths; scrobe projected to apex, basally weakly defined. Pronotum yellowish brown, l/w = 0.6–0.7, anterior margin 0.6–0.8¥ width of posterior margin; in lateral view subrectangular. Mesoventral process narrow. Prothoracic legs f/p = 1.2–1.3; t/f = 0.9. Elytra l/w = 1.4. Abdominal suture between sternites 1 and 2 slightly evident; sternite 5 slightly longer than 3 + 4, posterior margin truncate. Tergites 1–6 incomplete; lateroposterior part of tergites 5 and 6 and lateroanterior part of tergite 7 with paired strigate-sculptured regions. Tergite 8 semilunar; posterior margin simple; anterior margin widely emarginate; lateral margin simple. Sternum 8 ( Fig. 28A ) with lamina mesally projected; inner corners of furcal arms more projected than outer ones, with four setae. Coxites nearly as long as apodeme of sternite 8, styli apically with three to four long setae. Spermatheca ( Fig. 28B ) with corpus slightly swollen, subrectate; cornu deflexed, apex broadly rounded; ramus and collum separated, not protruded.

Variation: There is little variation amongst the available specimens, which all originated from a single locality. Two of the examined specimens have more elongate (as opposed to conical) procoxae.

Type material: Holotype male (dissected) ‘COant. [ Colombia, Antioquia], San Rafael, Vda. [Vereda] La Rápida, Finca Cantarrana , 6°15′27,6″ N; 75°01′41,5″ W, 1041 m, en estaminodios recogidos en el suelo de Carludovica palmata Ruiz & Pavón , May. 25/2007, leg. Cardona & Tuberquia, CEUA 47880 ’ ( CEUA) . Paratypes, same label information as holotype except ‘ CEUA 45777 ’, ‘ CEUA 47822 ’, ‘ CEUA 47825 ’, ‘ CEUA 47827 ’, ‘ CEUA 47839 ’, ‘ CEUA 47881 ’, ‘ CEUA 47888 ’ ( CEUA: four males, three females; six dissected); ‘COant. [ Colombia, Antioquia], San Luis, Río Claro , 5°53′32,1″ N; 74°51′17,8″ W, 324 m, bosque, en inflorescencia en fase masculina de Carludovica palmata Ruiz & Pavón, Ago. 2/2009, leg. Bota, Cardona, Franz & Mazo, CEUA 47841 ’, ‘ CEUA 47882 ’, ‘ CEUA 47883 ’ and ‘ CEUA 47884 ’ ( CEUA: three males, one female; one dissected) .

Etymology: Named in honour of the late Miguel Antonio Duque Gómez, the senior author’s grandfather, an exemplary man of strong spirit who was like an oak, a very wise person in dealing with difficult situations, incredibly opened minded, a great scholar in San Luis, Antioquia, and very studious and passionate about education.

Natural history: Azotoctla migueli is known from the eastern flange of the Central Cordillera of Colombia (Department of Antioquia), occurring at elevations up to 1000 m in open areas as well as premontane cloud forests ( Fig. 36 ). The adults were collected on the ephemeral staminodes of Carludovica palmata ; and occur sympatrically with A. gomezi , A. clemmyssa , and A. tuberquiai .

Figures

Figure 27. Azotoctla migueli, male. A, habitus, lateral view; B, sternum 9; C, aedeagus, dorsal and lateral view.

Figure 28. Azotoctla migueli, female. A, sternum 8; B, spermatheca.

Figure 36. Azotoctla species distributions, II: Azotoctla aecuatorialis, Azotoctla clemmyssa, Azotoctla dasygastra, Azotoctla migueli, and Azotoctla nana.