Scaptolenus pacofierroi Martínez-Luque, 2022

Martínez-Luque, Erick Omar, Jones, Robert Wallace & Niño-Maldonado, Santiago, 2022, New species, notes on the biology of Scaptolenus LeConte (Coleoptera: Elateridae) and a key to the “ vagans-group ”, Zootaxa 5169 (3), pp. 267-278 : 268-271

Scaptolenus pacofierroi Martínez-Luque sp. nov.

( Figs. 1–5 , 11, 13, 15, 17 , 19 )

LSID. urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:48216EFB-6995-4FA4-AC96-89E57C3F541

Material examined. Holotype (male) (COL-TIP-03713): MÉXICO, Tamaulipas, Municipio of Aldama, Sabino Gordo, 22- 25.08.2009, Cols. Daniel Curoe and Fierro (specimen deposited in CNIN-IBUNAM) . Paratypes. Seven males, same data. (specimens deposited in CNIN-IBUNAM) (COL-TIP-03714; COL-TIP-03715; COL-TIP-03716; COL-TIP-03717; COL-TIP-03718; COL-TIP-03719; COL-TIP-03720); 1 male, same data (specimen deposited in DJCC) (ELAT-001- DJCC); and 1 male, MÉXICO, Puebla, Chilac, near Tehuacan , 26.05.2009, light trap, Col. Daniel Curoe (specimen deposited in CNIN-IBUNAM) (COL-TIP-03721) .

Locality type. MÉXICO, Tamaulipas, Municipality of Aldama, locality of Sabino Gordo , 22°55’6.15’’N- 97°56’20.81’’W, 100 m.

Description. Male. Holotype. Body 14.3–16.6 mm long (x̄ = 15.6, n= 10), 5.9-6.7 mm wide (x̄ = 6.2, n= 10); Color generally brown, with lighter tones on the legs and ventral portions, darker tones on the head and in the apical portions of the elytra ( Figs.1–3 ). Head with fulvus-aeneous color with fuscus-piceous tones with long, decumbent setae with fulvus coloration. Eyes, prominent and fuscus in color. Antenna brown with thick black setae and smaller, thinner interspersed fulvus setae. Pronotum light brown in color with presence of long, decumbent setae, luteal in color. Coxae and femur of light brown color with short and decumbent, fulvus-aeneous setae. Tibia, tarsi and claws fuscus in color with the presence of fulvus colored setae. Elytra fuscus-rufous at the base, with long and decumbent fulvus-aeneous setae from the base to the initial part of the elytral suture to the humeral region; distal humeral region fuscus until apex with short decumbent fuscus setae, setae on the elytral margins slightly longer, thicker and fulvus. Abdomen, light brown in color, similar in color of the coxa and femur, with moderately long, decumbent, fulvus to fuscus setae.

Head 1.2-1.5 (x̄= 1.4, n=10) mm long, 1.1-1.5 (x̄=1.3, n=10) mm wide; with simple and spaced punctation. Maxillary palps with length of the penultimate palp 0.5-0.7 (x̄= 0.6, n=10) mm and length of the last maxillary palp 0.5-0.7 (x̄= 0.6, n=10) mm with the penultimate segment slightly longer than the last segment ( Fig. 17 ). Antennae long, extend beyond humeral region, from the fourth antennomere to apex more or less acute, dilated at the apex, length of antennomeres 2 to 11 0.2:0.3:0.9:0.9:0.8:0.8:0.8:0.8:0.8:1.0. Pronotum 1.7X times wider than long; width of the pronotum 3.8–4.4 (x̄= 4.0, n=10); length of the pronotum 2.0-2.4 (x̄= 2.2, n=10) mm; anterior margin arched and lobed at midline; lateral margins rounded, without carina, widely arched on the dorsal side. Pronotum with dense and sparsely scattered punctation, less dense and more dispersed on head than on pronotum. Posterior angles divergent, and markedly attenuated towards apex; posterior margin lobed anterad of scutellum. Scutellar shield sub-triangular. Elytra length 10.8-12.8 (x̄= 11.9, n=10) mm; width of the elytra (humeral region) 5.9-6.7 (x̄= 6.2, n=10) mm; with distinct, circular punctures, with uniform distances between punctation on the disc and apically; presence of deep and well-marked striae, narrowing anteriorly and ending before apex. Abdomen, with five small; ventrites with truncated posterior margins, with shallow punctures, each with a seta. Prosternum, length 0.7-0.9 (x̄= 0.8, n=10) mm; width of the prosternum 1.0-1.2 (x̄= 1.1, n=10) mm; moderately short (reaches the limit of the coxa), narrowing towards the anterior portion, strongly arched between the coxae, with moderate and slightly marked punctation ( Fig. 11 ). Mesoventrite and metaventrite, with shallow punctures, with a large number of luteal setae obscuring a large part of the segments. Metacoxal lamina moderately wide, tapering laterally, curved at the apex with three rounded projections at the base, connected with a slight curve laterally ( Fig. 13 ). Metanepisternum and Metepimeron, not visible due to the large number of luteal setae in the ventral part. Legs, the prothoracic legs with tibia with a slight emargination medially, the ectal edge with a central tooth of triangular appearance with the apical portion slightly rounded and with a moderate inclination towards the apex, apex with an abruptly acute laterally angular tooth; length of the ectal tooth 0.4-0.6 (x̄= 0.6, n=10) mm. Protibial spur, length of left spur 0.6-0.9 (x̄= 0.8, n=10) mm; length of right spur 0.5-0.8 (x̄= 0.7, n=10) mm; apical margin of spurs acute ( Fig. 15 ). Tarsi, average length of 1 to 5 (2.1:1.1:0.8:0.6:1.0) mm; slender, sub-cylindrical, each ventrally with brush of short and stiff pubescence.

Male Genitalia, trilobed aedeagus: phallobase almost twice as long as it is wide, slightly curved, widening in basal third with a semi-rectangular basal notch and a rectangular posterior internal notch, subequal to basal notch, membranous dorsally. Median lobe parallel-sided throughout its length, 1.2X times longer than the parameres, length 1.2-1.5 (x̄= 1.4, n=10) mm, apex three-quarters of the total length, tapering to the anterior portion and ending in a curved point. Parameres, length 1.0-1.3 (x̄=1.1, n=10) mm, parallel-sided throughout length, obtusely angulated and fusiform; subtruncated at the apex, with a ventral preapical group of setae.

Immatures and females. Unknown.

Biological Data. Nine specimens were collected in the town of Sabino Gordo, located 13.5 kilometers east of the town of Aldama, in the municipality of the same name, in the state of Tamaulipas, México. These specimens were collected between August 22 and 25, 2009. An additional specimen was collected in the town of San Gabriel Chilac, near the city of Tehuacán, in the state of Puebla, México. This specimen was collected between May 25 and 26, 2009.

The Sabino Gordo town is located in the Gulf Coastal Plain, which rises from 50 to 250 meters above sea level. Although this region is generally flat, there are some slight elevations and low hills ( Cervantes-Zamora et al., 1990; Ruíz-Cancino & Coronado-Blanco, 2002). The town of Sabino Gordo is reported to have a warm subhumid climate, with a ratio of annual precipitation-average annual temperature of 32 (P/T), with rain in summer with only 5.6% of the rain during winter months ( García, 1988). This pattern can be modified by the arrival of cold fronts in winter and sometimes by cyclones ( Ruíz-Cancino & Coronado-Blanco, 2002).

The dominant vegetation is mesquite, tamaulipan thorn scrub and secondary vegetation. Much of the natural vegetation has been disturbed by livestock activities ( INEGI, 1982) which have modified the plant composition, due to the expansion of cultivated pastures used as forage. In the central and southern region of the plains and lomerio subprovince, the vegetation is varied with submontane scrub, low deciduous thorn forest, and secondary vegetation ( INEGI, 1982).

The other locality where this species was collected was San Gabriel Chilac, which is located on the south-western side of the Tehuacán valley. This area belongs to Biosphere Reserve Tehucán-Cuicatlán with the vegetation predominantly consisting of xeric scrublands made up of rosetophilous desert scrub, mezquital, chaparral, and cactus scrub ( Carranza, 2000).

It is important to note that the dates on which this species was collected in the town of San Gabriel Chilac, Puebla (May) and Sabino Gordo, Tamaulipas (August) are the months with the highest precipitation in both locations.

Distribution. MEXICO, Puebla and Tamaulipas ( Fig. 19 ).

Etymology. This species is named in honor of Biol. Francisco Fierro, an enthusiastic and passionate biologist who has dedicated much of his life the management of flora and fauna in southern Tamaulipas, Mexico.

Taxonomic comments and diagnostic characters. This species appears closely related to Scaptolenus acutangulus Champion, 1896 . A diagnostic character separating these species is the difference in length of the third antennomere which is 1.7 times that of the second in S. pacofierroi sp. nov. and 2 times that of S. acutangulus . Another difference is the length of the third antennomere in relation to the fourth, which in S. pacofierroi sp. nov. is 2.6 times the length of the fourth and in S. acutangulus , it is 3 times the length of the fourth. The elytral disc of S. acutangulus is notably flattened whereas the disc of S. pacofierroi sp. nov., is more rounded ( Fig. 3 ). There is also a notable difference in size of these species, in which S. acutangulus is approximately three times as long as S. pacofierroi sp. nov.

Figures

FIGURE 19. Distribution of Scaptolenus pacofierroi sp. nov. and Scaptolenus zuritai sp. nov.

FIGURE 1–5. Scaptolenus pacofierroi sp. nov.; Figs. 1, 2, 3 dorsal, ventral and lateral view; Figs. 4, 5 ventral and dorsal view of the aedeagus. PHA: phallobase; PAR: paramere; ML: median lobe; SG: setation group.

FIGURE 11–18. Scaptolenus pacofierroi sp. nov.; Figs. 11 prosternum, 13 metacoxal lamina, 15 prothoracic tibiae, 17 maxillary palp. Scaptolenus zuritai sp. nov.; Figs. 12 prosternum, 14 metacoxal lamina, 16 prothoracic tibiae, 18 maxillary palp.