Cubanthonomus Anderson, 2024

Anderson, Robert S., 2024, Cubanthonomus, a new genus of Anthonomini (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Curculioninae) from Cuba, Zootaxa 5419 (2), pp. 296-300 : 297-298

Cubanthonomus Anderson , new genus

Figs. 1–5

http://zoobank.org/ urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:392C63F5-CF05-48E4-BB2B-2A61F59546D7

Type species, Cubanthonomus grossulus (Suffrian) , here designated.

Description. Length 2.5–3.0 mm, width 1.5–2.0 mm. Body and appendages black, glossy; antenna with compact funicle of seven antennomeres; eyes prominent, large, separated at front by distance slightly less than width of base of rostrum, head constricted behind eyes; lateral rostral groove with large, deep punctures, with upper margin carinate, directed towards middle of eye; posterior margin of pronotum at middle strongly produced posteriorly; elytra globular in form, slightly longer than wide, with rows of large, deep punctures but lacking impressed striae; procoxae contiguous; profemora with two teeth, the more basal tooth larger than more distal tooth, meso and metafemora each with small acute tooth; apex of metatibia with a small straight apical tooth; tarsal claws with short basal inner tooth; abdomen with ventrite 1 longer than ventrite 2 at middle, ventrite 2 about as long as ventrites 3–4 combined, ventrite 5 short, suture between ventrites 1 and 2 less distinct than those between other ventrites.

Identification. This genus is placed in Anthonomini primarily by the combination of the head constricted behind eyes (as occurs in species of Achia Champion and Cionopsis Champion ), profemora with two teeth (as occurs in species of the genus Anthonomus , among others), and tarsal claws with very small basal tooth arising from the inner face of the claw.

Among Anthonomini this genus can be recognized by the globular body form with the elytra almost as wide as it is long, almost complete absence of scales, head constricted behind widely separated protruding eyes, compact antennal funicle of seven antennomeres, lateral rostral groove with large, deep punctures, with upper margin carinate, directed towards middle of eye, posterior margin of pronotum at middle strongly produced posteriorly, and simple aedeagus with no internal sclerotization of the endophallus. This genus is superficially similar in dorsal habitus to species of Odontopus Say ( Camarotini : Prionomerina) in its somewhat rounded form but all species of the latter have a large serrate profemoral tooth, a strongly inwardly bowed protibia and a large basal tooth on the tarsal claws.

Males and females are difficult to distinguish externally with the main difference in the apex of the rostrum, which is slightly more coarsely punctate in males than in females.

Natural history. Adults of the one known species have been collected beating vegetation in semideciduous forest and in wet rainforest. The globular form suggests the species likely develops in some type of rounded seed or berry as in species of Huaca Clark (in Rutacecae), Cionomimus Marshall (in Viscaceae ) and Cionopsis Champion (in Sapindaceae ).

Etymology. The genus name is a combination of the country name Cuba and the scientific name Anthonomus . The name is masculine in gender for nomenclatural purposes.

Remarks. Suffrian (1872) placed this species in the genus Cleogenus Schoenherr , an incorrect subsequent spelling of Cleogonus Schoenherr. The name Cleogenus is thus unavailable.

Figures

FIGURES 1–6. Cubanthonomus grossulus. 1. Habitus, lateral, female. 2. Habitus, dorsal, female. 3. Habitus, dorsal, specimen in the Gundlach Collection at the Institute of Ecology and Systematics of the Cuban Academy of Sciences, photographed May 2022. 4. Head, oblique view, female. 5. Abdomen, ventral view, male. 6. Aedeagus, dorsal view.