Cretonanophyes zherikhini, Liu & Ren, 2006

Liu, Ming & Ren, Dong, 2006, First fossil Eccoptarthridae (Coleoptera: Curculionoidea) from the Mesozoic of China, Zootaxa 1176, pp. 59-68 : 61-68

Cretonanophyes zherikhini sp. nov.

Fig. 1 A–C

Material Holotype CNU­C­LB2005103, CNU­C­LB2005104, part and counterpart impression of complete weevil in ventrolateral position.

Locality and horizon

Yixian Formation, Upper Jurassic, Huangbanjigou, Chaomidian Village, Beipiao City, Liaoning Province, China.

Etymology. This species is named in honor of the distinguished Russian palaeoentomologist V. V. Zherikhin for his excellent work on fossil weevils.

Description Length (excluding rostrum) 4.8 mm, rostrum length 2 mm. Body dark, arched in lateral view. Rostrum convex, long, 1.5 times longer than head and pronotum together, nearly parallel­sided, gradually becoming thicker towards apex, 9 times longer than broad; mandibles small and shorter than apical width of rostrum.

Antennae inserted at 1/4 from base of rostrum, reaching mesothorax; scape long, but not nearly reaching base of rostrum; funicular joints longer than wide; club distinct, its joints nearly rounded. Frons narrow; eyes medium sized, longer than width of rostrum at its base, dorsolaterally positioned; gena longer than eyes.

Pronotum transverse, slightly convex, 2 times broader than long, its base 1.3 times as long as its apex; mesothorax combined with metathorax 2.4 times as long as pronotum and 0.8 times as long as abdomen.

Legs long, slender; fore femora intermediate in width; fore tibiae curved at base, 1.4 times longer than fore femora, gradually becoming thicker towards apex; fore tarsi 1.5 times shorter than tibiae, first tarsal joint large, nearly triangular, second tarsal joint half as long as first, third joint distinctly bilobate, fourth joint rectangle, as long as first but much thinner; claws free, paired and large, without tooth; bases of mid and hind tibiae curved distinctly; mid and hind tarsi similar to fore tarsi; hind femora inflated.

Abdomen with five sternites, with first and last sternites longest; elytra probably similar in length to abdomen, orientation convex as pronotum.

Remarks

The following features of this fossil indicate an affinity with the family E ccoptarthridae: the rostrum is distinctly longer than the head and pronotum combined, the antennae are inserted near the base of rostrum, first tarsal joint is inflated. Moreover, the long and basally distinctly curved tibiae justify a placement of this species within the genus Cretonanophyes . The new species can be distinguished from C. longirostris by its larger size, the less convex pronotum and elytra, smaller eyes, and longer gena. It closely resembles C. rugosithorax , however, its large size, the slightly widening apex of the rostrum, the long claws and the inflated hind femora indicate that it represents a new species.

Genus Abrocar gen. nov.

Type species. Abrocar brachyorhinos gen. et sp. nov., by present designation.

Etymology The name is derived from the Greek prefix abr (meaning “elegant”) and the genus Car (the type genus of this family); gender masculine.

Species included Only the type species: Abrocar brachyorhinos . Diagnosis

Small, shorter than 5 mm; arched in lateral view. Rostrum convex, parallel­sided, slightly shorter than head and pronotum together; mandibles small. Antennae inserted laterally near base of rostrum, not exceeding hind margin of head; scape longer and thicker than first funicular joint; club distinct. Head large; frons broad; eyes rounded, intermediate in size, dorsolaterally positioned; gena not shorter than eyes. Pronotum transverse, slightly convex, its base wider than its apex. Legs long, slender; fore coxae large and prominent, originating in the antemedial region of prothorax; femora intermediate in size; tibiae straight, longer than femora, hind tibiae gradually becoming thicker towards apex; tarsi long; first tarsal joint not inflated. Elytra not shorter than abdomen, broadly rounded at apex, with rows of distinct rounded punctuation.

Remarks

The following features of this fossil weevil place it in the family Eccoptarthridae : a small and convex body, the antennae are inserted near the base of the rostrum, a distinct club, and long and slender legs. Moreover, its rostrum is a little shorter than the head and pronotum combined, thereby differing from other eight genera in the family except Gobicar . The new genus can be distinguished from the genus Gobicar in more convex pronotum and elytra, the distinct antennal club, the antemedial position of the fore coxae, and the distinct punctuation on elytra. Also, the new genus resembles the genus Cretonanophyes , however, relatively short rostrum, the short antennal scape, the straight tibiae, and the unmodified first tarsal joint indicate that our fossil represents a new genus.

Abrocar brachyorhinos sp. nov.

Fig. 2 A–B

Material Holotype CNU­C­LB2005105, an impression of the complete weevil in ventrolateral position.

Locality and horizon Yixian Formation, Upper Jurassic, Huangbanjigou, Chaomidian Village, Beipiao City, Liaoning Province, China.

Etymology The name is derived from the Greek prefix brachy (meaning “short”) and rhinos (meaning “nose”), in reference to its relatively short rostrum.

Description

Length (excluding rostrum) 2.5 mm, rostrum length 0.8 mm. Body pale, arched in lateral view. Rostrum long, a little shorter than head and pronotum together, parallel­sided, 6 times longer than broad; mandibles small.

Antennae inserted laterally on rostrum, at 1/3 from base of rostrum, nearly reaching hind margin of head; scape thick, 2.8 times as long as wide, 2 times as long as first funicular joint; basal three funicular joints longer than wide, apical four funicular joints nearly as long as broad; club distinct, joints nearly rounded. Head large; frons broad; eyes intermediate in size, width similar to base of rostrum, dorsolaterally positioned; gena as long as eyes.

Pronotum gently convex, 1.7 times longer than head, its base 1.3 times as long as its apex. Fore coxae large and prominent, originating before mid section of prothorax; femora intermediate in width; fore tibiae straight, parallel­sided, 1.2 times longer than femora; first joint of fore tarsi not inflated, nearly 2 times longer than wide; middle tibiae shorter than fore tibiae; middle tarsi long, about 1.3 times shorter than middle tibiae, claw free and long; hind tibiae as long as middle tibiae, gradually becoming thicker towards apex, first tarsal joint thicker than those of fore and middle tarsi.

Elytra not shorter than abdomen, 2.8 times longer than pronotum, convex with pronotum, broadly rounded at apex, with rows of distinct rounded punctation, distance between impressions 6 times longer than their diameter and slightly shorter than intervals between longitudinal striae.

Acknowledgements

We sincerely thank Dr. Conrad Labandeira (Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History) for his endowment of an important book and Dr. Shih ChungKun (College of Life Sciences, Capital Normal University) for his improvement of our manuscript. This research was supported by grants from the National Nature Science Foundation of China (Nos. 30025006, 30370184, 30430100), the National Nature Science Foundation of Beijing (No.5032003), the Scientific Research Key Program (KZ200410028013) and the RCQJ Project of Beijing Municipal Commission of E ducation.

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Figures

FIGURE 1. Cretonanophyes zherikhini sp. nov., holotype, habitus (lateral view): A, line drawing; B, photograph of part CNU­C­LB2005103; C, photograph of counterpart CNU­C­LB2005104.