Phyllophaga (Phyllophaga) aguadita Saylor, 1942

Vallejo, Luís Fernando & Wolff, Martha, 2013, The genus Phyllophaga Harris (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Melolonthinae) in the Colombian Andean Mountains, Zootaxa 3722 (2), pp. 101-142 : 135-136

28. Phyllophaga (Phyllophaga) aguadita Saylor, 1942

Redescription. Length 20 mm. Dark chestnut-brown color. Body is elongate, with surface densely covered in short setae on the dorsum and long, fine setae on the abdomen, especially the thoracic region. Pronotum ( Fig. 125 ) is wider than it is long, with a sinuous margin. Clypeus is bilobed, slightly marked with raised and concave margins. Antennae ( Fig. 126 ) have 10 antennomeres, with narrow, long antennal clubs. Protarsal claw is cleft, with a long, sharp tooth in mid position ( Fig. 127 ). Male genital capsule ( Figs. 128–129 ) is long, cylindrical, and strongly sclerotized; parameres are short, wide, compact, slightly adorned, and joined by a membrane; the aedeagus is membranous with minute spines in the mid and transversal section and slightly adorned.

Comments. This is not a well-known species, originally described from a male collected by Apolinar-María in June in “ Aguadita , Colombia ”; however, there are no more precise or recent records. Saylor commented that it is similar to P. caviceps Moser and to P. tenuipilis Bates.

The “Diccionario Geográfico de Colombia ” (Instituto Geográfico Agustín Codazzi 1996) has an entry for “La Aguadita ” as a district located in the Sibaté valley, at 28 km on the road between Bogotá and the Municipality of Fusagasugá, at an altitude of 2,400 m. The area has a cold climate, with large areas of land dedicated to dairy farming.

Figures

FIGURES 125 – 129. Phyllophaga aguadita adult male. Pronotum, dorsal view (125), left antenna (126), right metatarsal claw (127), male genital capsule, dorsal view (128), frontal view (129). Scale: 1 mm.