Cleopomiarus caucasicus Caldara and Legalov, 2016

Gültekin, Neslihan, Caldara, Roberto & Gültekin, Levent, 2021, Miarus Schoenherr and Cleopomiarus Pierce (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) Species Associated with Campanula L. (Campanulaceae) Plants in the Eastern Black Sea Region of Turkey, The Coleopterists Bulletin 75 (3), pp. 505-511 : 510

Cleopomiarus caucasicus Caldara and Legalov, 2016 ( Figs. 3A–C )

Material Examined. TURKEY: Trabzon Prov., Zigana Mountain, Hamsiköy, Zitaş Road , 40°40′21′′N, 39°26′05′′E, 1,700 m, 14.7.201 9, 5♂, 4♀, N. GÜltekin leg .

Diagnosis. Length 2.7–3.7 mm. Vestiture on dorsum comprising subrecumbent to suberect, whitish to light brown, seta-like scales. Rostrum in male nearly as long as pronotum, in female longer than pronotum, moderately curved in lateral view. Pronotum transverse, subconical, with rounded sides. Elytra globose, short, slightly longer than wide, at base moderately directed forward from interstria 5 to humeri, with somewhat rounded sides. Mesofemur with minute tooth, metafemur with distinct tooth, uncus of metatibia in male with apex enlarged and directed outward. Body of penis narrowed at middle third.

Remarks. This taxon is closely related to Cleopomiarus graminis (Gyllenhal, 1813) , a species with very wide Palearctic distribution but unknown from Turkey until now (Caldara and Legalov 2016). From C. graminis , C. caucasicus differs in the metatibial uncus of the male ending with a broad apex and the shape of the penis, especially at its more pointed apical part. In Turkey C. caucasicus may be confused with C. distinctus (see Remarks under that species).

Distribution. Armenia ( Alonso-Zarazaga et al. 2017; Caldara and Legalov 2016). Turkey, present finding; this is a new record for the fauna of Turkey.

Plant Association. Campanula trachelium ( Fig. 3D ), with a wide Eurasian distribution, was determined as the host plant of C. caucasicus for the first time, in fact representing the first host plant record for this weevil species.

Figures

Fig. 3. Cleopomiarus caucasicus and host plant. A) Adult male, dorsal view, B) Adult female, dorsal view, C) Aedeagus, front view, D) Campanula trachelium, host plant, E) Egg, deposited in the ovary of a flower, F) Larva feeding in ovary with young seeds.