Larinus zagros, Gültekin & Podlussány, 2012

Gültekin, Levent & Podlussány, Attila, 2012, Two new species of Larinus from Iran (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Lixinae), Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae 52 (1), pp. 245-258 : 251-257

Larinus zagros sp. nov.

( Figs. 20-34 ) Type material. HOLOTYPE: J, IRAN: ISFAHAN: ‘ Prov., Isfahan, Sibak, Kuhhã-ya-Zagros / 32˚52’ 285” N, 50˚02’ 291” E, 2500 m / 11.vi.2007, leg. Nadai L. ( HNHM). PARATYPES: IRAN: ISFAHAN: ‘ Prov., Isfahan, Sibak, Kuhhã-ya-Zagros / 32˚52’ 285” N, 50˚02’ 291” E, 2500 m / 11.vi.2007, leg. Nadai L., 3 ♀♀ (2 ♀♀ in HNHM, 1 ♀ in EMET).

Description. Measurements (n = 4). Body length: 6.70–9.10 mm. Rostrum: length 1.60–2.60 mm, width 0.65–0.75 mm. Prothorax: length 2.00– 2.70 mm, width 2.80–3.90 mm. Elytra: length 4.70–6.10 mm, width 3.20–4.30 mm.

Vestiture. Ventral and lateral surface of head with sparse short bifurcate whitish-grey scales, bifurcate scales on ventral surface of body dense and longer, ventral surface of rostrum with long semi-erect hair-like scales; dorsal surface of body with very sparse hair-like pubescence, denser and longer on lateral margins of prothorax and legs.

Structure. Body elongate oval ( Figs. 20–21 ). Head sphaerical, vertex partly visible, frons weakly depressed, frontal pit small and superficial. Eyes elliptical, convex, ventral side narrower than the dorsal one and slightly continuing towards the ventral side of head. Rostrum elongate, subcylindrical, slightly curved in male ( Fig. 22 ), distinctly curved in female ( Fig. 23 ), parallel-sided in basal half in both sexes, constricted after antennal insertion in female ( Fig. 23 ); dorsally with two longitudinal shallow depressions on basal third in female, within this area obtusely raised; rostral pit invisible; epistomal area transversely depressed; surface of rostrum including frons coarsely and densely punctured, punctures partly confluent, smaller on apical half and larger on lateral surface of rostrum; interspaces with dense microreticulation. Ventral margin of scrobes partly visible dorsally. Antenna inserted at about 0.35 of the total rostrum length measured from the apex in male and 0.45 of rostrum length in female. Scape shorter than funicle, gradually widened towards apex, slightly wider than antennomere I, antennomere I slightly wider and longer than antennomere II, antennomere III subquadrate, antennomeres IV–VII gradually widened, antennomere VII being the widest; club elongate with acuminate apex, 2.10× as long as wide at widest part ( Fig. 24 ).

Prothorax ( Figs. 20–21 ) trapezoidal, base moderately and triangularly arched towards elytra, basal margin sinuate, proscutellum moderate in size, a little lower than pronotum, protruded towards mesoscutellum; lateral margins of prothorax gradually narrowing anteriorly, constricted at anterior sixth like short collar; anterior margin evenly curved ventrally, postocular lobes moderately developed, anterior margin of prosternum very weakly emarginate. Pronotum convex, surface with rounded moderately sized punctuation, dense on posterior half of disc, smaller and sparser on anterior declivity, micropunctuation on interspace dense and regular. Mesoscutellum small and visible.

Elytra ( Figs. 20–21 ) parallel-sided at basal 2/3, weakly constricted before their mid-length, posterior third roundly narrowed towards apex; humeral prominences moderately developed, located at base of intervals VII–IX; preapical prominences distinct and located at the end of intervals IV–VII. Intervals flat, subequally wide on disc, narrower towards apex, about 5× as wide as striae on disc, surface with transverse microwrinkles and micropunctuation, intervals XI sinuate, protruding towards metepisternum, interval X wider at basal third; striae formed by ovate and separate punctures up to apical declivity, then punctures partly or completely confluent in the form of thin sulciform striae. Venter typical for the genus.

Legs typical for this genus. Femora mutic, swollen medially, slightly thinner than rostral width. Outer margin of protibia nearly straight, inner margin sinuate in both sexes and serrate in female. Unci well developed in both sexes and bearing a tuft of setae projecting from the unci; subunci missing in male ( Fig. 25 ), subunci with an obtuse triangular plate in female ( Fig. 26 ); apical fringe not continuing to the lateral outer margin. Meso- and metatibia straight, inner margin without denticles; apical fringe on meso- and metatibia longer and denser than on protibia. Tarsi wide, tarsomere III 1.20× as wide as tarsomere II, lobes of tarsomere III almost as long as wide. Spongy pads cover ventral lobes of tarsomere III, and are in the form of a tuft on underside of tarsomeres I–II placed at their apical corner. Tarsomere V stout, curved, gradually widened from base to apex, slightly shorter than the total length of tarsomeres I–III; claws connate at basal fourth, moderately divergent at apical half.

Male genitalia. Aedeagus in dorsal view ( Figs. 27–28 ) elongate, gradually narrowed from base to apical 1/5, weakly constricted at this part and parallel-sided, ventral plate ending upside-down, U-shaped with short, obtuse apex. Aedeagus in lateral view ( Fig. 29 ) distinctly curved, its outer margin swollen medially. Tegmen forming a ring, ring distinctly emarginated before apodeme. Spiculum gastrale thin, stick-shaped, curved ( Fig. 30 ), slightly shorter than aedeagus.

Female genitalia. Tergite VIII as typical of the genus, posterior margin well sclerotized and bearing short, sparse hairs ( Fig. 31 ). Apodeme of sternite VIII stout, slightly shorter than lateral arms ( Fig. 32 ). Lateral arms of tergite VIII narrow, angularly-arched on outer side; subequal in length with vertical arms which are turning angularly inner-upright. Anterior margins of vertical arms sclerotized and bearing 5–6 short setae. Coxite narrowed to apex constituting a wide basement for stylus, well sclerotized throughout ( Fig. 33 ). Stylus cylindrical, gradually tapering anteriorly and bearing 4–5 short erect setae on apex ( Fig. 33 ). Spermatheca uncompleted C-shaped, gland lobe moderately developed, ductal lobe extremely small, apex of pump too obtuse ( Fig. 34 ).

Sexual dimorphism. Rostrum of female is distinctly longer than in male, more curved, constricted after antennal insertion and dorsally with two longitudinal shallow depressions at basal third. Inner margin of protibia without denticles in male but serrate in female. Subunci missing in male, triangularly shaped in female protibiae. First and second visible abdominal ventrites weakly depressed medially in male and flat in female.

Variation. Size variation is summarized above under measurements. The male is distinctly smaller than the females.

Diagnosis and discussion. Larinus zagros sp. nov. is recognizable by elongate oval body, long, curved and apically constricted rostrum of female, and stout, slightly and gradually tapering aedeagus with obtuse apex. The new species shares the similar prothorax, elytra and tibiae with Larinus syriacus Gyllenhal, 1835 , L. darsi Capiomont, 1874 and L. bardus Gyllenhal, 1835 ; the similar rostrum with L. afer Gyllenhal, 1835 ( Figs. 35–36 ) and L. tenuicorpus Ter-Minassian, 1962 ( Figs. 37–38 ); the shape of aedeagus with L. bardus ( Fig. 42 ) and L. darsi ( Fig. 43 ). The rostrum of L. zagros sp. nov., L. afer and L. tenuicorpus is subcylindrical, thinner than the fore femur, whereas the rostrum of L. bardus ( Fig. 39 ) and L. darsi ( Fig. 40 ) is thicker than the fore femur, parallel-sided in L. bardus ( Fig. 39 ), and subconical in L. darsi ( Fig. 40 ). The dorsum of rostrum is unicarinate on basal half in L. afer ( Figs. 35–36 ), tricarinate in L. syriacus ( Fig. 41 ). The aedeagus of the new species ( Fig. 27 ) is more similar to that of L. bardus ( Fig. 42 ) and L. darsi ( Fig. 43 ) than to that of L. tenuicorpus ( Fig. 44 ), L. afer ( Fig. 45 ), and L. syriacus ( Fig. 46 ). The new species is allopatric in distribution with L. afer which occurs in Iberian Peninsula and northwestern corner of Africa. However, it is sympatric with L. bardus and L. darsi which were described from Iran; the latter is also to be found in Transcaucasia and Anatolia, and the former occurs in Caucasus, Transcaucasia, Anatolia, Afghanistan and Central Asia too. One of the other related species, L. syriacus , is distributed in the Middle East, Caucasus, Transcaucasia, Anatolia and southern Europe. Larinus tenuicorpus is only known from Armenia.

Etymology. The name is given after the type locality, the Zagros Mountains in Iran, and is a noun in apposition.

Figures

Figs. 20–26. Larinus zagros sp. nov. 20 – holotype, male; 21 – paratype, female; 22 – dorsal view of rostrum, male; 23 – dorsal view of rostrum, female; 24 – funicle and club of antenna; 25 – fore tibia, male; 26 – fore tibia, female.

Figs. 27–34. Male and female genitalia of Larinus zagros sp. nov. 27 – dorsal view of aedeagus, 28 – apical part of aedeagus in dorsal view, 29 – lateral view of aedeagus, 30 – spiculum gastrale, 31 – tergite VIII, 32 – sternite VIII, 33 – coxite, 34 – spermatheca.

Figs. 35–41. Dorsal view of rostrum. 35–36 – Larinus afer Gyllenhal, 1835: 35 – male, 36 – female; 37–38 – L. tenuicorpus Ter-Minassian, 1962: 37 – male, 38 – female; 39 – L. bardus Gyllenhal, 1835, male; 40 – L. darsi Capiomont, 1874, male; 41 – L. syriacus Gyllenhal, 1835, male.

Figs. 42–46. Aedeagus, dorsal view. 42 – Larinus bardus Gyllenhal, 1835; 43 – L. darsi Capiomont, 1874; 44 – L. tenuicorpus Ter-Minassian, 1962; 45 – L. afer Gyllenhal, 1835; 46 – L. syriacus Gyllenhal, 1835.