Lanurgus Eggers, 1920

Jordal, Bjarte H., 2021, The mainly South African genus Lanurgus revised (Coleoptera, Scolytinae), Zootaxa 5027 (1), pp. 87-106 : 90

Lanurgus Eggers, 1920

Type species: Lanurgus barbatus Eggers, 1920

Diagnosis, female. Antennal scapus shorter than funiculus, dorsally with a triangular extension or spike, anterior side of extension with a dense tuft of long setae; funiculus 6-segmented, pedicel long, at least half the length of segments 2–6 combined; club with two strongly procurved or more rarely transverse sutures. Pronotum in middle with distinct summit, only weakly if at all hunchbacked. Elytral interstriae with one or several interstriae with multiple confused rows of coarse setae; strial setae in rows or confused. Procoxae contiguous. Protibiae twisted, with 3–5 lateral to apical denticles, inner mucro enlarged, curved posteriorly. Metatibiae with three transversely set apical denticles. Ventral setae simple, unifid. Proventriculus with distributed, fine crop spines, occasionally in clusters; apical plate with transverse rows of obtuse teeth, median suture rather narrow, apical teeth often following a tongue-shaped curve; closing teeth free, smooth. Male. Similar to female except scapus only slightly broader than pedicel, with a fine tuft of much shorter setae; pronotum with 4–6 small contiguous granules or teeth along the anterior margin; male genitalia with tegmen as a complete ring, manubrium slightly elongated or not, apophyses as long as or shorter than penis; spiculum gastrale lightly forked, slightly longer than penis.

Phylogeny. Lanurgus is clearly separate, molecularly as well as morphologically, from the superficially similar Diplotrichus Jordal, 2021 . These two genera are most reliably distinguished by the type of setae on the first abdominal ventrites, which are bifid in Diplotrichus ( Jordal 2021) . Male genitalia are enormously different in the two genera and the extraordinarily elongated and coiled flagellum in Diplotrichus leave no doubts about the separate origins of the two genera. The new phylogenetic analysis presented here ( Fig. 1) also included the type species L. barbatus which was strongly supported in a nested position in the genus, as sister to L. jubae , sp. nov. The genus is therefore solidly anchored by the clade’s close affinity to the type species.

Large molecular variation is common in Afrotropical micracidines and Lanurgus is no exception ( Jordal 2021). Morphologically fairly similar species were in many cases deeply separated by molecular data, with many deep splits observed between species ( Fig. 1). There is obviously a disconnection between molecular and morphological variation in Afrotropical Micracidini , with several genera originating in late Paleocene ( Jordal 2021).

Fine-scale morphological similarities are of limited help in guiding more recent relationships. Large and stout species with broad interstriae with the majority of interstriae covered by confused setae were not monophyletic, here represented by L. podocarpi and L. xylographus . The species L. beaveri , sp. nov. is fairly similar to L. barbatus and L. jubatus sp. nov., but nevertheless far apart in the molecular analyses. Similarly, species with nodules or spines and impressed interstriae 2 on the declivity were not grouping together. On the other hand, L. mattheei , sp. nov. and L. tsitsikammae , sp. nov. were closely related genetically, sharing the apomorphy of split setae on the scutellum.