Mallodon arabicum Buquet, 1843

Santos-Silva, Antonio, Swift, Ian P. & Nearns, Eugenio H., 2010, Division of the genus Nothopleurus Lacordaire, 1869 (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae: Prioninae), Zootaxa 2643, pp. 1-44 : 7-8

Mallodon arabicum Buquet, 1843

( Figs. 12 , 55, 56 )

Mallodon arabicum Buquet, 1843: 330 ; White, 1853: 46; Thomson, 1867: 98; Lacordaire, 1869: 126; Thomson, 1878: 17 (types); Waterhouse, 1881: 478; Gahan, 1903: 284; Delahaye & Tavakilian, 2009: 39. Mallodon arabicus ; Neumann et al., 2004: 138.

Stenodontes (Nothopleurus) arabicus ; Lameere, 1902: 95; 1913: 13 (cat.); 1919: 33; Gilmour, 1956: 14. Nothopleurus arabicus ; Fragoso & Monné, 1995: 219.

We believe that Villiers (1980) was correct when he noted that Mallodon arabicum Buquet, 1843 did not belong to Nothopleurus . We have provisionally maintained it in Mallodon , following the citation of Neumann et al. (2004). Delahaye & Tavakilian (2009) wrote: “Les espèces se répartissent géographiquement entre les régions néotropicale et afrotropicale après réhabilitation de Mallodon arabicum Buquet, 1843 , dans son genre originel par NEUMAN et al. (2004)”. However, Neumann et al. (op.cit.) only mention the species in the genus Mallodon , following what they presented in the “Entomologentagung” of 2003 (Bockkäferfauna von Sokotra ( Yemen)), when again they only mention Mallodon arabicus , without any elaboration on the assignment of the genus. We could not find any author between Lameere (1919) and Fragoso & Monné (1995), and Neumann et al. (op.cit.) that formally excluded Mallodon arabicum from Nothopleurus .

Mallodon arabicum ( Fig. 12 ) differs from the species of Nothopleurus primarily by the hypostomal carina not notably elevated in males; prothorax of male with sexual punctation (fine and densely punctate on the entire ventral and dorsal surface, except laterally on pronotum); pronotal disc with impunctate and shining facets; lateral margins of pronotum of males crenulated; anterior angles of prothorax wide and distinctly projected forward; lateral angles of prothorax of males situated at the same level as the posterior angles; metepisterna moderately narrow and not concave at inner margin; and lobes of tarsomere III ( Figs. 55, 56 ) dorsally flat at apical third. In Nothopleurus the hypostomal carina of males is notably elevated, the prothorax lacks sexual punctation (sexual dimorphism reduced); the pronotal disc lacks impunctate facets in contrast with the remaining surface; the lateral margins of the pronotum with spines; the anterior angles of prothorax are in general, strongly acute (spined); the lateral angles of prothorax of males are placed distinctly before the posterior angles (not in the same level); the metepisterna are narrow and distinctly concave at inner margin; and the lobes of tarsomere III are convex at apical third.

It differs from Hovorodon gen. nov. and Mallodon by the head of males, which is somewhat elongate behind the eyes (anterior angles of prothorax not reaching posterior edge of eyes); the elytra more distinctly punctate; the setation of tibiae more conspicuous; and the form of the lobes of tarsomere III. In Hovorodon gen. nov. and Mallodon the head of males is not elongate behind eyes (anterior angles of prothorax reaching or almost reaching the posterior edge of eyes), although some specimens of M. downesii Hope, 1843 have the head slightly elongate behind eyes; elytral punctation finer (in general, micropunctate); the setation of the tibiae is less conspicuous; and the lobes of tarsomere III are convex ( Figs. 53, 54 ). It also differs from Mallodon by the metepisterna being somewhat narrower, particularly in comparison with Mallodon downesii , which is the closest occurring species of Mallodon .

Material examined. YEMEN, Socotra Islands: male, [no date of collection], O. Simony col. ( IRSN).

Figures

FIGURES 9 – 12. Habitus. 9. Hovorodon maxillosum (Drury, 1773), female; 10. Hovorodon santacruzensis (Hovore & Santos-Silva, 2004), paratype male; 11. idem, paratype female; 12. Mallodon arabicum Buquet, 1843, male.

FIGURES 33 – 56. 33 – 35, head and prothorax, ventral view: 33. Hovorodon maxillosum, female; 34. H. santacruzensis, paratype male; 35. idem, paratype female. 36 – 52, mandibles: 36. Nothopleurus castaneus, male, dorsal view; 37. idem, female, dorsal view; 38. N. lobigenis, male, dorsal view; 39. idem, female, dorsal view; 40. N. subsulcatus, male, lateral view; 41. N. madericus, male, lateral view; 42. idem, female, dorsal view; 43. Hovorodon subcancellatum, male, dorsal view; 44. idem, male, lateral view; 45. idem, female, dorsal view; 46. H. bituberculatum, male, dorsal view; 47. idem, male, lateral view; 48. idem, female, dorsal view; 49. H. maxillosum, male, dorsal view; 50. idem, female, dorsal view; 51. H. santacruzensis, male, dorsal view; 52. idem, female, dorsal view. 53 – 56, metatarsus: 53. Mallodon downesii Hope, 1843, male, dorsal view; 54. idem, lateral view; 55. M. arabicum, male, dorsal view; 56. idem, male, lateral view.