Nothopleurus Lacordaire, 1869

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 : 8-10

Nothopleurus Lacordaire, 1869

Nothopleurus Lacordaire, 1869: 125 ; Bates, 1879: 8; Lameere, 1912: 129 (revalidation by homonymy); Casey, 1912: 222, 224 (part); Hayashi, 1961: 10, 12 (part); Villiers, 1980: 140 (part); Fragoso & Monné, 1995: 219 (part); Monné, 1995: 12 (cat.; part); Chemsak, 1996: 79; Monné, 2002: 16 (cat.; host; part); Monné & Hovore, 2005: 14 (checklist); 2006: 13 (checklist); Monné, 2006: 54 (cat.; part)

Stenodontes (Nothopleurus) ; Lameere, 1902: 94 (part); 1913: 13 (cat.; part); 1919: 33 (part); Blackwelder, 1946: 552 (checklist; part).

Stenodontes (Mallodon) ; Linsley, 1962: 21 (part); Chemsak & Linsley, 1982: 2 (checklist; part); Chemsak et al., 1992: 15 (checklist; part); Monné & Giesbert, 1994: 6 (checklist; part).

Stenodontes (Opheltes) ; Lameere, 1903a: 130 (syn.; part).

Mallodon ; Audinet-Serville, 1832: 176; Thomson, 1864: 307 (not Lepeletier & Audinet-Serville, 1830).

Type-species. Nothopleurus ebeninus Lacordaire, 1869 (monotypy).

Redescription. Medium (ca. 25.0 mm) to large (ca. 55.0 mm) size, variable intraspecifically. Integument shining, brown to dark-brown.

Male. Head large ( Figs. 21, 23, 25, 26 ), without mandibles, ranging from shorter to longer than prothorax; elongated or slightly elongated behind eyes. Longitudinal dorsal furrow of head well marked from base to near occiput, situated in deep depression between antennal tubercles (occasionally to posterior level of upper ocular lobes). Dorsal region of head with or without almost smooth area between eyes; punctation coarse, dense and anastomosed laterally; setation short, sparse, more distinct near eyes. Lateral area behind eyes coarsely and confluently punctate near apex of upper ocular lobes, and partially rugose to wholly rugose in remaining area. Antennal tubercles large, distinct, rounded or subconical at apex, somewhat vertical or projected laterally. Clypeus long or short, rugose or densely punctate, distinctly elevated laterally or sub-flat; setation moderately long and dense (moreso laterally). Labrum sub-triangular, vertical or sub-vertical; central area depressed; setation long and dense. Eyes large, elongate; distance between upper ocular lobes more than two times width of single lobe; distance between lower ocular lobes more than three times width of lobe. Ocular carina narrow, distinct or nearly so. Hypostomal area rugose, uniformly depressed from gula to mentum ( Fig. 25 ), or abruptly and strongly depressed near mentum ( Fig. 26 ); setation sparse to moderately dense (near mentum). Hypostomal carina elevated ( Fig. 25 ) to very elevated ( Fig. 21 ). Maxillary palps not notably long; palpomere III longer than or equal to IV; palpomere IV slightly securiform. Apex of labial palps attaining maxillary palpomere IV or nearly so. Galea long, densely setose, attaining apex of maxillary palpomere II or nearly so. Mandible variable intra- and interspecifically; dorsal carina elevated to strongly elevated; inner face with moderately long and dense setae. Antennae filiform, attaining basal one-third of elytra; scape not attaining posterior edge of eyes; antennomere III slightly longer than IV; antennomeres X–XI wholly striated.

Prothorax transverse. Pronotum sub-smooth on disc, with area of moderately fine punctures at center; laterally rugose-punctate; anterior margin with slight emargination medially; anterior angles from distinctly projected forward to not projected; lateral angles placed at basal one-third, very distinct, spined or sub-spined; posterior angles variable; lateral margins spined (rarely crenulated). Prosternum coarsely and densely punctate laterally, gradually becoming finer and more sparsely towards middle; central region tumid to very tumid. Apex of prosternal process wide, rounded or sub-triangular. Scutellum glabrous, variable interspecifically: uniformly rounded or pentagonal. Elytra glabrous, finely or microscopically punctate; carinae from distinct to absent; apex uniformly rounded or individually rounded; sutural angle with short spine. Metasternum with large area microsculptured and densely punctate (slightly coarse) laterally, setose, distinctly from the sub-triangular central area where punctation clearly finer and setation shorter and disperse, mainly close to metasternal suture. Metepisterna narrow (largest width of middle region 0.15 times length), with inner margin distinctly concave; setation moderately long and very dense. Ventrites I–IV sub-smooth and shining at medial area, microsculptured, opaque and with small granules laterally (sometimes granules present only on ventrites I or I–II); setation sparse, more distinct laterally (sometimes, almost absent). Legs moderately short. Ventral face of tibiae with brush of setae on each side, approximately from middle to apex. Tarsomere V shorter than I–III together.

Male genitalia ( Figs. 66–68, 70–72 ): length of lateral lobes from 0.1 to 0.13 times length of tegmen; latero-lower margin of lateral lobes without emargination ( Figs. 70–72 ); dorsal face of lateral lobes with moderately short and dense setation throughout, more dense and longer towards the apex; apex of lateral lobes with long setae, sometimes as long as the lobe; ventral face of lateral lobes with short setae, very disperse at base, longer and more dense on apical one-third; roof longer than lateral lobes to slightly shorter; basal piece longer than lateral lobes and roof together (ca. 0.3 times total length of tegmen); parameres 0.7 to 0.8 times total length of tegmen. Median lobe approximately as long as tegmen; apex of dorsal lobe rounded and with small central emargination; ventral lobe uniformly narrowed towards apex, not projected beyond apex of dorsal lobe to slightly projected; length of apophyses approximately 0.7 times total length of median lobe.

Female. Head ( Figs. 22, 24, 27 ) narrower than in male. Distance between lower ocular lobes less than three times width of single lobe. Antennae attaining or just surpassing basal one-third of elytra. Mandibles generally shorter than in males (except when compared with minor males). Hypostomal carina less elevated. Metasternum without lateral area strongly differentiated from central area. Metepisterna slightly concave at inner margin (largest width of middle region 0.22 times of length).

Included species. Nothopleurus lobigenis Bates, 1884 ; N. madericus ( Skiles, 1978) ; N. subsulcatus ( Dalman, 1823) ; N. castaneus ( Casey, 1912) .

Geographical distribution ( Fig. 75 ). Genus with distribution restricted to the Americas.

Comments. Nothopleurus differs from Hovorodon gen. nov. in the following manner: prothorax of males without evident sexual dimorphism; pronotum without impunctate and shining facets distinctly contrasting with the remainder of discal surface; hypostomal carina of males in general, notably elevated at all angles; metepisterna of males notably narrow and strongly concave at inner margin (only slightly concave in females). In Hovorodon gen. nov. the prothorax of males shows sexual dimorphism (wholly micropunctate, except laterally on pronotum), the pronotum has impunctate and shining facets clearly contrasting with the remainder of discal surface, the hypostomal carina of males is not notably elevated at all angles, or is elevated only near the mentum, and the metepisternum is not much narrower and not concave at inner margin in both sexes.

Thomson (1861) assigned Mallodon to “Mallodonitae”, which included one of the species placed in Nothopleurus . According to Thomson (op.cit.) that group was characterized by: head wide, not elongated posteriorly; antennae short, filiform or sub-moniliform, with the antennomere III short and the next ones larger or equal in length; mandibles horizontal or sub-vertical, robust; prothorax crenulated or multispined laterally; elytra elongated, sub-depressed; mesosternum flat; cylindrical legs; anterior tibiae unarmed (except in Mallodonhoplus Thomson, 1861 ). Thomson (1864) transferred some genera from “Mallodonitae” to “Macrotomitae”, excluding from the former group the genera having legs with spines. Lacordaire (1869) agreed with Thomson (1864) by maintaining Mallodon in “Mallodontides”, and included Nothopleurus in this group, and recorded on the legs: “toujours inermes” [always unarmed].

Lameere (1902) used “Sténodontines” to designate the group that included Mallodon and Nothopleurus (both as subgenera of Stenodontes ), based on the fact that Mallodon was a subgenus of Stenodontes and thus, the name of the group might not be based on it: “ Mallodon Downesi Hope est le coryphée d’un groupe auquel la loi de priorité doit faire donner le nom de Sténodontines ”. Later, Lameere (1912) divided Macrotomini into eight groups: “Archetypi”, “Basitoxi”, “ Cnemoplites ”, “Macrotomae”, “Rhaphipodi”, “Xixuthri”, “Titani”, and “ Stenodontes ”. The last group evidently included the genus Stenodontes , of which Nothopleurus and Mallodon were subgenera. Lameere (1919) characterized the subgroup “ Stenodontes ” as: body in general large, more or less depressed; eyes not emarginated; antennal tubercles projected and acute; scape elongated and longer than antennomere III; mandibles dorsally with carina; ligulae small and not divided; prothorax wide, explanate and slightly sloped laterally, and with lateral margins crenulated (their sides more parallel in males than in females); prothorax of males with or without sexual punctation; pronotum with shining callosities; legs robust, with or without spines; ventrite V more or less emarginate.

This description agrees with that of Thomson (1861), but does not agree with that of Thomson (1864) and Lacordaire (1869), primarily by the inclusion of species in which the legs have spines. Fragoso & Monné (1995), probably following Lameere (1919), used Stenodontina Lameere, 1912 as a subtribe of Macrotomini and assigned the following genera to it: Mallodon , Stenodontes , Nothopleurus , Neomallodon Linsley, 1957 , Mallodonhoplus , Physopleurus Lacordaire, 1869 , and Olethrius . In Lameere (1919), Opheltes appeared as a synonym of Stenodontes (Nothopleurus) . However, as Stenodontina includes Mallodon , the type of “Mallodontitae” and considered a tribe by some authors, there is no doubt that Stenodontina [Stenodontini] is synonymous with Mallodontina [ Mallodontini ]. It is important to note that Fragoso & Monné (op.cit.) used Stenodontina as a hierarchical group at the same level of “Mallodontitae” (= Mallodontina; = Mallodontini ).

Contemporary authors (e.g. Adlbauer 1993; Vitali 2008) referring to North American Prioninae , frequently consider Mallodontini as a tribe of Prioninae . This concept is not formally accepted by any of the researchers who work with the New World fauna; most of which assign to Macrotomini all genera that would be included in Mallodontini .

This discussion on Mallodontini (= Mallodontina; = Stenodontina) is important since among the species currently assigned to Nothopleurus , some would not even be of the same subtribe ( Lameere 1919) or tribe ( Villiers 1980).

In reference to Lameere (1919), the species of Nothopleurus (as defined herein) would automatically be excluded by the absence of impunctate and shining facets distinctly in contrast with the remaining surface, and by the lateral margins of the prothorax with spines (rarely slightly crenulated). Based on the description of the tribe Mallodontini by Villiers (1980), Nothopleurus would not be included because the prothoracic episternum is not notably wide as in the species of Mallodon and Hovorodon gen. nov. Moreover, Mallodontini sensu Thomson (1861) and Lameere (1919) included genera in which the species (or at least in part) have spines on the legs, while the concept of this group sensu Villiers (op.cit.) might not include these genera, some of which are similar to the species of Mallodon .

Figures

FIGURES 21 – 32. Head and prothorax, ventral view. 21. Nothopleurus castaneus, male; 22. idem, female; 23. N. lobigenis, male; 24. idem, female; 25. N. subsulcatus, male; 26. N. madericus, paratype male; 27. idem, female; 28. Hovorodon subcancellatum, male; 29. idem, female; 30. Hovorodon bituberculatum, male; 31. idem, female; 32. Hovorodon maxillosum, male.

FIGURES 66 – 74. 66 – 69. Tegmen, lateral view: 66. Nothopleurus castaneus; 67. N. lobigenis; 68. N. subsulcatus; 69. Hovorodon subcancellatus. 70 – 74. Lateral lobes, lateral view: 70. Nothopleurus castaneus; 71. N. lobigenis; 72. N. subsulcatus; 73. H. subcancellatum; 74. H. bituberculatum.

FIGURES 75 – 78. Maps. 75. Distribution of Nothopleurus and Hovorodon; 76. Nothopleurus lobigenis (circle), N. castaneus (square), N. madericus (star); 77. Hovorodon subcancellatum (circle), H. santacruzensis (square); 78. H. bituberculatum (square), H. maxillosum (star), Nothopleurus subsulcatus (circle).