Araeodontia isabellae (Wolcott, 1910)

Burke, Alan & Zolnerowich, Gregory, 2017, A taxonomic revision of the subfamily Tillinae Leach sensu lato (Coleoptera, Cleridae) in the New World, ZooKeys 719, pp. 75-157 : 81-82

Araeodontia isabellae (Wolcott, 1910) Figs 1A, 18A

Synonyms.

Cymatodera isabellae Wolcott, 1910. Field Museum Natural History, zool. Ser., vol. 7, no. 10, 9 345. Wickham and Wolcott 1912 University of Iowa Bulletin Laboratory of Natural History, vol. 6, no. 3 p. 52. Wolcott 1921 Proc. U.S. Natl. Mus., vol. 59, p. 285. Barr 1950b, Proc. California Acad. Of Sci., ser. 4, vol. 24, no. 12, p. 496.

Type material not examined.

Type locality.

United States: Utah, St. George, Washington Co. Type depository: National Museum of Natural History (USNM).

Distribution.

USA: AZ, CA, NV, TX, UT.

Differential diagnosis.

Araeodontia isabellae is most similar to A. picipennis . The two species can be distinguished based on the color of the elytral disc and elytral patterning. Araeodontia isabellae has the elytral disc pale testaceous to testaceous and possesses two brown to light brown maculae on each elytron (Fig. 1A), while A. picipennis has the elytra uniformly brown to dark brown and lacks maculae on the elytral disc.

Redescription.

Male. Form: Somewhat slender, slightly elongate. Color: Head, mouthparts and pronotum light testaceous to brown; thorax, elytra, abdomen and legs light testaceous to testaceous; two longitudinal brown to testaceous maculae on the posterior half of each elytron, the first located proximate to the elytral suture, the second adjacent to the epipleural fold, neither of these maculae reach the elytral apex, these maculae can be faint to almost absent in some specimens (Fig. 1A).

Head: Surface moderately to densely punctate; frons bi-impressed; eyes enlarged, bulging laterally, coarsely faceted; antennae extending to posterior half of pronotum; antennomeres 2-3 reduced in length; fourth antennomere about 2 × the length of third antennomere; antennomeres 4-10 about the same length as fourth antennomere; antennomeres 4-10 somewhat slender, feebly serrate; eleventh antennomere robust, subacuminate.

Thorax: Pronotum slightly punctate; faintly rugose laterally, smooth; vested by erect and semi-erect setae; broadest at middle; disc flat, indistinctly impressed in front of middle, subbasal tumescence absent. Mesoventrite very slightly punctate, smooth. Metaventrite convex, puncticulate; covered with fine erect and semi-erect setae. Scutellum subquadrate, notched posteriorly.

Legs: Vested with short, recumbent setae intermixed with long, erect setae that become more densely arranged on the distal half of the tibia. Femora rugulose; finely punctate. Tibiae transversely rugose, coarsely punctate, vested with short, recumbent setae intermixed with semi-erect setae.

Elytra: Humeri rounded, indicated; sides subparallel; base wider than pronotum; widest behind middle; disc flattened apically; apices subtriangular, very slightly dehiscent; disc convex, surface rugulose; vested, vestiture composed of erect and semi-erect setae; sculpture consisting of small, coarse punctations arranged in striae that are gradually reduced in size behind middle and do not reach elytral apex; interstices smooth, 3.0 × the width of punctuation at anterior margin.

Abdomen: Ventrites 1-4 rugulose, vested with short, recumbent setae and some long, semi-erect setae, indistinctly, finely punctate. First visible ventrite approximately 1.5 × the length of second ventrite. Fifth visible ventrite small, convex, lateral margins subparallel, posterior margin broadly, feebly emarginate. Sixth visible ventrite subquadrate, surface somewhat excavated medially, convex laterally; slightly punctate, lateral margins oblique; posterior margin broadly, deeply emarginate, emargination V-shaped, posterolateral angles rounded. Fifth tergite slightly convex, finely punctate, rugulose, lateral margin subparallel, posterior margin broadly, shallowly, very feebly, emarginate. Sixth tergite subtriangular; rugulose; surface convex; longer than broad; finely punctate; inconspicuously covered with short, recumbent setae; lateral margins oblique; posterior margin narrowly, very shallowly emarginate; hind angles rounded. Posterior margin of sixth tergite fully covering sixth visible ventrite and produced ventrally.

Aedeagus: Phallobasic apodeme present; phallus with copulatory piece rounded at apex; phallic plate devoid of denticles; intraspicular plate absent; phallobasic apodeme long, expanded distally; phallobase trigonal; parameres free; tegmen complete, fully covering phallus; parameres pointed anteriorly; endophallic struts long, at least the length of tegmen; endophallic struts slender distally (Fig. 18A).

Sexual dimorphism: Females can be differentiated from males by the shape of the last abdominal segment. In females of A. isabellae the last abdominal segment is broadly rounded and convex to almost flat; males have this segment broadly and deeply emarginate posteriorly. The structure of the sixth abdominal segment is very consistent for all females examined.

Material examined.

2 males, 3 females: Phoenix, AZ, VIII-23-1932, D. K. Duncan; 2 males, 2 females: Nevada, VII-24-1950; 1 male: Texas, VI-2-1950; 1 male: Phoenix, AZ, 5409, Chas Palm; 2 males: Imperial Co., CA, Calipatria, VI-4-1962, Kilgore; 1 male, 2 females: Riverside Co., CA, Palm Canyon 1000, VII-21-1973, W. Barr; 1 female: Clark Co., NV, Logandale, IX-13-1984, Riley, Nelson and Wheeler; 5 females: Yuma Co., AZ, Morelos Dam, VI-22-1977, E. Giesbert; 1 male, 3 female: Yuma, AZ, Laguna Dam, VIII-9-1954, Butler and Tuttle; 2 males, 1 female: Riverside Co., CA, Blythe, VII-30, 31-1956, Truxal, Honey and Menke; 2 females: Riverside Co., CA, 15 mi N Blythe, VII-12-1977, Schuster and Smith; 3 males: Riverside Co., CA, 12 mi N Blythe, VII-12-1977, P. Bertrand; 3 males: Phoenix, AZ, VIII-31-1935, Parker; 1 female: El Centro [CA], IX-5-1953, Parker; 1 female: 12 mi E of Herbert, V-12-1956, T. R. Haig; 4 males, 5 females: Phoenix AZ, VIII-31-1953, no collector data; 2 males: Clark Co., NV, Logandale, IX-2-1959, E. D. Parker; 1 male: San Diego Co., CA, Anza-Borrego Springs National Park, VI-5-1971, Sweet and Sweet; 3 males, 3 females: Phoenix, AZ, VIII-31-1935, F. H. Parker; 1 female: Riverside Co., CA, 15 mi N of Blythe, VII-12-1977, R. C. Schuster and N. J. Smith; 1 male: Riverside Co., CA, 12 mi N Blythe, VII-12-1977, R. C. Schuster and N. J. Smith; 2 females: Plumas Co., CA, Johnsville, VIII-8-1959, J. S. Buckett; 1 female: Needles, CA, VII-13-1977, R. C. Schuster and N. J. Smith; 5 males, 2 females: Phoenix, AZ, VIII-31-1935, Parker; 2 females: Imperial Co., CA, 12 mi E of Heber, 12-V-1956, T. R. Haig; 1 female: Clarke Co., NV, Logandale, 2-IX-1959, F. D. Parker; 2 males, 2 females: La Paz Co., AZ, 19-VI-1996, Cibola NWR, D. Anderson.