Cionus guttula, Caldara & Košťál, 2023

Caldara, Roberto & Košťál, Michael, 2023, A Taxonomic Revision Of The Afrotropical Species Of The Weevil Genus Cionus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), Zootaxa 5288 (1), pp. 1-98 : 82-83

46. Cionus guttula sp. n. ( Figs 46a–e )

Type locality. Analamazaotra ( Madagascar) .

Type series. Holotype, male “ MADAGASCAR, Toamasina: Analamazaotra S Andasibe ( Périnet ) 48° 24’ 48’’ E, 18° 56’ 409’’ S 19.– 22.1.2000, J. Kabelák lgt. / coll. Mus. PRAHA” ( NMPC).

Diagnosis. Head between eyes very narrow. Elytra almost round, their integument well visible, with bulges in apical half of interstriae 3 and 5. Claws in male symmetrical.

Description. Male (holotype) ( Figs 46a–b ). Body: stout, globose (length 3.9 mm). Head: rostrum moderately stout, medium long (Rl/Rw 3.9, Rl/Pl 1.26), black; in lateral view slightly curved, of same width from base to apex, shortly before antennal insertion with low hump; in dorsal view very slightly widened to antennal insertion, then moderately narrowed to apex, in basal half finely punctured; basal part covered with recumbent, elongated, reddish brown scales. Head between eyes very narrow, 0.25× as wide as rostrum at base. Eyes very large, rounded.Antennae dark reddish brown with darkened club, inserted slightly behind 3/4 of rostrum length; scape long (l/w 8); funicle 0.6× as long as scape, S1 almost as long as S2, 2 × as long as wide, S2 more than 3× as long as wide, S3 slightly longer than wide, S4–5 isodiametric; club spindle–shaped, 2.5× as long as wide, pubescent. Pronotum: black, with two flat protuberances on sides and one very flat protuberance in middle, very finely, semidensely punctured, punctures shallow, round, unequal in size, spaces between punctures shiny, with fine texture, larger or as large as punctures, sparsely covered with variously oriented, markedly elongated (l/w 6–12), recumbent to suberect, hair-like, reddish brown scales; transverse (Pw/Pl 1.44), widest at base, in basal half conically, then abruptly narrowed to anterior margin, with shallow constriction in anterior third, in lateral view in basal half slightly, in middle strongly, in apical 1/3 again slightly slanting to anterior margin. Prosternum: anterior margin distinctly emarginated. Scutellar shield: subtriangular, very densely covered with subrecumbent, elongated, reddish brown scales. Elytra: black, almost round (El/Ew 0.97), widest at about 1/3 of their length, at base markedly wider than pronotum (Ew/Pw 1.67), humeri subround, moderately prominent; moderately vaulted on disc; interstriae of approximately same width, interstria 3 at base, interstriae 3 and 5 in posterior 1/4 of elytral length, interstriae 9–10 in posthumeral area with marked bulges, additionally odd interstriae across entire elytra with smaller uneven bulges; entire surface covered with sparsely distributed, elongated (l/w 6–10), reddish brown and intermixed whitish scales leaving integument well visible, bulges on odd elytral interstriae with tufts of erect elongated blackish scales; striae formed by rows of deep, elongated punctures, as wide as interstriae. Venter: mesosternal process broad, concave at posterior margin. Metasternum covered with moderately sparse, moderately elongated, grayish brown scales being subelliptical at sides, more elongated, partly hair-like in middle. Abdomen with moderately regular, moderately deep punctures, clearly visible between sparse, hair-like, whitish and reddish-brown scales, all similar in shape and length; V1 and V2 flat, V1 1.4× longer than V2, V1+22 4.7× as long as V3+V4, latter ones 0.8× as long as V5. Legs: covered with recumbent to subrecumbent hair-like, reddish brown and whitish scales; femora and tibiae black, tarsi reddish brown; femora with large sharp teeth; tibiae without unci; tarsi with onychium twice as long as T3, claws of equal length. Penis: Figs 46c–e , its body very long, thin, in apical 1/3 even more narrowed, in lateral view moderately bent, with bluntly rounded apex, at apex without incision. Flagellum not visible.

Female. Unknown.

Variability: We known only the holotype.

Etymology. The name is derived from the Latin feminine noun “guttula” meaning small drop, which the species reminds of.

Remarks. Cionus guttula is most closely related to C. planus and C. convexiusculus . It differs from both species by the presence of bulges on interstriae 3 and 5 in posterior part of elytra, and the lack of white elytral pattern formed by scales. Additionally, it differs from C. convexiusculus by bulges on interstriae 9 and 10 in the posthumeral area, and by narrowed body of penis. From C. planus it differs by more apparent striae formed by deeper and larger punctures, and by vaulted interstriae.

Biological notes. No data are available.

Distribution. Eastern Madagascar.

Figures

FIGURES 45–46. FIGURE 45. Cionus planus sp. n. a: body in dorsal view (female), b: body in lateral view (female). FIGURE 46. Cionus guttula sp. n. a: body in dorsal view (male), b: body in lateral view (male), c: penis in ventral view, d: penis in lateral view, e: apex of penis in dorsal view. Not to scale.