Cionus clairvillei Boheman, 1838

Košťál, Michael & Caldara, Roberto, 2019, Revision of Palaearctic species of the genus Cionus Clairville (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Cionini), Zootaxa 4631 (1), pp. 1-144 : 71-72

41. Cionus clairvillei Boheman, 1838

Figs 41 a–f.

Cionus clairvillei Boheman, 1838: 730 . Reitter, 1904: 53 (syn. n.). Wingelmüller, 1914: 201 (stat. n.); 1921: 108; 1937: 182. Hustache, 1932: 344. A. Hoffmann, 1958: 1223. Smreczyński, 1976: 56. Caldara, 2013: 123. Alonso-Zarazaga et al., 2017: 185.

Cionus styriacus Franz, 1951: 124 . Dieckmann & Behne, 1994: 296 (syn. n.). Caldara, 2013: 123. Alonso-Zarazaga et al., 2017: 186.

Type locality. Podolia (part of modern Ukraine) .

Type series. In coll. Schoenherr ( NHRS), which contains species described by Boheman, under the name C. clairvillei , there are a couple of specimens which correspond in both locality labels and morphological characters to the original description (female to “Var. β”, male to “Var. γ”). We designated a completely preserved, 3.85 mm long pinned female labeled “ ♀ / Podolia. Besser. / 71 / Typus” as the lectotype of Cionus clairvillei Boheman by adding the label “ LECTOTYPUS Cionus clairvillei Boheman M.Košťál et R.Caldara des.2011 [printed red label]”. The male labeled “ ♂ / Tauria Steven. / 66 / Paratypus ” was labeled as paralectotype accordingly .

Synonyms. Cionus styriacus was described based on three males and six females from Pux in Styria ( Austria). In coll. Franz ( NHMW), there is a series of nine conspecific specimens, perfectly corresponding in sex (3 ♂♂, 6 ♀♀) and labeling to the original description. All three males have dissected genitalia. As Franz gave no clear refer- ence to the holotype, only stating “Typen und Paratypen ” in the original description, in accordance with Articles 73.1.1 and 73.2 of the Code ( ICZN 1999), we designated a male labeled “TYPUS” as the lectotype of Cionus styriacus Franz. The lectotype is 4.05 mm long, completely preserved and labeled “Puxberg, Murtal b, Teuffenbach leg. H. Franz / TYPUS [printed red label] / Cionus styriacus m. det. H. Franz / LECTOTYPUS Cionus styriacus Franz Michael Košťál des. 2015 [printed red label] / Cionus clairvillei Boheman M. Košťál det. 2015”. The other eight specimens with the same locality labels, seven of them with printed “ Paratypus ” and one female “TYPUS” on a red label, were labeled as paralectotypes. All specimens are conspecific with the lectotype of C. clairvillei . Herewith, the synonymization proposed by Dieckmann & Behne (1994) is confirmed.

Redescription. Male. Body stout, broadly subparallel. Head: rostrum moderately stout, medium long (l/ w 4.1, Rl/Pl 1.09), blackish-brown; in lateral view moderately evenly curved, approximately same width from base to shortly before apex, then tapered to apex; in dorsal view of same width to slightly broadened from base to apex, in basal part approximately round in cross-section, in apical part moderately dorsoventrally flattened; fully confluently, longitudinally punctured; in basal part semidensely covered with recumbent, up- and backwardly oriented, moderately elongate, yellowish to whitish scales, in apical part with subrecumbent, longer and thinner whitish seta-like scales. Head between eyes narrow, of about 0.4 rostrum width at base. Eyes large, broadly rounded, not protruding from head outline. Antennae reddish-brown, inserted at 0.6 of rostrum length; funicle of 0.7 scape length, segment 1 markedly wider than segment 2, segment 1 about 1.5 ×, segment 2 more than twice as long as wide, segments 3–5 as long as wide, subglobose; club spindle-shaped, 2.5 × as long as wide, of 0.8 funicle length, densely covered with recumbent light brownish hairs and sparse, relatively short pale sensilla. Pronotum: dark brown, moderately wider than long (Pl/Pw 0.71), very densely, finely, evenly punctured, punctures subrotund, approximately of equal size, spaces between punctures smaller than puncture diameter; covered with almost evenly densely, variously oriented, subrecumbent, elongate (l/w 4–6) yellowish scales; widest in basal half being almost parallel, then conically narrowed to anterior margin, without constriction, in lateral view in basal half flat, then evenly falling to anterior margin. Prosternum: anterior margin with sharply incised, semicircular emargination not bounded by apparent tubercles, separated from coxae by narrow prosternal area. Scutellum: subtriangular, with blunt apex, covered with backwardly oriented, elongate scales of same yellowish color as on elytra, confluently punctured to rugulose. Elytra: brown to dark brown, in basal 2/3 subparallel, in apical third moderately, at apex broadly rounded, moderately elongate (El/Ew 1.29), widest at about mid-length, at base moderately wider than pronotum (Ew/Pw 1.49), humeri subrotund, moderately prominent, with shallow posthumeral impression; slightly convex on disc; interstria 1 at 1/3 of medial length and in preapical area broadened, interstria 2 at same lengths moderately narrowed and slightly constricted laterally encompassing small dorsal and preapical subrotund black tomentous maculae without differently colored scale border; interstriae except perimacular areas of approximately equal width; odd interstriae with alternating sparse, unevenly distributed patches of black scales, especially in posterior part of elytra, and indistinct patches of yellowish scales; striae shallow, formed by relatively evenly and densely arranged single rows of subrotund punctures; entire surface covered with densely arranged recumbent to subrecumbent, relatively elongate (l/w 4–6) yellowish scales almost completely concealing integument. Venter: densely covered with backwardly oriented, recumbent, yellowish hairs in medial part except ventrites 3–5, and with elongate, yellowish scales in other parts, without apparent clusters of scales; mesosternal process flat, broad, emarginate at posterior margin, densely punctured; metasternum slightly concave, transversally oblongly punctured to ribbed; ventrite 1 and anterior part of ventrite 2 with relatively deep impression, semidensely punctured; ventrite 1 1.9 × as long as ventrite 2, ventrites 1–2 combined 3.7 × as long as ventrites 3–4 combined, ventrites 3–4 combined slightly shorter than ventrite 5. Legs: brown, tarsi lighter; profemora with small blunt teeth, meso- and metafemora with large sharp triangular teeth; covered with subrecumbent (femora), and suberect (tibiae and tarsi except onychia), moderately dense, almost evenly arranged, elongate whitish to yellowish scales, onychia covered with recumbent, thin, long whitish hairs, femora without transverse bands of scales; protarsal onychia of normal length, as long as tarsomeres 1–3 combined, protarsal tarsomere 3 wider than long; protarsal lateral, meso- and metatarsal medial claws of almost half length of their pair-claws, smaller and thinner. Penis: Figs 41 d–f, its body elongate, broadly rounded at apex, here only indistinctly tipped.

Female. Rostrum apparently longer (Rl/Pl 1.32) and slender (Rl/Rw 4.7). Ventrites 1 and 2 without impression, convex. Claws almost equally long.

Variability. Length ♂♂ 3.68–4.45 mm, ♀♀ 4.10–4.58 mm. This species varies considerably in elytral pattern from specimens with densely distributed patches of black scales to those with no patches at all, and in the size of both sutural maculae.

Diagnosis. Cionus clairvillei is recognizable by almost concealed elytral integument, oblong shape of elytra, parallel basal half of pronotal sides, stout, in lateral view equally wide rostrum from base to shortly before apex, small or reduced dorsal and preapical elytral maculae, deep impression on ventrites 1 and 2 in males, and penis shape.

Comparative notes. This species is quite peculiar, but due to the rostrum shape most closely related to C. olivieri , and easily distinguishable by elongate elytra, subparallel basal half of pronotum, and penis shape.

Biological notes. The authors repeatedly collected this species in southern Slovakia and Italy on Verbascum phlomoides , whereas other Verbascum species in the same place were not parasitized by C. clairvillei but by other Cionus species. Smreczyński (1976) confirmed this host plant and Hoffmann (1958) reported also V. nigrum and V. lychnitis as host plants.

Distribution. This species is distributed from France and Switzerland throughout central and southern Europe eastwards up to the southern part of the European Russia. It does not occur in the Iberian Peninsula, northern Europe, Anatolia and Transcaucasus.

Non-type specimens examined. We examined more than 360 specimens from all above mentioned regions and countries.

Figures

FIGURES 41–42. FIGURE 41. Cionus clairvillei. a: body in dorsal view (male), b: body in lateral view (male), c: rostrum in lateral view (female), d: penis in ventral view, e: penis in lateral view, f: apex of penis in dorsal view. Not to scale. FIGURE 42. Cionus ganglbaueri. a: body in dorsal view (male), b: body in lateral view (male), c: rostrum in lateral view (female), d: penis in ventral view, e: penis in lateral view, f: apex of penis in dorsal view. Not to scale.