Scolytodes comosus Jordal & Kirkendall

Jordal, Bjarte H. & Kirkendall, Lawrence R., 2019, Rainforest and cloud forest Scolytodes (Curculionidae, Scolytinae, Hexacolini) from the Arthropods of La Selva inventory in Costa Rica: new species, new synonymy, new records, ZooKeys 863, pp. 1-34 : 1

Scolytodes comosus Jordal & Kirkendall sp. nov. Figs 12, 15, 18

Type material.

Holotype: Costa Rica, Prov. Heredia, 9 km ENE Vara Blanca, 1450-1550 m, 10°14'N, 84°06'W, 11 Apr. 2005, INBio-OET-ALAS transect, ex Cecropia petiole, 050411. Paratypes: Same data as holotype (4); Alajuela Res. For. San Ramon, 25 km NE San Ramon, 20 Nov. 1993, L.R. Kirkendall, ex Cecropia peltata petiole (1). Holotype and 2 paratypes deposited in MNCR, 1 paratype in ZMBM, 2 in USNM.

Diagnosis.

Interstriae 10 not elevated; protibiae without additional mesal tooth. Setae on pronotum, and elytral striae and interstriae very long. Distinguished from S. punctiferus Wood, 1976 and S. punctatus (Eggers, 1943) by the longer setae, by the broader body shape and more broadly separated eyes.

Description male and female.

Length 1.2-1.4 mm, 1.9 × as long as wide; mature color dark brown. Head. Eyes entire, separated above by 2.8 × their width. Frons generally flat, surface impunctate and shiny on median fifth from epistoma to vertex, scattered deep punctures along this line; vestiture consisting of sparse long fine setae in punctured area, pointing medially. Antennal club setose, sutures not discernible, basal part of segment 1 corneous. Funiculus 5-segmented. Pronotum smooth, weakly reticulate, subshining, with deep large punctures reaching anterior margin, spaced on average by their diameter. Vestiture consisting of very long fine setae (0 –0– 0). Elytra smooth, striae not impressed, punctures large, deep, spaced by their diameter; interstriae difficult to distinguish from striae, occasionally in rows but largely confused with striae; all punctures on sides slightly raised on anterior margin, appearing granulated in dorsal profile. Interstriae 10 not raised. Vestiture consisting of very long fine setae on interstriae and striae. Legs. Procoxae separated by 1.0 × and mesocoxae 1.5 × the width of one procoxa. Protibiae broad, lateral teeth 1 and 2 of sub-equal size, tooth 2 exposed, both teeth extended distally, with a sharp serrated edge running from tooth 2 towards base; protibial mucro large, curved posterior-distally. Meso- and metatibiae with 6 and 7 coarse socketed lateral teeth on distal two-thirds and half, respectively. Ventral vestiture. Setae on metanepisternum bifid, on metasternum long and simple; sclerolepidia and setae on epimeron plumose.

Key

( Wood 1982). Keys incorrectly to couplet 7 due to the mesal tooth on protibiae is missing. The same applies to S. punctiferus , which is nevertheless placed in couplet 20.

Etymology.

The name comosus is a Latin masculine adjective, meaning long haired, referring to the confused rows of long strial, interstrial, and pronotal setae.

Biology and distribution.

This species is known from two median altitude localities near Volcan Poas in Costa Rica. It was taken from Cecropia petioles in both sites. The species was recorded as Scolytodes sp. B by Jordal and Kirkendall (1998).