Sisyphus caffer Boheman, 1857

Daniel, Gimo M., Davis, Adrian Lv., Sole, Catherine L. & Scholtz, Clarke H., 2020, Taxonomic review of the tribe Sisyphini sensu stricto Mulsant, 1842 (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae) in southern Africa, including new species descriptions, Insect Systematics & Evolution 51 (1), pp. 1-61 : 20-21

Sisyphus caffer Boheman, 1857 ( Figs. 5 , 6B ).

Boheman 1857: 195–6; Harold 1869: 984; Péringuey 1902: 106–7; Haaf 1955: 362–4; Ferreira 1972: 82, Schäfer & Fischer 1992:121; Schäfer & Fischer 2001:53

Size: Male: length: 7.8– 6.9 mm, width: 4.4– 3.5 mm. Female: length: 7.6– 7.1 mm, width: 4.5–3.0 mm.

Type locality: Caffraria ( South Africa).

Diagnosis: S. caffer is close in appearance to S. sordidus Boheman, 1857 . However, they can be separated morphologically by the following features: S. caffer bears much finer elytral setae, which are distributed in single rows; S. sordidus bears thicker elytral setae, which are distributed in non-single rows forming bunches. In S. caffer , pronotal setae are inserted between ocellate punctures ( Fig. 5F ), whereas in S. sordidus , the setae originate from the centre of ocellate punctures ( Fig. 5H ). Furthermore, S. sordidus occurs in unshaded lowland vegetation associated with warm temperatures whereas S. caffer is associated with highland grassland under cooler conditions.

Examined type material

Holotype (photograph): (1♂ NHRS): /type/; /Caffraria/; /leg: J.Wahlb /; /309; 72/; /244; 73/; / S. caffer Bohm /; red label: /typus/; white label (handwritten): /TYPE Sisyphus caffer BOHEMAN , det. J. Ferrer /; /Naturhistoriska, Riksmuseet Stockholm; loan 37/90/; /9385 E92+/; /NHRS-SRAH 000000221/.

Examined non-type material: See Supplementary information.

Distribution: S. caffer occurs in South Africa, Namibia, Lesotho and Bostwana. The species has been recorded in upland and highland grasslands under cooler conditions (Davis et. al. 2005) in both South Africa and Lesotho (29.7°S 27.4°E). In South Africa, the localities extend northwards from the Eastern Cape and eastern Free State to the latitude of Pretoria (28.19°E 25.80°S) and also along the eastern escarpment of KwaZulu Natal and Mpumalanga. The lowlands beyond the northern Gauteng Mountains of the Witwatersrand (24.54°S 27.08°E) may act as barriers, although the species is also found in isolated uplands further to the northwest, such as the Blouberg. S. caffer has also been recorded in unshaded vegetation at the margins of its range in Kneneng ( Botswana) (23.78°S 25.27°E) and in a dry upland outlier in the north of Namibia (Kaoko Otavi) ( Fig. 7 ). Kaoko Otavi represents a disjunction in the distribution of S. caffer from its main range on the Highveld of South Africa. It is noteworthy that N. macrorubrus and Proagoderus lanista (Castelnau, 1840) also show similar disjunct occurrences on the South African Highveld and as rarities in north Namibia ( Davis 1997).

Remarks: We cannot confirm or refute the validity of S. crispatus because the type specimen has been lost. Furthermore, the original description and image presented by Gory (1833) are imprecise and insufficient to determine the identity of the species. S. crispatus was described from the same imprecise type locality (Caffraria) as two other species ( S. caffer and S. sordidus ). Under these circumstances, we are not confident to state which of the two species might be a junior synonym of S. crispatus . According to the ICZN, article 75.5 “when an author considers that the taxonomic identity of a nominal species-group taxon cannot be determined from its existing name-bearing type, its name is a nomen dubium ”. Therefore, we propose S. crispatus as a nomen dubium.

Figures

Fig. 5. Images of the habitus of the goryi species-group: A. S. bicuariensis sp. n; with enphasis of the black and gray setae on pronotum and elytra; B. S. caffer; C. S. genierorum; D. S. goryi; E. S. sordidus.F. Pronotal setae originate from the posterior edge or between ocellate points. G. Pronotal setae arise from the centre of ocellate punctures, commonly seen in S. genierorum, S. sordidus; S. perissinottoi; S. manni and S. swazi sp. n. H. Tufts of setae on the epipleurae visible from above.

Fig. 6. Images of the aedagi of the goryi species-group: A. S. bicuariensis sp. n; B. S. caffer; C. S. genierorum; D. S. goryi; E. S. sordidus.

Fig. 7. Distribution map for the goryi species-group.