Blaesia atra Burmeister, 1842

Ratcliffe, Brett, 2010, A review of the Blaesiina (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae, Cetoniinae, Gymnetini), ZooKeys 34 (34), pp. 105-128 : 110-111

Blaesia atra Burmeister, 1842

Figs 1–3, 5

Blaesia atra Burmeister 1842: 615 . Type not found; not present in Burmeister collection at Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg, Halle, Germany (Karla Schneider, personal communication, September 2009) or at the Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales , Buenos Aires, Argentina (personal observation, 2003) .

Description. Length 13.9–20.5 mm; width 8.5–12.4 mm. Color usually completely black, shining occasionally pronotum and elytra dark reddish brown and only weakly shining. Head: Surface densely punctate; punctures moderate to large, deep, nearly confluent to rugose on clypeus and between eyes. Frons and clypeus with distinct, median, longitudinal ridge. Frons with sparse, rust colored to tawny setae. Clypeus with apex evenly, broadly rounded, thickened, slightly reflexed, subapex slightly wider than base, surface slightly longitudinally tumid at middle. Interocular width equals 5.5–6.0 transverse eye diameters. Antenna black, with 10 segments, club slightly shorter than antennomeres 1–7. Pronotum: Most of surface moderately densely punctate; punctures small in males, slightly larger in females, round to slightly transverse, becoming large, setigerous and dense on sides; setae long, rust colored to tawny; base at center not modified. Apex at center with margin thickened. Sides margined. Mesepimeron with dense, large, setigerous punctures anteriorly, setae long, rust colored to tawny. Elytra: Surface finely shagreened, usually with; 3–4 distinguishable punctate, incomplete striae; punctures round to ∩-shaped, moderate to large, some setigerous in unworn specimens; setae sparse, long, rust colored to tawny. Intervals with sparse, irregularly spaced punctures similar to those of striae. Bead present on lateral margin. Apical umbone

pronounced. Apices rounded into right-angles. Pygidium: Surface varies from moderately densely punctate with small to slightly transverse punctures to densely, transversely strigulate. Base usually with sparse, long, rust colored to tawny setae. In lateral view surface weakly convex in male, nearly flat in female. Venter: Setae rust colored to tawny. Mesometasternal process short, flat, apex rounded, nearly obsolete. Abdominal sternites with transverse, irregular row of large punctures; punctures mostly large with rust colored to tawny setae. Legs: Femora and tibiae with dense fringe of mostly short, rust colored (most common) to tawny (less common) setae on both median and lateral surfaces. Protibia tridentate, apical tooth longer, narrower, slightly curving. Metafemur greatly enlarged, broad ( Fig. 2). Metatibia in male with apex extended into long, thick, acute spine and with 1 long, articulated spur with acute apex; metatibia at apex in female with short, subtriangular extension and with 2 long, articulated apical spurs with apices rounded. Metatrochanter with long, acute spur, spur with apex projecting almost perpendicular to posterior margin of metafemur in both sexes ( Fig. 2). Parameres: Fig. 3.

Distribution ( Fig. 5). 200 specimens examined from AMIC, BCRC, BMNH, CASC, CMNC, FMNH, ISNB, MACN, MGFT, MLPA, MNHN, MZCZ, MZSP, QBUM, RMNH, USNM, WBWC, ZMHU.

ARGENTINA (30). BUENOS AIRES (14): Buenos Aires, La Plata ; CORRI- ENTES (2): Santo Tomé ; MISIONES (1): Loreto ; SAITA (1): No data ; SANTA FÉ (4): Rosario ; NO DATA (9).

BRAZIL (28). PARANÁ (1): No data ; RIO GRANDE DO SUL (21): Porto Alegre; SÃO PAULO (5): Campinas, Itatiba, Pres. Epitácio; NO DATA (1).

PARAGUAY (7). GUAÍRA (2) Sapucay, Villarrica ; NO DATA (5).

URUGUAY (107). CANELONES (3): La Tuna ; DISTRITO FEDERAL (80): Montivideo; TACUAREMBÓ (2): Pozo Honso; TRIENTA Y TRES (17): Santa Clara de Olimar ; NO DATA (5).

NO DATA (28).

Temporal Distribution. January (7), February (3), June (1), September (2), October (3), November (4), December (6 adults, 11 larvae). Too few specimens have label data with the month of collection to indicate a reliable temporal distribution.

Biology. Monné (1969) described the larvae of B. atra from the nest of Acromyrmex species ( Formicidae ) in Uruguay, thus demonstrating myrmecophily for this species. Krikken (1984) suggested, without any supporting commentary, the possibility that this species is termitophilous.