Stenaspis superba Aurivillius, 1908

Eya, Bryan K., 2021, Recharacterization of Stenaspis Audinet-Serville, 1834 with a new species from Mexico (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae: Cerambycinae: Trachyderini), Insecta Mundi 2021 (851), pp. 1-36 : 21

Stenaspis superba Aurivillius, 1908

( Fig. 95–101 )

Stenaspis superba Aurivillius 1908: 5, 1912: 458 (cat.); Melzer 1932: 422; Blackwelder 1946: 589 (cat.); Linsley 1961: 632; Monné and Giesbert 1994: 152 (cat.); Monné 1994: 35 (cat.); Wappes et al. 2006: 23 (dist.).

Photographic Material Examined. Holotype, female, BOLIVIA: Mojos, N. Holmgren, June on the banks of stream, NHRS-JLKB 000071808. Six photographs provided by J. Bergsten of the Swedish Museum of Natural History ( NHRS, Naturhistoriska Riksmuseet) as follows: NHRS-JLKB 000071808_caud.tif; NHRS-JLKB 000071808_dors. tif; NHRS-JLKB 000071808_fron.tif; NHRS-JLKB 000071808_late.tif; NHRS-JLKB 000071808_vent.tif.

Discussion. Aurivillius (1908: 5) described S. superba (length 38 mm) as a species with integument that is black, the pronotum and elytra orange with three nitid black calli on pronotal disc, two in anterior half and one medially in the posterior half. The head is punctate, vertex rugulose and uneven. The antennae barely reach middle of elytra, scape is conical, sub-nitid, sparsely punctate, and third antennomere shorter than the scape. The prothorax is described as being deeply rugose, punctate, convex with prominent tubercles on each side, surface clothed with short, erect golden-brown hairs, and the apical and basal margins narrowly black with dense black pubescence. The scutellum is narrow, elongate, black, canaliculate in the middle and irregularly, sparsely punctate. The elytra are strongly rugose and clothed with a few short hairs at the base, less rugose apically and denudate from the middle, and apices broadly rounded and unarmed. The sternum is all black, the prosternum is very rugulose, meso- and metasternum densely punctate and abdomen sparsely punctate. According to Aurivillius, S. superba is differentiated from all other known species of Stenaspis by the short antennae, and by the coloration and sculpture of the pronotum and elytra, which are reminiscent of an orange skin.

Examination of holotype photographs shows that S. superba appears to have the characters representative of Stenaspis as follows: (1) head with frons large, square and recessed between the dorsal anterior margin of gena ( Fig. 98, 100 ); (2) prosternal intercoxal process protuberant and ridged between coxae and vertical behind ( Fig. 101 ); (3) mesosternal intercoxal process not protuberant, level with coxae, and abruptly declivous in front ( Fig. 100 ); (4) pronotum narrower than base of elytra at humeri, lateral tubercles placed slightly behind middle, and anterior angle broadly callused ( Fig. 101 ); (5) proepisternum of thorax coarsely punctate ( Fig. 40 ); and (6) elytra distinctly margined laterally ( Fig. 100 ), and apices rounded and unarmed ( Fig. 95, 97 ). Compared to other Stenaspis species , S. superba has a pronotal disc that is more convex ( Fig. 40 ) with two prominent anterior dorsal calli, and a disc surface that is more coarsely punctate. Also, the elytra (E) are more elongate relative to pronotum (P), where the E/P ratio is 4.8 compared to other species where E/P ranges from 3–3.8. The other four species have the pronotal disc flattened ( Fig. 16, 22 , 31 , 34, 37 ) and glabrate with vaguely visible dorsal calli. Although S. superba is geographically isolated in Bolivia compared to all other known species found in USA and Mexico, it has many characteristics that are commonly found in Stenaspis ; therefore, at this time this species is retained in this genus until a male is captured and the pattern of sexual punctation on the thorax is examined. Males of this group of trachyderines (i.e., Callistochroma , Crioprosopus and Stenaspis ) have additional characteristics that substantiate placement of species into their appropriate genera.

Figures

Figures 91–102. Dorsal and lateral images of Stenaspis solitaria, and images from all sides of S. superba, holotype, female. 91–94) S. solitaria, Cochise, AZ, USA. 91–92) Male, 29 mm. 93–94) Female, 31 mm. 95–101) S. superba, holotype, female, Mojos, BOL. 98) Image of head showing apices of mandible acute, genae large, quadrate margins of lower eye lobes well separated from mandibles. 98: 98a) Dorsal anterior margins of genae ridged. 99) Caudal image showing brush of hairs. 100) Lateral image showing coarsely punctured proepisternum and epipleural margin of elytron below humerus. 101) Ventral image showing pronotum narrower than elytra at humeri, lateral tubercles of pronotum slightly behind middle, rounded anterior angle of pronotum, and protuberant prosternal intercoxal process. 102) Label information provided by NHRS along with photos of S. superba.

Figures 33–41. Pronotal and prosternal characteristic of Stenaspis solitaria and Stenaspis superba. 33–35) S. solitaria, male, Cochise Co., AZ, USA with disc coarsely punctate with 5 vague calli (yellow arrows). 33: 33a) Pronotum with prominent lateral tubercle. 33: 33b) Rounded anterior angles, which does not extend and merge over lateral tubercles. 34: 34a) Proepisternum finely punctate. 35: 35a) Prosternum with finely densely punctate transverse subrectangular area on each side of middle. 36–38) S. solitaria, female, Cochise Co., AZ, USA 36: 36a) Anterior angle of pronotum obtusely callused and obliquely tapering to the apex of pronotum. 37) Coarsely punctate proepisternum of female. 38) Coarsely punctate prosternum of female. 39–41) S. superba, holotype, female, Mojos, BOL (photos provided from J. Bergsten, NHRS). 39) Coarsely punctate pronotal disc with two prominent discal calli in anterior half. 40) Convex pronotal disc with coarsely punctate proepisternum. 41) Coarsely punctate prosternum and broadly callused anterior angle of S. superba.

Figures 15–23. Pronotal and prosternal characteristic of Stenaspis verticalis: 15–17) S. verticalis, male, Jalisco, MEX with sides of pronotum rounded. 15) Disc coarsely punctate with 5 vague calli (red arrows). 16: 16a) Proepisternum inflated and finely punctate (dark reddish area). 16: 16b) Demarcation of proepisternal finely punctate area from coarsely punctate dorsum of disc. 17: 17a) Subrectangular impressed area. 17: 17b) Vague demarcation dividing proepisternum from the subrectangular impressed area. 18, 20) S. verticalis, male, Nuevo Leon, MEX with side of pronotum with distinct lateral tubercles. 19) S. verticalis, male, Puebla, MEX with proepisternum inflated and finely punctate clearly demarcated from dorsum. 21–22) S. verticalis, female, Guerrero, MEX with side of pronotum distinctly tuberculate. 21: 21a) Anterior angles obtusely tuberculate. 22) Pronotal disc and proepisternum coarsely punctate. 23) S. verticalis, female, Jalisco, MEX with prosternum coarsely punctate.

Figures 24–32. Pronotal and prosternal characteristic of Stenaspis castaneipennis. 24–26) S. castaneipennis, male, Oaxaca, MEX with sides of pronotum rounded, disc coarsely punctate with 5 vague calli. 25) Proepisternum inflated and finely punctate (dark reddish area) clearly demarcated from coarsely punctate dorsum (black area). 27–29) S. castaneipennis, male, Oaxaca, MEX with sides of pronotum with distinct lateral tubercles. 28) Proepisternum inflated and finely punctate (reddish area) clearly demarcated from dorsum (black area). 29: 29a) Subrectangular finely punctate area of prosternum. 29: 29b) Demarcation line dividing proepisternum from finely punctate subrectangular area of prosternum. 30–32) S. castaneipennis, female, Oaxaca, MEX with side of pronotum distinctly tuberculate. 30: 30a) Anterior angles obtusely tuberculate. 31–32) Pronotal disc, proepisternum and prosternum coarsely punctate; proepisternun not demarcated from dorsum and prosternum.