The M. maculatus group

The easiest species group to delineate is the M. maculatus group, which is characterised by the females having the uncus of their pro- and mesotibiae arising from the outer (upper) angle of the tibiae (Figs. 2, 4, 6, 8) and which includes species such as M. acaciae Lea, 1899, M. antennalis Lea, 1899, M. castaneus Lea, 1899, M. ellipticus Lea, 1913, M. fasciculatus Lea, 1913, M. maculatus Lea, 1899, M. servulus Pascoe, 1872 and M. submaculatus Lea, 1928 . The same condition of the uncus occurs in several Lybaeba species, e.g. L. amplipennis (Lea, 1899), L. hybrida (Lea, 1913), L. insignita (Elston, 1919) and L. squamivaria Lea, 1909, indicating that the maculatus group may only be a natural one if it includes these species. In most other species of both genera the uncus of the pro- and mesotibiae of the females arises from the inner (lower) angle, as it does in the males (Figs. 1, 3, 5, 7) and as is typical in uncinate weevils, but in some Lybaeba species it arises from more or less the middle of the apical edge of the tibiae (an intermediate condition). The shape, direction and angle of the uncus is often useful in the distinction of species. It is not currently possible to delimit the M. maculatus group on characters of the males.