Hovorodon bituberculatum (Palisot de Beauvois, 1805)

(Figs. 13, 14, 30, 31, 46–48, 62, 74, 78)

Prionus bituberculatus Palisot de Beauvois, 1805: 216, pl. 34, fig. 2.

Mallodon bituberculatus; Chevrolat, 1852: 649; Gemminger & Harold, 1872: 2770 (cat.).

Mallodon bituberculatum; Gahan, 1890: 24.

Aplagiognathus bituberculatus; Thomson, 1867: 91.

Nothopleurus bituberculatus; Leng & Mutchler, 1914: 443 (dist.); Fragoso & Monné, 1995: 219; Monné, 1995: 13 (cat.); Vitali & Rezbanyai-Reser, 2003: 5; Santos-Silva & Martins, 2005: fig. 18; Chalumeau & Touroult, 2005: 45, 46, fig. 4; Monné & Hovore, 2005: 14 (checklist); 2006: 13 (checklist).

Stenodontes (Nothopleurus) bituberculatus; Lameere, 1902: 98; 1913: 13 (cat.); 1919: 33; Gowdey, 1925: 20 (distr.); Russo, 1930: 140 (distr.); Zayas, 1957: 161; 1975: 22.

Stenodontes bituberculatus; Wolcott, 1924: 108; Smyth, 1934: 116 (Biology); Wolcott, 1936: 258; 1941: 98; Martorell, 1945: 437 (host); 1945: 208, 245 (host); Ramos, 1946: 41 (distr.).

Stenodontes bituberculata: Blackwelder, 1946: 552 (cat.).

Stenodontes (Nothopleurus) bitubeculata: Duffy, 1960: 63 (larva).

Stenodontes (Mallodon) bituberculata: Chemsak et al. 1992: 15 (cat.).

Stenodontes (Mallodon) bituberculatus: Monné & Giesbert, 1994: 6 (cat.).

Mallodon carptor Chevrolat, 1862: 273; Thomson, 1867: 91; Gemminger & Harold, 1872: 2770 (cat.); Gahan, 1895: 83.

Mallodon hornebecki Chevrolat, 1862: 273; Gahan, 1895: 83 (syn.).

Male (Fig. 13). Central area of dorsal face of head between the eyes with punctures distinctly smaller than laterally and towards occiput, somewhat disperse. Area behind upper ocular lobe somewhat coarsely punctate; area behind lower ocular lobe rugose. Clypeus elevated laterally; anteriorly distinctly and widely emarginated centrally. Central projection of labrum narrow, somewhat acuminated, strongly elongated. Distance between upper ocular lobes 3.5 times width of scape at apex; distance between lower ocular lobes 3.8 times width of scape at apex. Hypostomal area (Fig. 30) wholly vermiculated, strongly elevated near gula, and strongly depressed close to mentum; setation moderately short and disperse on elevated area, and distinctly longer and more abundant on depressed area. Hypostomal carina (Fig. 30) elevated throughout, but obliterated near the gula by elevation of hypostomal area. Apex of gena strongly projected laterally. Maxillary palpomere III as long as IV. Apex of labial palps attaining to slightly not maxillary palpomere IV. Galea not attaining apex of maxillary palpomere I.

Mandibles (Fig. 13) distinctly longer than head (major male); dorsal carina (Figs. 46, 47) strongly elevated, narrow throughout, obliquely sloped near apex (major male); latero-external face oblique, somewhat concave, with punctures fine and disperse (coarser and more abundant towards apex and lower margin); setation of outer face moderately long and abundant at base, and shorter and sparse in remaining areas (more conspicuous near lower margin); setation of inner face long and dense throughout; infero-inner margin projected in plate at apical half, where three large teeth present: two near each other at apical one-third of the plate; another at base of plate; apex narrow, curved inward, with outer tooth long and acute, and inner tooth short and somewhat rounded. Scape attaining to almost attaining posterior edge of eyes. Antennomere III slightly longer than IV. Facets of pronotal disc relatively small, subtriangular, placed at anterior half. Lateral angles of pronotum rounded; posterior angles almost absent. Elytra with some setae at basal one-fifth. Metepisternum (Fig. 62) slightly narrowed and not concave on inner margin (width at central region ca. 0.22 times length). Genitalia (Fig. 74).

Female (Fig. 14). Central area of dorsal face of head, between eyes, coarsely punctate (punctures distinctly coarser than in male). Distance between upper ocular lobes 2.1 times width of lobe; distance between lower ocular lobes twice width of lobe. Gena as in male. Hypostomal area (Fig. 31) punctatevermiculate throughout, with transverse furrow deep, close to anterior edge. Mandibles (Fig. 48) with long setae at base of outer face. Lateral angles of pronotum very projected, sub-spiniform; lateral margins crenulated; disc almost impunctate. Elytra with very disperse short setae at basal one-fifth. Width of metepisternum 0.30 times length.

Variation. Male: central area of dorsal face of head, between eyes, with punctures slightly smaller than laterally and towards occiput, dense (occasionally partially anastomosed); clypeus from slightly to strongly elevated laterally; central projection of labrum not strongly elongated; distance between upper ocular lobes from 3.3 to 3.5 times width of scape at apex; distance between lower ocular lobes from 3.7 to 4.0 times width of scape at apex; hypostomal area not distinctly vermiculated on depressed area; apex of labial palps from not attaining to surpassing base of maxillary palpomere IV; galea not or attaining apex of maxillary palpomere I; mandibles slightly longer than head (minor male); dorsal carina of mandibles with abrupt declivity near apex (almost vertical) (minor male); setation of outer face of mandibles nearly entirely glabrous but with long setae at base; plate of infero-inner margin of mandibles with small and irregular teeth between basal and medial teeth; lateral angles of pronotum sub-spinose to rounded or sub-rounded; posterior angles of pronotum absent; width of metepisternum at central region from 0.22 to 0.25 times length.

Female: Distance between upper ocular lobes 2.4 times width of lobe; hypostomal area vermiculate throughout; lateral margins of pronotum with sub-spiniform projections.

Dimensions in mm (male/female). Total length (including mandibles), 47.4–55.0/45.5–54.5; prothoracic length, 8.0–9.3/7.3–9.3; anterior prothoracic width (between apices of anterior angles), 11.5–12.5/10.3–11.8; posterior prothoracic width (between apices of lateral angles), 13.3–15.8/14.9–17.7; humeral width, 12.4– 15.4/14.0–17.2; elytral length, 28.9–33.5/30.8–37.9.

Types, type-locality. Of Prionus bituberculatus: holotype female, from Dominican Republic (Santo Domingo), not found.

Of Mallodon carptor: holotype male, from Cuba, deposited at BMNH.

Of Mallodon hornebecki: number of specimens, and sex(es) unknown, from Saint Thomas Island, probably deposited at BMNH.

Geographical distribution (Fig. 78). Dominican Republic (Palisot de Beauvois 1805), Cuba (Chevrolat 1852), Jamaica (Gahan 1895), Saint Thomas [Chevrolat (1862), extended to Virgin Islands by (Chalumeau & Touroult 2005)], Puerto Rico (Lameere 1902), Haiti (Blackwelder 1946), and Saint Johns (Chalumeau & Touroult 2005), Guadeloupe (new record).

Material examined. PUERTO RICO: Road 385, female, 13.IV.1971, J. Micheli col. (USNM); Mayagüez, female, V.1975, J. Micheli col. (MZSP); Road 385, km 3.1, male, 2.VI.1972, J. Micheli col. (MZSP). CUBA, Las Villas: Sierras de Trinidad, male, V.1986, [no collector indicated] (MZSP). GUADELOUPE: 2 males (ex- Nonfried collection), [no date and collector indicated] (IRSN). Porto Cabello (locality unknown – probably is not Puerto Cabello in Venezuela), female, [no date and collector indicated] (IRSN).

Currently, only H. maxillosum is recorded from Guadeloupe [very rarely collected on this island, according to Chalumeau & Touroult (2005)]. The two males examined by us, actually belong to H. bituberculatum, and we do not know if the specimens were incorrectly labeled.

Comments. Gahan (1890) noted: “Judging from the figure and description of this species it seems to me that it is the female of Mallodon maxillosum, Drury ”. Lameere (1902) wrote: “je pense que le Cerambyx bituberculatus est bien la femelle du Mallodon carptor et non celle du Mallodon maxillosus comme l’a supposé M. Gahan”. However, the description and figure in Palisot de Beauvois (1805) does not permit us to adequately determine the specimen which currently is treated as H. bituberculatum or H. maxillosum . As the latter species is not recorded from Dominican Republic, we believe the specimen is in fact H. bituberculatum .

Hovorodon bituberculatum is similar to H. maxillosum, but differs mainly by the form of the apex of gena in both sexes, which is distinctly projected laterally (not projected in H. maxillosum).