Agrilus aurilaterus Waterhouse

Westcott, Richard L. & Hespenheide, Henry A., 2006, The description of a new species of Agrilus Curtis, with distributional records, and taxonomic and biological notes for Agrilinae and Trachyinae (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) of Mexico and Central America, Zootaxa 1367, pp. 1-35 : 7

Agrilus aurilaterus Waterhouse

Agrilus aurilatera Waterhouse 1889:120 Although Waterhouse (1889) obviously was aware that the genus Agrilus is masculine, the feminine species epithet he used for this species has been of concern. It is a pleural, the suffix being derived from the Latin noun latus. If this compound epithet were somehow construed to be a noun in apposition, then according to ICZN Article 11.9.1.2 it is incorrect, as such names must be singular. However, certainly it is an adjective. Therefore, according to ICZN Article 11.9.1.1 such a species-group name must be in the nominative singular. According to Don Cameron (University of Michigan), there are Late (Renaissance) Latin compound adjectives such as longilaterus, multilaterus, etc. which justify changing to aurilaterus to match the gender of the genus. Specimens of this uncommonly collected species were seen from JAL, Guadalajara, 1-VII-2003, MCZC, RLWE; Jocotepec, 15-VIII-87; 14 km W Magdalena, 1380 m, trop. decid. Forest, 7/ 8-VII- 81, CLBC. Hespenheide (1974) reported this species from DF, Temascaltepec; however that district is in MEX (see comments in the introduction about specimens collected by Hinton).