Macrodactylus suavis Bates, 1887

Arce-Pérez, Roberto & Morón, Miguel-Angel, 2005, New species and new records of species of Macrodactylus Dejean (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Melolonthinae: Macrodactyini) from Honduras and Nicaragua, Zootaxa 1012 (1012), pp. 23-37 : 27-28

Macrodactylus suavis Bates, 1887

Diagnosis. This species is distinguished by the following combination of characters: antennal club reddish­brown with the apex darkened; pronotum black with scattered scalelike setae mainly toward the borders of disc; scutellum with abundant, yellow, scale­like setae; elytra with numerous scale­like setae along the inner half and short setae distributed in two irregular stripes along the outer half, basal half reddish­brown and apical half black ( Fig. 4); pygidium black, dark brown or reddish­yellow with scattered scale­like setae near the center of disc; abdomen black; femora and tibiae reddish­brown, apex of tibiae darkened; tarsi black without white setae; parameres with lanceolate apex, without setae on the external borders; female vestiture and color similar to male.

Material examined (2 males, 1 female) NICARAGUA: Chontales, Belt , male syntype ( CNC) . COSTA RICA: San José province, San Antonio, Quebrada Londres , 1700 m, 17 May 1997, Col. F. A. Quezada, 1 male, 1 female ( MXAL) .

Biology. This species inhabits wet montane forests located at altitudes from 800 to 1700 m. Month of collection: May (2).

Distribution. Southern Nicaragua to central Panama (8° 50'– 12° 10' N, 79° 30'– 85° 20' W).

Remarks. This species was originally described with specimens from “ Costa Rica;” Volcán de Irazú, Cache, Costa Rica; Bugaba, Panama; and Chontales, Nicaragua. Bates noted the variation of large body size (11 mm) and dark color of the middle and hind tibiae in the specimens from Chontales. Worn specimens are difficult to identify without the examination of male genitalia, because the distribution of setae on the elytra is an important diagnostic character.