Phyllophaga (Phyllophaga) caviceps (Moser, 1918)

Vallejo, Luís Fernando & Wolff, Martha, 2013, The genus Phyllophaga Harris (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Melolonthinae) in the Colombian Andean Mountains, Zootaxa 3722 (2), pp. 101-142 : 125

18. Phyllophaga (Phyllophaga) caviceps (Moser, 1918)

Redescription. Length 19 mm. The dorsal surface is rough, punctate, reddish chestnut-brown in color. The clypeus is rounded, emarginate and the antennae have 10 antennomeres with elongate antennal clubs. Tarsal claws ( Fig. 80 ) are cleft, with a marked apical tooth and a denticle. The elytra are roughly punctate. The male genital capsule is long and narrow ( Fig. 81 ), the parameres are slightly curved; long, angular, markedly curved; the aedeagus has a flexible texture, with six or seven long, thick setae in the distal-ventral portion and a series of small spines in a dorsal position.

Comments. The species was described from a male specimen simply labeled as "Columbien", belonging to the Von Staudinger und Bang-Haas collection. The genital capsule ( Fig. 81 ) and the curious structure of the tarsal claws ( Fig. 80 ) were illustrated from the holotype deposited in the ZMHU collection. The structure of the tarsal claws is unique in the northern part of South America. There is another specimen in the ZMHU collection, from “Villavicencio”, capital city of the Department of Meta in the eastern plains of Colombia.

Figures

FIGURES 80 – 81. Phyllophaga caviceps. Protarsal claw (80) male genital capsule, lateral view (81). Scale: 1 mm.