Phyllophaga (Phyllophaga) apolinari Saylor, 1940

Vallejo, Luís Fernando & Wolff, Martha, 2013, The genus Phyllophaga Harris (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Melolonthinae) in the Colombian Andean Mountains, Zootaxa 3722 (2), pp. 101-142 : 125-126

20. Phyllophaga (Phyllophaga) apolinari Saylor, 1940

Redescription. Length 29 mm. The dorsal vertex region has a very noticeable transversal bump. The dorsal surface is glabrous and bright, dark chestnut-brown. The male genital capsule is long, cylindrical, and strongly sclerotized (Fig. 82); the parameres are wide, asymmetric, separated in the dorsal region, and joined by a membrane in the ventral region, from where a long spine is projected, contrasting with a pair of dorsal fins. The aedeagus is adorned distally with a series of 6–7 small spines on each side; a small capsule, shaped like a parrot’s beak is present at a basal position.

FIGURE. 82. Phyllophaga apolinari male genital capsule, transversal view (82). Scale: 1 mm.

Comments. The male holotype was collected by Father Apolinar María, supposedly from "Saigon, Columbia ". However, the origin of the specimen needs further study, given the absence of more specimens in collections in Colombia, as well as the fact that characteristics of the genital capsule of the holotype (Fig. 82), revised by M. A. Morón in the CAS collection, suggest a relation with the Tropical Asian genus Melolonthini , leading to the possibility that the specimen might have been confused and erroneously mixed up with other specimens sent to Saylor. In fact, Saylor (1940), at the end of the original description of this species (p. 111), comments on the similarities with oriental species, but emphasizes his certainty about not having made a mistake, stating that it arrived with a batch of unmounted specimens, of undoubted Colombian origin. Therefore, a detailed comparative holotype study, as well as a search for other specimens in Colombian locations and neighboring countries, is necessary.

It is possible that "Saigon, Colum" refers to the Municipality of “Sahagún” in the Department of Córdoba, on the Colombian Caribbean coast, where this specimen may have been collected. The Municipality of Sahagún is located 40 km northwest of the department capital, Monteria, at an altitude of 160 m, in a landscape interspersed with canals and wetlands. If the specimen was indeed collected here, it is possible that it exists in some of the many other areas of similar habitat along the Colombian Caribbean coast.