Scolytodes bombycinus Jordal and Smith, 2020

Jordal, Bjarte H. & Smith, Sarah M., 2020, Scolytodes Ferrari (Coleoptera, Scolytinae) from Ecuador: 40 new species, and a molecular phylogenetic guide to infer species differences, Zootaxa 4813 (1), pp. 1-67 : 33-35

Scolytodes bombycinus Jordal and Smith , sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:C75B515B-928B-4DBC-86A3-FDE626FFF012

( Figs 55, 58, 61 )

Type material. Holotype, female: Ecuador: Cotopaxi, Otonga , 1975m, W79°00’204’’ S00°25’166’’, 01 Jun2007, A. Barragán, A. Proaño, ex fumigacion F1 . Holotype deposited in QCAZ .

Diagnosis. Interstriae 10 elevated to level of metacoxae. Protibiae with a tiny additional mesal tooth. Female frons flat, with a triangular, long, curved tuft of very fine silky setae. Related to S. cavus , S. animus and related species, but differs from all particularly by the unique silky setae in the female frons, and by the additional, albeit tiny, mesal tooth on the posterior face of the protibiae at the base of tooth 2.

Description female. Length 2.4 mm, 2.6 × as long as wide; colour dark brown. Head. Eyes weakly emarginate, separated above by 3.0 × their width. Frons flat, surface smooth and shiny, largely covered by a long triangular tuft of fine, silky setae, from vertex with longest tips reaching epistoma. Antennal club pilose. Funiculus not visible on specimen. Pronotum strongly reticulated, dull, with tiny, shallow punctures reaching anterior margin, spaced by 1–3 × their diameter. Vestiture consisting of 8 long, erect setae (4-2-2). Elytra smooth, shiny; striae irregular, very weakly impressed, punctures shallow, very small, subcontiguous; interstrial punctures smaller, confused, intermixed with strial punctures; interstriae 10 elevated to level of metacoxae. Vestiture consisting of about 40–50 erect interstrial setae on odd interstriae, on declivity also with nearly invisible interstrial and strial setae. Legs. Procoxae separated by 0.2 × the width of one procoxa. Mesocoxae separated by 0.8 × the width of a procoxa. Protibiae narrow, distal tooth 1 and 2 of equal size, tooth 2 with a sharp edge from its base towards tibial base in addition to the normal lateral edge carrying 3–4 tiny granules or rugae; a tiny additional mesal tooth present on the posterior face; protibial mucro obtuse. Meso- and metatibiae with 6 lateral socketed teeth on distal half. Ventral vestiture. Setae on mes- and metanepisternum and metasternum simple.

Male. Not known. One male specimen was collected in the same locality, except 2000m, 00°25’S 79°00W, 18 Jul1997, L. Tapia & P. Ponce; ex Monte Bajo ( QCAZ). The specimen differs by the simple and reticulate frons, but also by narrower eyes (separated by 2.0 × their width), by the much more broadly separated procoxae (0.5 × the width of one procoxa), and its smaller size (1.8 mm long). The male specimen may be conspecific, but cannot be associated with confidence to the female .

Key ( Wood 2007). Keys with some hesitation to couplet 68, but is very different from S. volcanus Wood, 1969 and S. acares Wood, 1969 .

Etymology. The Latin name bombycinus is a masculine nominative adjective, meaning silky, referring to the very smooth, thin and long setae in the female frons.

Biology and distribution. Only known from the high altitude type locality in Ecuador. The holotype was collected by fogging trees .

Figures

FIGURES 55–63. Dorsal, lateral and frontal views of the female holotype of Scolytodes bombycinus (55, 58, 61), Scolytodes bisetosus (56, 59, 62), and Scolytodes horridus (57, 60, 63).