Chrysina giesberti Monzón, 2010

Sierra, José Monzón, 2010, Three new species of Chrysina Kirby (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae; Rutelinae) from Guatemala and Mexico, Insecta Mundi 2010 (143), pp. 1-12 : 1-3

Chrysina giesberti Monzón , new species

( Figure 1, 2 , 13 , 21 , 29 , 32 )

Type material. Holotype male ( Universidad del Valle de Guatemala Collection of Arthropods ( UVGC)) labeled “ GUATEMALA, Huehuetenango, Barillas, Malpais. 1263 m., 15.847869 -91.223434, JUNIO 1998, Enio B. Cano, Cristina Bailey y José Monzón Sierra Col. ” . Allotype female ( UVGC) labeled as holotype . Paratypes (27 males and 10 females) with data as follows: Same data as holotype (1 male) ; same data except “ 15.87330 -91.22285, 1-5 AGOSTO 2008, F. Camposeco y J. Monzón ” (1 male); same data except “Aldea San José Maxbal, 1396 m., 23 JULIO 2008, 15.95805 -91.31645 ” (1 male and 1 female); same data except “Unión Las Palmas. 1444 m., 15.9311000 -91.2993100, 8 JUNIO 2010, Camposeco y Monzón Col.” (10 males and 4 females); same data except “San Pedro Soloma, Arriba aldea Crinolina, Cerro Tzucancá, Cruz Maltín, 1600 m., 20 JUNIO 2006 ” (4 males and 1 female); same data except “ 15 JULIO 2006 ” (6 males); same data except “Nentón, Yalambojoch, Ixcansán, 1650 m., 15.847869 -91.223434, Col. J. Monzón y V. Becker (1 female) ; “ GUATEMALA, Quiché, Uspantán, Norte de Laj Chimel, Cuatro Chorros , 1500 m., Col. E. Cano y J. Monzón ” (1 male); “ MEXICO, Veracruz, Sierra de los Tuxtlas , Volcán Santa Marta , 1200 m., Santos Leal Col.” (3 males and 2 females); same data except “ Catemaco , Bastonal , 1000 m., 3 JUNE 2009, Santos Rodríguez Coll.” (1 female) . Paratypes deposited in the UVGC, Florida State Collection of Arthropods ( FSCA), M. T. James Entomological Collection ( WSUC) at Washington State University and the private collections of David Robacker (Texas, U.S.A.), William B. Warner (Arizona, U.S.A.), Howard Romack (New York, U.S.A.), Maishe Dickman (Connecticut, U.S.A.), Thierry Porion (France) and José Monzón (Guatemala).

Description. Holotype male. Length 29.0 mm; width at elytral humeri 13.0mm; maximum width (middle of elytra) 15.5 mm. Color of dorsum yellowish green; ocular canthi and scape green; antennal club reddish brown; pronotal and internal elytral margins yellowish green, external elytral margins orange. Color of sternites and pygidium slightly duller green with weak golden green reflections. Legs yellowish green similar to sternites; trochanter and tarsi brighter yellow. Head dorsal surface slightly convex, finely and densely punctate, denser, wider and deeper towards anterior margin. Clypeus ( Fig. 13 ) free margins semiparabolic in dorsal view, surface slightly depressed along weakly reflexed margins; interocular distance 2.7 times wider than antennal club length. Mentum ( Fig. 21 ) wide; anterior depression wide and irregular; lateral depressions wide and deep; posterior margin widely sinuated; surface setigerously punctate, punctures sparse. Pronotum at base twice as wide as interocular distance; surface similar to frons except punctures denser, deeper and wider towards lateral margins. Lateral margin completely beaded; basal margin in front of scutellum and anterior margin between inner border of eyes effaced. Elytra punctate striate; striae well marked with deep punctures; interstriae 1, 3 and 8 with multiple rows of deep punctures merging towards back. Elytron 19.0 mm long and 3.2 times as long as pronotum; lateral margin with complete bead. Pygidium completely rugose; apical margin with few and scattered pale setae; surface convex and prominent before apex. Venter with mesometasternal protrusion slender and long, not reaching anterior coxae, apex slightly depressed and sharp. Metasternum sides densely setigerously punctate, setae dense, fine, long and pale colored. Legs with protibia clearly tridentate; dorsal and ventral area of protibia with rugose punctures. Genitalia distinct, symmetrical, apical one third narrow ending in a sharp two point fork; ventral plates long sharp at the apex, slightly divergent; length of genital capsule 11.0 mm ( Fig. 29 ).

Allotype female. Similar to male except as follows: length 30.0 mm; width at elytral humeri 14.0 mm; maximum width (middle of elytra) 17.0 mm; clypeal apex parabolic; interocular distance 2.5 times wider than antennal length; pronotum at base 2.6 times as wide as interocular distance; dorsal surface more convex; tarsi less robust; epipleural border wide; abdomen convex, last sternite without apical depression. Inferior genital plates slightly asymmetrical and convex with sparse long thin tan setae; surface rugosely punctate ( Fig. 32 ).

Variation. Males length 24.5 to 29.0 mm; width at elytral humeri 12.5 to 14.5 mm; maximum width (middle of elytra) 14.0 to 16.0 mm. Females length 24.0 to 30.0 mm; width at elytral humeri 13.0 to 14.0 mm; maximum width (middle of elytra) 15.0 to 17.0 mm. Except for size, all the specimens form a uniform series.

Etymology. It is a great honor to name this species after Edmund F. Giesbert, my mentor, friend and one of the best field workers and taxonomists of modern times.

Diagnosis. This species is a green Chrysina in the Peruviana group (sensu Hawks 2001). It can be distinguished from other members of the group by the following combination of characters: dorsal color not shiny, deep punctures, and unique male genital capsule.

Distribution and remarks. Chrysina giesberti has an unusual distribution pattern. It has been found in two different regions, on the Sierra de los Tuxtlas in Veracruz ( Mexico) and in the Cuchumatan mountains in the departments of Huehuetenango and Quiché in Guatemala. It is known from altitudes from 1000 to 1650 meters above sea level and to fly from June to August as follows: June 28 specimens, July 10 specimens and August 1 specimen. It is one of the few species of the Peruviana group (sensu Hawks 2001) found south of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec ( Mexico). It is also atypical in that it is found on both sides of this isthmus. Specimens from both populations are impossible to distinguish from each other. Chrysina alfredolaui (Hawks) is another species that has this strange distribution pattern. Other species, such as C. diversa (Ohaus) and C. chloreis (H. W. Bates) , occur on both sides of the isthmus but are species well known to occur in lowland tropical jungle and in species groups that go further south into Central America and even to South America. In Guatemala it flies with C. rodriguezi (Boucard) , C. alfredolaui (Hawks) and C. purulhensis (Monzón and Warner) .

Figures

Figure 1-12. Dorsal and ventral habitus of adult Chrysina specimens. 1-2) C. giesberti male paratype from Cerro Cruz Maltín, Huehuetenango. 3-4) C. hawksi male paratype from Bulej, Huehuetenango. 5-6) C. baileyana male paratype from Chiantla, Huehuetenango. 7-8) C. centralis female from La Fraternidad, San Marcos. 9-10) C. guatemalensis female from Bojonal, San Marcos. 11-12) C. tecunumani female from Cerro Pinalón, El Progreso.

Figure 13-20. Clypeus of Chrysina spp. 13) C. giesberti. 14) C. hawksi. 15) C. pehlkei male from Cerro Alúx, Sacatepéquez. 16) C. centralis. 17) C. baileyana. 18) C. triumphalis from Bojonal, San Marcos. 19) C. guatemalensis. 20) C. tecunumani. Length of line 7 mm.

Figure 21-28. Mentum of Chrysina spp. 21) C. giesberti. 22) C. hawksi. 23) C. pehlkei. 24) C. centralis. 25) C. guatemalensis. 26) C. baileyana. 27) C. triumphalis. 28) C. tecunumani. Length of line 4 mm.

Figure 29-31. Male genital capsule of Chrysina spp. 29) C. giesberti. 30) C. hawksi. 31) C. baileyana. Length of line 4 mm.

Figure 32-38. Female inferior genital plates of Chrysina spp. 32) C. giesberti. 33) C. hawksi. 34) C. pehlkei. 35) C. baileyana. 36) C. centralis. 37) C. guatemalensis. 38) C. tecunumani. Length of line 2.5 mm.