Cryptolarynx oberprieleri Haran, 2023

Haran, Julien M., Marvaldi, Adriana E., Benoit, Laure, Oberlander, Kenneth, Stals, Riaan & Oberprieler, Rolf G., 2023, Revision of the enigmatic South African Cryptolaryngini (Coleoptera, Curculionidae), with description of a new genus and twenty-two new species, European Journal of Taxonomy 877 (1), pp. 1-89 : 48-49

15. Cryptolarynx oberprieleri Haran sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:92F63525-1018-4C50-BA14-3284DCFAC09A

Figs 1O , 2O , 3O , 4O , 5O , 7A–C , 8J

Differential diagnosis

Cryptolarynx oberprieleri sp. nov. can be distinguished from other species of the genus by the combination, in males, of apically expanded protibiae, deeply divided setae on ventrite 1 and arrowhead-shaped copulatory sclerite. It differs from the most similar congener, C. falciformis sp. nov., by the structure of the apex of the parameroid lobes and the copulatory sclerite in the endophallus ( Fig. 2O ). Among the species for which fresh tissue was obtained, C. oberprieleri was found to be genetically closest to C. marshalli sp. nov., the two species showing uncorrected p-distances ranging from 19.8% to 22.1% for COI and from 3.4% to 3.6% for EF1, whereas intraspecific distances were up to 3.5% for COI (JHAR01246; JHAR02585) and 0.6% for EF1 (JHAR02340; JHAR02585) (Supp. file 1).

Etymology

Cryptolarynx oberprieleri sp. nov. is dedicated to Rolf G. Oberprieler for his substantial contribution to weevil taxonomy and classification, not least regarding the South African fauna. The specific epithet is a noun in the genitive case.

Material examined

Holotype REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA • ♂; “REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA. Western Cape Province, Stellenbosch [ Paradyskloof ]. 26.vii.2018. J. Haran leg.” “ 33.964° S 18.876° E. at base of Oxalis glabra . J. Haran leg., JHAR01201_0101 . Cirad-CBGP coll.” “Holotype. Cryptolarynx oberprieleri . Haran 2023”; SAMC.

Paratypes REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA – Western Cape • 2 ♂♂, 17 specs (preserved in ethanol); same collection data as for holotype; CBGP • 1 ♂, 19 specs (preserved in ethanol); Stellenbosch, Jan Marais Nature Reserve ; 33.931° S, 18.875° E; 27 Jun. 2019; J. Haran leg.; at base of Oxalis glabra ; JHAR02340; CBGP • 1 ♂; same collection data as for preceding; 33.930° S, 18.875° E; 6 Sep. 2018; J. Haran leg.; at base of Oxalis glabra ; JHAR01485; SAMC • 1 ♂, 1 ♀, 20 specs (preserved in ethanol); same collection data as for preceding; CBGP • 1 ♀, 3 specs (preserved in ethanol); Stellenbosch, Coetzenburg ; 33.9416° S, 18.8722° E; 9 Aug. 2018; J. Haran leg.; at base of Oxalis spp. ; JHAR01246; CBGP • 1 ♂, 4 specs (preserved in ethanol); Somerset West, Helderberg Nature Reserve ; 34.061° S, 18.874° E; 14 Oct. 2019; J. Haran leg.; at base of Oxalis glabra ; JHAR02585; CBGP • 1 ♂, 5 specs (preserved in ethanol); Klipheuwel 3 km E; 33.725° S, 18.739° E; 10 Sep. 2019; J. Haran leg.; at base of Oxalis glabra ; JHAR02558; CBGP • 1 spec. (preserved in ethanol); Cape Town, Penhill ; 33.990° S, 18.729° E; 5 Jul. 2019; J. Haran leg.; at base of Oxalis glabra ; JHAR03200; CBGP • 1 ♂; Kogel Bay ; 34.212° S, 18.835° E; 5 Aug. 2018; J. Haran leg.; at base of Oxalis livida ; JHAR01230; CBGP • 1 ♀; De Hoop Nature Reserve , western side; 34.496° S, 20.420° E; 29 Oct. 2019; R. Borovec leg; sweeping low vegetation in coastal sand dunes; FFWS .

Description (♂)

MEASUREMENTS. Body length 1.9–3.2 mm.

COLOUR AND VESTITURE. Body integument black, scapes and tarsi reddish in fully sclerotised specimens. Dorsal vestiture (pronotum + elytra) consisting of overlapping, recumbent, parallel-sided clothing scales, 2–3 × as long as wide, rounded or truncate at apex; colour of scales pale to dark brown; pale scales concentrated in two lateral stripes on pronotum and on elytra from interstriae 4 laterad, as well as forming a pair of white spots surrounded by darker scales at apical ⅔ of interstriae 2–3; scales of striae recumbent, in lateral view not distinct from rest of vestiture.

HEAD. Forehead slightly wider than epifrons near antennal insertions, as wide as an eye, scales recumbent. Eyes convex, in dorsal view slightly exceeding outline of head, surrounded by a ring of short pale scales, on forehead directed towards occiput; distance between eye and scrobe smaller than width of antennal club. Epifrons with distance between antennal insertions slightly smaller than length of scape, scales in middle of epifrons at least 3× as long as wide, recumbent, not contiguous. Frons with a pair of long erect lateral setae. Epistome without median seta. Antennal funicles with segments 1–2 moderately elongate, subequal in length, 1.5–1.8× as long as wide; 3 isodiametric; 4 slightly angular ventrally; 5–7 globular, isodiametric.

PRONOTUM. Transverse (W:L ratio 1.3–1.4), widest near midlength, sides arcuate; apex slightly narrower than base.

ELYTRA. Broadly ovate or bullet-shaped, wider than long (W:L ratio 1.1), sides convex, widest near or anterior of midlength.

LEGS. Protibiae with outer margin straight and inner margin slightly bisinuate, with small expansion proximally of apical mucro; meso- and metatibiae with small apical mucro, metatibiae with inner setal fringe, setae shorter than segment 5 of metatarsus, and with small inner carina near base. Tarsi with segment 2 wider than long.

ABDOMEN. Ventrites with creamy-white plumose scales, partly concealing integument; with long suberect setae and elongate scales concentrated medially; ventrite 1 slightly concave medially; ventrite 5 devoid of scales in apical ¾, there bearing only erect setae.

TERMINALIA. Body of penis moderately elongate (W:L ratio 0.45), slightly shorter than temones, sides subparallel, converging in apical quarter; curvature in profile moderate and regular, dorsoventrally narrowed at apex. Copulatory sclerite sagittate. Parameroid lobes separate, divided by modest median notch, each lobe bilobate, with median sublobes bearing two long setae apically. Spiculum gastrale with basal arms long, right arm angulate at its midlength.

Sexual dimorphism

The sexes can be distinguished by the shape of the elytra (wider than long in male, longer than wide and more broadly ovate in female), by the shape of ventrite 1 (medially concave in male, convex in female) and by the protibiae (with small expansion near mucro in male).

Life history

Specimens of C. oberprieleri sp. nov. were collected at several localities in monospecific stands of Oxalis glabra and, at one location, at the base of a plant of O. livida Jacq. Larvae and teneral adults were found inside bulbs of O. glabra . Adults were collected between late June and late October, found to be active during the day at the base of their host plant but at sunset retreating into small holes in the soil, which they formed under debris and under the leaves of Iridaceae .

Distribution

This species was found on the western slopes of the Hottentots Holland Mountain range and adjacent valleys, from Stellenbosch and Klipheuwel in the north to Kogel Bay beach in the south. A single specimen was discovered in the De Hoop Nature Reserve ( Fig. 13 ).

Figures

Fig. 1 (Part I) (next page). Habitus of males of species of Cryptolarynx Van Schalkwyk, 1966 (dorsal view). A. C. vitis (Marshall, 1957). B. C. subglaber Haran sp. nov. C. C. squamulatus Haran sp. nov. D. C. muellerae Haran sp. nov. E. C. hirtulus Haran sp. nov. F. C. robustus Haran sp. nov. G. C. namaquanus Haran sp. nov. H. C. carinatus Haran sp. nov. I. C. variabilis Haran sp. nov. J. C. estriatus (Marshall, 1957). K. C. pyrophilus Haran sp. nov. L. C. pilipes Haran sp. nov. Not to scale.

Fig. 2 (Part I) (next page). Male genitalia of species of Cryptolarynx Van Schalkwyk, 1966. Penis in dorsal and lateral view (left), tegmen in dorsal view (middle) and details of apex of a parameroid lobe and spiculum gastrale in dorsal view (right). A. C. vitis (Marshall, 1957). B. C. subglaber Haran sp. nov. C. C. squamulatus Haran sp. nov. D. C. muellerae Haran sp. nov. E. C. hirtulus Haran sp. nov. F. C. robustus Haran sp. nov. G. C. namaquanus Haran sp. nov. H. C. carinatus Haran sp. nov. I. C. variabilis Haran sp. nov. J. C. estriatus (Marshall, 1957). K. C. pyrophilus Haran sp. nov. L. C. pilipes Haran sp. nov. Not to scale.

Fig. 3 (Part I) (next page). Habitus of males of species of Cryptolarynx Van Schalkwyk, 1966 (lateral view). A. C. vitis (Marshall, 1957). B. C. subglaber Haran sp. nov. C. C. squamulatus Haran sp. nov. D. C. muellerae Haran sp. nov. E. C. hirtulus Haran sp. nov. F. C. robustus Haran sp. nov. G. C. namaquanus Haran sp. nov. H. C. carinatus Haran sp. nov. I. C. variabilis Haran sp. nov. J. C. estriatus (Marshall, 1957). K. C. pyrophilus Haran sp. nov. L. C. pilipes Haran sp. nov. Not to scale.

Fig. 4 (Part I) (next page). Head of males of species of Cryptolarynx Van Schalkwyk, 1966. A. C. vitis (Marshall, 1957). B. C. subglaber Haran sp. nov. C. C. squamulatus Haran sp. nov. D. C. muellerae Haran sp. nov. E. C. hirtulus Haran sp. nov. F. C. robustus Haran sp. nov. G. C. namaquanus Haran sp. nov. H. C. carinatus Haran sp. nov. I. C. variabilis Haran sp. nov. J. C. estriatus (Marshall, 1957). K. C. pyrophilus Haran sp. nov. L. C. pilipes Haran sp. nov. Not to scale.

Fig. 5 (Part I). Ventrites of males of species of Cryptolarynx Van Schalkwyk, 1966. A. C. vitis (Marshall, 1957). B. C. subglaber Haran sp. nov. C. C. squamulatus Haran sp. nov. D. C. muellerae Haran sp. nov. E. C. hirtulus Haran sp. nov. F. C. robustus Haran sp. nov. G. C. namaquanus Haran sp. nov. H. C. carinatus Haran sp. nov. I. C. variabilis Haran sp. nov. J. C. estriatus (Marshall, 1957), with details of a cuticular carina (white arrows). K. C. pyrophilus Haran sp. nov. L. C. pilipes Haran sp. nov. Not to scale.

Fig. 7 (previous page). Habitus in natura, host plants and biotopes of species of Cryptolarynx Van Schalkwyk, 1966 Cryptolarynx and Hadrocryptolarynx Haran gen. nov. (part 2). A. Habitus of C. oberprieleri Haran sp. nov. on and at base of Oxalis glabra Thunb., Stellenbosch (JHAR01201). B. Patch of O. glabra, biotope of C. oberprieleri Haran sp. nov., Stellenbosch (JHAR01485). C. Burnt area near Montagu with patches of Oxalis pes-caprae L. resprouting; biotope of C. pyrophilus Haran sp. nov. (JHAR01528). D–F. Habitus, Oxalis cf. odorata J.C.Manning & Goldblatt, host and biotope of C. spinicornis Haran sp. nov., Sutherland (JHAR02512). G. Habitus of C. marshalli Haran sp. nov., near Worcester (JHAR02355). H. Oxalis imbricata Eckl. & Zeyh., hosting adults of C. marshalli Haran sp. nov., near Worcester. I. Shale Renosterveld vegetation type on hillsides at Worcester, biotope of C. marshalli Haran sp. nov. (JHAR02355). J. Habitus of C. oberlanderi Haran sp. nov., near Worcester (JHAR02353). K. Oxalis depressa Eckl. & Zeyh., hosting adults of C. oberlanderi Haran sp. nov., near Worcester. L. Habitus of C. san Haran sp. nov., Langebaan Dune Strandveld vegetation type near West Coast National Park (JHAR02484). M. Habitus of male of Hadrocryptolarynx major Haran gen. et sp. nov., Klawer (JHAR02464). N. Habitus of female of Hadrocryptolarynx major Haran gen. et sp. nov., Klawer. O. Gallery formed by Hadrocryptolarynx major Haran gen. et sp. nov. under a leaf of Amaryllidaceae J.St.-Hil. P. Vanrhynsdorp Gannabosveld vegetation type near Vanrhynsdorp, biotope of Hadrocryptolarynx major Haran gen. et sp. nov.

Fig. 8 (next page). Structural details and measurements of Cryptolaryngini Van Schalkwyk, 1966. A. Cryptolarynx spinicornis Haran sp. nov., cephalic view, arrows indicating width of forehead (top) and of epifrons (bottom). B. Head of C. pyrophilus Haran sp. nov., lateral view, arrows indicating distance between eye and scrobe. C. Head of C. pyrophilus Haran sp. nov., in cephalic view, arrows showing prothoracic scales near eyes (top), position of scape when antennae in repose (middle) and position of clubs near procoxae when in repose (bottom). D. C. namaquanus Haran sp. nov., dorsal view, arrows indicate length and width dimensions of pronotum and elytra as measured.E. Metafemora and metatarsus of C. variabilis Haran sp. nov. (left) and C. carinatus Haran sp. nov. (right), arrows indicating position of proximal inner carina in latter species (highlighted with a white line in C. variabilis Haran sp. nov.) and short apical mucro. F. Metatarsus of Hadrocryptolarynx major Haran gen. et sp. nov., arrow indicating elongate segment 2 (longer than wide). G. Hindleg of C. vitis (Marshall, 1957), arrow indicating apical mucro. H. Antenna of C. spinicornis Haran sp. nov., arrows pointing at inner tooth of funicle segments 2 and 4. I. Protibia of C. armatus Haran sp. nov., arrow pointing at inner preapical expansion proximally of mucro. J. Penis of C. oberprieleri Haran sp. nov., dorsal view, black arrows indicating length of penis body and temones and white arrows indicating width of penis body as measured; bottom arrow indicating copulatory sclerite. K. Ovipositor, Crypolarynx variabilis Haran sp. nov. L. Sternite VIII, same species. M. Spermatheca, same species. N. Ovipositor, Hadrocryptolarynx major Haran gen. et sp. nov. O. Sternite VIII, same species. P. Spermatheca, same species. Q. Right maxilla, same species. Not to scale.

Fig. 13. Distribution maps of species of Cryptolarynx Van Schalkwyk, 1966 and Hadrocryptolarynx Haran gen. nov.