Craspedophorus pretiosus ( Chaudoir, 1837 )

Häckel, Martin, 2017, A contribution to the knowledge of the subfamily Panagaeinae Hope, 1838 from Africa. Part 2. Revision of the Craspedophorus leprieuri and C. regalis groups (Coleoptera: Carabidae), Zootaxa 4236 (2), pp. 201-243 : 213-214

4. Craspedophorus pretiosus ( Chaudoir, 1837)

(Plate 2, Fig. 22; Plate 3, Fig. 24)

Panagaeus pretiosus Chaudoir, 1837: 49 . (type loc. “ Cap de Bone Espérance [= Republic of South Africa: Cape Province]”). Schaum 1853: 434. Epicosmus pretiosus Chaudoir 1861: 342, 1879: 119 . Eudema pretiosum Quedenfeldt, 1883: 259 . Eudema (Epicosmus) pretiosum Péringuey, 1896: 480, 1904: 188 . Craspedophorus pretiosus Lorenz 2005: 321 , Häckel et Farkač 2012: 82.

Isotarsus amplicollis Chaudoir 1861: 342 (nec. Schaum). Schaum 1862: xxiii, syn. nov.

Type material. Lectotype (♀): “ pretio / Cap [handwritten in black on white label]// Col. Bates [handwritten in black on white label]// Cr. pretiosus Chd. [handwritten in black]/ P. Basilewsky det., 19[printed in black]54 [handwritten in black on white label]” (Plate 2, Fig. 22, MNHN). Paralectotype 1(♀): “ Chaudoir / 1859 [handwritten in black on white label]// R. Dét / 1784 [printed in black]/ P [handwritten in black on white label]// Musée du Congo [printed in black]/ Afrique / don [handwritten in black] L. Burgeon [printed in black on white label]// pretiosus Chd. [handwritten in black] / P. Basilewsky det., 19 [printed in black on white label] ( MRAC). Note. The species is based on a specimen from the Cape Province of South Africa . From the description of Chaudoir (1837: 49): “Black, thorax hexagonal, short, coarsely punctate; elytra nearly parallel-sided and striate, each elytron with two maculae, larger close to base and smaller subapical, nearly transverse” [from Latin, length we measured 17. 8mm]. “As large as [ Craspedophorus ] nobilis Dej., but reminds me more of description and illustration of Mr. Klug‘s P. festivus in his work on the insects of Madagascar. It differs [ C. pretiosus from C. festivus ] only in more pronounced indentation of the pronotum and pronotal margins anteriorly forming an oblique angle, elytra punctate and setose, with striae punctate and serrate, punctures of intervals aligned in longitudinal rows, and anteriorly and posteriorly with two maculae which seem smaller and more rounded. The species is reported (by Mr. Drége) from the Cape of Good Hope and belongs to [ Craspedophorus ] nobilis Klug” [from French]. In the monograph Chaudoir (1879: 120) supplemented the description by: “the first specimen I described came from the interior of the Cape Colony; since then I have obtained specimens also from Natal” [from French].

Distribution. South Africa: Cape, KwaZulu-Natal Provinces.