Scolytodes nitidissimus (Eggers)

Jordal, Bjarte H., 2013, New species and records of Scolytodes (Coleoptera, Curculionidae: Scolytinae) from South America, Zootaxa 3721 (6), pp. 529-551 : 549-550

Scolytodes nitidissimus (Eggers)

Hexacolus nitidissimus Eggers : 135. Holotype male: "Trois Rivieres, Guadeloupe, Dufau", "26", "Collection E. Fleutiaux". [NHMW] (examined).

Prionosceles imitans Eggers, 1940: 136 . Holotype female: "Gouadeloupe, Trois Rivieres, leg. Dufau". [NHMW] (examined). Scolytodes imitans (Eggers) , synonym (see Bright & Skidmore, 2002).

Diagnosis male: frons with a transverse swollen crest on epistoma; pronotum with distinct small asperities on anterior fourth, punctures small, shallow, spaced on average by 2 times their diameter, surface weakly reticulated, shiny; elytra with stria 1 weakly impressed, other striae generally not impressed, punctures irregularly spaced by 0.5–1 times their diameter, generally seriate, confused some places on striae 1–3 on disc; interstriae smooth, granules at base of setae either not present or very minute; fine erect setae present on interstriae from base of elytra to apex; protibia broad with cuticle extending around lateral tooth 2; setae on mesanepisternum bi- and trifid.

Diagnosis female: similar to male except epistoma flat, frons broadly impressed from upper level of eyes, frontal vestiture similar to S. maurus except longer; pronotum devoid of asperities.

Comments. Sexual dimorphism in pronotal sculpture is the norm for members of the atratus group, including S. maurus and close relatives. The differences seen between the male and female holotypes of these two taxa are therefore typical dimorphic differences and S. imitans is therefore a synonym of S. nitidissimus as suggested by Jordal (1998b) and subsequently published by Bright and Skidmore (2002). It should also be noted that all references to S. imitans by Wood (2007) in his South American monograph of Scolytinae , including pictures, should be treated as S. nitidissimus . The holotype of P. imitans was reported deposited in MNHN–Paris (Jordal, 1998b), but these specimens are mislabelled ‘type’ by Eggers. The unique female specimen in NHMW bears a ‘holotype’ label.