Revision of the genus Delopleurus Boheman (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae) with description of new species from Africa
Author
Frolov, Andrey V.
text
Journal of Natural History
2014
2014-06-30
49
3
129
154
journal article
21099
10.1080/00222933.2014.909072
3bad6762-1788-4f94-9cfd-1281b8619c55
1464-5262
4002597
67AE5CC5-9C9C-4872-A2B6-68C3BA82C44A
Metacatharsius janssensi
(Frey)
,
comb. nov.
(
Figure 9E
)
Delopleurus janssensi
Frey, 1963
Delopleurus janssensi
was described from two specimens from Warder,
Somali region
of
Ethiopia
. The
holotype
, female, has all the diagnostic characters of the genus
Metacatharsius
Paulian
(large dorsal eye parts can be seen on the habitual photo,
Figure 9E
). The
paratype
is similar to and apparently conspecific with the
holotype
. In the original description, the author compared this species with
D. pullus
and
D. gilleti
but did not provide characters specific for the genus
Delopleurus
.
However, the original description and locality data agree well with the type specimens. There is no doubt that
Delopleurus janssensi
was described from misidentified
Metacatharsius
specimens and the new generic combination is therefore established here.
It is possible that
M. janssensi
is conspecific with another described species of the genus. There are up to 18 species of this genus known from adjacent
Somalia
(
Ferreira 1972
) and the genus is currently a subject of taxonomic revision (François Génier, pers. comm.). It is out of the scope of the present work to specify the taxonomic status of
M. janssensi
more exactly.
Type material
Holotype
,
female
with the labels: ‘
Wardere Somalia’
, ‘Holotype’, ‘TYPE’, ‘Brit. Mus 1963-277’, ‘
Delopleurus janssensi
det.
G.
Frey
1963, n. sp. Typus’ (
BMNH
)
and
paratype
with the labels: ‘Wardere
Somalia
Oct. 1943
, T.H.E.Jackson’, ‘
Delopleurus
janssensi
det.
G.
Frey
1963, p. Typus’, ‘Cotype’ (
NHMB
).