An update to the taxonomy of the genus Macroderes Westwood 1842 (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae) with descriptions of new species from South Africa
Author
Abdalla, Ishtiag H.
Author
Deschodt, Christian M.
Author
Scholtz, Clarke H.
Author
Sole, Catherine L.
text
Zootaxa
2018
2018-10-23
4504
1
41
75
journal article
28091
10.11646/zootaxa.4504.1.3
0b803003-244e-4511-aaf4-5e9c3f863861
1175-5326
2606164
52BA28B6-4280-4BD0-8B38-C794F04E4A66
Macroderes undulatus
Preudhomme de
Borre, 1880
(
Figs. 16
,
56
,
68
)
Macroderes undulatus
Preudhomme de
Borre, 1880
: 10
;
Péringuey 1901
: 303
;
Janssen 1939
: 27
;
Ferreira 1969
: 323
;
Frolov & Scholtz 2005
: 386
.
Macroderes westwoodi
Preudhomme de
Borre, 1880
: 9
;
Frolov & Scholtz 2005
: 386
(junior synonym of
M. undulatus
).
Type
locality.
Cape
of
Good Hope
.
Type
material examined.
None.
Type
series is deposited in IRSNB (
Frolov & Scholtz 2005
).
Additional material examined
.
10 ♀♀
(
SANC
): “VILLIERSDORP / SW. C P / (15 Km SE) /
13. VIII. 79
/ Davis &
Payton
leg //
Macorderes
sp / det. CSIRO DBRU”
;
3 ♀♀
(
SANC
): “VILLIERSDORP / SW. C P/ (15 Km SE) /
29. VI. 79
/ stony sandy loam / Fallow crop field C / Davis & Payton //
Macorderes
sp / det. CSIRO / DBRU”
;
1 ♀
(
SANC
): “WORC ESTER / C P / (5 min NW) /
16. X. 71
/ Bornemissza & Kirk // ex coll. CSIRO / Div / Entomology / S. AFRICAN STATION”
;
1 ♀
(
SANC
): “SWELLENDAM / CP / (29 Kms E) /
3. V. 76
/
250 m
/ Davis & Aschenborn // Ex Coll. CSIRO / Div / Entomology / S. AFRICAN STATION //
Macorderes
sp / det. CSIRO / DBRU”
;
1 ♀
(
UPSA
): “
Macroderes undulatus
/ P. d / Borre /
Frolov
det”
;
1 ♀
(
SAMC
): “
Riversdale Mountains
// SAM-Col-A043 226”
;
1 ♀
(
SAMC
): “
Rietpol
[
Rietpoort
] / C.P /
Nov. 1937
/
Macroderes undulatus
Borre
// SAM-Col- A0432118”
.
Size range.
Females length: 10.0–
11.7 mm
, width:
7.2–8.1 mm
.
Differential diagnosis.
This unique species can be separated from its congeners by the presence of a small tubercle in the middle of the frontal suture (
Fig. 56
), elytra having smooth, elevated areas in the middle of each interstria with sparse punctuation (
Fig. 68
) and metasternum lacking any punctuation.
Habitat and distribution.
The species was collected from uncertain localities in the southern part of the
Western Cape Province
(
Fig. 2
), however, in general the southern part of the
Western Cape
as described by Olsen
et al.
(2001) is a moist coastal hilly area delimited by the lowland Fynbos biome and Renosterveld eco-region in the north and the coast of Renosterveld in the east.
Remarks.
According to
Frolov & Scholtz (2005)
, the
types
of
M. westwoodi
and
M. undulatus
are curated for in the same collection (J. Thompson’s collection) and they might even have been collected from the same uncertain locality. The observations of
Frolov & Scholtz (2005)
on these two species emphasise their similarity in many morphological aspects; they are similar in general body shape, the presence of a tubercle on the frontal suture, the same pronotal punctures and weakly distinct punctures on the metasternum, although they are different in elytral sculpture. As we have not seen the
types
of
M. westwoodi
and
M. undulatus
, we agree with
Frolov & Scholtz (2005)
in synonymising
M. westwoodi
with
M. undulatus
as their reasoning stated above, regarding the subject is sound.
The species has been listed as threatened in the IUCN red list under the B1ab criterion due to it is limited and vulnerable range (Davis 2013).