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Scarabaeoidea of Southern South America Links
 

 
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Scarab Guide Links
(goes to the University of Nebraska web site)
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Classification
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Scarabaeoidea
Scarabaeidae
Rutelinae
Anoplognathini
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Aulacopalpus pilicollis
(Fairmaire, 1883)

Tribostethes pilicollis Fairmaire 1883:491.
 

Figure 15. Parameres in caudal view of
Aulacopalpus pilicollis.
 
Distribution of Aulacopalpus ciliatus, Aulacopalpus clypealis, Aulacopalpus
pilicollis,
and Aulacopalpus punctatus.
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Description. Male (n=189): Length 12.9-18.6 mm. Width 7.5-9.8 mm. Color: dorsally yellowish-brown to brown. Head: Dorsal surface densely punctate, moderately
setose; punctures moderately large; setae long, slender, tawny to yellowish-brown. Frontoclypeal suture weakly bisinuate. Labrum with apex vertically produced with respect to clypeus, moderately produced at middle with triangular tooth. Maxillary palpus with terminal segment enlarged, elongate, with deep sulcus. Mentum with surface moderately setose, apex bidentate. Antenna 10-segmented, club slightly shorter that combined basal segments. Pronotum: Midline absent. Surface densely punctate, moderately setose; punctures moderately large; setae long, slender, tawny to yellowish-brown. Scutellum: Surface moderately punctate and moderately setose; punctures moderately-sized; setae long, slender,
tawny to yellowish-brown. Shape parabolic: 1.3 times wider than long medially. Elytron: Surface moderately to sparsely setose at base, sparsely setose to glabrous toward lateral
edges; setae long to short, slender, tawny (setae sometimes worn off). Longitudinal striae punctate, weakly impressed to not impressed; punctures moderately-sized, separated by 2-
6 puncture widths. Intervals sparsely punctate with moderately-sized punctures. Epipleuron with row of thick setae just ventral to bead. Pygidium: Width 1.8 times length medially. Surface weakly rugose, moderately setose; setae tawny to yellowish-brown. Venter: Thorax densely setose; setae long, tawny to yellowish-brown. Legs: Protibia with 3 subequally large teeth in apical half. Tarsal claws with modified claw slightly thickened when compared with other claw, apex bifurcate. Tarsomere 5 without ventromedial tooth. Meso- and metatibia with apical spurs slender, acute. Mesotibial apex with 14-16 spinules. Metatibial apex with 22-26 spinules. Parameres: Figure 15. Basally with broad, medial furrow.

Female (n=17): Length 12.9-17.9 mm. Width 7.5-10.8 mm. As male except in the following respects. Legs: Tarsal claws with modified claw with ventral tooth, not thickened when compared with other claw; apex not bifurcate. Metatibia with apical spurs slightly broader, blunter.
   

 

Diagnosis. This species is distinguished from all other species in the genus Aulacopalpus by the following combination of characters: antennal club not elongated (length much shorter than head); head, pronotum, and elytron yellowish- brown to brown; all male tarsal claws with modified claw slightly thickened when compared with other claw and with apex bifurcate, all female tarsal claws with modified claw with a ventral tooth, not thickened when compared with other claw; and tarsomere 5 without ventromedial tooth; parameres basally with broad, medial furrow.
   

 

Distribution (see map). Argentina and Chile from Malleco and Neuquén to Tierra del Fuego. Three specimens were also examined from La Rioja, Argentina.
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  CMNC, CNCI, FMNH, LACM, MABC, MCZC, MGFT, MLJC, MLPA,
MNHN, MNNC, NHMB, PVGH, SEMC, UNSM.

ARGENTINA (141). CHUBUT (20): Comodoro Rivadavia, Lago Fontana, Lepá, Trevelín, No Data. LA RIOJA (3): El Peñón, Portezuelo de Santa Rosa. NEUQUÉN (52): Collón-Curá, Confluencia, Copahue, Estancia Llamuco, Huncal, Isla Victoria, Lago Guillelmo, La Negra, La Pintada, Mallín Largo, Parque
Nacional Lanín, Pico del Águila, Río Caleufú, Piedra del Águila, San Martín de Los Andes, Zapala, No Data. RIO NEGRO (20): Cipolletti, El Bolsón, Lago Nahuel Huapí, Ñirihuau, Pilcaniyeu, San Carlos de Bariloche, San Ramón, Villa Regina. SANTA CRUZ (42): Güer Aike, Lago Posadas, Las Buitreras, Las Heras, Monte Aymond (20 km E), Piedra Buena, Río La Leona, Río Santa Cruz, No Data. TIERRA DEL FUEGO (4): Puerto Ban˜os, Punta de Arenas, Viamonte. CHILE (61). AISÉN (2): Coyhaique. MAGALLANES (27): Bahía San Gregorio, Caleta Hops., Cerro Castillo, Isla Magdalena, Lago Sarmiento, Laguna Amarga, Laguna Figueroa, Laguna Los Palos, La Penı´nsula, La Portada, Monte Aymond, Morro Chico, Pali Aike, Puerto Percy, Tierra del Fuego, No Data. MALLECO (27): Liucura, Lonquimay, Manzanar (9.2 km E), Marimenuco. NO DATA (5). NO DATA (4).
   
  Temporal Data. January (5), February (6), March (1), April (5), August (1), September (22), October (36) November (74), December (11).
   
  Remarks. Although the parameres are distinct in A. pilicollis there is interspecific variability in the form. This can lead to confusion between A. pilicollis and A. aconcaguensis, A. ciliatus, and A. clypealis when only the parameres are used for identification. Fairmaire (1883) described A. pilicollis
using specimens from "the coasts of Patagonia and the Magellan Strait" (likely from Punta Arenas, Chile). Kolbe (1907) later described the same species from the same locality naming it Aegolasia michaelseni, but he mistakenly placed
it in the subfamily Melolonthinae. It is clear from the original description and type locality that Aegolasia michaelseni is indeed Aulacopalpus pilicollis, and I synonymize the two names. Martínez (1975) was the first to recognize that
Aegolasia was not a Melolonthinae during the course of his research on the Neotropical Pachydemini (a tribe of Melolonthinae). Martínez correctly synonymized the generic name Aegolasia under Aulacopalpus but was probably
not familiar enough with the group to synonymize the species name. Aulacopalpus pilicollis is the most widespread and southernmost species of the genus. The three specimens from La Rioja, Argentina (collected by Antonio Martínez in January and February 1947, specimens in the CMNC) were a surprise because this is a disjunct locality at least 500 km north of the rest of the population (and the northern-most records of the entire subtribe Brachysternina). More collecting is necessary to determine if a) this is a relict population perhaps separated during post-Pleistocene warming, b) the populations are connected but little collecting has been done in west-central Argentina during the months of adult activity, or c) the three La Rioja specimens were somehow mislabeled and actually came from further south. Ohaus (1905) made the interesting
observation, "I have received this species (A. pilicollis) in large numbers with sheep wool from Punta Arenas, which is shipped to Hamburg. The beetles probably creep into the wool bundles to hide after their period of activity in the evening and entangle their legs in the fibers, from which they cannot easily escape."
   
 

Literature cited.
Fairmaire, L. 1883. Coléoptères de Magellan et de Santa-Cruz. Annales de la Société Entomologique de France (series 6) 3:483–506.

Kolbe, H. 1907. Coleopteren. Ergebnisse der Hamburger Magalhaensische Sammelreise 8:1–125.

Martínez, A. 1975. Contribución al conocimiento de los Pachydemini neotropicales (Col. Scarabaeidae, Melolonthinae). Entomologischen Arbeiten aus dem Museum G. Frey 26:227–251.

Ohaus, F. 1905. Revision der amerikanischen Anoplognathiden (Coleoptera lamellicornia). Stettiner Entomologische Zeitung 66:120–167.

   
  Excerpt from:
Smith, A. B. T. 2002. Revision of the South American Endemic genus Aulacopalpus Guérin-Ménville with phylogenetic and biogeographic analyses of the subtribe Brachyisternina (Coleoptera: Ruteliinae: Anoplognathini: Brachysternina). Coleopterists Bulletin 56: 379-437.
 

Author: Andrew Smith ( Canadian Museum of Nature)
This website is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No.0342189.
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