Physiomorphus Pic, 1917
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publication ID |
https://doi.org/10.1080/002229300750037875 |
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DOI |
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15831221 |
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persistent identifier |
https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03AE8791-5201-4268-FE44-FB2CFB923A53 |
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treatment provided by |
Carolina |
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scientific name |
Physiomorphus Pic |
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Genus Physiomorphus Pic
Physiomorphus Pic, 1917a: 16 .
Type species Physiomorphus atricolor Pic , by monotypy. See below for discussion on spelling of generic name.
Batobiomorphus Pic, 1920: 16 . Type species Batobiomorphus laticollis Pic, by monotypy. New synonymy.
Laccoderus Champion, 1916a: 106 . Type species Laccoderus chilensis Champion [= Batobius humilis Fairmaire and Germain ], by original designation. New synonymy, in part.
Taxonomic notes
Champion himself (1916b) synonymized his genus Laccoderus , thinking that it was congeneric with Batobius Fairmaire and Germain. This conclusion was prompted by comparison of B. humilis Fairmaire and Germain , and Laccoderus chilensis Champion. However , the other two species originally included by Champion (1916a) in Laccoderus are not referable to Batobius . One, L. melanurus Champion , is a Physiomorphus , as detailed below. A new genus will be described (Pollock, in prep.) for placement of Laccoderus scaber Champion , as the name Laccoderus is unavailable for the other two species described by Champion in that genus.
There is some question as to the correct spelling of Physiomorphus . The original orthography is Physiomorphus , although Pic (1917a) compares it to Physcius Champion. Presumably , the generic name Physiomorphus was meant to draw attention to this fact. Therefore, it is unknown why Pic spelled it Physiomorphus and not Physciomorphus . A label written by Pic on the holotype of P. atricolor has` Physiomorphus ng’, indicating that the original spelling was not a lapsus. However, Pic (1917b) spells it Physciomorphus and then Physiomorphus ( Pic, 1921) . There have been several other subsequent misspellings of this name (see Spilman, 1954: 90). The original spelling is not emended in the present work.
Biological data
See Appendix 1 for details on rearing and life cycle and Appendix 2 for description of the habitats in which the immature stages of Physiomorphus were collected.
Observations on rearing, biology and life cycle. The data on biology and life cycle were based on observations on material collected alive in the fi eld and kept in the laboratory. All examined Physiomorphus larvae were collected from under loosely attached bark of dead trees.
In the laboratory it was observed that many larvae built a chamber before moulting to the prepupa. These chambers were oval in shape and were of two kinds: (i) composed of small fragments of wood agglutinated forming a cocoon-like structure; or (ii) a cavity made by larva between the layers of the bark of the wood.
The larval gut contents could be observed through the transparent cuticle, and were composed of very tiny pieces of wood that had the same dark, reddish brown colour as the bark under which the larvae were found.
Cannibalism was observed in larvae of P. melanurus and P. subcostulatus . In some containers, two or more larvae were accidentally placed together; the body of one or more larva was found mutilated in one or two regions and just one larva was alive.
Parasitism. Parasitism by a species of the family Encyrtidae ( Hymenoptera, Apocrita, Chalcidoidea ) is recorded here for the fi rst time in the Mycteridae . Noyes (1980) and Noyes and Hayat (1984) listed the host insects and arachnids parasitized by Encyrtidae for the Neotropical and Indo -Paci fi c Regions. Few families of Coleoptera , all of them belonging to the suborder Polyphaga , are recorded as hosts of encyrtids: Buprestidae (Buprestoidea) ; Anobiidae (Bostrichoidea) ; Nitidulidae , Silvanidae , Erotylidae , Coccinellidae , Lathridiidae (Cucujoidea) ; Tenebrionidae (Tenebrionoidea) ; Cerambycidae , Chrysomelidae (Chrysomeloidea) ; and Curculionidae - Scolytinae (Curculionoidea) .
Three mature larvae of P. subcostulatus were parasitized by an unidenti fi ed species of Encyrtidae . One larva was found on 28.vii and two others on 29.vii.1993, each of which was inside a chamber. The translucent integument made possible the observation of the pupae with parasitoids inside the larval body (seven to eleven per larva). Also, granular remnants (meconium) were observed at the lateral side, or more commonly, at the posterior end of the parasitoids.
Parasitoid pupae were separated inside the larval host skin by a kind of sheath. This method of pupation occurs in some polyembryonic Encyrtidae and the sheath could be formed by the cast of larval cuticle, or could be a product of the host, formed mainly from phagocytic blood cells surrounding the parasitoid ( Finlayson, 1987; Marchal, 1904; Thorpe, 1936).
The larva found parasitized on 28.vii was kept until the emergence of parasitoids, which occurred on 16.viii. Two male and five female wasps emerged. The emergence of adult parasitoids was not seen, but the Physiomorphus larval skin was found with irregular openings made by the adult encyrtids, probably with the mandibles.
Prepupa. Costa and Vanin (1985) recognized three different types of prepupa in the Holometabola, one of them being found in Mycteridae . In this family the prepupa was described for Eurypus muelleri Seidlitz by Costa and Vanin (1977) and Stilpnonotus postsignatus (Fairmaire) by Costa and Vanin (1984). It was characterized as an intermediate and morphologically distinct phase between the last larval instar and the pupa, always involving an extra process of moulting and an extra period of nonfeeding quiescence ( Costa and Vanin, 1985: 344; Costa et al., 1988: 274, de fi ned).
The prepupa of Physiomorphus (figures 21-23) constitutes the third contribution to the knowledge of this phase of Mycteridae and, as pointed out by Costa and Vanin (1985), it is very probably an autapomorphic character of the family, which seems to be related to its diversi fi ed habitats.
Diagnosis, adult
Adults of Physiomorphus may be separate d from other Neotropical Lacconotinae , by the following combination of characters: eyes large, relatively widely separated, with small ommatidia; antennae short, antennomeres submoniliform to slightly serrated (elongate, fl abellate in P. mimeticus , new species); pronotal disc without lateral carina, with paired medial depressions; elytra with distinct vestiture, not marmorate.
Description, adult
Body (figures 27-28) elongate, slightly ovate, subcylindrical to slightly depressed; body TL 3.9-9.4 mm; GEW 1.1-2.7 mm; body with sparse to dense, adpressed to semi-erect vestiture.
Head (figures 29 -36). Relatively short, only slightly narrowed behind eyes; frontoclypeal suture indicated by variously impressed arcuate depression; frons slightly depressed between antennal insertions, with two parallel grooves laterally; clypeus with short strip of unsclerotized cuticle; labrum transverse, outer surface truncated to slightly emarginate; antennal insertions slightly concealed by short lateral extension of frons. Antennae ( figures 37, 40, 42, 44, 47, 50, 52 View FIGS ) relatively short, antennomeres variously shaped from moniliform to fl abellate; scape globose to slightly elongate; in most species, antennomeres 2-10 moniliform, distinctly wider than long [slightly serrated in P. atricolor ( figure 40 View FIGS ), antennomeres almost as long as wide in P. antennatus ( figure 47 View FIGS ), and fl abellate from antennomere 3 in P. mimeticus ( figure 37 View FIGS )]. Eyes large, subhemispherical; facets very fi ne, with very short, scattered, intrafacetal setae; inner edge slightly emarginate near antennal insertion; eyes moderately separated, inner margins slightly to distinctly ( P. mimeticus ) divergent posteriorly. Mandibles relatively slender, symmetrical; apices sharp, bidentate; terebral teeth present, especially distinct on right mandible; mola relatively large, subquadrate, similar on both mandibles, surface appearing smooth; ventral groove and microtrichia absent; prostheca long, digitiform, extended along inner margin of mandible from mola to near apex, fringed with fi ne microtrichia along occlusal margin. Maxilla with elongate palpi, apical palpomere slightly expanded to distinctly securiform; lacinia and galea both rounded, blunt distally, densely setose apically; mentum very slightly transverse; ligula transverse, expanded laterally and signi fi cantly anterad of base of labial palpi; labial palpi short, distal palpomere generally similar in shape to distal maxillary palpomere, slightly less expanded; gula moderate in length, sutures convergent anteriorly, surface slightly convex.
Thorax. Prothorax ( figures 53-60 View FIGS ) subquadrate, wider than long (GPW/PL 1.2-1.6); lateral margins of pronotal disc variously arcuate, somewhat angulate in some species, without lateral carina; disc with paired dorsal depressions, separated or joined; posterior pits present, joined by narrow, transverse groove; punctation uniform, simple or umbilicate; prosternal process narrow, knife-like to triangular, extended between but not posterior of coxae; internal portion indistinct; coxal cavities open externally; protrochantin concealed; prosternum distinct anterior of coxae, convex except for near coxal process, sunken slightly; mesosternum triangular, lateral margins straight; mesepisterna narrowly separated, or touching, anteriorly, with elliptical setose excavations anterolaterally; mesocoxal cavities closed partly by mesepimera; trochantins concealed; mesosternal process elongate, slender, in contact with short metasternal process; metasternum distinctly convex, with discrimen in posterior half; elytra elongate (EL/GEW 1.9 -2.6), slightly fl attened to moderately convex; epipleura distinct, narrow, attaining apex of elytra or to V3-V5 only; disc with fi ne to coarse, relatively uniform, dense punctation, with vestiture of mostly adpressed setae with few scattered, erect setae; area along suture with lighter coloured setae in some species; apical binding patch present, relatively short, visible or invisible dorsally; legs relatively slender, of equal size and similar shape on each thoracic segment; femora only slightly enlarged medially; tibiae slender, straight; tibial spurs short, inconspicuous, of equal size on each leg; tarsi 5-5- 4 in both sexes, penultimate tarsomere expanded ventrally, forming fl eshy lobe; tarsal claw with large basal tooth; metendosternite with relatively wide stalk; laminae large, somewhat lobate laterally; insertion points of anterior tendons between lateral arms, relatively close to midline; wings (figure 67) of normal size in all specimens examined, relatively darkly pigmented; membrane relatively short distal of closed radial cell; four veins reaching wing margin in medial region.
Abdomen. With five ventrites, V1-V3 connate and distinctly longer than V4-V5; males with elevated, setose sex patch medially on V2; aedeagus (figures 61-62) with tegmen consisting of two distinct parts, subequal in length; apical piece cleft deeply, distinctly emarginate along inner margin; median lobe simple, very wide basally and tapered apically, without discernible endophallic armature; tegmen oriented ventrad of median lobe; ovipositor (figures 64-65) fl exible, elongate; coxites three-segmented, sparsely setose, proximal segment longest; distal segment more darkly pigmented than other two; two pairs of elongate baculi present; styli relatively short, spindleshaped (figure 68); bursa copulatrix relatively small, with accessory chamber; small, possibly glandular structure attached distally to accessory chamber.
Key to species of Physiomorphus Pic (adults)
1 Antennae fl abellate from antennomere 3 ( figure 37 View FIGS ); dorsal vestiture dense, obscuring punctation; dorsal body surface (figure 28) orange, except for frons, central stripe on pronotum, and inner basal and apical elytral patches, black.... P. mimeticus
- Antennae submoniliform to subserrated, not fl abellate; dorsal vestiture much sparser, not obscuring punctation; dorsal body surface without contrasting areas of orange and black..................... 2
2 Lateral margins of pronotal disc subparallel-sided ( figure 58 View FIGS ), only slightly arcuate and convergent anteriorly; paired pronotal depressions joined, forming shallow`V’ shape; apical maxillary palpomere ( figure 45 View FIGS ) truncated, not securiform... P. angustus
- Lateral margins of pronotal disc arcuate, often with angulate region near midlength; paired pronotal depressions distinct and separated; apical maxillary palpomere expanded distally, securiform to slightly cultriform.......... 3
3 Antennae ( figure 47 View FIGS ) relatively elongate, reaching posterior margin of pronotum; antennomeres 5-10 slightly longer than wide, or subequal in length and width........................ P. antennatus
- Antennae shorter, not reaching posterior margin of pronotum; antennomeres 5-10 distinctly wider than long................. 4
4 Head relatively long (GHW/HL <1.00); antennomeres 4-10 short, serrated ( figure 40 View FIGS ); punctation on pronotal disc shallow, distinctly umbilicate; body colour uniformly brown without contrasting colour pattern......... P. atricolor
- Head shorter (GHW/PL> 1.00); antennomeres 4-10 relatively longer, not distinctly serrated; punctation on pronotal disc deeper, not distinctly umbilicate; body often with contrasting colour pattern............... 5
5 Frons with short, deep furrows along inner margins of eyes; dorsal body surface with contrasting colour pattern: testaceous and black, or rufous and piceous; body size larger (TL 6.5-7.4 mm)................. 6
- Frons without deep furrows along inner margins of eyes, or with very slight impressions; dorsal body surface unicolourous, piceous; body size smaller (TL 4.6-4.9 mm).. 7
6 Elytra piceous, with narrow rufous stripe along sutural margin; pronotum in most specimens rufous with medial infuscated area....... P. rufolineatus
- Elytra testaceous with dark apex, without contrasting sutural stripe; pronotum unicolourous, rufotestaceous............... P. melanurus
7 Pronotum ( figure 55 View FIGS ) narrow (GPW/PL 1.30); lateral margins of pronotal disc somewhat sinuate in anterior half; depressions relatively deep and circular; elytra without suggestions of raised costae............. P. suturalis
- Pronotum ( figure 60 View FIGS ) wider (GPW/PL 1.42-1.43); lateral margins of pronotal disc not sinuate in anterior half; pronotal depressions shallower, more ovate; elytra with indistinctly raised costae (best viewed at oblique angle)...... P. subcostulatus
No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.
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Physiomorphus Pic
| Pollock, D. A., Ide, S. & Costa, C. 2000 |
Laccoderus
| CHAMPION, G. C. 1916: 106 |
Physiomorphus Pic, 1917a: 16