Elampus gayi Spinola 1851

Elampus gayi Spinola, 1851

(Figs 1–11)

Elampus gayi Spinola 1851:413, ♀, lectotype (designated by Rosa & Xu 2015), ♀, " Chili, D. Gay" [De Santa Rosa y de la Ligua], examined by photos [MRSN].

Ellampus (!) (Notozus) gayi: Mocsáry 1889; Ducke 1913: 13.

Ellampus (!) (Notozus) aequinoctialis Ducke 1901: 359, ♀, lectotype (designated here), ♀, " Brazil: Pará 25 Juli 1901 / A Ducke / Lectotype Ellampus (Notozus) aequinoctialis ♀ Ducke 1901 ", examined [MPEG]. Junior subjective synonym of Elampus gayi Spinola, 1851 according to Ducke 1911: 97.

Elampus gayi Spinola; Huber & Pengelly 1978: 93; 1980: 49; Bohart & Kimsey 1991: 168; Rosa & Xu 2015: 1, 50, 51.

Diagnosis. Female. Marginal area of terga with narrow translucent border along lateral margins. Scapal basin smooth. Dorsal surfaces of head, mesosoma and metasoma with definite punctuation. Dorsal surfaces of mesosoma and apical teeth of mandibles without reddish highlights. Metanotum truncated posteriorly, broader than long. Tarsal claws with two subsidiary teeth. Male. Unknown.

Redescription. Female. Body size: 4.6 mm (Fig. 6). Coloration: integument primarily metallic green with bluish highlights; mesosoma metallic green with bluish highlights dorsally; metasoma metallic green with narrow translucent border along basolateral margins of visible terga; sterna green with brownish lateral margins; wing membrane light with brown veins; femora and tibiae greenish; tarsi light brown. Head: scapal basin smooth, without silvery pubescence nor any marked cross-ridge zones (Fig. 11); scape and pedicel greenish; flagellomeres dark brown; malar space very short (0.2 × MOD); subantennal space narrow, less than 0.5 × MOD; upper genal space broad (longer than 2.5 × MOD); posterior genal margin delimited by distinct carina; female with short genal fringe; upper frons with definite punctures; vertex with shallow and separated punctures; genal space, medium to upper portions, with discrete scratch marks; genal space with scarce and well separated punctures. Legs: fore femur strongly elbowed, forming strong ventral keel-like projection; tarsal claws with two subsidiary teeth; legs without definite punctures, noticed just by tiny ones externally. Wings: R1 absent; M strongly arched, arising slightly before at cu–a; Rs short and curving far away from distal margin of wing. Pronotum: lower lateral pronotal surface with large and deep fovea; dorsal surface punctuated but well separated punctures from one another (Fig. 7). Mesopleuron: omaulus and scrobal carina very sharp; mesopleural surface coarsely punctuated. Scutum: notauli marked by thin lines; irregular and shallow punctuation surround the notauli, tiny punctures among largest and deepest ones. Metanotum: broader than long (Fig. 11), truncate posteriorly; coarsely punctuated. Propodeum: with sharp teeth basolaterally. Metasoma: basolateral tergal margins with narrow translucent border (Fig. 9); T3 distal margin snout-like with noticeable medial emargination, integument with stretch marks (Fig. 8); metasomal punctuation shallower than the rest of body, with tiny punctures and very shiny interspaces; T3 with coarsest punctures distally. Measurements (in mm): fore wing = 2.8; length and width of head = 1.09 and 1.4; LID = 0.82; ocular length = 0.74; MOD = 0.12; length of scape = 0.39; F1 and F2 = 0.14 and 0.1; width of pronotum = 1.44; length and width of metanotum = 0.43 and 0.50; length of scutum = 0.78; distance between the tegulae = 1.12.

Male. Unknown. Some specimens identified by A. Ducke as males of E. gayi, actually are females (distinguishable by the genal fringe and elbowed fore femur).

Variation. The specimens collected by malaise trap (Brazil: São Paulo and Bahia—RPSP) shown variation in the color pattern with predominantly bluish coloration and some green maculation on dorsal surfaces of head and mesosoma. Additionally, the genal fringe in some female specimens appears to be much reduced or absent, and some analyzed specimens have irregular punctuation, variable in size and depth, mainly between ocelli and anteriorly on pronotum. General body size = 4.4–4.9 mm.

Material examined. Paralectotype of Elampus gayi Spinola 1851, ♀ [photos]: "MUSEUM PARIS, Chili Gay 15–43 / TYPE / Elampus gayi Spinol. type " (handwritten) [MNHN] (Fig. 5). ARGENTINA: Mendoza: Santa Rosa 1908, 1♀, coll. A.C. Jensen [MNHN]; San Juan: Zonda 28.xi.1993, 1♀, coll. Michelette, E.R.F. [RPSP]; Zonda 17.xi.1993, 2♀, coll. Michelette, E.R.F. [RPSP]. Zonda 20.i.1994, 1♀, coll. Michelette, E.R.F. [RPSP]. Zonda 06.ii.1994, 23♀, coll. Michelette, E.R.F. [RPSP]. BRAZIL: Bahia: Jequié campus UESB II 20.xi.2006, 1♀, coll. Silva-JR, J.C. & cols. [RPSP]. Minas Gerais: Passa Quatro 1904, 1♀, coll. Wagner, S. / Coleção Ducke / Notozus gayi Ƌ Spin. Ducke A det. / Elampus gayi Ƌ Spinola, Kimsey LS det [MPEG]. Rio das Pedras 1903, 1♀, Wagner, S.R. / Notozus gayi Ƌ Spin. / [MPEG]. São Paulo: Luis Antônio, Estação Ecológica de Jataí 19.xii.2007, 1♀, coll. Perioto, N.W. [RPSP]. Luis Antônio, Estação Ecológica de Jataí 16.i.2008, 2♀, coll. Perioto, N.W. [RPSP]. Teodoro Sampaio 16–14.ix –iv. 2011–2012, 16♀, coll. Lopes, P.R. [RPSP].

Comments. The redescription above is based on a female from Argentina: San Juan, Zonda, 06.ii.1994.

Distribution. Argentina (Mendoza, San Juan); Chile (Petorca, Santiago); Brazil (Ceará, Bahia, Minas Gerais, Pará, São Paulo) (Fig. 12).

Floral records. Croton chamaedrifolius Lam. (Euphorbiaceae) (Ducke 1901).

Historical remarks. The species was originally described by Spinola, 1851 based on two syntype females collected in Chile. One specimen from the type series was housed in the MNHN and other syntype in Museo Regionale di Scienze Naturali (MRSN). Considering the conservation conditions of the two syntypes, Rosa & Xu (2015: 50) justified their decision to choose the MRSN specimen to be the lectotype of E. gayi, because the MNHN specimen is poor condition (Figs 1–5). Rosa & Xu (2015) also provided pictures of different views of the specimen, which contributed to safely interpret the external morphology of this species. Previously that, Ducke (1911: 97) had synonymized E. (Notozus) aequinoctialis Ducke, 1901 described from north Brazil under E. gayi Spinola, 1851 based on examination of the syntype hosted at MNHN collection. Ducke’s type specimens are two females, one of them was found housed in MPEG collection, but it lacks the head and anterior fore leg. The other syntype is lost. At this moment there are no perceptible morphological differences that could be reported between specimens collected in eastern Brazil and from Chile. More specimens, particularly males, would allow to further investigation into this problem. In this paper, we are do not propose taxonomic changes to the status of E. gayi —we only follow previous interpretations by Ducke (1911) and Rosa & Xu (2015). To ensure stability of the taxonomic concepts involved in this complex case we are following the previous interpretation by Ducke (1911), until new evidences could shed light onto the limits of this species. Herein we designate the lectotype of E. aequinoctialis Ducke, 1901 according to the Articles 72–74 of the Code (ICZN, 1999).

Remarks on morphological variation and diagnostic characters. Morphologically all specimens analyzed are almost indistinguishable. The most diagnostic features are equally observed in specimens from Chile, Argentina and Brazil: shape and development of metanotum, smooth scapal basin, narrow translucent border on basolateral margins of terga, tarsal claws with two subsidiary teeth, shape of T3 apical margin and pattern of punctuation on body. All these features are identical in almost all available specimens. The noticeable variation is subtle and uninformative, mainly related to punctuation of dorsal surfaces of mesosoma and metasoma, and to the coloration of S3 (some specimens from Argentina, San Juan: Zonda–RPSP have lateral margins of S3 dark brown), but we had considered that these features do not form a pattern.