Mylabris (Mylabris) emiliae (Escherich, 1899)

Figs. 1 K, 14A–G

Zonabris steppensis, Escherich, 1897: 42 (nec Dokhtoruroff, 1889:137). Zonabris emiliae Escherich, 1899: 105.

Mylabris quadripunctata emiliae, Sumakov, 1915: 23; Mader, 1927: 858. Mylabris emiliae, Borchmann, 1917: 34; Mařan, 1944: 36. Mylabris quadripunctata m. emiliae, Sumakov, 1930: 37.

Mylabris (Mylabris) emiliae, Bologna, 2008: 397.

Type locality. “ Asia Minor, Caucasus … Angora [= Ankara] … Kaukasus [= Caucasus] ... Erivan [= Yerevan]” (Escherich, 1899). After the Lectotype designation, the restricted type locality is here defined as “ Angora ” (= Ankara), the capital of Turkey.

Type specimens. We examined ten syntypes in the Escherich’s collection (NHMTR), five among them from “ Angora ”. According to Escherich (1897, as “ Zonabris steppensis ”), another five syntypes from “ Angora ” were examined by Escherich (1899); they are probably preserved in other collections (such as NMPC) or missing.

We designed as Lectotype one male syntype (NHMTR), labelled: “ Angora Escherich 1895” (white, rectangular, small, printed), without identification label; we selected this specimen as lectotype because of its better conservation status. The Paralectotypes are: (a) two males and two females labelled “ Angora Escherich 1895” (white, rectangular, small, printed), without identification label, but one male with the label “ Zonabris steppensis Dokht. ” (white, rectangular, handrwritten), the erroneous name used by Escherich (1897) before the description of the new species (Escherich, 1899). (b) One male and one female (NHMTR) labelled “Eriwan 1888 Korb” (white, rectangular, small, printed); the male specimen is the first of the entire set and has an additional identification label “ Emiliae mihi” (white, rectangular, middle sized, handwritten). (c) Two females (NHMTR), labelled “Caucasus Staunding.” (white, rectangular, handwritten), but without identification label. (d) One male labelled “a.8.6” (white, rectangular, handwritten by pencil). The last paralectotypes lacks abdomen, other are more or les damaged and most lack one or both antennae.

We added the following labels to all types: “ Lectotypus (and Paralectotypus respetively) ♂ (or ♀), Zonabris emiliae Escherich Z. Pan & M. Bologna des. 2013” (red, rectangular, printed and handwritten); “ Mylabris (Mylabris) emiliae (Escherich), Z. Pan & M.Bologna det. 2013” (white, rectangular, printed and handwritten).

Description. Body length: 10–17.5 mm; setae only black, but mixed golden and black on legs; antennomeres usually dark reddish or black, III ca. 1.5 times as long as IV, XI ca. twice as long as wide (Fig. 14 A); pronotum without fore transverse depression; elytral black pattern (Fig. 14 B) including two spots, irregular in shape, on basal third, more or less fused, the inner one extended along the suture to the scutellum, one middle fascia widened in the middle and narrowed on both sides, a wide sub-oblique apical fascia; mesosternum as in Fig. 14 C; gonoforceps fairly wide in lateral view (Fig. 14 E), apical lobe short and relatively straight; gonoforceps fused ventrally in basal half (Fig. 14 D); aedeagus relatively stocky (Fig. 14 F), distal hook almost at apex and proximal hook very close to the distal one, and greatly longer.

Taxonomic remarks. This species is probably strictly related to M. pseudoemiliae, because of the aedeagus structure, and is also phentically similar because of the elytral pattern.

Distribution. Armenia, Syria, Turkey, and generically recorded from Caucasus.