The scarab beetle tribe Pentodontini (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Dynastinae) of Colombia: taxonomy, natural history, and distribution

Abstract

Pentodontini is the most diverse tribe of Dynastinae (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), and most of the genera are restricted to a single biogeographic region. In this work, the taxonomic composition of the Pentodontini in Colombia was determined, and genera and species were diagnosed based on external morphology and male genitalia. Records of 1,580 specimens from 31 departments and 398 localities in Colombia were obtained from 24 species in the genera Bothynus Hope, Denhezia Dechambre, Euetheola Bates, Hylobothynus Ohaus, Oxyligyrus Arrow, Parapucaya Prell, Pucaya Ohaus, and Tomarus Erichson. Oxyligyrus cayennensis Endrödi, Tomarus cicatricosus (Prell), and T. pullus (Prell) are reported for the first time from Colombia. Pucaya punctata Endrödi is reduced to synonymy with Pucaya pulchra Arrow. Possible changes in the classification of Denhezia Dechambre are discussed. Dichotomous keys are provided for Colombian genera and species. Taxonomic descriptions and distribution maps are included for all species.

Checklist of the superfamily Scarabaeoidea (Insecta, Coleoptera) in an urban area of the Caribbean Colombia

“…Southern USA to Argentina (Endrödi 1969, Ratcliffe and Cave 2006, Ratcliffe et al 2013. In Colombia: Antioquia, Arauca, Atlántico, Bolívar, Casanare, Córdoba, Cundinamarca, Magdalena, Meta, Sucre, Tolima, and Valle del Cauca (Restrepo-Giraldo et al 2003, Lopez-Garcia et al 2015.…”

“…Antigua, Bahamas, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Curaçao, Ecuador, El Salvador, Jamaica, Panama, Puerto Rico, and Venezuela (Endrödi 1969, Ratcliffe 2003, Ratcliffe and Cave 2006, Carvajal et al 2011. In Colombia: Antioquia, Atlántico, Bolívar, Caldas, Cauca, Cesar, Córdoba, Guajira, Magdalena, and Sucre (Endrödi 1969, Restrepo-Giraldo et al 2003, Lopez-Garcia et al 2015.…”

New tribal placement and review of Parapucaya Prell and Pucaya Ohaus (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae, Dynastinae)

“…In the Neotropics, six of the eight recognized dynastine tribes are represented: Cyclocephalini, Pentodontini, Oryctini, Phileurini, Agaocephalini, and Dynastini. The Neotropical genera Parapucaya and Pucaya have long been classified in the tribe Pentodontini based on morphological characters, but some recent authors have questioned their tribal placement (Clark 2011, López-García et al 2015). In this study, we address the classification of Parapucaya and Pucaya within Pentodontini and redefine the tribe Cyclocephalini.…”

“…However, most cyclocephaline species display sexual dimorphism of the protarsus (enlarged in males; simple in females) and elytral epipleural margin (simple in males; expanded and modified in females of some species). Moore (2012) hypothesized that during mating, there was an interaction between the enlarged male protarsal claw and the female epipleural expansion, making it easier for the male to clasp the female during copulation and for mate guarding. Moreover, as in all dynastines, the apex of the last abdominal sternite is emarginate in males and entire or rounded in females (Figs 1, 2).…”

“…Dimorphism between males and females is slight in most species (Ratcliffe and Morón 1997), although males sometimes have larger protarsi and tubercles on the head and pronotum (López-García et al 2015), and the pronotal fovea is more pronounced. Pentodontines, along with all dynastines, display sexual dimorphism of the last abdominal sternite, which is emarginate in males and entire or rounded in females (Figs 1, 2).…”