Dasyrhopala Jordan 1904

Dasyrhopala Jordan, 1904 Dasyrhopala Jordan, 1904: 272; Bovie, 1906: 232; Wolfrum, 1929: 19, 122; Blackwelder, 1947: 766; Alonso-Zarazaga & Lyal, 1999: 30; Rheinheimer, 2004: 21. [Gender feminine]. Type species: Dasyrhopala tarsalis Jordan, 1904 (by monotypy). Redescription. Rostrum (Figs 3–4) wider than long or longer than wide, robust, nearly flattened. Scrobe (Figs 3, 32, 41, 59, 70) broad, with diameter greater than half largest diameter of eye, carinate dorsally and posteriorly, separated from eye by distance less than its diameter, slightly exposed dorsally. Eye (Figs 2–4) lateral, sub-rounded, distinctly, broadly emarginate at anterior margin (less pronounced in D. tarsalis and D. thapsinogutta sp. nov.), ommatidia moderately fine. Mentum (Fig. 7) bilobed, wider than long, with sharp flattened lobes, microsculptured lobes on disc; anterior margin emarginate at middle, with deep, sub-rounded notch and sloping sides, sinus as wide as half of a lobe. Ligula (Fig. 7) digitiform with elongate setae. Antenna (Figs 3, 6, 41, 59) reaching anterior margin of elytra, slender, scape and pedicel thickened, smaller than antennomere III, which is longest; IV almost as long as III, longer than V, V–VI decreasing in length, VIII more thickened at apex; club robust, with moderately dense yellowish-brown setae; IX triangular, slightly longer than XI; X transverse; XI elliptical. Prothorax (Figs 1–2, 5) longer dorsally than laterally, projecting forward and upward, strongly uniformly convex. Antebasal carina of prothorax transverse at basal third, not straight, almost curving forward at sides; subbasal carina secondary, vestigial at sides. Prosternum (Fig. 20) transverse, with short sharp intercoxal process reaching middle of procoxae. Procoxae subglobose, projecting. Protibia (Figs 2–3) compressed, broad, posterior femur almost reaching abdominal apex. Mesosternum subconvex; mesosternal process broad, at least half diameter of mesocoxae, which are subtriangular and centrally punctate. Scutellum subrounded, covered with yellowish scales. Elytra (Figs 1–2, 19) uniformly convex, subparallel at sides, weakly convergent at apical third, subrounded at apex. Metaventrite narrow, slightly shorter than mesocoxa. Abdominal ventrites (Figs 13, 24) short and subplane, II–IV subequal in length, slightly longer than I along metacoxa; ventrite V twice as long as IV. Pygidium (Fig. 21) twice as long as proximal width, uniformly rounded at apical margin. Male terminalia (Figs 14–18) with tergite VIII longer than wide; tegmen with subparallel lateral margins of paramere, notched internally with no setae at apex, and length of apodeme slightly shorter than ring; tectum sharp with three sclerotized projections proximally. Female terminalia (Figs 25–27) with median rods of ovipositor thickened proximally. Remarks. Dasyrhopala is distinguished from other genera of Discotenini mainly by the conspicuous protibia (Figs 2–3) distinctly compressed and broad, but also by the prothorax (Figs 1–2, 5) distinctly convex, much longer dorsally than laterally, projecting forward and upward. The antebasal carina of the prothorax is transverse at the basal third, not straight and almost curving forward at the sides; the subbasal carina is secondary and vestigial at the sides. We add here some features of scrobe (see description above) that could include similarities with Discotenes (Figs 3, 32, 41, 59, 70); however Discotenes is easily distinguished from Dasyrhopala by the strongly dorsally excavated scrobe and the cylindrical unexpanded anterior tibiae. Jordan (1904: 272) considered the genus to be most closely related to Discotenes, the type genus of the tribe, but also to Lagopezus and Piesocorynus of the tribe Piesocorynini Valentine, 1960 without mentioning any characteristics. He also stated that the antennal club of Dasyrhopala had four segments, a diagnostic characteristic of the tribe Discotenini (Lacordaire 1865); however, based on the examination of the four species, we consider that the VIII segment is elongate and strongly thickened at the apex, distinguishable from the club, which has thus only three antennomeres.