Berberomeloe comunero, 2020

BERBEROMELOE COMUNERO SÁNCHEZ-VIALAS ET AL. , SP. NOV.

LSID: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:CF638D73-6A93-4FAE-88D1-D548C0214D29

Holotype: Male: Spain, Madrid, Montejo de la Sierra , pastizal junto al pueblo, 24 April 1999, M. García-París leg. [printed white label]; MNCN _Ent 231431 [printed white label] ; Holotypus, Berberomeloe comunero Sánchez-Vialas, García-París, Ruiz & Recuero des. 2019 [printed white label]. Preserved in absolute ethanol, held at the Entomological Collection of the Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales , Madrid .

Paratypes: Spain, Madrid, Montejo de la Sierra, pastizal junto al pueblo, 24 April 1999, MAB166, M. García-París leg. [white label, printed]; MNCN _ Ent 231431 [white label, printed] (male, preserved in ethanol).― Spain, Madrid, Montejo de la Sierra, pastizal junto al pueblo, 24 April 1999, NTM 120, M. García-París leg. [white label, printed]; MNCN _Ent 231433 (female, extracted genitalia, preserved dry).― Spain, Madrid, Montejo de la Sierra, pastizal junto al pueblo, 24 April 1999, M. García-París leg. [white label, printed]; MNCN _Ent 231432 [white label, printed]; 118 [white label, handwritten] (female, extracted genitalia, three legs separated, preserved dry).― Madrid, Rivas de Jarama (Urbanizaciones), 5 June 2009, mel09044, M. Gª-París & G. Gª-Martín leg. [white label, printed]; MNCN _Ent 231434 [white label, printed] (female, preserved in ethanol).―Área de Montarco, Rivas- Vaciamadrid (Madrid), 13 April 2006, J. I. López-Colón leg. [white label, handwritten]; MNCN _Ent 231435 [white label, printed] (preserved in ethanol).― Madrid, Alcalá de Henares, 16 May 2001 [white label, printed]; MNCN _Ent 233312 (preserved dry).― Madrid, Alcalá de Henares, 16 May 2001 [white label, printed]; MNCN _Ent 233313 (preserved dry).― Madrid, Alcalá de Henares, 16 May 2001 [white label, printed]; MNCN _Ent 233314 (preserved dry).― Madrid, Leganés, 8 June 1990 [white label, handwritten]; Meloe majalis Linneo ; ex. Colección M. de los Mozos; MNCN _Ent 173819 [white label, printed] (preserved dry).― Madrid, Barrio del Pilar, 21 April 1980, M. de los Mozos leg., entre hierbas [white label, handwritten]; Meloe majalis Linneo [white label, handwritten]; ex. Colección M. de los Mozos; MNCN _Ent 173820 [white label, printed] (preserved dry).―5 exx. MNCN _Ent 232449 to MNCN _Ent 232453 [white label, printed]; Madrid, Braojos, 24 April 2012, F. A. Montes leg. [white label, printed] (preserved dry).― Madrid, San Fernando de Henares, 16 May 2011, J. I. López-Colón leg. [white label, printed]; MNCN _Ent 232454 [white label, printed] (preserved dry).― Madrid, Ciudad Universitaria, 14 April [white label, handwritten]; Berberomeloe majalis Linnaeus, 1758 [white label, printed]; MNCN _Ent 233310 [white label, printed] (preserved dry).― Spain, Madrid, Rivas del Jarama, 13 March 1988, F. A. Montes leg. [white label, printed]; Berberomeloe majalis Linnaeus, 1758 , M. Gª-París det. 98 [white label, printed]; 342 [white label, handwritten]; MNCN _Ent 233311 [white label, printed] (preserved dry).― Madrid, El Molar [white label, handwritten]; Berberomeloe majalis Linnaeus, 1758 , M. Gª-París det. 98; 571 [white label, handwritten]; MNCN _Ent 233309 [white label, printed] (preserved dry).―2 exx. labelled: Madrid, Lozoyuela, 20 June 2002, I. Martínez-Solano & I. Sánchez [white label, handwritten]; MNCN _Ent 250993 and MNCN _Ent 250994, respectively [white labels, printed] (preserved in ethanol).― Madrid, Montejo de la Sierra, 24 April 1999, NTM 121 [white label, handwritten]; MNCN _Ent 250995 [white label, printed] (preserved in ethanol).― Spain, Madrid, 4.5 Km E/SE de Rivas Vaciamadrid, 576 m, 40°18’54.46’’N, 3°34’22.57’’W, 11/ V /2009, I. Martínez-Solano, C. Settani, E. Recuero leg. [white label, handwritten]; MNCN _Ent 250996 [white label, printed] (female, preserved in ethanol).― Spain, Madrid, Colmenar de Oreja, La Aldehuela, 726 m, 40°04’43.74’’N, 3°23’57.14’’O, 15 May 2012, mel12012, M. Gª-París leg. [white label, printed]; MNCN _Ent 250997 [white label, printed] (preserved in ethanol).― Madrid, Rivas de Jarama (Urbanizaciones), 5 June 2009, mel09041, M. Gª-París & G. Gª-Martín leg. [white label, printed]; MNCN _Ent 250998 [white label, printed] (preserved in ethanol).― Madrid, Rivas de Jarama (Urbanizaciones), 5 June 2009, mel09042, M. Gª-París & G. Gª-Martín leg. [white label, printed]; MNCN _Ent 250999 [white label, printed] (preserved in ethanol).― Madrid, Rivas de Jarama (Urbanizaciones), 5 June 2009, mel09043, M. Gª-París & G. Gª-Martín leg. [white label, printed]; MNCN _Ent 251000 [white label, printed] (preserved in ethanol).―3 exx. labelled: Segovia,Prádena, 7May2015,M.García-Parísleg.[white label, handwritten]; MNCN _Ent 251001, MNCN _Ent 251002 and MNCN _Ent 251003 respectively [white labels, printed] (preserved in ethanol). All paratypes labelled: ‘ Paratypus, Berberomeloe comunero Sánchez-Vialas, García-París, Ruiz & Recuero , des. 2019 [red labels for dry-preserved specimens, and white labels for ethanol-preserved specimens, all printed]’. All specimens are held at the Entomological Collection of the Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, Madrid.

Etymology: This species is named in remembrance of the ballad ‘Los Comuneros’ writen by Luis López Álvarez, published in 1972, and set to music by the folk music group ‘Nuevo Mester de Juglaría’ in 1976. This ballad narrates the tragic historical events that took place between 1520 and 1522 in Castille, in the area where the new species occur.

Description of the holotype: Length (frons to posterior margin of elytra), 7.3 mm. Total length (including abdomen) of preserved holotype, 31 mm. Maximum width, 5 mm. Moderately wide orange transverse bar in the posterior edge of each tergum except VII and VIII, which are entirely black. Tegument finely microreticulated, semi-glossy. Head maximum width, 2.4 mm. Surface covered by numerous, uniformly distributed punctures. Head punctures from medium-sized to large, rounded, deep marked, close to each other, confluent in temples. A longitudinal midline is impressed on the upper half of the frons, but faded at the vertex. Minimum interorbital distance, 1.5 mm. Clypeus 1.1 mm wide by 0.4 mm long. Labrum 1.1 wide by 0.4 mm long. Antennae with antennomeres widened apically but not strongly serrated, with short black vestiture, mostly decumbent and with a few sparse erect setae, longer and semi-erect on antennomeres I–II; antennomere I slightly widened apically, subcylindrical (length: 0.5 mm); II short, cylindrical (length: 0.2 mm); III (length: 0.4 mm) subcylindrical, slightly widened apically, rectangular; IV (length: 0.3 mm) shorter than III but equally wide, subrectangular; V (length: 0.3 mm) trapezoidal, wider than VI, with a wide and rounded apical tooth on the inner edge; VI (length: 0.3 mm) trapezoidal, with a rounded apical tooth on the inner edge; VII (length: 0.3 mm) trapezoidal, with an apical tooth on the inner edge; VIII (length: 0.3 mm) trapezoidal, narrow than VII, weakly dentate on the apex of the inner edge; IX (length: 0.3 mm) trapezoidal, similar to VIII, dentate on inner edge; X (length: 0.3 mm) trapezoidal, apical tooth slightly acute; XI (length: 0.4 mm) subconical, moderately wide, notched on apex. Pronotum subquadrate with subparallel sides, slightly narrower towards the base (anterior side of pronotum: 2.1 mm; posterior edge of pronotum: 2 mm; pronotum length on sagittal plane: 1.7 mm); fore angles rounded; anterior margin curved, posterior margin slightly arcuate; with an impressed longitudinal midline through the pronotum length and diffuse lateral depressions. Pronotum surface densely and homogenously punctate; punctures of various sizes, mostly large, rounded, and deep, close to each other, confluent and forming a corrugated or reticulated pattern. Dorsal surface of pronotum almost glabrous, with a short isolated seta in each puncture; anterior margin, adjacent to the neck, with numerous, moderately long setae. Elytra imbricated basally (the right over the left), length: 4.1 mm; tegument glabrous, slightly corrugated longitudinally with impressed irregular vermicular lines, with scarce, weakly marked, dispersed punctures. Distal margin of tergites I– VI with an orange transverse bar, moderately narrow in comparison with the total width of the terga (width of the second tergum: 4.8 mm; width transverse bar of the second tergum: 2.7 mm). Last ventrite notched. Metafemur longer than metatibia (metafemur length: 2.5 mm; metatibia length: 2 mm). Metatarsal tarsomeres length, from inner to apical: 2.2, 0.4, 0.4, 0.7 mm. Genitalia with tegmen brownish; moderately elongated, slender both on dorsal and lateral views. Phallobase longer than wide, length similar to the parameres; maximum width at the middle. Parameres longer than wide, basally cylindrical; distal third formed by parameral lobes; setae present on middle region of parameres. Parameral lobes separated by a longitudinal notch that extends to the middle of the dorsal surface of the parameres; apexes rounded. Median lobe long, robust, flattened, truncated at the apex in lateral view, with two acute ventral hooks; ventral hooks similar and close to each other, separated from apex. Endophallic hook visible.

Female: Similar to male, but with the last abdominal ventrite rounded, not emarginated in its posterior margin and antennomeres less widened apically. Studied specimens present the inner surface of the bursa copulatrix with few and small sclerotized spicules, sometimes absent (similar to those of B. indalo , as figured in Fig. 8).

Variability: Body length (frons to posterior border of elytra) highly variable, from 7.3 to 20 mm; maximum total length among preserved, studied specimens, 54 mm. Morphometric variability is shown in Table 2. Some specimens have a single, small, red spot on the frons, diffuse and faintly marked. Colour of transverse bars in live specimens vary from orange to blood-red, but constant within each population. Populations composed exclusively of entirely black-coloured specimens are found in Madrid (Rivas de Jarama, Valdepiélagos, Talamanca, Daganzo de Arriba, Vicálvaro) and western Guadalajara (Uceda) ( Bravo et al., 2017; authors pers. obs.). Berberomeloe comunero presents a high variability in the width of coloured transverse tergal bars, but on average they are relatively wide (ratio ‘total width of the second tergum/width of the transverse bar of the second tergum’ between 1.32 and 2.34, average = 1.8, SD = 0.29, N = 31). Transverse bars are narrower in mountain populations from the provinces of Madrid and Segovia. Specimens with deeper punctures on the pronotum, forming a strongly corrugated pattern, are found over most part of the province of Madrid and eastern Segovia.

Diagnosis: Berberomeloe comunero can be distinguished from all other Berberomeloe species by the following combination of characters ( Fig. 11): (1) medium-sized to moderately narrow, coloured, transverse tergal bars on the distal margin of tergites I– VI; (2) punctures on head large to medium-sized, rounded, deep and close to each other; (3) pronotum surface densely and homogeneously punctate, with two types of puncturation simultaneously, large and medium-sized, confluent or subconfluent, often forming a corrugated pattern; (4) fore angles of pronotum rounded and not especially expanded; (5) apex of the median lobe of male genitalia obliquely truncated in lateral view; and (6) antennomere XI in males wide, V – VII in males weakly expanded at its inner apical side .

Distribution and notes on natural history: Berberomeloe comunero is a euryecious species distributed over most of the northern Central Iberian Plateau, in the provinces of Madrid (except at its south-eastern edge), Burgos, Segovia, Guadalajara and most of Valladolid. According to the known localities, it occupies a wide elevational range from 522 m at Balcón del Tajo (Madrid) to 1440 m at Puerto de Somosierra (Madrid). It inhabits a wide range of geological formations, from limestone and gypsum of the highlands of the Northern Plateau to granite and gneisses at Sierra de Guadarrama, while micaceous schists, slates and quartzites from Somosierra to Sierra de Ayllón ( Rivas-Martínez et al., 1990; Vera, 2004). It occupies the meso- and supra-Mediterranean bioclimatic levels (see: Rivas-Martínez, 1987; Rivas-Martínez et al., 2002). Berberomeloe comunero is found over an extensive variety of open habitats ( Fig. 12), such as cereal fields (mostly wheat and barley), gypsum hills with dispersed Quercus coccifera L. trees, steppes, juniper groves and open oak ( Quercus rotundifolia Lam. , Q. pyrenaica Willd. ) and ash ( Fraxinus angustifolia Vahl ) forests ( Rivas-Martínez & Costa, 1970; Rivas-Martínez et al., 1990). Biological aspects of this species are expected to be similar to the ones described for the genus by Bologna (1989, 1991). Adult specimens are found from March to July.

BERBEROMELOE INDALO SÁNCHEZ-VIALAS ET AL. ,