Helcophorus bicoloricornis (Pic, 1933), 2025

Helcophorus bicoloricornis (Pic, 1933) , comb. nov.

Pyropterus bicoloricornis Pic, 1933: 110 .

Dictyoptera bicoloricornis : Bocak & Bocakova, 1991; Kazantsev, 2004; Bocakova & Bocak, 2007; Kazantsev, 2012. Pyropterus bicoloricollis (sic!): Kleine, 1933.

REMARKS. The description of Pyropterus bicoloricornis reads as follows: ‘ Oblongus , subopacus, pubescens, rubro-mineaceus, articulus 4e et sequesntibus antennarum, oculis et tarsis apice nigris; antennis validis, pilosis, articulo 3e secundo paulo longiore et latiore; thorace parum breve, lateraliter infra medium strangulato, angulis posticis valde prominulis, antice subarcuato, medio longe et late areolato, areola media lata, valde distincta; elytris latis, sat brevibus, ante medium paulo strangulatis, in singulo 4 costatis, costa tertia valde prominula, intervallis late, sat regulariter fenestriatis’ [Oblong, subopaque, pubescent, reddish-golden, joint 4 and following of antennae, eyes and tarsi at apex black; antennae strong, hairy, joint 3 slightly longer and wider than second; thorax slightly short, laterally strangulated below the middle, posterior corners very prominent, anteriorly sub-arched, in the middle long and widely areolate, median areola wide, very distinct; elytra wide, quite short, anteriorly slightly strangulated, each with 4 ribs, third rib very prominent, intervals widely, fairly regularly fenestrated]. ‘Long. 9 mm. Tatsiculu (communiqué par Kleine). — Par sa coloration voisin de tricostatus Pic, en diffère par la forme assez trapue, le prothorax nettement étranglé, les élytres à aréoles des intervalles plus marquées avec le dessous du corps de la couleur du dessus’ (Pic, 1933).

The elytral structure, with the ‘very prominent’ third costa and one row of cells in the interstices (‘fenestriatis’), indicates that this species is not a Dictyoptera , but a member of the genus Helcophorus . The genus was created by Fairmaire (1891) to accommodate a Himalayan lycid, Helcophorus miniatus Fairmaire, 1891 , later omitted from the World Catalogue of the family ( Kleine, 1933), and eventually forgotten, until finally rediscovered and revised ( Kazantsev, 1990; 1996). Recently further species were added to the genus ( Bocakova, 1994; Kazantsev, 2000, 2004, 2015), and currently ten species are attributed to Helcophorus , including H. bicoloricornis , comb. nov. Kazantsev (2012), considered the species to be a synonym of Dictyoptera quadricostata (Pic, 1927) .

The specimen studied as the Holotype of Pyropterus bicoloricornis Pic, 1933 ( Bocak & Bocakova, 1991) does not agree with the description in having equally well-developed primary elytral costae and double rows of cells in the elytral interstices, whereas P. bicoloricornis is characterised by the distinctly more prominent third costa and a single row of cells in the interstices (Pic, 1933) (should the elytra have two rows of cells, Pic would have written ‘bifenestriatis’, as in the description of D. forticornis above). Besides, the quoted locality label (‘ Tonkin, Chapa, 27.IV1918, Jeanvoine lgt’) is different from what is given in the description (‘Tatsiculu’), as already noted by Bocak and Bocakova (1991). Hence, the studied in 1991 specimen apparently is not the Holotype of Pyropterus bicoloricornis , but rather, judging by the shape of its aedeagus, a specimen of Dictyoptera phoupanensis Kazantsev, 2012 , probably, erroneously identified as Pyropterus bicoloricornis by Pic himself.

Distribution. China, Sichuan, Tatsienlu (‘Tatsiculu’), now Kanding.