Meligethes ( Meligethes ) cinereoargenteus Audisio, Sabatelli & Jelínek, 2015

Meligethes ( Meligethes) cinereoargenteus Audisio, Sabatelli & Jelínek, 2015

Examined material. China, SICHUAN, LUDINg COUNTY, MOXI TOWN, MT . GONggA, HAILUOgOU, 2780 m A.S.L., CA. 29.566667° 102°, 5.v.2017, X. CHEN LgT, 3 ♂, 4 ♀ (NWAU, CAR-MZUR, NMPC).

Distribution. SW CHINA ( SICHUAN); KNOWN THUS fAR ONLY fROm SICHUAN, ON THE bASIS Of TWO SERIOUSLY DAmAgED mALE SpECImENS COLLECTED NEAR LUDINg (AUDISIO et al. 2015) ( FIg. 5b View FIGURE 5 ).

Host-plants. UNKNOWN; HOWEvER, THE HOST IS LIKELY Rosa Sp. OR A RELATED ROSACEAE gENUS . THIS SpECIES OCCURS IN bUSHY/SHRUbbY AREAS AT HIgH ALTITUDES ( 2500–2800 m).

Taxonomic remarks. DUE TO THE pOOR STATE Of pRESERvATION Of THE TYpE mATERIAL fROm LUDINg, THIS SpECIES, ALTHOUgH bEINg ONLY SUpERfICIALLY SImILAR TO Meligethes ( M.) nepalensis EASTON, 1968, fROm NEpAL (IN THE Meligethes nepalensis SpECIES gROUp), WAS mISINTERpRETED bY AUDISIO et al. (2015) AS bELONgINg TO THIS CLADE. BASED ON THE fRESH mATERIAL REpORTED AbOvE ( FIg. 1C View FIGURE 1 ), THIS TAXON IS DEfINITIvELY A mEmbER Of THE Meligethes auripilis SpECIES gROUp, AND CAN bE NOW TRANSfERRED TO THIS CLADE, AND AppARENTLY RELATED TO M. aurifer (fROm E SHAANXI AND W SHANXI) AND M. aureolineatus (fROm N SICHUAN). THESE THREE TAXA fORm THE HERE ESTAbLISHED M. aurifer SpECIES COmpLEX. Meligethes cinereoargenteus IS WELL-CHARACTERIZED bY ITS DISTINCTIvE mALE gENITALIA, SpECIfICALLY A pECULIARLY SHApED AEDEAgAL ApEX (FIgS. 7I, J IN AUDISIO et al. 2015). THE STRONgLY EXpANDED mALE pROTARSI ALSO DIffERENTIATE THIS SpECIES ( FIg. 1C View FIGURE 1 ). THE pREvIOUSLY UNKNOWN OvIpOSITOR Of THIS SpECIES IS NOT CONSIDERAbLY DIffERENT IN ITS gENERAL SHApE fROm THAT Of M. aurifer , bUT DOES EXHIbIT A SHALLOWER ApICAL EXCISION Of THE COmbINED gONOCOXAL ApICES ( FIg. 2L View FIGURE 2 ); RATIO OVPL/GONL = 2.25. FEmALES DIffER fROm mALES mAINLY bY THE mUCH NARROWER pROTARSAL pLATES (RATIO WFTA/LFTA = 0.33 IN fEmALES AND = 0.45 IN mALES), AND bY THE mUCH SHALLOWER ImpRESSION ON THE pOSTERIOR pORTION Of THE mETAvENTRITE.