Cyphogastra foveicollis was first described by Boisduval in 1835 under the name Buprestis foveicollis, based on material collected during Jules Dumont d'Urville's 1826–1829 expedition aboard the corvette Astrolabe through the Pacific.[2] The species was subsequently transferred to the genus Cyphogastra when Henri Deyrolle erected that genus in 1864 in his monograph on the Buprestidae of the Malay Archipelago, based on specimens collected by Alfred Russel Wallace.[5] Bellamy subsequently designated C. foveicollis as the type species of Cyphogastra in 1998.[3]
The species has accumulated numerous synonyms over its taxonomic history, reflecting the difficulty of delimiting species in this morphologically variable genus. These include C. pisciformis Deyrolle, 1864, C. geelwinkiana Gestro, 1877, C. flavitarsis Gestro, 1877, C. ronensis Lansberge, 1880, C. pygmaea Kerremans, 1903, C. aurifossa Obenberger, 1922, and C. bipartita Théry, 1923.[6]
The genus Cyphogastra belongs to the subtribe Chalcophorina within the tribe Chrysochroini.[7] It comprises three subgenera: Cyphogastra s.str., Guamia Théry, 1930, and Pleiona Deyrolle, 1864.[6] The genus name derives from the Greekkyphos (κυφός, "hump" or "convex") and gaster (γαστήρ, "belly"), referring to the convex abdominal profile characteristic of the group.[5] Hołyński has published an ongoing multi-part revision of the Cyphogastra supergenus beginning in 2016, organising species into morphologically defined "circles".[8]
Description
Cyphogastra foveicollis reaches approximately 30 millimetres (1.2in) in length.[4] The body is elongate and robust, typical of the genus. The basic colour of the elytra and thorax is metallic dark green or dark purplish.[4] As in other Buprestidae, this metallic iridescence results from structural coloration rather than pigments; the cuticle contains multilayer reflectors consisting of stacked chitin layers that selectively reflect specific wavelengths of light, producing colours that shift depending on the viewing angle.[9] Multilayer reflectors are the most widespread iridescence mechanism in beetles and are especially prevalent in Buprestidae.[9]
The species epithet foveicollis refers to the pitted or foveate pronotum (from the Latin fovea, "pit", and collis, referring to the neck or collar), a diagnostic character of the genus.[5]
Biology
Like other members of Buprestidae, C. foveicollis is a wood-boring beetle whose larvae are xylophagous. Buprestid larvae, known as flatheaded borers due to their characteristically flattened anterior body segments, typically feed within the wood, bark, or pith of their host plants.[10] Adults of the family are generally diurnal and are often found on the surfaces of their host plants, where their metallic coloration may serve as camouflage among sunlit foliage, or function in mate recognition.[9][10] Specific host plant associations and life history details for C. foveicollis have not been documented, though buprestid larvae in general develop in weakened or dead trees, and some species have multi-year larval development periods.[10]
Distribution
Cyphogastra foveicollis occurs in West Papua, in the Indonesian portion of New Guinea.[4] The genus Cyphogastra as a whole is distributed across the Indo-Pacific, with its greatest diversity centred on the New Guinean region and the surrounding Malesian islands, extending to Melanesia, the Moluccas, and the Mariana Islands.[8][6]
References
↑Bellamy, C. L. (2008). A World Catalogue and Bibliography of the Jewel Beetles (Coleoptera: Buprestoidea), Volume 1. Pensoft Series Faunistica 76. Pensoft Publishers. pp.1–625.
12Boisduval, J. B. A. (1835). Voyage de découvertes de l'Astrolabe exécutée par ordre du Roi, pendant les années 1826–1827–1828–1829, sous le commandement de M. J. Dumont d'Urville. Faune entomologique de l'Océan Pacifique. Deuxième partie. Coléoptères et autres ordres. Paris: J. Tastu. p.73.
12Bellamy, C. L. (1998). "Type Species Designations in the Family Buprestidae (Coleoptera)". The Coleopterists Bulletin. 52 (1): 5–13.
123Deyrolle, H. (1864). "Description des Buprestides de la Malaisie recueillis par M. Wallace". Annales de la Société Entomologique de Belgique. 8: 1–272, 305–312.
12Hołyński, R. B. (2016). "Review of the [Cyphogastra DEYR.]-supergenus (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) I. Mysteries of early evolution: Pleiona DEYR. and sg. Guamia THY". Procrustomachia. 1 (5): 72–95.
123Bellamy, C. L.; Nelson, G. H. (2002). "Buprestidae". In Arnett, R. H.; Thomas, M. C.; Skelley, P. E.; Frank, J. H. (eds.). American Beetles. Volume 2: Polyphaga: Scarabaeoidea through Curculionoidea. CRC Press. pp.98–112.
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