The newly released paper that revises this difficult group

It’s 124 pages and includes 31 new species with new genera designations for a group of Parandrinae (Cerambycidae) found in Hawaii, Japan and the Oriental Region including the Philippines.

This is a landmark work for the group and I’m still digesting it. More detailed post on the Philippine Parandrinae, including one named after me, is in the works.

Spectacular scenery but kind of disappointing for beetles

I was trekking in Batad, Banaue, Ifugao to visit the spectacular Batad Rice Terraces, a UNESCO World Heritage listed site, and I was hoping to collect a few beetles especially Pachyrrhynchini weevils.

Even if I didn’t have a net or collecting gear, it was kind of dismal with so few Coleoptera sighted along the way from Batad Junction to Batad town and then to Tappia Falls.

I was only able to collect a few species like two Metapocyrtus sp. (Curculionidae), several specimens of Engertia (Scarabaeidae), a few species of Melolonthinae (Scarabaeidae), collected at light during the night, and one, surprisingly beautiful Glenea species. There were no Pachyrhynchus collected but when I went down, I saw one species at one high branch which was just too far to reach.

I’m not really sure why there were so few. Perhaps this was due to the inclement weather during the time I was there considering that it was during the month of May. This area, by the way, is forested and is near Mt. Amuyao, the highest mountain in the place.

Salagubang.net is part of the "An Inordinate Fondness" blog carnival hosted at "Fall to Climb"

An Inordinate Fondness #3: Discovery Zone, the interesting beetle blog carnival is on at Fall to Climb, and includes my post, Pachyrhynchus congestus form and it’s Eupyrgops sp. mimic.

The said carnival is a monthly event that is a celebration of beetles—of their indescribable beauty, amazing forms, and astonishing diversity and this edition includes 13 blog entries from different parts of the world.

Check it out at Fall to Climb by clicking on the image at the left.

A new downloadable ebook focusing on the genus Pachyrhynchus and its mimics

This half letter, 54 page ebook is sure to delight collectors and entomologists. It consists of an introduction and of course, full page images of 16 Pachyrrhynchus beetles and a corresponding number of their mimics from different genera: Metapocyrtus, Eupyrgops, Polycatus, all from family Curculionidae and the very interesting Doliops and Paradoliops genera, family Cerambycidae. Thumbnail images are also included.

You can check out a sampler by clicking the link below.

Get the full version of the ebook for just $6. Proceeds will go to support future collecting trips around the country as well as take care of website hosting expenses. Click the link below. I’m still fine tuning an e-commerce plugin. Once it’s setup, ordering will be smooth. For the meantime, it will be manual ordering.

Buy the full ebook

Email me your receipt at estancabigas [at] gmail [dot] com. Once I have confirmed your payment, I will send you the ebook.

Pachyrhynchus congestus form, model

Eupyrgops sp., mimic from another tribe

Not to be missed, however, is a species of Eupyrgops that has almost the same coloration and patterns, but drabber than it’s model.

New paper from Eduard Vives

Eduard Vives was published by Magellanes last November 2009 his latest installment on Philippine longhorn beetles: New or interesting Cerambycidae from the Philippines (Part III) (Coleoptera, Cerambycidae).

This one includes 34 different species of cerambycids with over 12 new descriptions, new records, a designation of a new genus Mimacronia with new combinanations including the genera Acronia and Aprophata. This paper has around seven specimens that I’ve contributed which are mostly new species. And lastly, two new species of the spectacular genus Doliops are here.

Check this out.

The new Salagubang fan page in Facebook

Salagubang, your online resource on Philippine Coleoptera has a new fan page in Facebook! I’ve just added several images of beetles from my site and more to come. Click on the image at the left to go to the fan page.

Check it out! Better still, be a fan!

Undescribed Pachyrrhynchus sp., female, model

Undescribed Pachyrrhynchus sp., male, model

A few years ago, I was able to do a beetle entomological collection at the northeastern part of the Zamboanga Peninsula and, while the collection wasn’t too great, there were some species that are not only new to my collection but, most likely, and I’m pretty sure about it, new to Science.

First is a beautiful Pachyrrhynchus sp. that at first glance the spots looks like those of P. erichsonni WATERHOUSE 1841 but heavily punctured and colored reddish purple. But what delighted me more was the presence of a mimic!

Undescribed Metapocyrtus sp., male, mimic

Undescribed Metapocyrtus sp., female, mimic

Like many Pachyrrhynchus species, present also was a smaller Metapocyrtus species that was found on the same plant where I collected the former.

Other than it’s size, the elytral pattern isn’t as faithful but it does have an iridescent color that is almost the same as with it’s model.

Undescribed Pachyrrhynchus sp., female

Undescribed Metapocyrtus sp., female

I have collected only once on the lower flanks of Mt. Matutum, South Cotabato a few years ago and it was in this mountain where I was able to get two almost similar species of Pachyrrhynchini, both undescribed. The first one is a Pachyrrhynchus sp. and the second is its mimic Metapocyrtus. It was rather unusual since these two species were collected on a few trees in a clearing that clearly used to be forest.

The resemblance is striking. Except for the greener color of the Metapocyrtus sp., the stripes match well with the Pachyrrhynchus species mimic.

Nemophas ramosi SCHULTZE 1920, new status

My thanks to Francesco Vitali who sent me his paper co-authored with Vitali Nagirnyi entitled Nemophas ramosi SCHULTZE, 1920 A Forgotten Philippine Species (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) which tackles the long overdue status revision of this species which has been, according to the authors, erroneously synonymized and treated by Breuning. This paper, published by Lambillionea, corrects this and gives a new key to the genus.

Initially described by W. Schultze of the Bureau of Science in Manila as N. rosenbergii ramosi in 1920 as published in the Philippine Journal of Science entitled Eight Contribution to the Coleoptera Fauna of the Philippines, the two authors find enough unique physical markings to separate it from N. rosenbergii RITSEMA 1881 which is found in Sulawesi, Indonesia.

The paper lists 16 species of which three occur in the Philippines:

• Nemophas ramosi SCHULTZE 1920 (Mindanao)
• Nemophas subterrubens SCHULTZE 1924, and (Samar)
• Nemophas subcylindricus AURIVILLIUS 1927 (Mindanao and Luzon)

Curiously, the genus is found only on three inter related faunal regions in the country: Luzon, Samar/Leyte subregion and Mindanao.