Richard L. Westcott

Agrilus cuprescens (Ménétries) (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), the Rose Stem Girdler, Discovered in the State of Washington, with Comments on Host Plant Associations

On 3 June 2014, one of us (MA) noted and photographed a small species of Buprestidae on rose and blackberry leaves in Olympia, Thurston Co., in western Washington. Several images were posted to BugGuide (bugguide.net/node/view/ 116450/), including that used for Fig. 1. Specimens were sent to the first author who identified them as the adventive Agrilus cuprescens (Ménétries) (rose stem girdler), which was unknown from the state. On 11 June 2014, Jeanne Dammarell found and photographed this species in eastern Washington, on a garden rose in Davenport. She, too, posted images to BugGuide, including that which we use for Fig. 2. She also found A. cuprescens on raspberries in Colbert, WA soon after. Agrilus cuprescens is a trans-Palaearctic species with a tortuous taxonomic history (Jendek 2003) that seems to have been introduced into the USA sometime prior to 1878. Fisher (1928) treated it as Agrilus viridis var. fagi (Ratzeburg) (a misidentification), dating its discovery in the USA as 1923, which some later authors followed. Surely he meant 1913, as Weiss (1914; misidentified as Agrilus politus (Say)) reported on collections of this species from 1913. Weiss (1914) also recorded several species of Rosa L. as larval hosts that Nelson et al. (2008) listed only as adult hosts. Based on observations provided by Weiss (1914) alone, it seems likely that the beetle was already

Chrysobothris knulli Nelson, 1975 (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) in Baja California Sur, Mexico

Resumen A comienzos de diciembre de 2015, un equipo internacional de cientıacute;ficos realizó un estudio de la biodiversidad al interior de la Reserva de la Biósfera Sierra La Laguna en la Región del Cabo de Baja California Sur, México. En este artıacute;culo, se documenta la biodiversidad hallada en la reserva. Se recollectó Chrysobothris knulli Nelson y por primera vez se informa sobre esta especie en la penıacute;nsula. Se documenta la planta huésped adulta como Vachellia farnesiana (L.) Wight & Arnott (Fabaceae). Se aportan registros de distribución adicionales para Baja California Sur. Podrıacute;a tratarse de una especie introducida. La gama de tallas de los individuos recolectados en la reserva concuerda con la de la serie tipo.

Two Observations of Assassin Bugs (Hemiptera: Reduviidae) Feasting on Adult Jewel Beetles (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), with Notes on Adults of Other Buprestid Species and Their Predators

The impetus for this note began when two of us (JRN and RLW) were collecting on 5 October 2009 at 6 km SW Cacaloxtepec, Oaxaca, Mexico (17.699028°, −97.761139°; elevation 1,706 m), where JRN photographed an assassin bug, Apiomerus cf. longispinis Champion, feeding upon a jewel beetle, Hippomelas saginatus (Mannerheim) (Fig. 1), on Acacia bilimekii J.F. MacBr. (tehuixtle) (Fabaceae) (bit.ly/1KGZReZ). No other individuals of the beetle were seen on that tree species, but several were collected on nearby Acacia cochliacantha Willd. According to Nelson and Bellamy (1996), the size range for H. saginatus is 13.5–25.5 mm (average 21 mm) in length, based on 38 specimens. It is widespread in southern Mexico (Nelson and Bellamy 1996). Champion (1899) gave a range of 15.5–19.5 mm for A. longispinis, based on 14 specimens. That species occurs from the southwestern USA to Central America (bit.ly/1OSeXNp). The third author (EJ) photographed an assassin bug, Rhynocoris annulatus (Linnaeus), feeding on a buprestid, Trachypterus picta decostigma (Fabricius) (Fig. 2; bit.ly/1MEHMvI), on the trunk of Populus alba L. (Salicaceae) in a heavily disturbed, lowland riparian Populus-Salix forest along the Danube River near Rusovce, Slovakia (48.057029°, 17.164679°; elevation 135 m), 9 June 2004. This species of buprestid ranges 9–15 mm long (Cobos 1987) and is widespread and common on Populus spp. in lowland forests of Europe, extending to Turkey and North Africa (Sakalian 2003). The predator species ranges 11–15 mm long (Putshkov 2002) and is EuroSiberian in distribution (Aukema et al. 2013). Searching on the Internet for images of Buprestidae being preyed upon by Reduviidae, we found one of a nymph of Reduvius personatus Linnaeus that apparently was feeding on an emerging Latipalpis plana (Olivier) (bit.ly/1itQ7Zc). It was at an online forum (bit.ly/1VT1y97), and no other detail was provided. We have been unable to locate any other images of a reduviid preying upon a buprestid, except these we present. However, we found mention in the literature: Hawkeswood (1990) observed Pristhesancus plagipennis Walker feeding on Castiarina octospilota (Gory and Laporte), and later he (1992) observed the same reduviid species preying on Castiarina cupida (Kerremans), both near Brisbane, Australia. That adult Buprestidae are fed upon by generalist predators comes as no surprise. A stink bug, Podisus maculiventris (Say) (Pentatomidae), was found in Ottawa, Canada and photographed by EJ feeding on an adult emerald ash borer, Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire, an invasive buprestid (bugguide.net/node/view/1174907 and 1174908). Most reports of predation on adult emerald ash borer involve robber flies (Asilidae). Lavigne (2003) listed 31 species of predators as preying on at least 25 species of Buprestidae. Although spiders must often catch Buprestidae, we found little mention of them,

Phaenops vandykei (Obenberger, 1944) (Coleoptera: Buprestidae): Its First Larval Host Record, First Record of Parasitism by Senotainia trilineata Wulp, 1890 (Diptera: Sarcophagidae), New State Record for Oregon, and First Prey Record for Cerceris completa Banks, 1919 (Hymenoptera: Crabronidae)

Other than being listed in catalogs, there has been only one publication (Akiyama and Ohmomo 2000) treating Phaenops vandykei (Obenberger, 1944) since its original description. The syntypes, a male (Fig. 1) and female, are labeled: “Carville Cal.”, which is Carrville, Trinity Co., California, 41.065°, −122.704° (no date), in the northwestern part of the state. Akiyama and Ohmomo (2000) included and figured P. vandykei from specimens collected by G. C. Walters in the San Gabriel Mts., Hwy. 2, 3000′ (914 m) (no date), which is in Los Angeles Co. in southern California, We have seen several specimens from the same area, including the following labeled: Coldbrook Station, ex bark of Pinus ponderosa, em [emerged]. 1–10/ VI/1970, F. T. Hovore, in collection of R. L. Westcott (RLW) (first larval host record). Interestingly, two individuals of Phaenops drummondi (Kirby, 1837) were reared from the same material. We could not find any online references to Coldbrook Station, but we found Coldbrook Forest Station at Coldbrook Campground on a 1967Automobile Club of Southern California map, “Los Angeles and Vicinity.” The coordinates are 34.291°, −117.840°, elevation 3,300′ (1,005 m). An additional collection locality for P. vandykei includes two specimens from: OREGON, Jackson Co., 31⁄2 mi W Butte Falls, 10/VII/1978, on pine log, R. L. Westcott, in collections of RLWand Oregon Department of Agriculture (new state record). When the latter specimens were collected, they were thought to be either a variant of Phaenops gentilis (LeConte, 1863) or perhaps a new species, then set aside and largely forgotten until surveys of colonies of Cerceris californica Cresson, 1865 (Hymenoptera: Crabronidae) in Oregon turned up fresh specimens. During July 2013, we surveyed for colonies of C. californica in Douglas and Josephine Counties, Oregon, during a study of western Cerceris spp. as an exotic buprestid detection method (Looney et al. 2014). A large colony of actively foraging Cerceris spp. was discovered on a baseball diamond in a park in Grants Pass, Oregon. Two specimens of P. vandykei were collected, one from an unidentified Cerceris wasp and one from the ground where many other dropped specimens of Buprestidae were also found (Looney and Westcott, unpublished data). The wasp-collected specimen could have been taken from C. californica or Cerceris completa Banks, 1919, both of which were nesting at the ballpark. We returned to the site in July 2014 and collected one more P. vandykei from the ground and took one from a C. completa returning from a foraging flight. Collection data for the 2013–2014 P. vandykei specimens are: OREGON, Josephine Co., Grants Pass, George Eckstein Park, 42.4264°, −123.3016°, 10/VII/2013, on ground, R. Chai & C. Looney; 10/VII/2013, ex Cerceris sp., R. Chai and C. Looney; 18/VII/2014, on ground, R. Westcott & C. Looney; 18/VII/2014, exC. completa, R.Westcott & C. Looney (first prey record for C. completa). These specimens are housed at the Washington

A New Species of Agaeocera Saunders, 1871 (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) from Southern Mexico

Abstract Agaeocera macraei Westcott and Nelson, new species, from the states of Chiapas, Oaxaca, and Veracruz in southern Mexico, is described and illustrated. Its considerable variability and close relationship to Agaeocera gigas (Gory and Laporte, 1839) and Agaeocera scintillans Waterhouse, 1882 are discussed.

Two Striking New Species of Chrysobothris Eschscholtz (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) from Southern Mexico, with Mexican State and Host Records for Five Other Species in the Genus

Abstract Two new species, Chrysobothris chuckbellamyi Westcott and Chrysobothris romeroi Westcott, from southern Mexico are described and figured. Distribution and host records are provided for Chrysobothris acaciae Knull, Chrysobothris basalis LeConte, Chrysobothris lucana Horn, Chrysobothris paratabalipa Nelson, and Chrysobothris schaefferi Obenberger in Mexico.