Purpuricenus nanus Semenov, 1907

Subfamilia: CERAMBYCINAE  /  Tribus: TRACHYDERINI
Purpuricenus nanus

[Photo © David Navrátil & 8K postprocessing Michal Hoskovec]

Purpuricenus nanus, a species endemic to Iran, has been described from "Perse" (Iran) by Andrej Petrovitsch Semenov Tian-Shanskij in 1907 [▽]. P. nanus is rare species, whose bionomy is not well known. Larval development with high probability takes place in the roots and basal parts of globe thistles (Cynareae, Carduoideae, Asteraceae), similar to the another sister taxa of the P. wachanrui-group. This is confirmed by our observations of the behavior of adults of this species in the vicinity of the village of Varkān (Isfahan province, Iran). Here, adults of this species swarmed, mated, and females prepared to lay eggs on globe thistle Echinops aff. ilicifolius (Cynareae, Carduoideae, Asteraceae).

Body length:7 - 13 mm
Life cycle:1 - 2 years [?]
Adults in:May - July
Host plant:with high probability in roots/basal parts of globe thistle Echinops aff. ilicifolius (Cynareae, Carduoideae, Asteraceae)
Distribution:an endemic species to Iran


The depicted beetles were collected on flowers and thistles in Varkān (وركان) village environs (2092 m a.s.l., Barzok district, Kashan vounty, Isfahan province, Iran) on May 22-23, 2017.

Collected by David Navrátil


[▽]
Semenov Tian-Shanskij A.P.:
De tribus novis Purpuriceni formis e fauna Asiae palaearcticae (Coleoptera, Cerambycidae).
Revue Russe d'Entomologie, Saint-Petersbourg 6 (3-4) [1906]: 254-256, 1907. [download pdf icon]

Simandl J.:
Íránští tesaříci rodu Purpuricenus / Iranian Longhorn Beetles of the Genus Purpuricenus.
Živa 1: 28-30, 2013. [download pdf icon]


Purpuricenus nanus
Purpuricenus nanus
[Photo © David Navrátil]


 
SubfamiliaCerambycinae Latreille, 1802
TribusTrachyderini Dupont, 1836
GenusPurpuricenus Dejean, 1821
SpeciesPurpuricenus nanus Semenov, 1907