Vesperus gomezi Verdugo, 2004

Familia: VESPERIDAE  /  Subfamilia: VESPERINAE  /  Tribus: VESPERINI
Vesperus gomezi
[Photo © David Navrátil, click on the picture for 4K resolution]




Vesperus gomezi, a rare endemic species to South Spain, has been described by Antonio Verdugo Páez according to one female found in Sierra de Almijara (Granada provice, Andalusia) in 2004 [▽]. The validity of the species, which is close to Vesperus xatarti Mulsant, 1839, was confirmed by description of male found in Parque Natural de las Sierras de Tejeda (Granada provice) by the same author in 2008 [✧]. The biology of this nocturnal species is not known, but probably is similar to other species of the genus, id est larvae develop in soil on the roots of deciduous trees and shrubs.

Body length:19 - 22 mm
Life cycle:2 and more years [?]
Adults in:August - October
Host plant:polyphagous on the roots of decidous trees and shrubs [?]
Distribution:an endemic species to south Spain (Granada province)


The depicted male beetle was collected in type locality - Pico Lopera (1485 m a.s.l, Almijara y Alhama, Parque Natural de las Sierras de Tejeda, Jáyena district, Granada province, Spain) on September 5, 2021.

Collected by our friend Marcos López, to whom we gratefully thank for the depicted donated specimen


[▽]
Verdugo Páez A.:
Los cerambícidos de Andalucía (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae).
Monográfico1, Sociedad Andaluza de Entomología, Cordoba, 1-150, 2004. [download pdf icon]

[✧]
Verdugo Páez A.:
Descripción del macho de Vesperus gomezi Verdugo, 2004 (Coleoptera, Cerambycidae, Vesperinae) y comparacón de la especie con los táxones próximos.
Boletín de la Sociedad Entomológica Aragonesa 43: 291-296, 2008. [download pdf icon]




 
FamiliaVesperidae Mulsant, 1839
SubfamiliaVesperinae Mulsant, 1839
TribusVesperini Mulsant, 1839
GenusVesperus Dejean, 1821
SpeciesVesperus gomezi Verdugo, 2004