Oncid ID: Tool for Diagnosing Adult Twig Girdlers (Cerambycidae: Lamiinae: Onciderini)
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Genus: Clavidesmus

Diagnostic Features
  • Description: Elongate-oblong, robust, moderate-sized, ranging from about 14–20 mm in length. Integument generally dark brown or ferrugineous with whitish, ochraceous, ferrugineous, or reddish pubescence. Head with frons subquadrate to transverse, about as wide as width of five lower eye lobes. Eyes with lower lobes small, ovate. Genae elongate, distinctly taller than lower eye lobes. Antennal tubercles prominent, moderately to narrowly separated; tubercles not armed at apex (some females) or with a small projection or short, blunt horn (males); antennal length variable, from shorter than overall body length to as much as 1 1/3 times as long; scape clavate, longer than antennomere IV; antennomere III shape sexually dimorphic, from strongly clavate (females) to strongly elliptical (males), longer than scape and antennomere IV; antennomere XI longer than X (males). Pronotum transverse, roughly cylindrical, with or without small, lateral tubercles. Elytra with sides roughly parallel to distinctly expanding to apex; elytral apices individually rounded; elytra coloration variable, from vaguely speckled to distinctly maculate; base of elytra without prominent tubercles at humeri. Basal 1/3 of elytra with sparse to dense punctation, surface finely to coarsely punctate. Procoxae simple, without projection. Mesosternal process with apex subtruncate or feebly emarginate. Metafemora moderate to distinctly short in length, about 1/3–1/5 as long as elytra.

  • The combination of the following characters will help to distinguish this genus: distinctly small eyes, widely separated; scape with apex strongly clavate or elliptical; roughly cylindrical pronotum; and elytra with sides roughly parallel to distinctly expanding to apex.

  • Similar genus/genera: strongly resembles Lachaerus and Strioderes.
Geographic Distribution
  • South America (Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Paraguay, Peru)
Host Plants/Trees
  • Unknown
Girdling Behavior
  • Unknown
Notes

The genus Clavidesmus currently contains nine species:
  Clavidesmus chicae Giorgi, 1998 [holotype specimen, ♂]
  Clavidesmus columbianus Breuning, 1961 [holotype specimen, ♀]
  Clavidesmus funerarius (Lane, 1958) [holotype specimen, ♀]
  Clavidesmus heterocerus (Buquet, 1852) [♂ specimen]
  Clavidesmus heterocerus (Buquet, 1852) [type specimen, ♂]
  Clavidesmus indistinctus Dillon & Dillon, 1952 [type specimen, ♀]
  Clavidesmus lichenigerus (Lane, 1958) [♀ specimen]
  Clavidesmus metallicus (Thomson, 1868) [♂ specimen]
  Clavidesmus monnei Giorgi, 1998 [holotype specimen, ♂]
  Clavidesmus rubigineus Dillon & Dillon, 1949 [holotype specimen, ♀]

Generic Synonymies
  • The type species of this genus was originally described in the genus Eudesmus.
Selected References
 

Clavidesmus heterocerus
♂ specimen
© E.H. Nearns

 

© 2011-2015 Nearns, E.H., Lord, N.P., and K.B. Miller
The University of New Mexico and Center for Plant Health Science and Technology, USDA, APHIS, PPQ.