Genus Prothema Pascoe

Prothema Pascoe, 1856, Trans. Ent. Soc. Lond., ser 2, 4 : 43 (type-species : P. signata Pasc., 1856) loc. cit.; 1869, Trans. Ent. Soc. Lond., ser 3, 3 : 580. - Gahan, 1906b, Fauna British India, Col., 1 : 235. -Aurivillius, 1912, Coleopt. Cat., 39 : 291. - Gressitt, 1951c, Longicornia 2 : 187. - Gressitt & Rondon, 1970, Pac. Ins. Monogr., 24 : 131.

Sigeum Pascoe, 1866, Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., : 523 (type-species : Blemmya humerale Pasc., 1856) loc. cit.

Diagnostic characters : head feebly exserted; planate between antennal. insertion, not concave; antennifer hardly raised; antennae as long as body in , shorter in ; 3 twice as long as 4; 3 - 5 slender, filiform; 6 - 10 only moderately flatten, slightly produced externally; prothorax rounded at side; elytron convex; epipleura of elytra less distinctive; femora feebly carinate ventrally; usually smaller in sizes (~ 7 mm).

Key to species of Prothema in Sarawak

1.    Elytra with a cruciform pattern; body black with marking of lacteous pubescence. - variicornis PASCOE, 1886
Elytra without such pattern; each elytron has a castaneous impubis patch near humeral angle; an oblique stripe of lacteous pubescence at middle and a whitish apical patch. - multicolor sp. nov.

 

Prothema variicornis PASCOE

Prothema variicornis Pascoe, 1886, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 17 (5) : 240 (loc. cit). - Aurivillius, 1912, Coleopt. Cat., 39 : 291.

Body black; mouth parts castaneous; head black; antennae pitchy; prothorax black with a very narrow band of lacteous pubescence near basal margin; scutellum white; elytra black, marking on each elytron producing a crusiform pattern; comprising of a submedian stripe from humeral angle that abruptly bent outwards at middle and another sutural stripe from apex that acutely bent outwards at about the same point; side of prothorax with an oblique stripe; median of prosternum densely clothed with lacteous pubescence; meso- and metasternum and abdomen fuscous; all densely clothed with silky white pubescence; legs fusco-castaneous.

Head oblique but not raised between antennal insertion; labrum corneous; clypeus and frons contigeous, rectangular, punctate; lower eye lobe triangular, with the posterior margin vertical. Antenna shorter than body; 1 - 5 filiform; 6 being first triangular segment (7 - 11 missing); 3 longer than scape, 2 X as long as 4; 4 reaching base of prothorax. Prothorax trapezoid, widen at base, as wide as elytra; side rounded, narrower towards apex; pronotum planate; weakly but closely punctate. Elytron 5 X as long as broad; disc with 2 mirrow-image of L-shaped pubescent stripes; parallel, apex gradually rounded. Legs : femora fusiform; hind femora sublinear, 1/3 of apex extended beyond elytral apex.

Measurement : Length 9.0 - 10.0 mm; breadth 2.5 - 3.0 mm

Distribution : Sarawak; Sabah (Labuan)

Material examined : 2 ex., (sex unknown) Matang (3600 ft), VI. 1900 (SM Coll.); Matang (3600 ft), VI.1900 (SM Coll.).

 

Prothema multicolor sp. nov.

Mouth parts castaneous; entire head black with sparse ashey pubescence, more aggregrated near ocular and antennal support; antennae black with fuscous tomentose on clavated segments; two terminal segments and part of segment 9 reddish-brown; prothorax black, with transverse lacteous band on apical and basal margin; another one side of pronotum; scutellum white; elytra basically black; humeral angle with a castaneous patch; a lacteous longitudinal sutural stripe behind scutellum that obliquely bent at middle; 1/5 of apex with a patch of whitish pubescence; prosternum, meso- and metasternum, episternuin of metathorax and abdomen fuscous, very densely clothed with silky white pubescence giving a velutineous look; fore and mid coxae hairy; hind coxae impubis, fuscous; legs pitchy with fense lacteous pubescence on femora.

Head vertical; basal margin of mandible feebly expended externally; frons with a A-shaped sulcus; inner margin of antennifer markedly inclinate and acutangulate; area between antennal insertion not raised; eyes deeply emarginate; upper eye lobe widely separated. Antenna shorter than body; scape punctate, punctures piliferous; 3 as long as scape; 4 & 5 subequal, half as long as 3; 3 - 5 finely punctulate and punctures piliferous; 6 & 7 obliquely produced externally; 8 - 10 strongly produced laterally, angulate ectoapically; 11 notched at 1/3 from apex, apical portion antennuate. Prothorax cydariform; broader than long; side rounded; pronotum evenly punctate, each puncture bearing a white setae; fore intercoxal process rounded at posterior. Scutellum bearing hairy bristles. Elytron 5 X as long as broad; disc coarsely punctate between impubis castaneous patch, apical pubescent patch favose; parallel, gradually rounded and transversely truncate at apex; truncation short, half the width of elytron. Undersurfaces : metasternum deep, together with first abdominal segment giving a circular edge; the latter dilated, as long as the remaining segments united; side profile of ventral contour bisinuate, concave below head, convex at metasternum and concave again at last few abdominal segments. Legs : fore and mid femora subclavate at apical half, distinctively punctate, pubescent; hind femora extended beyond elytral apex; first and second hind tarsal segments very long, both united about the same length as hind tibiae.

Holotype (SM Coll.) Mt. Merinjak (2200 ft), 28.V.1911. Length 11.0 mm; breadth 3.5 mm