Notes on the distribution, food plants and morphology of Chlorophanus C. R. Sahlberg, 1823 species (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) in Turkey

• Published in: Journal of insect biodiversity Vol. 49; no. 1; pp. 1 - 30
• Main Authors: GÜLTEKİN, NESLİHAN, ISMAILOVA, MADINA Sh, GÜLTEKİN, LEVENT, KOROTYAEV, BORIS A., YUNAKOV, NIKOLAI
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 14.05.2024
• ISSN: 2538-1318; 2147-7612
• DOI: 10.12976/jib/2024.49.1.1

Chlorophanus vittatus Schoenherr, 1832, known from the Caucasus and northern Iran, is here newly reported from eastern Turkey. Salix L., Populus L., Tamarix L. and Glycyrrhiza glabra L. are revealed as host plants of adults in Turkey. Feeding and mating behavior of adults were observed on leaves of G. glabra during the summer period in the Aras River valley. The lectotype of Ch. vittatus is designated, description and digital photographs of the genitalia are presented based on newly collected material. Distributional data for Ch. vittatus, Ch. excisus (Fabricius, 1801) and Ch. pollinosus (Fabricius, 1792) in Turkey are reported, the latter species is also recorded from Turkey for the first time. Chlorophanus flavescens (Fabricius, 1787) is deleted from the list of the Iranian fauna, and Ch. excisus, from the list of the Russian fauna. Characteristic ecological and distributional features of the genus Chlorophanus C. R. Sahlberg, 1823 are discussed, and notes on the riparian habitats in Turkey are given to attract attention to the necessity of their preservation. As a fragile member of the riparian insect species complex, a weevil, Corimalia aliena (Faust, 1890), formerly known only from Central Palaearctic, is reported for the first time from Turkey where it was found on Myricaria sp. in Erzurum Province. Chlorophanus excisus co-occurs with Ch. vittatus in eastern Turkey and western Iran, or at least their ranges overlap there. These two species contribute to the maximum local Chlorophanus diversity in Erzincan and Erzurum provinces. Chlorophanus micans is recorded in Crimean Mountains and Southern Bug River valley indicating a potential current contact between Ch. micans and Ch. pollinosus in Podolian Upland.