Howeotranes insularis (Pascoe, 1874:387)
Taxonomy & Nomenclature
Synonym/s: Tranes insularis Pascoe, 1874:387 (basionym)
Transferred to the newly erected genus Howeotranes by (Zimmerman, 1994:696). Museomics has allowed the clarification of its phylogenetic relationships, and places the genus as the sister-group to Paratranes (Hsiao et al., 2023a,b).
Conservation Status
Presumed extinct (DECC NSW, 2007:23)
Last record: 1920's (DECC NSW, 2007:23)
The holotype was collected sometime prior to 1875, and the species was already reported as uncommon by (Olliff, 1889:91). The second (and last) specimen was collected in the 1920's (DECC NSW, 2007:23). However, Hsiao et al. (2023b:S1) give the date of collection of a specimen in the South Australian Museum as "probably 1889".
Only one species of weevil (Isacantha inculta) was collected on the island during a 2017 expedition (Reid et al., 2018), providing further evidence that the species may be extinct (Oberprieler & Zimmerman, 2020:594).
Distribution
Lord Howe Island, New South Wales, Australia
Olliff (1889:91) states: "Summit of Mount Ledgbird (2,500 feet) ; also found on the low-lying lands". Also inhabited the summit of Mt Gower by (DECC NSW, 2007:23).
Biology & Ecology
"the biology and hosts of Howeotranes are unknown"
(Oberprieler & Caldara, 2012:57)
Hypodigm
Only known from two specimens (DECC NSW, 2007:23). One specimen resides in the South Australian Museum (Hsiao et al., 2023b).
Media
One of the two preserved specimens can be seen on the CSIRO's Australian Weevils online website: https://weevils.csiro.au/howeotranes-insularis-pascoe-1874/
References
Original scientific description:
Pascoe, Francis P. (1874). Additions to the Australian Curculionidæ. Part VI. The Annals and Magazine of Natural History; Zoology, Botany, and Geology 4(13): 383-389.
Other references:
Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water. (2022). Conservation Advice for Macrozamia johnsonii (Johnson’s cycad). Canberra. ["suspected of being extinct (CSIRO
2022. pers comm. 23 January)"]
Department of Environment and Climate Change (NSW). (2007). Lord Howe Island Biodiversity Management Plan Appendices. Department of Environment and Climate Change (NSW), Sydney. vii + 267 pp. [p. 23]
Hsiao, Yun, Oberprieler, Rolf G., Zwick, Andreas, Zhou, Yu-Lingzi and Ślipiński, Adam (2023a). Museomics unveil systematics, diversity and evolution of Australian cycad-pollinating weevils. Proceedings of the Royal Society B 290: 20231385. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2023.1385
Hsiao, Yun, Oberprieler, Rolf G., Zwick, Andreas, Zhou, Yu-Lingzi and Ślipiński, Adam (2023b). Supplementary material from "Museomics unveil systematics, diversity and evolution of Australian cycad-pollinating weevils". The Royal Society. Collection. https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.c.6845626.v2
Oberprieler, Rolf G. and Caldara, Roberto. (2012). Siraton devillei Hustache (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), the mysterious weevil from the Isle of Elba: exiled no longer. Zootaxa 3573: 55-58.
Oberprieler, Rolf G. and Zimmerman, E. C. (2020). Australian Weevils (Coleoptera: Curculionoidea). Volume IV. Melbourne: CSIRO Publishing.
Olliff, Arthur Sidney. (1889). The insect fauna of Lord Howe Island. Australian Museum Memoir 2(4): 77-98, plate vi.
Reid, Chris A. M., Shaw, Josh Jenkins and Jensen, Arn R. (2018). The Australian Museum Lord Howe Island Expedition 2017—Coleoptera. Technical Reports of the Australian Museum, Online 26: 53-67. https://doi.org/10.3853/j.1835-4211.26.2018.1706
Zimmerman, E. C. (1994). Australian Weevils (Coleoptera: Curculionoidea). Volume 1. Orthoceri Anthribidae to Attelabidae: The Primitive Weevils. Melbourne: CSIRO Publishing.
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