Species of the Tribe Lamiini (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) from the Reserva Biológica Alberto Manuel Brenes, San Ramón, Costa Rica

The knowledge of present species in protected areas has a great interest in order to estimate their biodiversity. In this work, we collected samples of the tribe Lamiini (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) in the Reserva Biológica Alberto Manuel Brenes, San Ramón, Costa Rica. Eleven species of Lamiini were identif ied: Plagiohammus albatus, Plagiohammus elatus, Plagiohammus emanon, Plagiohammus rubefactus, Plagiohammus spinipennis, Deliathis nivea, Deliathis quadritaeniator, Neoptychodes cretatus, Ptychodes politus lecontei, Taeniotes praeclarus, Taeniotes scalatus and Taeniotes xanthostictus. Two of these (P. albatus and P. elatus) are new for the studied area. Figures, descriptions, collection dates and their abundance level are provided from each identified species. Additional key words: biodiversity; Lamiinae; taxonomy.

tuto Nacional de Investigación y Tecnología Agraria y Alimentaria (INIA) of Spain, the Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingenieros Agrónomos de la Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM), and the Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional (AECI). Just recently budgetary support from the INIA for a project covering all of 2007, 2008, and 2009 has been confirmed.
The main objective of this work was to detect the presence of the Lamiini species in the study area, as well as identifying them, describing their flight periods and their abundance level. All identified species are contrasted with records from the Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad de Costa Rica (INBio). Since 1999, INBio is a recognized institution by the Co-misión Centroamericana de Ambiente y Desarrollo (CCAD), as a regional advisor on biodiversity.

Description of the area of study
The Reserva Biológica Alberto Manuel Brenes is located in Costa Rica, Sierra de Tilarán, between the district of Los Ángeles of San Ramón canton in Alajuela province and the La Unión de Montes de Oro district of Puntarenas province (Salazar-Rodríguez, 2006).
The prospecting areas situated near the reserve's field station and near to the access road known as «La Ventana» were the only ones that allowed for a certain degree of accessibility and are situated 850 and 950 meters above sea level, respectively.

Capture, preservation and identification
The entomological inventory methods, used at the reserve since 2007 were applied to the present capture, preservation and identification. The specimens were collected directly from tree trunks and the walls of the field station as well as from the sheets of light traps baited with 250 and 450 Watts mercury vapor bulbs situated on five meters high vertical supports. Two further light traps with mercury vapor bulbs of 125 and 100 Watts were also used; they also had vertical white sheet-screens supported by bars set in the ground.
Once the insects had been collected they were killed in cork sawdust and humidif ied with ethyl acetate lethal chambers. They were then labeled and placed in sealed plastic bags and were frozen to be later examined and preserved in the laboratory.
The research in the Reserva Biológica Alberto Manuel Brenes allowed us to capture eleven distinct species of this tribe, whose relative abundance and temporal distribution will now be looked at. We also caught sight of another example of a species collected at Parque Braulio Carrillo.

Species collected
Plagiohammus albatus (Bates, 1880 Two examples collected, 31-38 mm in length. Long robust looking body, subcylindrical and covered by a fine pubescence, clear reddish brown in color. Pronotum with a small whitish patch in the middle and another on the upper basal part of each side tubercle. Scutellum covered by a short fine pilosity, yellowish gray in color. Elytra ending in a spine and each one with four white fairly big maculas at the base, on the side, on the oblique area and the fourth one, rather smaller, at the apex. Furthermore, the elytra are speckled with other small white spots, between two and five on each one and irregularly distributed.
Recordings Three examples collected, 29-33 mm in length. Long, solid looking subcylindrical body. Head with eyes marginated by a dense yellow pubescence. Brown pronotum with prominent, conical, acute, side tubercle. Elytra with five white, irregularly distributed patches and also some whitish specks. The mesosternal tubercle is conspicuous, rounded and sticks out and is one of the distinctive characteristics of the species.
Recordings  Three examples collected. Length 30 mm. Long, subcylindrical body and of a more stylised general appearance than P. emanon. Each elytron with five or six large orangey brown patches which may be accompanied by similarly colored specks.
Recordings   Length 31 mm. Unmistakable appearance. Shiny black overall tegument color with a very dense covering of pubescence on the pronotum and elytra except in specific spotted areas where the shiny black color is highlighted. Another differential characteristic, evidently unnecessary, is a large and sturdy tubercle process on the mesosternon, running from top to bottom.
The only example captured, 11-V-2005, was found in Parque Braulio Carrillo, portable light trap by José Esteban.
Recorded period of flight: May. Conservation category: rare species. Comments: 21 specimens recorded at the INBio. All of them were collected in Guanacaste, except a specimen from Puntarenas. The recorded period flight ranges from June to December (INBio, 2008).
Deliathis quadritaeniator (White, 1846) ( Fig. 7a, b) Four examples collected, 34-40 mm in length. Long, subcylindrical, robust body. Convex elytra. Overall color dark reddish brown except for small circular areas covered with a fine and dense pubescence of a variety of colors: orangey and an almost white gray in longitudinal bands on the elytra. The tubercle process of the mesosternon is short and subconic. Neoptychodes cretatus (Bates, 1872) (Fig. 8a ,b) Numerous examples seen and collected, of which only fifteen were preserved and which are held in the «José Rafael Esteban Durán, collection» at the INIA, Madrid, Spain; 23-33 mm in length. Long, oval, subcylindrical body with convex elytra that finishes in a characteristic point. Overall color a dark reddish brown covered with a very fine and short pubescence of a lighter brown color with patches of a yellowish white color on various parts of the elytra and body. Without a doubt the most common species in the Reserve and has been recorded throughout the year even though it is not often attracted by mercury vapor lamps.
Recordings: a great number from January and February until December with the greatest frequency from March to June. In all cases collected from the outer walls and interior of the field station.
Recorded period of flight: all year round. Conservation category: very common and abundant species.
Comments: many specimens from the Costa Rica area have been listed by the INBio.
Ptychodes politus lecontei (Thomson, 1856) (Fig. 9) A single example collected by hand during the day and now held in the «José Rafael Esteban Durán collection» at the INIA, Madrid, Spain; 23 mm in length. Long body with convex elytra and bidentate apices. Overall color, shiny black with a central whitish band running down the pronotum and elytra. Two incomplete transverse lines of the same color on the initial third of both elytra with spots along the edges.
Recordings  December with the greatest frequency from April to September (INBio, 2008).
Taeniotes praeclarus (Bates, 1872) (Fig. 10a, b) More than fifteen examples of which nine have been preserved in the reserve collection. 26-30 mm in length. Long body, oval, subcylindrical, robust and with subconvex elytra. Overall color a very dark brown, almost black, moderately shiny with a fine and almost imperceptible grayish brown pubescence turning yellow in the central longitudinal band which runs along the entire dorsal part of the body and the patches and spots which speckle the elytra and which do not have spiky apical formations.
Recordings: numerous during February and June mainly, almost all on the walls and roof of the field station and occasionally in the light trap.
Recorded period of flight: between January and September.
Conservation category: common species. Comment: 38 specimens recorded at the INBio, collected at a range of elevations from 720 to 1,520 meters between 1988 and 1994. Collected from Liberia, Monteverde, Arenal, Tapantí, Rincón de la Vieja and Corcovado. Recorded flight periods from February to December with the greatest frequency from April to September (INBio, 2008).
Taeniotes scalatus (Gmelin, 1790) (Fig. 11a, b) Numerous examples seen and collected of which only a dozen are preserved in the reference collection at the INIA, Madrid. Length 22-37 mm. This species, which according to Dillon & Dillon (1941) was closely related to T. amazonum and T. pulverulentus, is today thought to in fact be pulverulentus and to be distinguishable from amazonum by the teeth on the apexes of its elytra, which in the latter are rounded and, in rare cases, slightly sharp, but not in the joint. The body is subcylindrical, long and oval, not very robust and quite stylized. Overall color dark brown, almost black and shiny with some lines of matted yellow pubescence and a few specks of a similar nature and color. The matted yellow areas are distributed in a central, fairly narrow, more or less continuous band which runs along the upper part of the insect's body from the head to the end of the elytra.
The antennae in males are more than twice as long as their bodies. The mesosternal tubercle is small but noteworthy.
Recordings: numerous from February to June, almost always on tree trunks and on the walls and roofs of the field station.
Recorded period flight: January to July. Conservation category: common species. Comment: 381 specimens registered at the INBio as Taeniotes scalaris (Fabricius, 1781) collected at a range of elevations from sea level to 1,520 meters,  most commonly from low ground, between 1977 and 1994, from all over the country. Recorded flight periods from February to December with the greatest frequency from April to September (INBio, 2008).
Taeniotes xanthostictus (Bates, 1880) (Fig. 12a, b) Eleven examples collected. Length 25-36 mm. Fairly robust appearance, long and ovaloid from the third part of the base of the subconvex elytra which have broad basal parts square in form. Overall wood brown color with round patches of yellow pubescence on all elytra. The antennas of the females are slightly longer than their bodies but they double the length of the male bodies. An unmistakable species both in form and coloration.
Recordings: numerous, generally on the walls and roof of the field station and, with less frequency, in the light trap. Only eleven examples collected.
Recorded flight period: January to June. Conservation category: common species. Comments: 141 specimens registered at the INBio, collected at a range of elevations from 1520 meters to sea level, most commonly from low ground. Recorded flight periods from February to December with the greatest frequency from April to September (INBio, 2008).

Discussion
The diversity of species of the Tribe Lamiini found in the Reserva Biológica Alberto Manuel Brenes, some 60% of those found in the entire country, confirms the park's rich biodiversity. Two species, P. albatus and P. elatus have never been enlistened by INBio.
The examples seen (just one of D. nivea) and collected, confirms the entomological biodiversity of the Lamiini tribe in the Reserva Biológica Alberto Manuel Brenes.
Adults of certain species, all of them of the genera Plagiohammus and Deliathis are rare or infrequent in the prospected enclaves of this ecosystem. They are concentrated in specif ic years such as the cases of D. nivea in 2005 and D. quadritaeniator in 2006 and 2007, P. albatus and P. elatus in 2006, 2007 and, in very short periods during the year P. rubefactus in February and P. emanon in May and June.
The recorded species of the genera Neoptychodes and Taeniotes showed a greater range of examples in the ecosystem studied and longer periods of flight too, which conf irms their area of distribution as being essentially neotropical. These abundant or very abundant species have been regularly captured every year and from January to December in N. cretatus.
It is noteworthy that the majority of examples collected from the Neoptychodes and Taeniotes were found on the walls and roof of the field station and on the trunks of nearby trees during the day. They may have been attracted by the building's interior illumination or they may just have been caught on the walls of the buildings. They were not generally caught by the mercury vapor bulb light traps though they sometimes were by UV light, such was the case of T. xanthostictus.
It must be pointed out that two of the described species (Plagiohammus albatus and Plagiohammus elatus) had not been mentioned before by INBio, being therefore the first quotes in Costa Rica.