E. Nearns et al.: New species of Plectromerus Haldeman (Cerambycidae) from Navassa Island …
Zootaxa 1163: 61-68 (2006) ISSN 1175-5326 (print edition)
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ZOOTAXA
Copyright © 2006 Magnolia Press ISSN 1175-5334 (online edition)
A new species of Plectromerus Haldeman (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) from Navassa Island, Greater Antilles
EUGENIO H. NEARNS & WARREN E. STEINER, Jr.
Department of Entomology and Nematology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611 USA
E-mail: gnearns@ufl.edu
Department of Entomology, NHB-187, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC, 20013 USA.
E-mail: steinerw@si.edu
Abstract
A new species, Plectromerus navassae (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae: Cerambycinae: Curiini), from
Navassa Island, Greater Antilles, is described. Features distinguishing the new species from its
congeners are presented.
Key words: Cerambycinae, Curiini, Caribbean, West Indies, taxonomy, endemic
Introduction
Navassa Island is located approximately 160 km south of Guantanamo, Cuba and 56 km
west of Haiti (Fig. 1). The uninhabited, beachless island rises abruptly from the sea with
cliffs reaching heights of more than 20 m and covers a mere 5 km2. An unincorporated
territory of the U.S. since 1857, the tiny island is now home to the Navassa National
Wildlife Refuge, established in 1999 by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to preserve and
protect the islandÒs biodiversity. The island, estimated to be between 2 and 5 million years
old, has never been connected to another larger land mass, and is composed of Eocene
limestone with rugged karst surface characterized by red oolitic soil. A recent expedition
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