''Giesbertiolus linnaei'' is a species of

scarab beetle The family Scarabaeidae, as currently defined, consists of over 30,000 species of beetles worldwide; they are often called scarabs or scarab beetles. The classification of this family has undergone significant change in recent years. Several sub ...

belonging to the

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end subfamily botanical names with "-oideae", and zoologi ...

Cetoniinae. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to Costa Rica.

Description

The species was first described in 2008 from a single female specimen collected in

Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...

in 1895 by Oliver E. Janson. Janson thought it may belong to the genus ''

Gnorimus ''Gnorimus'' is genus of beetles belonging to the family Scarabaeidae, subfamily Cetoniinae. Etymology The genus name ''Gnorimus'' derives from the ancient Greek γνώριμος, ''gnōrimos'' meaning 'famous'. Species * ''Gnorimus armeniacus ...

'', other experts who observed the specimen disagreed and labelled it ''Iridognorimus''. It was not formally described at the time in the hope that more specimens, particularly a male, would be found and more data would be available. Recently it was hoped that the publication of a formal description would help in the location of a male to verify whether it belongs to ''Giesbertiolus'' or if a new genus should be assigned.

Appearance

Krikken noted that the specimen was similar in appearance to the genus ''Giesbertiolus'' described in 1988 but slightly larger, with a body length of (other ''Giesbertiolus'' species are reported as being ). It has an almost complete set of punctate elytral striae and a slightly raised interstriae. The body and head are black and shiny with iridescent, greenish white markings and small punctures; the appendages on the head are brownish in colour. There is an abundance of fine pale yellow hair on the ventral side and some on the dorsal side.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Giesbertiolus linnaei Cetoniinae Beetles described in 2008 Endemic fauna of Costa Rica Beetles of Central America