''Mecynorhina'' (frequently misspelled as ''Mecynorrhina''; the original spelling used a single "r" and the misspelling is not in prevailing usage, therefore not valid under the

ICZN The International Code of Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN) is a widely accepted convention in zoology that rules the formal scientific naming of organisms treated as animals. It is also informally known as the ICZN Code, for its publisher, the I ...

) are beetles from the subfamily Cetoniinae, tribe Goliathini. The genus was created by

Frederick William Hope Frederick William Hope (3 January 1797 – 15 April 1862) was an English clergyman, naturalist, collector, and entomologist, who founded a professorship at the University of Oxford to which he gave his entire collections of insects in 1849 (now ...

, in 1837. According to the last work of De Palma & Frantz, the type species of the genus is ''Scarabaeus polyphemus'' Fabricius, 1781. The genus is spread throughout the tropical African region.

Taxonomy

Former classification

Formerly there were three species in the genus ''Mecynorhina'': * ''

Mecynorhina oberthueri ''Mecynorhina'' (frequently misspelled as ''Mecynorrhina''; the original spelling used a single "r" and the misspelling is not in prevailing usage, therefore not valid under the ICZN) are beetles from the subfamily Cetoniinae, tribe Goliathini. ...

'' (Fairmaire, 1903) * ''

Mecynorhina torquata ''Mecynorhina torquata'' is a beetle from the subfamily Cetoniinae, tribe Goliathini. Description ''Mecynorhina torquata'' is among the largest flower beetles in the world, only surpassed by the goliath beetles. It reaches about of length in ...

'' (Drury, 1782) * ''

Mecynorhina ugandensis ''Mecynorhina ugandensis'' is a beetle from the subfamily Cetoniinae, tribe Goliathini, it was described by Julius Moser in 1907.Moser (J.), 1907. Beitrag zur Kenntniss der Cetoniden (3), Annales de la Société entomologique de Belgique, 51, p ...

'' (Moser, 1907) Some authors designated ''ugandensis'' as a subspecies of ''torquata''. ''Mecynorhina oberthuri'' was long thought to be the rarest species in its genus, however, Jean-Pierre Lequeux discovered that it is common in the forests of Tanzania. This species is now reared by many amateurs. The most variable species is ''Mecynorhina ugandensis'' where rarely two specimens are of the same aspect. Many variations have been illustrated by

Allard Allard may refer to: * Allard (surname), people with the surname Allard * Allard Motor Company * Allard River, river in Quebec * Allard, Edmonton * Peter A. Allard School of Law, the law school of the University of British Columbia Given name * ...

.Allard (V.), 1986. Les Coléoptères du Monde, volume 7, Goliathini 3. Sciences Nat
, Venette">Sciences Nat">Allard (V.), 1986. Les Coléoptères du Monde, volume 7, Goliathini 3. Sciences Nat
, Venette]

Current classification

Following De Palma & Frantz (''l.c.''), the genus is now divided in five subgenera: * ''Mecynorhina'' Hope, 1837 ** ''Mecynorhina polyphemus'' (Fabricius, 1781) * ''Mecynorrhinella'' Marais & Holm, 1992 ** ''

'' Fairmaire, 1903 ** ''

'' (Drury, 1782) ** ''

'' (Moser, 1907) (often treated as a subspecies of ''Mecynorhina torquata'') * ''Chelorhinella'' De Palma & Frantz, 2010 ** ''

Mecynorhina kraatzi ''Mecynorhina'' (frequently misspelled as ''Mecynorrhina''; the original spelling used a single "r" and the misspelling is not in prevailing usage, therefore not valid under the ICZN) are beetles from the subfamily Cetoniinae, tribe Goliathini. ...

'' (Moser, 1905) ** ''

Mecynorhina savagei ''Mecynorhina'' (frequently misspelled as ''Mecynorrhina''; the original spelling used a single "r" and the misspelling is not in prevailing usage, therefore not valid under the ICZN) are beetles from the subfamily Cetoniinae, tribe Goliathini. ...

'' Harris, 1844 * ''Megalorhina'' Westwood, 1847 ** ''

Mecynorhina harrisi ''Mecynorhina harrisi'' is a species of beetles belonging to the family Scarabaeidae, subfamily Cetoniinae. Subspecies * ''Mecynorhina harrisi eximia'' (Aurivillius, 1886) * ''Mecynorhina harrisi eximioides'' (Allard, 1989) * ''Mecynorhina h ...

'' (Westwood, 1847) ** ''

Mecynorhina mukengiana ''Mecynorhina'' (frequently misspelled as ''Mecynorrhina''; the original spelling used a single "r" and the misspelling is not in prevailing usage, therefore not valid under the ICZN) are beetles from the subfamily Cetoniinae, tribe Goliathini. ...

'' (Kolbe, 1884) ** ''

Mecynorhina taverniersi ''Mecynorhina'' (frequently misspelled as ''Mecynorrhina''; the original spelling used a single "r" and the misspelling is not in prevailing usage, therefore not valid under the ICZN) are beetles from the subfamily Cetoniinae, tribe Goliathini. ...

'' Allard, 1990 * ''Amaurodes'' Westwood, 1844 (Synonym = ''Chelorrhina'' Burmeister, 1842) ** ''

Mecynorhina passerinii ''Mecynorhina passerinii'', the Orange-Spotted Fruit Chafer, is a species of beetles belonging to the family Scarabaeidae, subfamily Cetoniinae. Subspecies * ''Mecynorhina passerinii dukei'' (Allard, 1985) * ''Mecynorhina passerinii nigricans ...

'' (Westwood, 1844) File:Mecynorrhinella oberthuri kirchneri Drumont, 1998 (3513433960).jpg, ''

'' File:Megalorhina harrisi harrisi Westwood, 1847 (3251082004).jpg, '' Mecynorhina harrisi harrisi''

References

Chelorrhina
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1315968 Cetoniinae