A significant northern range extension for the rarely collected New Zealand longhorn beetle Drototelus politus Broun (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae)

Abstract

Drototelus politus was originally described from a single specimen collected by G.V. Hudson at Karori, Wellington (Broun, 1903: 82). Hudson (1934: 114) stated that it was "apparently confined to the immediate neighbourhood of Wellington". Wang and Lu revised the genus, and examined 15 specimens of D. politus, 13 from the vicinity of Wellington, plus 2 from the vicinity of Mount Ruapehu. These records fit a pattern of distribution shown by a few New Zealand invertebrates that are confined to the North Island south of the Taupo line (an imaginary line across the island at approximately 39°S), e.g., Allocinopus angustulus Broun, Megadromus turgidiceps (Broun) (Coleoptera: Carabidae). It was quite unexpected, then, when in 2008 one of us (ST) identified two specimens collected from Cascades Park in the Waitakere Ranges, Auckland (36° 53'S 174° 31'E). The two specimens were caught in two different Perspex flight intercept traps (FIT) set for c. 4 weeks in January 2007 in native forest on the Lower Kauri Track (FIT 5), and nearby Upper Kauri Track (FIT 6). None of the other 14 FIT's caught this species.