Rhinusa Stephens: a taxonomic revision of the species belonging to the R. tetra and R. bipustulata groups (Coleoptera Curculionidae).

The species of Rhinusa Stephens, 1829 (Curculionidae, Curculioninae, Mecinini) belonging to the R. tetra and R. bipustulata groups are revised. Four of them from Middle East are new to science. The R. bipustulata group includes five species: R. bipustulata (Rossi, 1792); R. pelletieri sp. nov. ; R. scrophulariae Caldara, 2009; R. algirica (Brisout de Barneville, 1862); R. emmrichi (Bajtenov, 1979), whereas the R. tetra group includes nine species: R. tetra (Fabricius, 1792); R. verbasci (Rosenschoeld, 1838); R. ensifer sp. nov. ; R. moroderi (Reitter, 1906); R. weilli sp. nov. ; R. comosa (Rosenschoeld, 1838); R. acifer sp. nov. ; R asellus (Gravenhorst, 1807); R. tenuirostris (Stierlin, 1888). The following new synonym is proposed: Rhinusa bipustulata (Rossi, 1792) (= Gymnetron municipale Voss, 1960 syn. nov. ). The neotype of Rhynchaenus asellus Gravenhorst, 1807 was designated. Moreover, the following lectotypes are designated: Cionus spilotus Germar, 1821; Gymnetron bipustulatum var. germari Faust, 1889; Gymnetron bodenheimeri Wagner, 1926; Gymnetron cylindrirostre Gyllenhal, 1838; Gymnetron nasutum Rosenschoeld, 1838; Gymnetron plagiatum Gyllenhal, 1838; Gymnetron polonicum Rosenschoeld, 1838; Gymnetron tenuirostre Stierlin, 1888. A key to the species, diagnoses of species groups, descriptions or redescriptions, notes on type specimens, synonymies, comparative notes, distribution, bionomics when available, photographs of habitus and drawings of rostra, terminalia and other useful characters for taxonomy are provided.