Abstract
The Goliath beetles (subtribe Goliathina) are large Cetoniinae comprising a few highly related genera broadly distributed in sub-Saharan Africa. The genus Fornasinius Bertoloni was established in 1853 by Giuseppe Bertoloni to receive a taxon that was sufficiently distinct from the known representatives of the genus Goliathus Lamarck to merit a different placement. In spite of their large size and showy appearance, the members of the genus Fornasinius are poorly known. Here, the type species of the genus, F. fornasini Bertoloni, 1853 (type locality: Mozambique), is identified and re-described. It has emerged that F. fornasini Bertoloni has been misidentified after its original description and that only a few specimens are known of this species. F. fornasini sensu auct. (nec Bertoloni) is instead referable to another taxon, F. hauseri Kraatz, 1896 sp. bon., of which three subspecies can be distinguished: F. hauseri s. str., from south-central Kenya and possibly Cameroon; F. hauseri ssp. hirthi Preiss, 1904 stat. rev., from the Lake Victoria region and northern Tanzania; and a new subspecies to be described from south-east Democratic Republic of the Congo.
- Posted January 5, 2018.
