Adults are approximately 18–28 mm long.
Fine-art photographic collection
Phymasterna lacteoguttata
A milk-spotted Madagascan longhorn that anchors not only a genus but the name of an entire tribe.
About this species
Phymasterna lacteoguttataLaporte de Castelnau, 1840
Information reviewed15 July 2026
Phymasterna lacteoguttata is an endemic Madagascan longhorn with pale “milk-drop” markings. It is the type species of Phymasterna and ultimately anchors the tribal name Phymasternini.
Taxonomy
Animalia · Arthropoda · Insecta · Coleoptera · Cerambycidae · Phymasterna
Accepted taxon. · checked 2026-07-15
MadagascarBroad range and selected reference localities — not a complete occurrence map.
Madagascar
Forest and woodland with dead or weakened woody plants.
Adults occur on trunks and branches.
Larvae bore in woody tissue.
Solitary.
What makes this species remarkable?
This single species is the type species of Phymasterna by monotypy, so every decision about the boundary and name of the genus is permanently tied to the anatomy of P. lacteoguttata.
The genus then became the type for the tribe Phymasternini, meaning the name of an entire higher taxonomic group ultimately rests on this one milk-spotted Madagascan beetle.
Its nomenclature exposed a genuine rules problem: an earlier Dejean use of Phymasterna included different species, forcing specialists to discuss formal action to preserve the later, familiar biological meaning.
Sources and scientific references
- GBIF — taxon record/search for Phymasterna lacteoguttata
- Catalogue of Life — taxon search for Phymasterna lacteoguttata
- Bousquet 2013 — type species by monotypy and nomenclatural problem
- Catalogue of Cerambycidae family-group names — Phymasternini and type species
- Wikispecies genus record and type-species statement