Sunius deplectens, Assing, 2015

Assing, Volker, 2015, A revision of Sunius XV. Six new species from Kyrgyzstan and the Himalaya, and additional records (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Paederinae), Beiträge Zur Entomologie = Contributions to Entomology 65 (2), pp. 287-295 : 293

Sunius deplectens spec. nov.

( Figs 15–18 )

Type material: Holotype ♂: “ INDIA W. Begal, Darjeeling distr. , Algarah 1800 m 9.X.78, Besuchet-Löbl / Holotypus ♂ Sunius deplectens spec. nov. det. V. Assing 2015” ( MHNG) . Paratype ♂: same data as holotype (cAss) .

Etymology: The specific epithet is the present participle of the Latin verb deplecti (to claw, to cling, to scratch) and alludes to the claw-shaped internal structures of the aedeagus.

Description: Body length 3.4–4.0 mm; length of forebody 1.8–1.9 mm. External characters ( Fig. 15 ) similar to those of S. marratus , except for the slightly larger size. ♂: sternite VII without distinct modifications; sternite VIII ( Fig. 16 ) distinctly oblong, approximately 1.25 times as long as broad, and with a posterior incision of subtriangular shape, its depth approximately one-tenth the length of sternite; aedeagus ( Figs 17–18 ) of distinctive morphology, approximately 0.6 mm long; ventral process of distinctive shape; internal sac with pair of long and similarly shaped, apically claw-shaped sclerotized structures.

Comparative notes: Sunius deplectens , too, belongs to the S. manasluensis group. Among the species of this group, it is characterized by the shape of the male sternite VIII, the shape of the ventral process of the aedeagus, and particularly the shapes of the internal structures of the aedeagus.

Distribution and natural history: The type locality is situated near Algarah in Darjeeling district (North India: West Bengal) at an altitude of 1800 m.

Figures

Figs 15–26: Sunius deplectens spec. nov. (15–18), S. dearmatus spec. nov. (19–22), and S. migrus spec. nov. (23–26): forebody (15, 19, 23); male sternite VIII (16, 20, 24); aedeagus in lateral and in ventral view (17–18, 21–22, 25–26). Scale bars: 15, 19, 23: 0.5 mm; 16, 20, 24: 0.2 mm; 17–18, 21–22, 25–26: 0.1 mm.