Pseudolathra janaki Kocian & Hlaváč, 2018

Kocian, Matúš & Hlaváč, Peter, 2018, Review of the genus Pseudolathra Casey, 1905 (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Paederinae) of Réunion Island, Zootaxa 4531 (3), pp. 437-443 : 441-442

Pseudolathra janaki Kocian & Hlaváč , sp. n.

Figs 13–17 , 21 .

Description. Body ( Fig. 21 ) length 8.5–8.8 mm, blackish-brown, legs and antennae dark brown, tarsi and palpi slightly paler, yellowish-brown. Head and pronotum with blue-metallic sheen.

Head 0.92–1.02 mm wide, 0.97–1.0 mm long (measured from anterior margin of clypeus to post-occipital suture). Eyes in dorsal view approximately twice shorter than temples. Temples moderately tapering posteriad, posterior angles distinctly marked. Lateral and posterior part of head densely and deeply punctate, median part smooth, with some coarse frontal punctures. Surface smooth, weakly shiny, with very fine and indistinct microsculpture. Antennae 2.2 mm long, filiform, all antennomeres longer than wide.

Pronotum 1.07–1.12 mm broad, 1.27–1.40 mm long; 1.15–1.24 times longer than wide. Dorsal part with two rows of punctures, discal area impunctate, shiny; and with sparse punctation among lateral and dorsal rows of punctures. Microsculpture of pronotum and head identical.

Elytra 0.97–1.06 mm wide, widest in posterior angles, 0.61–0.66 times shorter than pronotum along suture. Surface matt, with distinct leather-like microsculpture, dorsum with lateral, sutural and four discal rows of shallow punctures. Apical margin bordered with row of short setae. Wings strongly reduced.

Abdomen as wide as elytra, laterally parallel, from segment VI slightly tapering toward apex. Tergites finely and relatively densely punctate, only tergite VIII sparsely punctate. Posterior margin of tergite VII without palisade fringe. Surface with fine transverse microsculpture.

Male: Male with sternite VII ( Fig. 16 ) densely pubescent, posterior margin in the middle straight, bordered with numerous dense modified short dark setae. Sternite VIII ( Fig. 17 ) with sparse pubescence, posterior excision narrow and very deep. Aedeagus ( Figs 13–15 ) well sclerotized, ventral process in ventral view in basal portion distinctly narrower than dorsal plate, with distinctly asymmetrical apex. Dorsal plate in apical part laterally with two symmetrical ear-like processes.

Female: Female sternite VII and VIII without conspicuous modifications.

Type material: Holotype, male: LA RÉUNION, 14.–21.II.2018, Forêt de Bébour , 1360 m, sifting in forest, - 21.110868S; 55.565811E, Hlaváč P. & Kocian M. lgt. ( NMP).

Paratypes (8): 2♂♂, 2♀♀: the same data as holotype, ( MHNR, cKoc) ; 1♂, 3♀♀: Réunion, 23.– 27.12.1991, Forêt de Bébour – Plaine des Marsouins , 1200–1400 m, J. Janák lgt. / Lobrathium gomyi Lecoq, J. Janák det. 1992 ( NMP, cJan) .

Two male paratypes are slightly immature, with paler, light brown colouration.

Etymology: The species is dedicated to Jiří Janák (Rtyně nad Bílinou, Czech Republic) specialist on Staphylinidae and the collector of several paratypes.

Distribution: Réunion.

Remarks. P. janaki sp. n. is closely related to P. gomyi and differs only by the shape of the aedeagus and male secondary sexual characters (see Remarks for P. gomyi and the key to species).

All specimens were collected in the central part of Réunion, Forêt de Bébour, by sifting forest litter in indigenous montane forest ( Fig. 22 ).

Figures

FIGURES 1–16. Pseudolathra keiseri (1–4), P. hamoni (5–8), P. gomyi (9–12), P. janaki sp. n. (13–16). Aedeagus from dorsal (1, 5, 9, 13), lateral (2, 6, 10, 14) and ventral (3, 7, 11, 15) view; posterior margin of male sternite VII (4, 8, 12, 16). Scale bar: 0.2 mm.

FIGURES 17–20. Male sternite VIII, schematic. Pseudolathra janaki sp. n. (17), P. gomyi (18), P. hamoni (19), P. keiseri (20). Scale bar: 0.2 mm.

FIGURES 21–23. Habitus of Pseudolathra janaki sp. n. (21); type locality of P. janaki sp. n., Forêt de Bébour (22); locality of P. gomyi, above La Plaine des Cafres (23).