Lycocerus metalliceps, Yang, Yuxia & Yang, Xingke, 2014

Yang, Yuxia & Yang, Xingke, 2014, Notes on Lycocerus kiontochananus (Pic, 1921) and description of two new species of Lycocerus Gorham from China (Coleoptera, Cantharidae), Zootaxa 3774 (6), pp. 523-534 : 529

Lycocerus metalliceps sp. nov.

Figs 5–6 , 16–17 , 23–25 , 33

Type material. CHINA: Sichuan: Holotype ♂ ( IZAS): Mt. Emei, Jiulaodong , 1800−1900m, 22.VII.1957, leg. Ke-Ren Huang ( IZAS). Paratypes: 3♂♂, 3♀♀ ( IZAS): same data as holotype; 1♂ ( IZAS): same data, 28.VII.1957; 1♀ ( IZAS): same data, 8.V.1957; 1♀ ( IZAS): same data, 25.VIII.1957; 2♀♀ ( IZAS): same data, 2.VIII.1957; 4♀♀ ( IZAS): same data, 31.VII.1957; 1♀ ( IZAS): same data, 11.VIII.1957; 1♀ ( IZAS): same locality, 3.VIII.1957, leg. You-Cai Yu; 1♀ ( IZAS): same data, 30.VII.1957; 1♂ ( IZAS): same data, 31.VII.1957; 1♂ ( IZAS): same data, 7.VII.1957; 1♀ ( IZAS): same data, 17.VIII.1957; 1♀ ( IZAS): Mt. Emei, Baoguosi , 550−750m, 28.VII.1957, leg. Zong-Yuan Wang; 1♀ ( IZAS): Mt. Emei, Xixiangchi , 1800−2000m, 17.VIII.1957, leg. Ke-Ren Huang; 1♀ ( IZAS): same locality, 21.VIII.1957, leg. Fu-Xing Zhu; 1♀ ( IZAS): same data, 19.VIII.1957; 1♀ ( MHBU): Mabian, Yonghong , 22.−24.VII.2004, leg. Xiu-Juan Yang & Hui-Ran Hua; 1♂ ( SYSU): “W. China, Szechuan, Omei Shan summit, 2900−3060m, 11.VIII.1940, L. Gressitt ”.

Description. Male ( Fig. 5 ). Body black, head metallic dark blue and weakly shiny on dorsum, clypeus and mouthparts yellow, mandibles dark brown at apices, maxillary and labial palpi black, prothorax yellowish brown, abdominal sternite IX and posterior margins of other ventrites yellow. Body densely covered with black pubescence, head, pronotum, all coxae, trochanters and ventral sides of femora, meso- and meta-ventrites and ventral surface of abdomen with pale yellow pubescence, of which slightly longer on clypeus than other parts.

Head sub-rounded, surface finely and densely punctuate, width across eyes distinctly wider than anterior margin of pronotum, eyes distinctly protruding; terminal maxillary palpomere nearly triangular, widest near apex, apical part of inner margin arcuate; antennae ( Fig. 16 ) extending to apical one-third length of elytra when reclined, antennomeres II slightly longer than wide at apex, III −XI flattened, III −IX slightly widened apically, III about twice longer than wide at apex, IV slightly longer than III, VI longest, X −XI nearly parallel-sided, XI slightly longer than X and acute at apex.

Pronotum subquadrate, nearly as long as wide, widest near base, anterior margin arcuate, lateral margins nearly parallel and slightly sinuate, posterior margin nearly straight, anterior angles rounded, posterior angles nearly rectangular, disc slightly convex on posterolateral parts, surface finely and slightly sparsely punctuate than that on head.

Elytra about 4 times longer than pronotum, 3.5 times longer than width across humeri, humeral width distinctly wider than posterior margin of pronotum, outer margins nearly parallel, disc mat, coarsely and densely punctuate, present with two slightly distinct longitudinal costae near inner margins. Legs slender, pro- and meso-outer tarsal claws each with a tooth at base.

Abdominal sternite IX long-triangular. Aedeagus ( Figs. 23–25 ): ventral process of each paramere widened, bent inwards at apical one-third, with apex rounded, dorsal plate with apical margin rounded and fringed with long hairs, outer angle acute and opposite to the apex of laterophyse, outer margin nearly straight; laterophyse with apex distinctly hooked, shorter than ventral process of each paramere.

Female ( Fig. 6 ). Similar to the males, but eyes less protruding, anternnae ( Fig. 17 ) shorter and narrower, extending to basal one-third length of elytra when reclined, pronotum slightly wider than long, disc indistinctly convex, elytra with outer margins slightly diverging posteriorly, legs with pro- and meso-outer claws each with a tooth at base, abdominal sternite VIII ( Fig. 33 ) wide, with a very small middle and two slightly large lateral emarginations at posterior margin, the middle emargination far from the lateral ones, the portion of posterior margin between middle and lateral emarginations nearly straight.

Body length: 6.7−9.5 mm; width: 1.5−2.2 mm.

Distribution. China (Sichuan).

Diagnosis. This species can be easily distinguished from others by the head metallic dark blue and weakly shiny on posterior part of dorsum; pronotum nearly parallel-sided; aedeagus: ventral process of each paramere bent inwards at apical one-third; abdominal sternite VIII of female with a very small middle emargination of posterior margin.

Etymology. The specific name is derived from Greek “ metall ” (metallic) and Latin “ ceps ”(head), referring to its head with weakly metallic shine on dorsum.

Figures

FIGURES 5 – 8. Habitus, dorsal view: 5 – 6. Lycocerus metalliceps sp. nov.; 7 – 8. L. hainanus sp. nov. 5, 7. male; 6, 8 female.

FIGURES 9 – 19. Antennae, dorsal view: 9 – 10. Lycocerus kiontochananus (Pic, 1921); 11 – 12. L. perroudi (Pic, 1937) stat. rev.; 13. L. atropygidialis (Pic, 1937) stat. nov.; 14 – 15. L. jendeki Švihla, 2005; 16 – 17. L. metalliceps sp. nov.; 18 – 19. L. hainanus sp. nov. 9, 11, 14, 16, 18. male; 10, 12, 13, 15, 17, 19. female. Scale bar: 1 mm.

FIGURES 20–28. Aedeagus: 20, 23, 26. ventral view; 21, 24, 27. dorsal view; 22, 25, 28. lateral view. 20–22. Lycocerus perroudi (Pic, 1937) stat. rev.; 23–25. L. metalliceps sp. nov.; 26–28 L. hainanus sp. nov. Scale bars: 1 mm.

FIGURES 29 – 34. Abdominal sternite VIII of female, ventral view: 29. Lycocerus kiontochananus (Pic, 1921); 30. L. perroudi (Pic, 1937) stat. rev.; 31. L. atropygidialis (Pic, 1937) stat. nov.; 32. L. jendeki Švihla, 2005; 33. L. metalliceps sp. nov.; 34. L. hainanus sp. nov. Scale bars: 1 mm.