Geostiba (Tropogastrosipalia) priva, Assing, 2006

Assing, V., 2006, Thirteen new species and additional records of Eastern Mediterranean Geostiba THOMSON (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae, Aleocharinae), Linzer biologische Beiträge 38 (2), pp. 1179-1215 : 1179-1215

Geostiba (Tropogastrosipalia) priva sp.n. ( Figs 78-85 , Map 4 )

Holotype 3: TR [3] - Gümüşhane, ca. 25 km SW Gümüşhane, Tersundağı Geç., 2070 m, 40°17'38N, 39°18'05E, 24.VII.2006, V. Assing / Holotypus 3 Geostiba priva sp.n. det. V. Assing 2006 (cAss). Paratype ♀: same data as holotype (cAss).

D e s c r i p t i o n: Small species, 2.4-2.7 mm (abdomen fully extended). Coloration: pale reddish, with abdominal segment VI and adjacent segments more or less distinctly infuscate; legs yellowish.

Facies as in Fig. 78 . Head with very shallow microreticulation, somewhat shiny ( Fig. 79 ); puncturation very fine and very sparse, barely noticeable. Eyes small ( Fig. 80 ), not protruding from lateral outline of head, less than 1/3 the length of postocular region in dorsal view.

Pronotum with weak sexual dimorphism, in both sexes weakly transverse, 1.05-1.10 times as wide as long; puncturation very sparse and very fine; microsculpture similar to that of head. Elytra less than 0.6 times as long as pronotum, with moderate sexual dimorphism, in both sexes weakly impressed and with indistinctly granulose puncturation.

Abdomen with shallow microsculpture, with fine and sparse puncturation; anterior tergites without sexual dimorphism; posterior margin of tergite VII with or without indistinct rudiment of a palisade fringe.

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3: posterior margin of pronotum weakly pointed in the middle ( Fig. 79 ); elytra with narrow, moderately elevated and rather long sutural carinae extending along anterior 2/3 of suture; process of tergite VII short, in lateral view broad-based, and in antero-dorsal view slender ( Figs 81-82 ); posterior margin of tergite VIII weakly, that of sternite VIII distinctly convex; median lobe of aedeagus with very slender needle-shape cristal process ( Fig. 83 ); apical lobe of paramere shaped as in other species of the subgenus.

♀: posterior margin of pronotum weakly convex; posterior margins of tergite and sternite

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VIII weakly convex; spermatheca similar to that of other consubgeners ( Fig. 84 ). E t y m o l o g y: The name (Lat., adj.: free of) refers to the absence of tubercles on the anterior male tergites, the most evident character distinguishing this species from the similar G. solodovnikovi . C o m p a r a t i v e n o t e s: In size, coloration, and sexual characters, G. priva is highly similar to G. solodovnikovi , from which it is distinguished especially by the shape of the male pronotum (in G. solodovnikovi weakly oblong, posteriorly more strongly convex, not pointed in the middle) and by the absence of tubercles on the male abdominal tergites III and IV. In order to account for the new species, the key in ASSING (2005a) is modified as follows: 80 3: elytra with enormous, in lateral view crescent-shaped sutural carinae..................81 - 3: elytra near apex of scutellum only with tubercles, or with short or with weakly elevated sutural carinae.............................................................................................82a 82a Eyes very small, less than 1/3 the length of postocular region in dorsal view ( Fig.

80). 3: elytra with long sutural carinae; elytra with long (but weakly elevated)

sutural carinae; median lobe of aedeagus with needle-shaped cristal process ( Fig.

83). NE-Anatolia: Gümüşhane ( Map 4 ).................................................... G. priva sp.n. - Eyes more than 1/3 the length of postocular region in dorsal view. 3: elytra without or with short sutural carinae. Species from NW-Turkey or from central southern Anatolia........................................................................................................83

D i s t r i b u t i o n a n d b i o n o m i c s: The type locality is situated to the southwest of Gümüşhane, northeastern Anatolia ( Map 4 ). The two specimens were sifted from litter and grass on the margin of a spruce forest at an altitude of 2070 m ( Fig. 85 ).

Figures

Map 4: Distributions of Geostiba solodovnikovi (square), G. elmaica (open circle), and G. priva (filled circle) in Turkey.

Figs 78-84: Geostiba priva sp.n.: (78) 3 habitus; (79) 3 forebody; (80) head in lateral view; (81) 3 abdominal tergites VII-VIII in lateral view; (82) 3 tergite VII in antero-dorsal view; (83) median lobe of aedeagus in lateral view; (84) spermatheca. Scale bars: 78: 1.0 mm; 79-82: 0.2 mm; 83-84: 0.1 mm.

Fig. 85: Type locality of G. priva (photo by M. Schülke).