Matthewsius penelopae ( Matthews & Weir, 2002 ) Matthews & Weir, 2002

Gunter, Nicole L. & Weir, Thomas A., 2017, Two new genera of Australian dung beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae) with the description of six new species and transfer of six described species, Zootaxa 4290 (2), pp. 201-243 : 217-218

Matthewsius penelopae ( Matthews & Weir, 2002) new combination

Figs 2 I, 3B, 6B, 5E

Lepanus penelopae Matthews & Weir, 2002: 79

Material examined. South Australia: Paratypes: [34°27'00''S, 135°30'00''E], Marble Range, Eyre Peninsula, P.J.M. Greenslade, 4 October 1979 (in ANIC 25-038373 ) ; [34°27'00''S, 135°30'00''E], Marble Range, Eyre Peninsula, P.J.M. Greenslade, 1–5 October 1979 (in ANIC 25-038374); [34°59'00''S, 138°43'00''E], Mount Lofty Ranges, collector unknown, February–March 2000 (in SAMA (as 25-027788–90). Other material: 34°25'33''S, 135°30'12''E, Eyre Peninsula, 5.7 km SSE Coulta , E. Matthews & T. Weir, 6–11 December 2004 (in SAMA (as 25- 027791–9) ; 4°53'48''S, 135°40'14''E, Eyre Peninsula, 15.2 km, WSW Tulka, 12–16 December 2004 (in SAMA (as 25-027800); 34°28'04''S, 135°29'36''E, Eyre Peninsula, 8.1 km NNE Wangary , 6–11 December 2004 (in SAMA (as 25-027801) ; 35°28'31''S, 138°13'07''E, 2.3 km ESE Goondooloo Homestead, S Mount Lofty Range survey, 20–26 February 2000 (in SAMA (as 25-027802–4) ; 35°37'55''S, 138°15'36''E, Deep Creek National Park, Tappa Nappa, G. Monteith, 11–12 March 2011, (in ANIC 25-053862, 25–053902 ) ; 34°27'40''S, 135°29'46''E, Marble Range, spring” G. Monteith, 9–10 March 2011 (in ANIC 25-053863); 35°36'29''S, 138°15'40''E, " Deep Creek National Park, Boat Harbour turnoff, G. Monteith, 11–12 March 2011 (in ANIC 25-053864–5 ) .

Description. Colour: Black. Antennae yellow.

Total length: 4.8–5.6 mm

Male: Head: Broad U-shape between clypeal teeth, which are slightly upturned. Rest of margin of head feebly convex to eye, slight angulation at clypeogenal suture. Mentum almost square, bordered anteriorly, reticulate, with setation dense on posterior corners. Edge of head bordered, wider between eye canthus and suture, genal angle slightly prominent. Dorsal parts of eyes narrow, parallel sided, separated by an interocular space of about 17 times eye width; eye canthus not dividing eye. Surface smooth, nitid, glabrous, with extremely heavy, round punctures separated by less than 1 diameter. Head width to length ratio 45:30.

Pronotum: Anterior angles almost 90° with a distinct border. Basal angles rounded and obtuse, basal margin rounded, lateral edge margined. Hypomeron surface reticulate and heavily punctate with ocellate punctures. Punctures along basal margin almost extend to basal edge, with punctures different from disc. All punctures round, without setae, separated by 1 diameter; punctures less dense medially. Hypomeral stria short. Pronotum width to length ratio 80:46.

Elytra: Surface shiny, smooth, = glabrous. Intervals smooth and finely punctate, without setae. Elytral striae narrow, shallowly impressed, with simple punctures. All striae on disc equal width, extending to the base; 7th striae much less impressed than 1–6 and only present in basal 2/3rd; 8th striae confined to groove posteriorly. Ratio of length of elytra along suture to maximum elytral width 74:85.

Legs: Prothoracic legs with trochantofemoral anterior pit and trochanter excavated dorsally for reception of inner apical edge of protibia. Protibiae with 3 teeth on outer edge, which is serrate between teeth and proximal to them; each tooth with 2 groups of setae dorsally, front edge straight between apical tooth and short broad apical spur. The tooth on underside near base of tarsus is a sharp projection. Protibiae inner apical angle produced, with an apical comb of short, flattened bristles and on lower surface a brush of long setae extending beyond edge of comb. Claws small and simple. Mesotibiae broad and densely setose on the inner side. Metatibiae slightly bent with inner edge of tibia not crenulate. Males with small, blunt tooth at inner apical edge of metatibiae. Tarsomere 1 wider than the other tarsomeres but not lobed. Tarsi of male densely setose.

Abdomen: Pygidium with transverse groove at base reaching basal angle, narrowed medially. Ventrites reticulate, with a row of punctures along the anterior edge of ventrites 2–5, ventrite 6 punctate. Suture between abdominal ventrites simple.

Pterothorax: Medial lobe of metaventrite finely punctate and broadly margined between mesocoxae. Mesometaventral suture slightly arched. Lateral lobe of the metaventrite with horseshoe-shaped punctures. Mesoventrite smooth with horseshoe-shaped punctures not extending medially, not notched anteriorly. Mesepimera and metanepisterna smooth and reticulate, heavily punctate, with horseshoe-shaped punctures.

Hind wings: Absent.

Female: Protibiae not expanded at the inner apical angle and with longer apical spur. Setae on tarsomeres slightly less dense than males. Mesotibiae lack inner brush of setae.

Distribution. See Fig. 5 E. Known only from South Australia in Eyre Peninsula, Fleurieu Peninsula, and Mount Lofty Ranges. Collected in pitfall traps in dense broombush, Melaleuca uncinata Brown (Myrtaceae) , and dung baited traps in eucalyptus/heath.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Key characters of Matthewsius new genus, all scale bars 0.25 mm. A, lateral view of elytra (M. stricklandensis); B, ventral view of profemur, note presence of trochantofemoral anterior pit and ornamentation on apex of protibia (M. illawarrensis); C, close up of ornamentation on apex of protibia, white arrow pointing to comb and black arrow pointing to brush of setae (M. illawarrensis); D, prothoracic leg with three tibial teeth each with two groups of setae dorsally (M. illawarrensis ♂); E, male mesotibia with dense brush of setae (M. illawarrensis ♂); F, female mesotibia without dense brush of setae (M. illawarrensis ♀); G, male metatibia with small, blunt tooth (M. illawarrensis ♂); H, female metatibia without small, blunt tooth (M. illawarrensis ♀), inset includes close up of claw; I, male metatibia with small, blunt tooth (M. penelopae ♂).

FIGURE 5. Distributional maps of species belonging to the new genera Matthewsius and Monteithocanthon including close up insets of A, Pilbara region, Western Australia; B, northeastern Queensland; C, southeastern Queensland; D, southwestern Western Australia; E, southeastern South Australia; F, central to southeastern New South Wales.