Sauvagesinella loftyensis ( 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 : 238-239

Sauvagesinella loftyensis ( Matthews & Weir 2002) new combination

Figs. 5 E, 12B, 13B.

Lepanus loftyensis Matthews & Weir 2002: 81

Material examined. South Australia: Paratypes: [35°14'00''S, 138°41'00"E], Kuipo Kyeema Forest, P. Greenslade, 15 March 1982 (in ANIC 25-038376 ) ; [35°36'00''S, 138°17'00"E], Deep Creek , Boat Harbour Lane turnoff, P. Greenslade, 1–8 December 1983 (in SAMA as Temp–123586) ; 32°44'56''S, 138°04'03"E, Mount Remarkable National Park , Flinders Ranges, 11 km SSW Wilmington, 20–25 November 1999 (in ANIC 25-038375 ) ; 34°34'54''S, 138°55'12"E, 11 km SE of Whispering Wall, near Parra Wirra, SMLR Survey , 27 October 2000 (in ANIC 25-058571–72 ) ; Other material examined: 34°40'03''S, 138°50'07"E, Parra Wirra Recreation Park, S Mount Lofty, 26 October–3 November 2000 (in SAMA as 25–027727 –35) ; 35°06'09''S, 138°40'20"E, " Mount Bold Reservoir Reserve , 2 km WNW Mount Bold, 7–11 October 2005 (in SAMA as 25–027736–38) ; 35°06'52''S, 138°43'37"E, Mount Bold Reserve , 1.5 km WNW Mount Bold, 7–11 October 2005 (in SAMA as 25–027739–45) ; 35°25'02''S, 138°28'12"E, 2.8 km SSE Myponga, S Mount Lofty Ranges Survey , 20–25 February 2000 (in SAMA as 25–027746–50).

Description. Total length: 3.2–4.3 mm

Colour: Orange-brown to black. Antennae with black club.

Male: Head: Broad U-shape between clypeal teeth, which are slightly upturned. Mentum almost square, sericeous, bordered anteriorly, with striations and sparse setation on posterior corners. Edge of head bordered, genal angle prominent. Dorsal parts of eyes narrow, separated by an interocular space of about 30 times eye width; eye canthus not dividing eye. Surface shiny, with dense, shallow, coarse punctures forming irregular transverse rows; punctures each bearing a small, decumbent, forward-directed seta. Head width to length ratio 86:65.

Pronotum: Anterior angles obtuse rounded. Basal angles and basal margin rounded, lateral edge margined. Surface densely uniformly punctate; punctures separated by less than their diameter and all punctures with short, fine, decumbent setae. Hypomeron surface reticulate and sericeous. Hypomeral stria usually absent, inconspicuous if present. Pronotum width to length ratio 76:50, virtually parallel sided.

Elytra: Intervals reticulate and punctate. Double row of setae on intervals, with 3rd row towards base; setae curved, fine, as long as the spaces between the punctures. Impressed striae geminate, slightly crenulated, impunctate. All striae on disc equal width, extending to the base; stria 8 confined to deep groove extending from base to apex. Epipleura reticulate, smooth. Ratio of length of elytra along suture to maximum elytral width 70:80.

Legs: Protibiae with 3 teeth on outer edge, which is serrate between teeth and proximal to them; ridge on underside that is finely crenulate, setate. Dorsal carina from 3rd tooth extending to base, exposing large, lateral, basal area when viewed from above. Tooth on underside near base of tarsus. Rounded expansion of inner apical end bearing small, narrow spur; apical comb of short flattened bristles and brush of long setae underneath, which is directed downward, perpendicular to surface. Claws moderate and toothed. Metafemora flattened on posterior face bounded by 2 carinae. Metatibiae strongly recurved in apical 1/3, not crenulated, bearing an acute inner tooth.

Abdomen: Pygidium without groove, uniformly densely and shallowly punctate; each puncture bearing small, recumbent setae. Smooth and shiny between punctures. Ventrites finely reticulate, with a row of punctures along the anterior edge of ventrites 2–5, ventrite 6 punctate.

Pterothorax: Medial lobe of metaventrite punctate and narrowly margined between the mesocoxae. Mesometaventral suture slightly arched. Lateral lobe of the metaventrite with punctures. Mesoventrite reticulate and punctate laterally, not notched anteriorly. Mesepimera impunctate and reticulate. Metanepisterna reticulate. Mesoventrite with row of punctures bordering meso-metaventral suture.

Hind wings: Reduced to strap-like vestiges about 2/3 length of abdomen or absent.

Female: Protibiae not expanded at the inner apical angle with longer apical spur. Mesotibiae lack inner brush of setae. Metatibiae not modified.

Distribution. See Fig. 5 E. Known from Mount Lofty block environmental province, South Australia. Collected in pitfall traps in open woodland.

Comments. Before a formal description by Matthews & Weir (2002), Matthews (1984: 6, footnote) listed the species as an undescribed Sauvagesinella species. However, given the absence of a prominent median metaventral tubercle and metafemur without crenulations on inner edge and that the genus had so far only been recorded in the southwestern corner of Western Australia, Weir and Matthews (2002) justifiably but erroneously placed the species within Lepanus . Sauvagesinella loftyensis new combination already fits the broad description of Sauvagesinella , however here we provide an updated description and distributional range that now extends from southern Western Australia to the coastal regions of South Australia. The 28S sequences generated from a pinned specimen of S. loftyensis confirmed the close relationship with all other species belonging to the genus Sauvagesinella . The average divergence of 28S between the two genera was 3% so given that the sequence of S. loftyensis was identical to S. becki we can confidently transfer it to Sauvagesinella .

Figures

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.