Octavius squamatus Janák, 2024

Janák, Jiří, 2024, On Octavius from Maloti-Drakensberg and Golden Gate National Parks, South Africa (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Euaesthetinae), Zootaxa 5443 (4), pp. 495-522 : 508

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.5443.4.2

publication LSID

lsid:zoobank.org:pub:A91A8D67-A81B-427D-8096-59E41326A8E3

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.11064371

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03CB87B7-E953-FFFC-F2CF-FF0BFCB6F9FB

treatment provided by

Plazi

scientific name

Octavius squamatus Janák
status

sp. nov.

Octavius squamatus Janák , sp. nov.

Figs. 60–66 View FIGURES 60–70 , 120, 132

Type locality. South Africa, KwaZulu-Natal Province, Maloti-Drakensberg Park, Kamberg .

Type material (72 specimens). Holotype ♂: “ South Africa, KwaZulu-Natal Maloti-Drakensberg Park Kamberg NR, ind. forest patch 29°23.3ʼS 29°38.4ʼE 11.i.2019, J. Janák lgt.”, “ Berlese extraction, leaf & log litter, sifting”, “ HOLOTYPUS Octavius squamatus sp. nov. J. Janák det. 2021” ( TMSA) . Paratypes: 39 ♂, 32 ♀: same data as holotype ( TMSA, JJRC, 1 ♂, 1 ♀ in 96% alcohol). All paratypes with additional labels: “ PARATYPUS Octavius squamatus sp. nov. J. Janák det. 2021”.

Description. Body length 1.4–1.6 mm (M 1.5 mm, HT 1.5 mm), forebody length 0.7–0.8 mm (M 0.7 mm, HT 0.7 mm). Microphthalmous, apterous, light rusty, head and pronotum slightly shiny, elytra and abdomen moderately shiny ( Fig. 60 View FIGURES 60–70 ).

Head ( Fig. 60 View FIGURES 60–70 ) markedly narrower than pronotum (R 0.74–0.81, M 0.78, HT 0.79), eyes small, temples more than twice as long as eyes (R 2.33–2.93, M 2.67, HT 2.68), sides of head rounded, markedly widened towards posterior angles, posterior angles rounded, median impression on disc absent, lateral parts of head moderately granulose, median part densely and moderately finely reticulate.

Pronotum ( Fig. 60 View FIGURES 60–70 ) slightly broader than long (R 1.09–1.17, M 1.13, HT 1.12), moderately narrowed posteriorly; anterior angles slightly angular, dorsal impressions deep, transverse impression moderately deep, lateral impressions moderately deep, delimited by narrow sharp longitudinal ridge laterally; lateral parts beside lateral impressions sparsely granulose and sparsely, finely reticulate, remainder of surface densely and finely reticulate and sparsely granulose.

Elytra ( Fig. 60 View FIGURES 60–70 ) subquadrate, markedly broader than long (R 1.32–1.47, M 1.39, HT 1.41), with sharp longitudinal ridge laterally; between latter and suture irregularly granulate, and finely reticulate and sparsely shortly setose.

Abdomen subparallel, slightly widened to segment V, with one paratergite and microsculpture consisting of triangular or rhomboid fields, finely setose.

Male. Sternite VIII slightly emarginated in posterior one-fifth ( Fig. 65 View FIGURES 60–70 ), sternite IX as in Fig. 66 View FIGURES 60–70 . Aedeagus almost symmetrical, long and narrow (length 0.43–0.46 mm, M 0.44 mm, HT 0.43 mm); apically pointed internal structure tube-shaped, internal sac with dense scales; parameres markedly shorter than median lobe, with about 3–4 apicolateral setae ( Fig. 61–64 View FIGURES 60–70 ).

Differential diagnosis. Octavius squamatus Janák , sp. nov. belongs among species with smaller eyes, with temples markedly widened posteriorly, with large body and the disc of the head without a median impression. In the most recent key of South African Octavius ( Janák 2014) is to be arranged at the couplet 104 (105) near O. extralobatus Puthz, 2006 but differs by almost symmetrical aedeagus missing the extra lobe and with distinct scales in apical part of the internal sac and much deeper emargination of the male sternite VIII.

Derivatio nominis. This name is the latin adjective – squamatus (scaly) which refers to the structure of internal scales.

Distribution. Octavius squamatus Janák , sp. nov. is currently recorded only from the Kamberg Natural Reserve in Drakensberg Mts., KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa ( Fig. 120 View FIGURES 113–121 ).

Bionomics. All specimens were collected in siftings of forest litter in a forest patch of an indigenous forest with the abundance 8.7 specimens per kg of sifted material ( Fig. 132 View FIGURES 128–133 ).

TMSA

Transvaal Museum

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Insecta

Order

Coleoptera

Family

Staphylinidae

SubFamily

Euaesthetinae

Genus

Octavius

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