Bellatheta diacangica, Assing, 2011

Assing, V., 2011, Six new species and additional records of Aleocharinae from China (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Aleocharinae), Linzer biologische Beiträge 43 (1), pp. 291-310 : 301-303

Bellatheta diacangica nov.sp. ( Figs 28-32 )

T y p e m a t e r i a l: Holotype: " China: Yunnan, Dali Bai Aut. Pref., Diacang Shan, W Dali, 25°41'52''N, 100°06'28''E, 2960 m, along path, sifted from litter, moss, flood debris, 6.IX.2009, leg. M. Schülke [ CH 09-31] / Holotypus Bellatheta diacangica sp. n. det. V. Assing 2010" (cAss). Paratypes: 1, 2: same data as holotype (cSch, cAss).

D e s c r i p t i o n: Body length 2.6-2.9 mm. Habitus as in Fig. 28 . Coloration: head, pronotum, and abdomen blackish; elytra dark-yellowish; legs pale-brown; antennae darkbrown, with the basal three antennomeres reddish.

Head ( Fig. 29 ) approximately 1.1 times as wide as long; punctation sparse and extremely fine, barely noticeable in the pronounced microreticulation. Eyes small, approximately half as long as postocular region in dorsal view. Antenna: antennomere IV weakly transverse; V-X gradually increasing in width and increasingly transverse; X nearly twice as wide as long; XI barely as long as the combined length of IX and X.

Pronotum ( Fig. 29 ) 1.15-1.25 times as wide as long and 1.05-1.10 times as wide as head; posterior angles weakly marked; in posterior half with more of less pronounced shallow median impression; punctation moderately dense and extremely fine, barely noticeable in the pronounced microreticulation; pubescence of midline directed anteriad in anterior 4/5 and posteriad in posterior 1/5.

Elytra ( Fig. 29 ) short, approximately 0.7 times as long as pronotum; humeral angles weakly pronounced; punctation fine and dense; interstices with shallow microsculpture. Hind wings reduced.

Abdomen approximately 1.1 times as broad as elytra, widest at segments V/VI; tergites III-V with very shallow anterior impression; punctation very fine, moderately sparse on anterior tergites and very sparse on posterior tergites; interstices with shallow, but distinct microsculpture; posterior margin of tergite VIII with palisade fringe; posterior margin of tergite VIII truncate in the middle.

: sternite VIII distinctly longer than tergite VIII, posterior margin strongly convex; median lobe of aedeagus as in Figs 30-31 .

: sternite VIII slightly longer than tergite VIII, posterior margin broadly convex, in the middle almost truncate; spermatheca as in Fig. 32.

E t y m o l o g y: The specific epithet (adjective) is derived from the name of the mountain range where the type locality is situated.

C o m p a r a t i v e n o t e s a n d s y s t e m a t i c s: Basedonitssexualcharacters, particularly to the morphology of the aedeagus, B. diacangica is most closely related to some species previously attributed to Emmelostiba PACE 1982, which was recently synonymized with Bellatheta ROUBAL 1928 ( VOGEL 2007). The genus, whose monophyly is doubtful and requires revision, currently includes 25 species, four of which have been recorded from mainland China: B. chinensis ( PACE 1993) (Xinjiang) , B. gansuica (ASSING 2005) (Gansu) , B. bellicosa (PACE 2004) (Sichuan) , and B. granulosa (PACE 2004) (Sichuan) . All these species have distinctly longer elytra and larger eyes than B. diacangica . In addition they differ in the sexual characters; for illustrations see PACE (1993, 1998b, 2004b).

D i s t r i b u t i o n a n d n a t u r a l h i s t o r y: Thetypelocalityissituatedin the Diacang Shan, to the west of Dali, Yunnan province. The specimens were sifted from litter, moss, and flood debris at an altitude of 2960 m. The adaptive reductions of the eyes and the wings suggest that the species has a restricted distribution.

Figures

Figs 28-37: Bellatheta diacangica nov.sp. (28-32), Tropimenelytron sinuosum nov.sp. (33-35), and Oroekklina excaecata (ASSING) (36-37): (28) habitus; (29) forebody; (30-31) median lobe of aedeagus in lateral and in ventral view; (32) spermatheca; (33) male tergites VI-VII; (34) female tergite VIII; (35) female sternite VIII; (36) male tergite VIII; (37) male sternite VIII. Scale bars: 28: 1.0 mm; 29, 33: 0.5 mm; 34-37: 0.2 mm; 30-32: 0.1 mm.