Muisca hexa, Opitz, Pitz Pinola Weston, 2018

Opitz, Pitz Pinola Weston, 2018, Classification, Natural History, and Evolution of the Subfamily Peloniinae O (Coleoptera: Cleroidea: Cleridae). Part IX. Taxonomic revision of the New World genus Muisca S, Linzer biologische Beiträge 50 (1), pp. 587-653 : 614

Muisca hexa OPITZ nov.sp. ( Figs 29, 58, 94, 137)

Holotype: ♀. Brézil, Rio de Janeiro, 1883, P. Germain ( MNHN).

Paratypes: 2 specimens. Brazil: Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro,?-?-1883, P. Germain ( MNHN, WOPC).

D i a g n o s i s: Muisca hexa specimens may be distinguished from those of its sister species, M. maculosa , by coloration of the pronotal disc. In M. hexa specimens the pronotal disc is uniformly castaneous. In M. maculosa specimens the pronotal disc shows two brown maculae.

D e s c r i p t i o n: Size: Length 6.5 mm; width 2.5 mm. Form: As in Fig. 137. Color: Castaneous, except thoracic sternum black, elytral disc with 4 mall black spots, and elytral apex black. Head: Funicular antennomeres subfiliform progressively more triangular, capitulum longer than combined length of funicular antennomeres, capitular antennomeres 9 and 10 triangular ( Fig. 29), antennomere 11 obovate; eyes coarse and bulging, frons wider than width of eye ( EW /FW 30/35). Thorax: Pronotum (Fig. 58) oblong ( PW /PL 90/110), side margin with well-developed tubercle, punctation distributed throughout disc; elytral asetiferous punctation striate to distal 3/4 th ( EL /EW 255/75). Abdomen: Pygidium scutiform.

V a r i a t i o n: Size: Length 4.3-7.0 mm; width 2.0- 2.5 mm. Other than body size, the available specimens are quite homogeneous.

E t y m o l o g y: The specific epithet, hexa, stems from the Greek hex (= six). I refer to the 6 black punctations near the elytral sutural margin.

D i s t r i b u t i o n ( Fig.94): This species is known only from Brazil.