Anthaxia (Haplanthaxia) eloumdenica, Obořil, 2006

Obořil, Martin, 2006, Studies on the ‘ agriliform’ Anthaxia from Africa, with the descriptions of four new species (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae 46, pp. 77-88 : 79

Anthaxia (Haplanthaxia) eloumdenica sp. nov.

( Fig. 13 )

Type locality. Southeastern Cameroon, Eloumden Mt., village Eloumden.

Type material. HOLOTYPE: ♀, ‘ ♀ [w, p] // Village / Eloumden / 15-xi-65 [w, h] // Cola Ballayi [w, h]’ ( NMPC).

Description. Body length of holotype 5.0 mm.

Female. Small, black, wedge-shaped species, glabrous, only elytra with fine setae. Head black, small, retracted into prothorax, glabrous and asetose. Frons with fine impression. Clypeus wide, sinuous anteriorly. Eyes large, not projecting beyond outline of head. Vertex 1.6 times as wide as width of eye, sculpture coarse, regular, cells with central grains. Antennae black with bluish tinge, very short, reaching midlength of pronotum.

Pronotum black, lustrous, asetose, 1.5 times as wide as long, widest in middle, oval, narrowed anteriad, not incurved before posterior angles, the latter not sharp. Anterior margin sinuous, surface with feeble depressions at posterior angles. Sculpture regular, distinct, cells with central grains. Scutellum small, triangular, 1.4 times as wide as long, with wrinkled sculpture, generally smooth.

Elytra black, long, 2.3 times as long as wide, widest at base, lustrous, covered with fine setae. Lateral margins of elytra slightly S-shaped, exposing laterotergites 1 to 4. Elytra with flat wedge-shaped area reaching from base to midlength and declivitous behind this area. Epipleura narrow, disappearing before apex. Elytral apex with fine and scarce serration. Sculpture of elytra coarse, regularly tile-shaped.

Underside asetose, black, ventrites 2-5 bronze-black. Prothorax black, with coarse ocellation with central grains. Mesothorax with polygonal sculpture with central grains. Ventrites with coarse ocellation with central grains. Anal ventrite rounded with incision on posterior margin, posterior half of lateral margin with serration. Legs completely black, tibiae straight.

Male unknown.

Etymology. Named after the type locality.

Differential diagnosis. Anthaxia eloumdenica sp. nov. belongs to the A. atomaria species group. It seems to be most similar to A. elengatula from Angola and A. melanosoma from Gabon. Anthaxia eloumdenica sp. nov. differs from A. elengatula by the eyes not projecting beyond the outline of the head, the sinuate anterior margin of the pronotum (regularly concave in A. elengatula ), more transverse and deeper depressions on the pronotum (less transverse and feeble in A. elengatula ), more flattened elytra which are also declivitous only behind midlength (declivitous already behind base in A. elengatula ), and by the straight apical convergent part of the elytra (slightly concave in A. elengatula ). Anthaxia melanosoma differs by the regularly emarginate anterior margin of the pronotum and the wider and rounded but still ‘agriliform’ elytra.

Distribution. Cameroon.

Figures

Figs. 1-13. Body outline. 1 – Anthaxia (Haplanthaxia) obliquepilosa Obenberger, 1924; 2 – A. (H.) eupoeta Obenberger, 1928; 3 – A. (H.) bezdeki sp. nov.; 4 – A. (H.) rothkirchi Obenberger, 1922; 5 – A. (H.) gabonica Bílý, 2000; 6 – A. (H.) atomaria Obenberger, 1922; 7 – A. (H.) gianfrancoi Bílý, 2000; 8 – A. (H.) libenae sp. nov.; 9 – A. (H.) gongeti sp. nov.; 10 – A. (H.) aurohumeralis Bílý, 2000; 11 – A. (H.) melanosoma Bílý, 2000; 12 – A. (H.) elegantula Obenberger, 1924; 13 – A. (H.) eloumdenica sp. nov. Scale: 1 mm.