Oedichirus pteroposaltis, Rougemont, 2018

Rougemont, Guillaume de, 2018, The genus Oedichirus in New Caledonia (Staphylinidae: Paederinae: Pinophilini), Linzer biologische Beiträge 50 (1), pp. 537-586 : 564-565

Oedichirus pteroposaltis nov.sp. (Figs 31)

Material studied: ♂ Holotype: NEW CALEDONIA, Col des Roussettes , 2 February 2004, G B Monteith ♀ QM berlesate 1110, 21º25’Sx165º28’E, rainforest, sieved litter ♀ HOLOTYPE Oedichirus pteroposaltis des. 2017 G. de Rougemont [ MNHN] ; 2♀♀ paratypes: New Caledonia, Col des Roussettes , ravine, forest litter, 25.X.1998, I. Löbl ♀ PARATYPE Oedichirus pteroposaltis des. 2017 G. de Rougemont [ MHNG, CRO] ; 1♀ paratype: NEW CALEDONIA, Col des Roussettes , N of Bourail, 500m, 7.VIII.78, S&J Peck, rainforest litter ♀ PARATYPE Oedichirus pteroposaltis des. 2017 G. de Rougemont [ FMC] .

Description: length: ca. 5.8 mm; length of fore-body: 2.6; length of head: 0.72; breadth of head: 0.98; length of antenna: 1,7; length of pronotum: 1; breadth of pronotum: 0.9; length of elytron: 0.8; breadth of elytra: 0.8. Head and pronotum black, elytra pale reddish-brown, suture narrowly infuscate; abdominal segment III reddish-brown, centre of posterior margin of tergite IV infuscate, the infuscation more extensive on tergite V, covering almost entire surface of tergites VI-VIII; palpi, antennae and legs entirely testaceous. Fore-body glossy, devoid of microsculpture; abdominal tergites with faint transverse micro-striation. Body devoid of pubescence apart from a few short hairs on frons. Habitus: Fig. 31h.

Head moderately transverse; eyes large and protruberant, longer than temples, the latter evenly rounded to neck, without angles; groove of post-ocular border broad and deep, displaced to dorsal surface of head; puncturation consisting of a cluster of about 20 umbilicate punctures of unequal sizes on vertex, an isolated pair of smaller punctures nearer base, the surrounding surfaces impunctate. Pronotum moderately elongate, the sides strongly convergent from broad anterior angles to narrow base; lateral margins entirely bordered; puncturation coarse and dense, the interstices mostly narrower than diameter of punctures. Elytra small, humeral angles completely obsolete, the sides forming a distinct angle at about half their length; puncturation a little coarser than that of pronotum, and sparser, denser posteriad and leaving antero-lateral areas largely impunctate. Keels and grooves of anterior margins of abdominal tergites well marked, long; puncturation of tergites irregular, leaving narrow impunctate areas near the centre of each tergite.

Male: abdominal sternite VIII: Fig 31s8, with a small simple median emargination and a small tooth on the surface of sternite on either side; aedoeagus: Fig. 31arl.

O. pteroposaltis nov.sp. is distinguished from all other species with bicolorous abdomen by its lesser size, as well as by the sexual characters.