Niuailan Allsopp & Hutchinson, 2020

Allsopp, Peter G. & Hutchinson, Paul M., 2020, Niuailan, a new genus to accommodate Carneoryctes peterseni (Endrődi, 1967) (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Dynastinae: Pentodontini) from New Ireland, Papua New Guinea, Zootaxa 4860 (1), pp. 135-145 : 139-140

Niuailan Allsopp & Hutchinson , new genus

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:59361D26-AF4A-4F07-A5FA-1B232342DED9

Type species. Cryptoryctes peterseni Endrődi, 1967 , hereby designated.

Description. Male. Mentum strongly compressed and reflexed at ligula; mandibles exposed, margins simply curved, without teeth; maxillary palps with apical palpomere ovoid, not truncate. Antenna with 10 antennomeres; club with 3 antennomeres, rather broadly ovate and slightly shorter than all of shaft antennomeres combined. Clyp- eus vertical, concave, with anterior margin rounded, not shovel-shaped, without a carina immediately behind apex. Clypeofrontal suture obvious, concave either side of middle. Frons simple, without a horn, tubercle, or transverse carina. Pronotum with anterior margin membranous, apical horn forming the anterior margin and two lateral horns, all directed forwards and upwards near apices, area between lateral horns not depressed, upper surface smooth and shiny. Elytra without obvious punctation, surface shiny, striae indistinct. Propygidium without a stridulatory area, apical margin not produced backwards. Protibia with 3 teeth, basal tooth not as prominent as middle tooth and more rounded, spur inserted posterior to base of medial denticle; metatibiae short, strongly dilated towards apex. Param- eres simple, lateral margins linear and tapering to apex, extreme apices curved outwards, face sublinear in lateral view, phallobase length: paramere length approximately 1.2:1 (the illustrations in Endrődi (1967, 1971, 1985) are somewhat distorted and do not show the same ratio).

Diagnosis. The combination of dilated metatibiae, shape of the clypeus and pygidium, simply curved man- dibles, absence of a frontal horn, tubercle or carina, and three pronotal horns in Niuailan allow clear identification from other New Guinean species in Endrődi’s (1985) key to Pentodontini of the Oriental and Papuan regions albeit with the inclusion of Siralus Dechambre, 1998 and the recognition of Clysterius Endrődi, 1963 as a junior synonym of Papuana Arrow, 1914 ( Dechambre 1998) .

From species of Carneoryctes , N. peterseni differs in its almost smooth pronotal and elytral surfaces, absence of a pronotal depression, discal sculpturing or setae, elytral surfaces almost smooth, striae restricted to extreme base, antennal club slightly shorter than shaft, basal tooth of protibia smaller and more rounded than middle tooth, metatibial spurs straight and of about equal length, parameres that curve out and not inwards at the apices, and the phallobase of the aedeagus much shorter relative to the length of the parameres.

Etymology. Named for the island of the type locality—Niu Ailan in Tok Pisin. It is to be treated as masculine.