Fissocantharis nigriceps Y. Yang & Okushima, 2016

Zhang, Lulu, Yang, Yuxia & Okushima, Yûichi, 2016, A contribution to the knowledge of the genera Fissocantharis Pic, 1921 and Micropodabrus Pic, 1920 from Taiwan (Coleoptera, Cantharidae), European Journal of Taxonomy 243, pp. 1-37 : 16-18

Fissocantharis nigriceps Y. Yang & Okushima sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:B6F2406E-AC8F-4004-A468-A1602747E266

Figs 6 G–I, 12A

Diagnosis

This species is similar to F. formosana ( Pic, 1910) , but can be differentiated from the latter by the black head, eyes strongly protruding, pronotum distinctly widened posteriorly, aedeagus: conjoint dorsal plate of parameres with round apical margin. It also resembles F. minor ( Wittmer, 1997) in the body coloration, but differs in the following characters: eyes strongly protruding, pronotum slightly longer than wide, aedeagus: conjoint dorsal plate of parameres about half length of ventral process, while in the latter species, eyes moderately protruding, pronotum nearly as long as wide, aedeagus: conjoint dorsal plate of parameres as long as ventral process.

Etymology

The specific epithet is derived from the Latin niger (black) and ceps (head), referring to its black head.

Type material

Holotype

TAIWAN: Ƌ, Taoyuan Hsien, Hsileng , 27 Apr. 1978, leg. S. Saito ( NMNS).

Description

Male ( Fig. 12A )

Body length: 7.0 mm; width: 1.5 mm.

BODY. Black, prothorax and legs orange, tarsi black. Body densely covered with recumbent gray pubescence.

HEAD. Subquadrate, temples distinctly narrowed posteriorly, surface densely and finely punctate; eyes strongly protruding, head width across eyes distinctly wider than anterior margin of pronotum; terminal maxillary palpomeres subtriangular, widest nearly in middle, acurate on apical parts of inner margins, acute at apices; antennae filiform and simple, extending to basal two-length of elytra, antennomeres II slightly longer than wide, III about twice as long as II, IV slightly longer than III, XI slightly longer than X, pointed at apices.

PRONOTUM. Subquadrate, slightly longer than wide, distinctly widened posteriorly, anterior margin rounded, lateral margins slightly sinuate, posterior margin narrowly bordered and arcuate, anterior angles rounded, posterior angles nearly rectangular; disc distinctly convex on posterolateral parts, surface semilustrous, sparsely and finely punctate.

ELYTRA. About 3.5 times as long as humeral width, 5.0 times longer than pronotum, nearly parallelsided, disc densely and coarsely punctate.

LEGS. With all tarsal claws bifid, upper claws nearly as long as lower ones.

AEDEAGUS ( Fig. 6 G–I). Ventral process of each paramere wide, slightly narrowed apically, moderately hooked at apex; conjoint dorsal plate of parameres moderately developed, about half length of ventral process and as wide as half of the distance between outer margins of ventral processes, distinctly narrowed apically, with round apical margin.

Female

Unknown.

Distribution

Taiwan.

Figures

Fig. 6. Aedeagus (A, D, G: ventral view; B, E, H: dorsal view; C, F, I: lateral view). A–C. Fissocantharis lishanensis (Wittmer, 1982). D–F. F. nantouensis (Wittmer, 1995). G–I. F. nigriceps Y.Yang & Okushima sp. nov. Scale bars: 1.0 mm.

Fig. 12. Male habitus, dorsal view. A. Fissocantharis nigriceps Y. Yang & Okushima sp. nov. B. Micropodabrus brunneipennis Y. Yang & Okushima sp. nov. Scale bars: 2.0 mm.