Homalocerus vanini, Legalov, 2024

Legalov, Andrei A., 2024, A new species of the genus Homalocerus Schoenherr, 1839 (Coleoptera: Belidae) from south-eastern Brazil, Ecologica Montenegrina 71, pp. 240-244 : 242-244

Homalocerus vanini sp. n. ( Figs. 2-3 )

https://zoobank.org/ urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:CD66CCEF-654F-458A-96EF-0998801DC101

Type material: male, Brazil, State of Rio de Janeiro, “Petropilis”, “Coll. R. I. Sc. N. B.”, “ Coll. Camilie Van Voxem ” .

Description. Male: Body black, covered with curved yellowish and semierect long dark setae. Prosternum, meso- and metaventrites, tibiae partially brown. Procoxae and femora partially reddish brown. Sparse yellowish hairs covered with rostrum anterior to eyes, temples, head between eyes ventrally, precoxal portion of prosternum, procoxae anteriorly, sides of pronotum, furrow on pronotum, mesepisternum and mesepimeron, metacoxae. Head weakly constricted behind eye. Labrum fused. Mandibles small. Rostrum quite long, weakly curved, about 0.9 times as long as length of pronotum, about 5.3 times as long as wide at apex, 6.4 times as long as wide in middle, 4.0 times as long as wide at base, finely punctate in apical third, densely punctate in second and basal thirds. Eyes large, strongly convex and rounded, finely faceted. Forehead impressed, densely punctate, 1.5 times as wide as rostrum base width. Vertex densely punctate. Temples about 0.6 times as long as eye length. Head ventrally transversally rugose. Gular suture double, fused at apex. Antennae long, inserted at base of rostrum, extending towards elytral base. First and second antennomeres suboval. First antennomere 1.5 times as long as wide at apex, reaching eyes. Second antennomere about 1.3 times as long as wide at apex, about 0.8 times as long as and about 0.9 times as narrow as first antennomere. Third and fourth antennomeres long-conical. Third antennomere about 1.7 times as long as wide at apex, 1.3 times as long as and equal in width to second antennomere. Fourth antennomere about 1.4 times as long as wide at apex, slightly shorter and about 1.1 times as wide as third antennomere. Fifth – tenth antennomeres conical. Fifth antennomere about 1.3 times as long as wide at apex, equal in length and about 1.1 times as wide as fourth antennomere. Sixth antennomere about 1.3 times as long as wide at apex, equal in length as and slightly narrower than fifth antennomere. Seventh antennomere about 1.3 times as long as wide at apex, slightly longer and about 1.1 times as wide as sixth antennomere. Eighth antennomere about 1.2 times as long as wide at apex, slightly longer and slightly wider than seventh antennomere. Antennal club indistinct. Ninth antennomere about 1.4 times as long as wide at apex, slightly longer and about 1.1 times as wide as eighth antennomere. Tenth antennomere 1.4 times as long as wide at apex, slightly longer and equal in width to ninth antennomere. Eleventh antennomere about 3.3 times as long as wide at base, about 1.8 times as long as and about 0.8 times as narrow as tenth antennomere. Pronotum almost bell-shaped, about 1.6 times as long as wide at apex, about 0.9 times as long as wide in middle and slightly wider than width at base. Sides weakly narrowed to apex and to base. Disk weakly convex, densely granulate, with median furrow. Scutellum rectangular, 0.8 times as long as wide. Elytra about 3.4 times as long as wide at base, about 3.1 times as long as wide in middle, about 3.2 times as long as wide at apical fourth, about 5.0 times as long as pronotum, with slightly flattened humeri. Elytral striae indistinct. Elytra densely punctate and granulate. Epipleura narrow. Apex of elytra weakly elongate. Pre- and postcoxal portions of prosternum short. Precoxal portion about 0.4 times as long as length of procoxal cavity. Postcoxal portion 2.0 times as long as length of procoxal cavity. Procoxal cavities contiguous. Mesocoxal cavities narrowly separated, closed. Metaventrite weakly convex, coarsely punctate. Metepisternum about 7.7 times as long as wide in middle, densely punctate. Abdomen convex. First ventrite about 2.4 times as long as metacoxal cavity. Second ventrite equal to first ventrite. Third ventrite slightly shorter than second ventrite. Fourth ventrite slightly shorter than third ventrite. Fifth ventrite about 0.7 times as long as fourth ventrite. Procoxae large, conical. Metacoxae transverse. Femora thickened, rugose-punctate, without teeth. Pro- and mesofemora clavate. Metafemora quite wide. Tibiae weakly curved, serrate at inner edge, with mucro and spur. Tarsi long. First tarsomere enlarged. Second tarsomere conical. Third tarsomere bilobed. Fifth tarsomere elongate. Claws free, without teeth. Total body length (without rostrum) 9.7 mm. Length of rostrum 1.4 mm.

Differential diagnosis. The new species is similar to Homalocerus flavicornis Vanin, 1976 but differs in a thinner and more strongly curved rostrum, a pronotum with narrow lateral stripes of hairs and without a central spot, apices of the base of the elytra without spots of hairs, and larger body size.

Etymology. Patronymic. In memory of the late Prof. Sergio A. Vanin ( Brazil), who studied the American Belidae .

Localisation. Brazil, State of Rio de Janeiro.

Acknowledgements

The author thanks Pol Limbourg ( Belgium: Bruxelles) for providing material of Belidae for study, and anonymous reviewers for improving the overall quality of the manuscript.

References

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Figures

Figure 2. Homalocerus vanini sp. n., holotype, male, habitus, Brazil: a – dorsal view; b – frontal view; c – ventral view; d – lateral view. Scale bar = 1.0 mm.

Figure 3. Homalocerus vanini sp. n., holotype, male, Brazil: a – aedeagus, dorsal view; b – aedeagus, lateral view; c – tegmen, dorsal view; d – 8th sternite, dorsal view. Scale bar = 0.5 mm.