Paratimia succinicola, Vitali, 2020

Vitali, Francesco, 2020, Paratimia succinicola sp. n. (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) from Baltic amber, with palaeogeographical remarks on the tribe Atimiini LeConte, 1873, Baltic Journal of Coleopterology 20 (1), pp. 43-50 : 44-46

Paratimia succinicola sp. n.

( Figs. 2-4)

Holotype. Baltic amber, ex coll. M. Veta, author’s coll. FS57BS31.

Differential diagnosis

Proatimia and Paratimia are closely related genera, evidently differing in elytral pattern ( Paratimia shows a contrasting white suture) and several relative characters (body more or less flattened, pronotum more or less expanded anteriorly, elytra more or less broad with more or less straight margins, procoxae more or less angulated, antennae more or less long, etc.). Such features are not exactly detectable in this fossil; nonetheless, Paratimia also differs from Proatimia in the body covered by some erect setae and the female pygidium elongate, longer than previous segment and evidently surpassing the elytral apex. These characters are evident in the fossil species.

On the basis of what it is possible to identify from the preserved condition of this fossil, Paratimia succinicola sp. n. differs from P. conicola ( Fig. 6 ) in the fine punctures of head and pronotum (coarse P. conicola ) and in the glabrous pronotal disc, which permits observation of the pronotal structure. Additionally, the fossil species shows pitch brown (instead of reddish brown) integument, but this character might be subject to variability.

Description

Female, body length 7 mm. Body elongated, pitchblack; pronotal sides and elytra covered with dense recumbent pubescence; elytra with some sparse long erect setae.

Head large; forehead oblique, short; antennal tubercles separated and not elevated; without inter-antennal furrow; eyes small, coarsely faceted, strongly reniform, scarcely prominent laterally, largely separated above; surface covered with dense fine punctures, seemingly glabrous except for some long erect setae. Mouthparts not visible. Antennae (eleven-segmented), much shorter than body (possibly reaching the elytra half), covered with fine recumbent pubescence; scape subconical, with some erect setae on the frontal margin; antennomeres II-VI not present; antennomeres VII-X flattened, sub-equal, a bit shorter than scape, antennomere IX as long as scape (antennomere proportions according to the formula: 1.1:?:?:?:?:?: 0.9: 0.9: 0.9: 0.9: 1.1).

Pronotum as long as broad, cordate, expanded on the apical third and straightly convergent backward; broader at apex than at base; apex and base straight; disc flattened, covered with dense fine punctures, a dense pubescence at the sides and at base and some sparse long erect setae at the sides. Scutellum parallel-sided, largely rounded apically and densely covered with recumbent pubescence

Elytra elongate, thin, 3.3 times as long as wide at humeri; base anteriorly feebly concave; humeri squared; sides sinuate in the middle, then apically acutely convergent; apex rounded; disc flat, covered with dense fine punctures, a dense pubescence and some sparse long erect setae.

Ventral side scarcely observable due to turbidity in the amber, however, abdomen with recumbent pubescence and some very long sparse erect setae; pygidium elongated, largely surpassing the elytral apex.

Genitalia ( Fig. 4) exposed: paraproct very long with straight baculi; valvifer not distinguishable; coxites feebly restricted at the apical part and externally arcuate at apex; coxite

Vitali F.

lobes with short apical hairs; stylus apical, rather long and sclerotised.

Legs relatively short, covered with recumbent pubescence and some long erect setae on the tibiae; femora club-shaped; tibiae straight, evidently shorter than femora; tarsi relatively long; metatarsi one-fifth shorter than metatibiae; metatarsomeres I-II sub-equal, metatarsomere III much shorter.

amber”. Actually, it is a pun with reference to Pinus succinifera and Paratimia conicola , to be understood as “inhabiting in Pinus succinifera ”.

Figures

Fig. 6. Paratimia conicola Fisher, 1915 emerged on 21.II.1962 from cones of Pinus attenuata collected by G.H. Nelson at Aetna Springs, Napa Co., California, USA (© K. Schnepp).