Synarmostes lavasoae, Ballerio, 2021

Ballerio, Alberto, 2021, The Ceratocanthinae of Madagascar and Comoro Islands: a revision of the genera Synarmostes and Goudotostes, and of the flightless Philharmostes, with description of 64 new species (Coleoptera: Scarabaeoidea, Hybosoridae), Fragmenta entomologica 53 (2), pp. 105-282 : 159-160

Synarmostes lavasoae sp. nov.

( Figs 23 a-d, 30 p-r, 35) http://zoobank.org/ urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:932330E8-DEA9-4284-9770-D9FEEE8693DF

Type series. Holotype, ♂, deposited in the collection of the California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, CA, USA, labelled as follows: / CASTYPE 20255 / CASENT 8135151 / Madagascar: Toliara Grand Lavasoa 25.9 km W Tolagnaro elev. 450 m 30 Nov. – 2 Dec. 2006 / 25° 05’ 16” S 046° 44’ 56” E / California Acad. of Sciences coll. B. L. Fisher et al. sifted litter, rainforest BLF 15410 / Synarmostes lavasoae n. sp. det. A. Ballerio 2020 Holotypus ♂ / [distended, glued on card, dissected, male genitalia glued on a separate card, same pin].

Diagnosis. Synarmostes lavasoae sp. nov. can be differentiated from all other species of Synarmostes by the following combination of characters: a) medium size, b) ventral ocular area medium-sized, c) dorsal ocular area present, d) dorsal setation absent (20×), e) flightlessness, f) pronotum without callosities on disc, g) pronotum slightly saddle-shaped in lateral view, h) elytral punctation larger (punctures on basal third with an average width of about 1/27 the maximum width of each elytron) and more impressed than the one of S. parrilloi sp. nov., i) carinae of elytral apical third irregular (with some weak tubercles or other irregularities), j) parameres inverted L-shaped in lateral view. Synarmostes lavasoae sp. nov. belongs to the tibialis group of species and is close to S. parrilloi sp. nov. It can be differentiated from the other species of the group by the combination of characters b), c), g), h) and j).

Description. Size: HL = 0.9 mm; HW = 1.5 mm; PL = 1.3 mm; PW = 2.4 mm; EL = 2.6 mm; EW = 1.5 mm. Overall morphology as in generic diagnosis. Medium-sized Synarmostes . Body moderately convex. Black, shiny, dorsum glabrous (20×), underside, tarsi and antennae reddish-brown, setation yellowish. Head: W/L ratio = 1.30; clypeal apex obtuse, apical projection protruding and sharp; dorsal ocular area small, interocular distance about 24 times the maximum width of dorsal ocular area, ventral ocular area medium; head dorsal surface covered by dense strongly impressed large simple punctation, less dense on disc. Fore margin with some irregular transverse lines. Interpunctural distance of simple impressed punctures irregular: from less than to once or twice larger than the punctural diameter. Vertex smooth with one transverse impressed line shortly interrupted multiple times. Pronotum: subrectangular (W/L ratio = 1.86), irregularly convex, slightly depressed anteromedially with fore margin distinctly raised, base and sides with sparse punctation, disc covered by dense short transverse impressed comma-shaped punctures, sides of disc covered by dense impressed large simple punctures. Interpunctural distance shorter than punctural diameter. Scutellum : base smooth, distal third covered by dense transverse small comma-shaped punctures. Elytra: longer than wide (W/L ratio = 0.92); subrectangular (dorsal view); inferior sutural stria reaching humeral area; humeral callus absent; elytral surface regularly strongly convex, covered by small dense horseshoe-shaped punctures with opening directed backward becoming larger and shallower on distal third. Interpunctural distance irregular: equal or smaller than punctural diameter. Elytral distal third with at least eight raised longitudinal irregular carinae.

Wings: flightless (brachypterous). Male genitalia: aedeagus (L = 1.0 mm) with parameres as in Figs 30 p-q, spiculum gastrale (L = 0.9 mm) as in Fig. 30 r .

Etymology. Noun in the genitive case, referring to the type locality.

Distribution and habitat. Known only from the type locality in southern Madagascar, at the southern foothills of the Anosyenne Mountains. The type series was collected by sifting leaf litter in rainforest. The vegetation cover of the area, located in a sharp transition zone between the climate of the east and the sub-arid climate of the southwest, consists of patches of “moist evergreen forest” with weak seasonal variation ( Goodman et al. 2018), also known as “humid forest” ( Moat & Smith 2007). The collecting locality falls within the protected area “Réserve Spéciale de Ambatotsirongorongo”.

Synarmostes makirovanae sp. nov.

( Figs 10 e , 24 a-d, 30 m-o, 35) http://zoobank.org/ urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:0F010007-4918-41E5-A958-018035785AFB

Type series. Holotype, ♂ deposited in the collection of the California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, CA, USA, labelled as follows: / CASTYPE 20256 / Madagascar: Antsiranana Makirovana Forest elev. 550 m 1-2 May 2011 14° 09’ 38” S 049° 57’ 08” E California Acad. of Sciences , collectors: B.L. Fisher et al. rainforest, sifted leaf litter collection code: BLF 26937/ Synarmostes makirovanae n. sp. det. A. Ballerio 2020 Holotypus ♂ / [distended, glued on card, dissected, male genitalia glued on a separate card, same pin]. Paratypes [1 ♂ dissected]: 1 ♂ ( CASC), same collecting data as holotype .

Diagnosis. Synarmostes makirovanae sp. nov. can be differentiated from all other species of Synarmostes by the following combination of characters: a) medium size, b) ventral ocular area medium-sized, c) dorsal ocular area present, d) dorsal setation absent (20×), e) flightlessness, f) pronotum without callosities on disc, g) pronotum saddle-shaped in lateral view, h) elytral punctation small (punctures on basal third with an average width of about 1/45 the maximum width of each elytron) and sparse, i) carinae of elytral apical third irregular (with some weak tubercles or other irregularities), j) parameres only slightly and shortly curved apically (lateral view). Synarmostes makirovanae sp. nov. belongs to the tibialis group of species and can be differentiated from the other species of the group by the combination of characters b), c), g), h) and j).

Description. Size: HL = 0.9 mm; HW = 1.5 mm; PL = 1.3 mm; PW = 2.7 mm; EL = 2.6 mm; EW = 2.6 mm. Overall morphology as in generic diagnosis. Medium-sized Synarmostes . Body moderately convex. Black, shiny, dorsum glabrous (20×), underside, tarsi and antennae reddish-brown, setation yellowish. Head: W/L ratio = 1.50; clypeal apex obtuse, apical projection protruding and sharp, dorsal ocular area small, interocular distance about 18 times the maximum width of dorsal ocular area, ventral ocular area medium-sized; head dorsal surface uniformly covered by dense strongly impressed large simple punctation, smaller, sparser and less impressed on disc. Fore margin with some irregular transverse lines preceded by some transverse comma-shaped punctures. Interpunctural distance of simple impressed punctures irregular: from less than to once or three times larger than the punctural diameter. Vertex smooth with one continuous transverse impressed irregular line. Pronotum: subrectangular (W/L ratio = 2.00), irregularly convex, slightly depressed anteromedially with fore margin very slightly raised giving a slight saddle-shaped appearance in lateral view, base and sides with sparse punctation, disc covered by dense short transverse impressed comma-shaped punctures, sides of disc covered by dense large impressed simple punctures. Interpunctural distance shorter than punctural diameter. Scutellum : base smooth, distal third covered by several transverse small comma-shaped punctures with opening directed backwards. Elytra: longer than wide (W/L ratio = 0.90); subovoidal (dorsal view); inferior sutural stria reaching humeral area; humeral callus absent; elytral surface regularly strongly convex, covered by small dense comma-shaped punctures with opening directed backward mixed to some larger horseshoe-shaped punctures. Interpunctural distance irregular: once or twice the length of punctural diameter. Elytral distal third with at least eight raised longitudinal irregular carinae. Wings: flightless (brachypterous, Fig. 10 e ). Male genitalia: aedeagus (L = 0.9 mm) with parameres as in Figs 30 m-n, spiculum gastrale (L = 0.8 mm) as in Fig. 30 o .

Etymology. Noun in the genitive case, referring to the type locality.

Distribution and habitat. Known only from the type locality (Makirovana Forest) in northern Madagascar ( Fig. 93 e-f). The type series was collected by sifting leaf litter in rainforest. The vegetation cover consists of “humid forest” ( Moat & Smith 2007) also known as “moist evergreen forest” ( Goodman et al. 2018). The collecting locality falls within the protected area “Réserve de ressources naturelles de Makirovana Tsihomanaomby”.

Figures

Fig. 23 – Synarmostes lavasoae sp. nov., holotype, a, dorsal view of distended specimen; paratype, b, ventral view of rolled up specimen; c, dorsal view of rolled up specimen; d, lateral view of rolled up specimen; Synarmostes parrilloi sp. nov., holotype, e, dorsal view of distended specimen; f, lateral view of distended specimen.

Fig. 30 – Aedeagi and spicula gastrales, a–c, Synarmostes aes sp. nov., holotype; d–f, Synarmostes separatus sp. nov., holotype; g–i, Synarmostes compactus sp. nov., holotype; j–l, Synarmostes fortis sp. nov., holotype; m–o, Synarmostes makirovanae sp. nov., holotype; p–r, Synarmostes lavasoae sp. nov., holotype.

Fig. 10 – Wings. a, Synarmostes tibialis; b, Synarmostes occidentalis sp. nov.; c, Synarmostes sp. C; d, Philharmostes metallicus sp. nov.; e, Synarmostes makirovanae sp. nov.; f, Goudotostes laevis sp. nov..

Fig. 24 – Synarmostes makirovanae sp. nov., holotype, a, dorsal view of distended specimen; b, ventral view of rolled up specimen; c, dorsal view of rolled up specimen; d, lateral view of rolled up specimen; Synarmostes zahamenae sp. nov., holotype, e, dorsal view of distended specimen; f, ventral view of rolled up specimen; g, dorsal view of rolled up specimen; h, lateral view of rolled up specimen.

Fig. 93 – Habitat, a–d, Ambondrobe forest (photos by Brian Fisher), habitat of Goudotostes litoralis sp. nov.; e–f, Makirovana forest (photos by Brian Fisher), habitat of Synarmostes makirovanae sp. nov., Goudotostes laevis sp. nov., Philharmostes rotundatus sp. nov., and Philharmostes scapulatus sp. nov., and g–h, Orangea forest (g, photo by Brian Fisher in the year 2001 and h, photo by Alberto Ballerio in the year 2005), habitat of Goudotostes andreonei sp. nov. and Goudotostes orangeanus sp. nov.