Physciolagria singularicornis ( Pic, 1935 ) Telnov, 2022

Telnov, Dmitry, 2022, Redefinition of Physciolagria Pic, 1930 (Coleoptera: Mycteridae) with a new family placement, genus-rank synonymy, new description, and a key, Zootaxa 5219 (2), pp. 121-138 : 127-128

Physciolagria singularicornis ( Pic, 1935) comb. nov.

( Figs 12–14 , 22–23, 26 , 30–32 , 39–41 , 45–48 )

Type material: see above.

This redescription is made from a male specimen collected in Botswana in the BMNH (see Telnov (2019: 783) for details) .

Measurements. Holotype ♂ ( Figs 12–14 ), total body length 4.4 mm; head length 0.8 mm, head width across eyes 0.9 mm, pronotal length 0.8 mm, maximum pronotal width 1.0 mm, minimum pronotal width 0.8 mm, elytral length 2.8 mm, combined maximum elytral width in apical third 1.4 mm.

Redescription, ♂: Head pale brown. Pronotum and elytra yellow, the latter with black, strongly elongate sutural spot in apical third touching suture but leaving apex of elytra narrowly yellow. Antennae dark brown, terminal antennomeres black. Maxillary palps pale brown. Legs brown, terminal tarsomeres yellow, trochanters brown. Venter uniformly brown. Head ( Figs 12–14 ) slightly transverse (nearly circular), glossy dorsally, slightly convex in dorsal aspect, with extremely large and globose hemispherical compound eyes which occupy most of head. Compound eye touching antennal insertion, with inconspicuous notch at point of contact. Interfacetal setae dense, moderately long. Frontoclypeal suture or impression not indicated. Labrum appears subtruncate at anterior margin. Frons extremely narrow between compound eyes (at its narrowest point frons is as long as to insignificantly narrower than length of basal antennomere), strongly widens posteriad. Antennal insertion free, not concealed by anterolateral margin of frons. Tempora not indicated, head base straight, not narrowed to a neck, hidden beneath anterior margin of pronotum. Dorsal cranial punctures large, dense and rather coarse (especially on anterior area), irregular. Intervening spaces glossy on occiput, subopaque on anterior area of head. Head dorsal setation yellowish, inconspicuous, suberect. Antenna ( Figs 12–14 ) extending towards mesocoxa when directed backwards. Basal antennomere about 1.4× as long as wide. Antennomere three barely shorter than antennomere two. Antennomeres 6–8 asymmetrical, 5–10 strongly shortened and strongly transverse. Terminal antennomere greatly elongated, flattened dorso-ventrally and somewhat shallowly impressed on whole ventral surface, densely rugulose, truncate apically, at anterior margin slightly narrowed apicad from about midlength where there is a minute, obtuse angulation, about 1.6–1.7× as long as combined length of antennomeres 1–10. Terminal maxillary palpomere cylindrical, narrow. Pronotum ( Figs 12–14 ) glossy dorsally, transverse, markedly narrower than head across compound eyes, subtruncate at anterior margin. Lateral margins subparallel. Anterolateral angles rounded, posterolateral angles broadly obtuse. Pronotal base broadly rounded, with moderately wide bead. Pronotal disc flattened dorsally. Punctures circular, regular, intervening spaces glossy, generally narrower than punctures. Pronotal dorsal pubescence yellow, moderately long, rather dense, suberect; setae along lateral margins longer and denser, somewhat curved apically. Scutellar shield triangular, rounded apically.Elytra ( Figs 12–13 ) elongate, nearly parallel-sided, moderately glossy, flattened dorsally, somewhat ‘malacoderm-like’ thin and flimsy. Humerus broadly rounded. Punctures on elytral disc dense, with glossy intervening spaces which are generally narrower than to as wide as punctures; punctures not or hardly becoming more delicate in apical third. Elytral pubescence yellow, dense, subdecumbent, moderately long, directed posteriad. Sutural striae not indicated. Metathoracic wings fully developed. All legs of similar shape, sparsely setose. Femora not clavate, tibiae nearly straight, rugulose. Tibia about as long as corresponding femur. Tibial terminal spurs paired, inconspicuously short. Penultimate tarsomeres not bilobed, with truncate ventral pad. Basal metathoracic tarsomere shorter than the combined length of remaining metathoracic tarsomeres. Pretarsal claws short, curved, distinctly cleft. Tergite VII subtruncate at posterior margin ( Fig. 22 ), morphological sternite VII short and broad, subtruncate at posterior margin ( Fig. 23 ). Tergite VIII and morphological sternite VIII short and broad, subtruncate at posterior margin. Spiculum gastrale as in Fig. 26 . Aedeagus with median lobe longer than tegmen. Median lobe somewhat funnel-shaped, wide basally, strongly narrowed in apical half, narrowly rounded apically, provided with irregular spine-like setae on its narrow part, with 7–8 radial channels at apical margin ( Figs 39–41 ). Gonopore armature of numerous long, parallel baculi and one thicker, median rod ( Fig. 41 ). Tegmen stout, with paramere strongly curved at apex only; paramere apex hook-like, rounded ( Figs 30–32 ). Ventral surface and external margin of paramere with several long setae most dense on apical area ( Figs 31–32 ). Outer and inner margin of paramere broad ( Fig.30 ).

Sexual dimorphism. ♀ (holotype) is over 5 mm long (precise measurement impossible due to the condition of the specimen), terminal antennomere distinctly shorter than that of male with prominent basal denticle at inner margin ( Figs 45, 47 ), pro- and mesothoracic legs rufous, interocular distance comparatively larger than that in male.

Ecology. Some specimens attracted to light.

Distribution. The country is unknown for the type locality (see above). Distribution as given by Pollock (1997: 55–56) and Telnov (2019: 783) includes Botswana, southern DR Congo (Katanga Province), Namibia, and the Republic of South Africa.

Figures

FIGURES 12–14. Physciolagria singularicornis (Pic, 1935), ♂ from Sebele, Botswana. 12—Habitus, dorsal view; 13—ditto, anterodorsal view; 14—Forebody, dorsal view [not to scale].

FIGURES 20–27. Male terminalia of Physciolagria Pic, 1930. 20—P. liturata Pic, 1930, tergite VII, dorsal view; 21—ditto, morphological sternite VII, ventral view; 22—P. singularicornis (Pic, 1935), ♂ from Sebele, Botswana, tergite VII, dorsal view; 23—ditto, morphological sternite VII, ventral view; 24—P. smithi sp. nov., paratype, tergite VII, dorsal view; 25—ditto, morphological sternite VII, ventral view; 26—P. singularicornis (Pic, 1935), ♂ from Sebele, Botswana, spiculum gastrale; 27—P. smithi sp. nov., paratype, spiculum gastrale [not to scale].

FIGURES 28–35. Tegmen of Physciolagria Pic, 1930. 28—P. liturata Pic, 1930; 29—ditto, parameres, apical portion (note moderately long apical setation); 30—P. singularicornis (Pic, 1935), ♂ from Sebele, Botswana; 31—ditto, paramere, apical portion, apical setation removed; 32—ditto, parameres, apical portion (note long apical setation); 33—P. smithi sp. nov., paratype; 34—ditto, paramere, apical portion, apical setation removed; 35—ditto, parameres, apical portion (note long apical setation) [not to scale].

FIGURES 36–44. Median lobe of Physciolagria Pic, 1930. 36—P. liturata Pic, 1930; 37—ditto, apical portion (note apical pores); 38—ditto, gonopore armature; 39—P. singularicornis (Pic, 1935), ♂ from Sebele, Botswana; 40—ditto, apical portion (note apical spines); 41—ditto, gonopore armature; 42—P. smithi sp. nov., paratype; 43—ditto, apical portion (note apical spines); 44—gonopore armature [not to scale].

FIGURES 45–48. Physciolagria singularicornis (Pic, 1935), holotype ♀. 45—Habitus, dorsal view; 46—ditto, lateral view; 47—ditto, ventral view; 48—Labels [images courtesy Christophe Rivier, MNHN].