Algon fansipanicus, Assing, 2015

Assing, Volker, 2015, A new species of Algon from Vietnam (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Staphylininae), Linzer biologische Beiträge 47 (2), pp. 1251-1256 : 1252-1256

Algon fansipanicus nov.sp. ( Figs 1-14 )

T y p e m a t e r i a l: Holotype Ƌ [slightly teneral]: "N-Vietnam - 7 km NW Sa Pa , 22°20'58''N, 103°46'47''E, 2000 m, primary forest, 29.VII. 2013, V. Assing [2+2] / Holotypus Ƌ Algon fansipanicus sp.n. det. V. Assing 2015" (cAss).

E t y m o l o g y: The specific epithet (adjective) is derived from Fansipan, the highest mountain of Vietnam, at whose ascent the type locality is situated.

D e s c r i p t i o n: Body length 16.0 mm; length of forebody 7.2 mm. Habitus as in Fig. 6 . Coloration: body black; legs blackish-brown with dark reddish-brown tarsi; antenna reddish-brown, with antennomere I blackish-brown, except for the apex; maxillary palpi pale-brown.

Head ( Fig. 1 ) 1.18 times as broad as long, not distinctly dilated posteriorly; dorsal surface with fine, but distinct microreticulation composed of isodiametric meshes and with sparse interspersed micropunctation visible only at high magnification ( Fig. 7 ); few macropunctures present only in postero-lateral portion of dorsal surface; medial margin of eye not bordered and without punctate furrow; base of head with nuchal ridge and well developed nuchal constriction. Antenna 4.5 mm long and shaped as in Fig. 2 .

Pronotum ( Fig. 3 ) 1.09 times as broad as long and 1.26 times as broad as head, weakly convex in cross-section; lateral margins subparallel in posterior third, distinctly converging in anterior two-thirds; in anterior half with a discal series of three macropunctures on either side of middle, the two posterior punctures distinctly coarser than the anterior puncture; microsculpture and micropunctation similar to those of head, but micropunctures even sparser and finer.

Elytra ( Fig. 3 ) short, 0.43 times as long as, and slightly broader than pronotum; disc with numerous irregular longitudinal striae, slightly elevated along suture, and with distinct scale-shaped microsculpture ( Fig. 4 ). Hind wings completely reduced. Protarsomeres I- IV distinctly dilated.

Abdomen approximately as broad as elytra; punctures rather coarse and distinct ( Fig. 8 ), and with conspicuous microsculpture ( Fig. 5 ); interstices with very fine transverse microsculpture; posterior margin of tergite VII without palisade fringe; posterior margin of tergite VIII weakly bisinuate ( Fig. 8 ).

C o m p a r a t i v e n o t e s: Algon fansipanicus is distinguished from all its congeners by the shape of the aedeagus (more slender; median lobe apically more acute in ventral view; paramere only with one peg-seta). In addition, it differs from other representatives of the A. kaiserianus group as follows:

from A. kaiserianus by paler antennae, larger eyes, and the coarser macropunctures on the pronotum; from A. tronqueti by a more transverse pronotum with more distinct macropunctures, and slightly larger eyes; from A. hubeiensis by the subparallel lateral margins in the posterior third of the pronotum, the more distinct macropunctures on the pronotum, and the larger eyes; from A. uenoi by the different punctation of the pronotum (see figure 3 in HAYASHI 2011) and the sparser and coarser punctation of the abdomen; from A. leigongshanus by the different punctation pattern of the elytra ( A. leigongshanus : elytra broadly impunctate in sutural portions and punctate in lateral portions); from A. holzschuhi by the less tranverse pronotum ( A. holzschuhi : pronotum 1.13 times as broad as long), and the different punctation of the elytra ( A. holzschuhi : similar to that of A. leigongshanus ; see above); from A. murzini by the less tranverse pronotum ( A. murzini : pronotum 1.15 times as broad as long), and the different punctation of the elytra ( A. murzini : similar to that of A. leigongshanus ; see above); from A. reuteri by the different coloration of the antennae ( A. reuteri : antenna black with the apical 2-4 antennomeres nearly whitish), different punctation pattern of the head, a smaller and less transverse pronotum ( A. reuteri : 1.13-1.16 times as broad as long), the absence of a transverse anterior impression on the elytra, sparser punctation of the abdomen, and other characters. For illustrations of the aedeagi of the previously described species of the A. kaiserianus group see SCHILLHAMMER (2006, 2008, 2011) and HAYASHI (2011).

D i s t r i b u t i o n a n d b i o n o m i c s: The slightly teneral holotype was collected to the northwest of Sa Pa, near the trail to the summit of Fansipan, North Vietnam, by sifting leaf litter in a primary forest at an altitude of 2000 m ( Fig. 14 ).

Figures

Figs 1-5: Algon fansipanicus nov.sp.: (1) head; (2) antenna; (3) pronotum and elytra; (4) median portion of tergite VII; (5) postero-sutural portion of elytra. Scale bars: 1, 3: 2.0 mm; 2: 1.0 mm; 4- 5: 0.5 mm.

Figs 6-13: Algon fansipanicus nov.sp.: (6) habitus; (7) median portion of head; (8) tergites VII- VIII; (9) male sternite VIII; (10-11) aedeagus in lateral and in ventral view; (12) apical portion of aedeagus in lateral view; (13) apical portion of paramere in ventral view. Scale bars: 6: 5.0 mm; 8- 11: 1.0 mm; 7, 12: 0.5 mm; 13: 0.2 mm.

Fig. 14: Type locality of Algon fansipanicus. Photo: Paul Wunderle. Ƌ: sternite VIII (Fig. 9) with broadly V-shaped posterior excision; aedeagus (Figs 10-13) very long and slender, 2.1 mm long; median lobe apically bent and subapically dentate in lateral view, very acute in ventral view; paramere slender, apically not reaching apex of median lobe, much more slender than median lobe in ventral view, and with one peg-seta at some distance from the apex.