Alevonota flexa, Assing, 2017

Assing, Volker, 2017, A revision of the Alevonota species of the Palaearctic region. II. A new species from Cyprus and additional records (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Aleocharinae), Linzer biologische Beiträge 49 (1), pp. 229-234 : 231-233

Alevonota flexa nov.sp. ( Figs 1-4 )

T y p e m a t e r i a l: Holotype 3: " Cyprus occ., Stauros , N-slope - forest, N 35°1,1622' E 32°51,8766', 850 m, leaf litter sifting, 7.4.2014 M. Kocian lgt. / Holotypus 3 Alevonota flexa sp. n. det. V. Assing 2016" (cAss) . Paratypes: 13, 1♀, 3 exs: same data as holotype (cKoc, cAss) ; 233, 1♀, 3 exs: " Cyprus occ., near Kannaviou Dam - river valley, N 34°56,61768' E 32°35,54598', 460 m, leaf litter sifting, 9.4.2014 M. Kocian lgt." (cKoc, cAss) .

E t y m o l o g y: The specific epithet is the past participle of the Latin verb flectere (to bend) and alludes to the strongly curved apex of the ventral process of the aedeagus.

D e s c r i p t i o n: Species of highly variable size; body length 2.3-3.4 mm; length of forebody 1.2-1.6 mm. Habitus as in Fig. 1 . Coloration: head dark-brown to blackishbrown; pronotum reddish; elytra dark-yellowish; abdomen pale-reddish, with the middle of tergite VI more or less distinctly and more or less extensively infuscate; legs yellow; antennae pale reddish.

Head approximately 1.1 times as broad as long, broadest across eyes; dorsal surface with moderately fine and moderately dense punctation, impunctate (or nearly so) along middle; interstices with shallow, but distinct microreticulation. Eyes large and bulging, longer than postocular region in dorsal view. Antenna 0.6-0.7 mm long and strongly incrassate; antennomeres IV-X strongly transverse, VI-VIII disc-shaped and approximately four times as broad as long.

Pronotum 1.17-1.22 times as broad as long and approximately 1.15 times as broad as head, broadest near anterior angles; midline with or without indistinct median sulcus in posterior three-fourths; punctation fine and moderately dense, less distinct than that of head; microreticulation coarser than that of head.

Elytra slightly longer than pronotum; punctation very fine and dense; interstices with distinct microreticulation. Hind wings present.

Abdomen slightly narrower than elytra; punctation moderately dense on tergite III, rather sparse on tergites IV and V, and very sparse on tergites VI-VIII; microsculpture shallow, composed of isodiametric and short transverse meshes; posterior margin of tergite VIII with palisade fringe.

3: posterior margin of sternite VIII smoothly convex; median lobe of aedeagus ( Figs 1- 3 ) 0.31-0.35 mm long; ventral process subapically abruptly curved in lateral view.

♀: posterior margin of sternite VIII distinctly concave in the middle; spermatheca as in Fig. 4.

C o m p a r a t i v e n o t e s: As can be inferred from the similar external and sexual characters, A. flexa is closely allied to A. rufotestacea , A. libanotica , and allied species. It is reliably distinguished from all of them only by the shape of the ventral process of the aedeagus, which is smoothly curved in other species of this group. For illustrations of other Alevonota species known from the West Palaearctic region see ASSING & WUNDERLE (2008).

D i s t r i b u t i o n: The absence of records from other regions suggests that A. flexa is endemic to Cyprus, where it was collected in two localities at altitudes of 460 and 850 m.

Figures

Figs 1-4: Alevonota flexa nov.sp.: (1-3) median lobe of aedeagus in lateral view; (4) spermatheca. Scale bars: 0.1 mm.