Aetheomorpha punctistriata, Wang & Zhou, 2012

Wang, Feng-Yan & Zhou, Hong-Zhang, 2012, Taxonomy of the genus Aetheomorpha Lacordaire (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Cryptocephalinae: Clytrini) from China, with description of five new species, Journal of Natural History 46 (23 - 24), pp. 1407-1440 : 1418-1420

Aetheomorpha punctistriata sp. nov.

( Figures 4A–G , 12D )

Type material

Holotype. CHINA: Yunnan: male, Xishuangbanna Botanical Garden , 22 July 2007, leg. Guo Zheng ( IZ-CAS).

Paratypes. CHINA: Yunnan: four females, same data as holotype ; one female, Xishuangbanna Botanical Garden , 18 July 2007, leg. Guo Zheng ; one female, Xishuangbanna, Xiaomengyang , 850 m, 12 October 1957, leg. Shuyong Wang ; one female, Xishuangbanna, Menghun , 750–950 m, 3 June 1958, leg. Unknown ( IZ-CAS) .

Description

Body sub-cylindrical. Head black, clypeus fulvous, labrum black, mouth parts fulvous except labrum black, basal three antennomeres fulvous, fourth to eleventh antennomeres brown. Pronotum fulvous with two black suboval spots in the disc. Scutellum black. Elytra fulvous, posterior two-thirds of suture black, last two-thirds of elytral margins with black stripe, narrowest at its middle, broadened anteriorly and posteriorly; elytral apices black; each elytron with three spots: one at humerus, second round, located at basal quarter near suture, and another one oblong, placed at two-thirds of elytra, near suture. Underside of prothorax fulvous, mesosternum and metasternum black or blackish brown, abdomen fulvous, sometimes with black apex, tarsi and posterior part of tibiae blackish brown or black.

Head small, vertex covered with very fine punctures. Eyes large. Frons narrow, 1.2 times as wide as the diameter of the eye (about half of maximal width of the head) in both sexes; frons covered with short pubescence and sparse punctures; clypeus smooth, anterior margin feebly incised. Labrum pubescent, slightly incised at anterior margin; mandibles short. Antennae extending to base of pronotum, all antennomeres except third thickly pubescent; first antennomere elongate, second rounded, third very small, fourth triangular, fifth to tenth feebly serrate, last one subovate; length ratio of antennomeres 1.2: 0.7: 0.4: 0.5: 0.8: 0.9: 0.8: 0.8: 0.8: 0.9: 1.4.

Pronotum transverse, 1.8 times as broad as long, widest at posterior third; feebly convex; very narrowly bordered; anterior angles nearly rectangular, posterior ones rounded; anterior margin nearly straight, lateral margins feebly arcuate, posterior margin feebly lobed in the middle, the lobed margin nearly straight; surface impunctate and shiny. Scutellum broadly trigonal, impunctate, with truncate apex.

Elytra 1.3 times as long as wide, nearly parallel-sided; moderately lobed below shoulders; surface lustrous, covered with large and deep punctures, punctate-striated about 10 rows, interstices between rows 1.5–2.0 times of the diameter of a puncture, interstices between punctures in a row 0.5–1.5 times of the diameter of a puncture, punctures disappearing in elytral apices. Epipleura about one-quarter of elytral length. Pygidium partly free, apex black and narrowly rounded.

Underside of body and legs covered with short silvery pubescence; tarsi narrow, length ratio of protarsomeres 1.5: 1.0: 0.4: 2.2.

Aedeagus light brown, apex triangular, sharply bent ventrally, underside without pubescence or impression.

Female. Body more robust; pygidium exposed, apex nearly truncate; legs more slender; spermatheca moderate, spermathecal duct very pale and thin, loosely coiled about 20 times, base inflated, like a saccule; ventral rectal sclerites moderate, with small corners, dorsal central sclerite absent, lateral sclerites small and simple.

Measurement

Male: 3.3 mm, females: 3.4–3.8 mm.

Etymology

The specific epithet is a combination of Latin words punct- (punctate) and striata (striated), and refers to the punctate-striated elytra.

Distribution

China (Yunnan).

Remarks

This new species is close to A. gressitti Medvedev and Regalin, 1998 in elytral pattern, but can be distinguished by the following characters: the new species has two suboval spots in the disc of pronotum; punctures on elytra of the new species are larger and punctate-striated about 10 rows; aedeagal apex is triangular, bent ventrally; spermathecal duct is very pale and thin with a saccular base; dorsal central rectal sclerite absent.

Figures

Figure 4. Aetheomorpha punctistriata sp. nov.: (A) habitus; (B) male genitalia in dorsal view; (C) male genitalia in lateral view; (D) male genitalia in ventral view; (E) spermatheca; (F) rectal sclerites in ventral view; (G) rectal sclerites in dorsal view. Scales 0.5 mm.

Figure 12. Habitus of Aetheomorpha: (A) Aetheomorpha bidentata sp. nov.; (B) Aetheomorpha bilobata sp. nov.; (C) Aetheomorpha obtusapicata sp. nov.; (D) Aetheomorpha punctistriata sp. nov.; (E) Aetheomorpha wangi sp. nov.; (F) Aetheomorpha furcata Medvedev and Kantner; (G) Aetheomorpha bacboensis Medvedev; (H) Aetheomorpha coerulea (Jacoby); (I) Aetheomorpha decemnotata (Jacoby).