Anthicimimus Franz

Jałoszyński, Paweł, 2015, Notes on the systematic placement of Sciacharis (Anthicimimus) (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Scydmaeninae), Zootaxa 4033 (3), pp. 445-450 : 446-448

Anthicimimus Franz , new status

Anthicimimus Franz, 1993: 100 (as subgenus of Sciacharis ). Type species: Euconnus anthiciformis Franz, 1967 (des. orig.).

Revised diagnosis. Head with anteriorly located eyes and long tempora, with distinct frontoclypeal groove, occipital constriction slightly broader than half HW; tempora, genae and sides of pronotum with thick bristles; submentum lacking lateral sutures; hypostomal ridges complete and connecting slightly in front of posterior tentorial pits; antennae gradually thickened distally; pronotum with transverse antebasal groove and without pits, sublateral and lateral carinae; prosternum with long basisternal part, nearly complete notosternal sutures (obliterated posteriorly), complete hypomeral ridges, broadly open procoxal sockets and distinct, subtriangular and narrow prosternal process; mesoventral intercoxal process carinate with median portion projecting ventrally more than anterior and posterior portions; ventrolateral foveae present; metaventrite with distinct, elongate anterior metaventral process and short, subtriangular metaventral intercoxal process with median notch; metacoxae contiguous; each elytron with one very small but deep and asetose basal fovea.

General body shape of female ( Fig. 1 ) strongly elongate and slender, body deeply constricted between head and pronotum but weakly so between pronotum and elytra, flattened; appendages long and slender, vestiture of setae sparse, short and suberect, in addition to thin setae thick bristles are present on various body parts.

Head capsule ( Figs 1 , 4 ) large in relation to pronotum; divided by occipital constriction into large anterior and small posterior part ('neck' region), posterior part retracted into pronotum. 'Neck' region much narrower than anterior part of head, short and weakly broadening toward foramen occipitale; narrowest place of occipital constriction ( Fig. 4 ; occ) slightly broader than half HW. Anterior part of head capsule strongly convex dorsally and flattened ventrally, round in dorsal view, with small round eyes located anteriorly. Tempora much longer than compound eyes; vertex transverse and strongly convex, its posterior portion not bulging posterodorsally, anteriorly vertex confluent with subtrapezoidal and strongly convex posterior portion of frons, which is abruptly and steeply declining anteriorly in front of weakly marked supraantennal tubercles; genae elongate, weakly convex. Clypeus short and broad, demarcated from frons by distinct transverse frontoclypeal groove. Vestiture of head capsule composed mostly of thin setae, but tempora and genae with thick bristles. Gular plate ( Fig. 4 ; gp) in posterior part broad and with indistinctly marked gular sutures ( Fig. 4 ; gs), anterior part adjacent to posterior tentorial pits narrow and nearly parallel-sided; posterior tentorial pits ( Fig. 4 ; ptp) strongly elongate, slot-shaped and located anteriorly to transverse impression delimiting 'neck' region from anterior part of head.

Mouthparts ( Fig. 4 ) only partly exposed in the studied specimen. Labrum strongly transverse, with rounded anterior margin. Mandibles ( Fig. 4 ; md), subtriangular and strongly elongate, only slender and curved distal portions visible, each with large subapical mesal tooth. Maxilla elongate, with transverse cardo ( Fig. 4 ; cd); subtriangular and elongated basistipes ( Fig. 4 ; bst); short and broad mediostipes ( Fig. 4 ; mst); elongate galea ( Fig. 4 ; gal) and lacinia ( Fig. 4 ; lac), each with long and dense setae along distal and mesal margin; maxillary palp ( Fig. 4 ; mxp) long, palpomere I minute, elongate, palpomere II strongly elongate, curved and distinctly thickening distally, palpomere III longer than II and strongly broadened, broadest near distal third; palpomere IV small, subconical and slender, with elongate distal portion. Labium with transverse submentum ( Fig. 4 ; smn) laterally not demarcated by sutures; mentum ( Fig. 4 ; mn) subtrapezoidal; prementum short, its median region not visible; labial palps ( Fig. 4 ; lp) shorter than mentum. Posteriorly and laterally mouthparts demarcated by distinct and only weakly arcuate hypostomal ridges ( Fig. 4 ; hr) which are complete and connected in front of posterior tentorial pits.

Antennae ( Fig. 1 ) slender and long, gradually but weakly thickening distally; antennomere I strikingly elongate, about three times as long as broad and in lateral view slightly curved.

Prothorax ( Figs 1 , 5 ) moderately convex, elongate, broadest in front of middle, in dorsal view bell-shaped; anterior and lateral margins in anterior half rounded; sides in sub-basal region shallowly constricted; anterior pronotal corners indistinctly marked; posterior corners obtuse-angled and blunt; posterior pronotal margin weakly arcuate. Pronotum without sharp lateral edges and without sublateral carinae. Base of pronotum with distinct transverse groove, without pits. Sides of pronotum and external parts of hypomera with thick bristles. Prosternum ( Fig. 5 ) with basisternal part ( Fig. 4 ; bst) longer than coxal part and partly sharply demarcated from procoxal cavities ( Fig. 5 ; pcc) by carina mesally continuous with lateral margins of prosternal intercoxal process ( Fig. 5 ; pcp), which is elongate subtriangular with sharply marked margins; procoxal sockets ( Fig. 5 ; pcs) broadly open; profurcal foveae ( Fig. 5 ; pff) large and distinct. Hypomera ( Fig. 5 ; hy) elongate, each divided by entire hypomeral ridge ( Fig. 5 ; hyr) into narrow and long subtriangular inner (adcoxal) part and large external part confluent laterally with side of pronotum; notosternal sutures ( Fig. 5 ; nss) nearly complete, obliterated only posteriorly, in front of procoxae, so that inner part of each hypomeron is mesally fused with coxal part of sternum.

Mesothorax. Mesonotum subtrapezoidal in shape; mesoscutum strongly transverse, with several thick lateral bristles; scutoscutellar suture well-marked on the surface as transverse ridge; mesoscutellum not visible between bases of elytra in intact specimens, triangular with rounded posterior margin.

Mesoventrite ( Fig. 6 ) much broader than long, without demarcated anterior ridge; area functioning as procoxal rest ( Fig. 6 ; pcr) not impressed, asetose and covered with distinct microsculpture composed of polygonal cells; setose impressions ( Fig. 6 ; si) large but weakly impressed, posteriorly not demarcated by carinae and with setae only in posterior portion; mesoventral intercoxal process ( Fig. 6 ; msvp) long and keel-like, strongly projecting ventrally, especially its median portion in front of mesocoxae in lateral view forming rounded ventral projection, whereas anterior and posterior portions are lower (i.e., less projecting ventrally); mesocoxal sockets ( Fig. 6 ; mscs) located lateromesally on mesocoxal projections ( Fig. 6 ; mcp) and in ventral view exposed; mesofurcal foveae ( Fig. 6 ; msff) large and located near anterior margin of each mesocoxal cavity ( Fig. 6 ; mscc). Prepectus ( Fig. 6 ; pre) short, posterior part of mesanepisternum only partly visible in ventral view. Mesothorax with deep ventrolateral foveae ( Fig. 6 ; vlf) with setose openings.

Metathorax. Metaventrite ( Fig. 6 ; v3) much longer than mesoventrite, subtrapezoidal, distinctly broadening posteriorly, anteriorly fused with mesoventrite, lateral margins slightly rounded, lateral (admetacoxal) parts of posterior margin weakly concave, intermetacoxal area weakly projecting posteriorly and forming short subtriangular metaventral intercoxal process ( Fig. 6 ; mtvp) with deep and rounded median notch; metacoxae contiguous. Metanepisterna ( Fig. 6 ; aest3) and metepimera ( Fig. 6 ; epm3) narrow.

Metafurca (metendosternite) ( Fig. 6 ) with short stem and strongly divergent lateral furcal arms ( Fig. 6 ; lmfa).

Elytra ( Fig. 1 ) oval, with rounded apices; humeral callus and basal impression weakly developed; subhumeral line present and carinate; each elytron with one very small but deep asetose basal fovea (visible only in transparent mount).

Metathoracic wings not studied.

Legs ( Fig. 1 ) long ad slender, unmodified.

Abdomen in the studied specimen partly damaged, terminal portion missing.

Remarks. Anthicimimus does not have the diagnostic characters of Sciacharis , as the closed procoxal sockets and indistinct, diffused prosternal process, and has features not known in the latter genus, as the large anterior metaventral process. The broadly open procoxal sockets are unique among Cyrtoscydmini ; narrowly open procoxal sockets can be found in several genera that occur in Australia ( Palaeoscydmaenus Franz, 1975 ; Leascydmus Jałoszyński, 2014c), Neotropical (Obesoconnus Jałoszyński, 2014d), Oriental ( Siamites Franz, 1989 ) and Palaearctic (Rutaraphes Jałoszyński, 2015) regions. All of them, except for Leascydmus, have the submentum with lateral sutures, which are absent in Anthicimimus . Leascydmus has rudimentary hypostomal ridges, lacks the prosternal process, and has broadly separated metacoxae, characters clearly different than those in Anthicimimus . For the above reasons, Anthicimimus is here elevated to the genus rank.

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 3. Anthicimimus anthiciformis (Franz). Holotype female in dorsal view (1); original set of labels of the holotype (2); and distribution (3).

FIGURES 4 – 6. Anthicimimus anthiciformis (Franz). Head in ventral view (4); prothorax in ventral view (5); pterothorax in ventral view (6). Abbreviations: aest 3, metanepisternum; amtv, anterior metaventral process; bst, basistipes; cd, cardo; epm 3, metepimeron; gal, galea; gp, gular plate; gs, gular suture; hr, hypostomal ridge; lac, lacinia; lb, labrum; lmfa, lateral metafurcal arm; lp, labial palp; mcp, mesocoxal projection; md, mandible; mn, mentum; mscc, mesocoxal cavity; mscs, mesocoxal socket; msff, mesofurcal fovea; mst, mediostipes; msvp, mesoventral intercoxal process; mtvp, metaventral intercoxal process; mxp, maxillary palp; occ, occipital constriction; pcr, procoxal rest; pre, prepectus; ptp, posterior tentorial pit; si, setose impression; smn, submentum; v 3, metaventrite; vlf, ventrolateral fovea.