Leiopsammodius acei, Harpootlian & Gordon & Woodruff, 2000

Harpootlian, Phillip J., Gordon, Robert D. & Woodruff, Robert E., 2000, Review Of The Genus Leiopsammodius Rakovic (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Aphodiinae: Psammodiini) In America North Of Mexico With Descriptions Of Three New Species, The Coleopterists Bulletin 54 (3), pp. 292-299 : 297-298

Leiopsammodius acei , new species

Figs. 10–12

Description. Male; length 2.8 mm, width 1.1 mm, oblong­oval, subparallel, moderately shining, rufocastaneous. Antennae pale rufotestaceous. Head convex, strongly verrucose, granules large, frequently elongate, base with distinct, darker transverse groove. Clypeus broadly emarginate, angles rounded. Pronotum slightly lobed basally, narrower in front, angles obtusely rounded, faintly emarginate, sides entire, fimbriate basally with coarse, short hairs; surface very finely, sparsely punctate throughout, with three transverse rows of punctures; anterior row subapical, composed of closely spaced, moderately coarse punctures in a groove extending almost completely across between anterior angles, median row composed of punctures in transverse groove extending inward from lateral margin nearly to median, longitudinal groove that extends from near pronotal base nearly to anterior row of subapical punctures, posterior row composed of irregular, confused coarse punctures extending across pronotum near base; base margined with contiguous band of moderate punctures ( Fig. 12 ). Elytra convex, striae deep, moderately, crenately punctate, intervals weakly convex, very finely, irregularly punctate. Metasternum smooth, shining, anterior postcoxal line absent, with faint arcuate groove in front of posterior coxal plate, median longitudinal groove obvious, anteriorly alutaceous and very shallowly, moderately punctate at sides. Abdominal segments sparsely, minutely punctate and very finely alutaceous, faintly crenate in front. Pygidium eroded, longitudinally divided, faintly alutaceous, apical fringe with four long setae in moderate punctures. Posterior femora moderately stout, minutely alutaceous, two or three setigerous punctures paralleling posterior edge with similar row along the anterior margin; middle femora ¾ as wide as posterior, basal marginal rows of setae weakly developed apically ( Fig. 11 ). Posterior tibiae ⅓ as wide as long, transverse ridges absent; posterior spurs narrow, faintly foliaceous, the longer as long as the first three tarsal segments combined; first tarsal segment elongate, triangular, equal in length to the next three together. Parameres stout, ventral notch rounded ( Fig. 10 ).

Variations. Length 2.8 to 3.3 mm, width 1.1–1.5 mm; pygidium with two to five fringe setae.

Material Studied. Holotype: South Carolina , Beaufort Co., Hunting Island , 10­X­1998, sifted from sand, P.J. Harpootlian ( FSCA) . Paratypes: South Carolina , Beaufort Co., Pritchards Island, 14­IX­1996, blacklight, P.J. Harpootlian (1); Hunting Island , 28­VIII­1997, sifted from sand, P.J. Harpootlian (1); 21­ IX­1997, sifted from sand, P.J. Harpootlian (5) . North Carolina, New Hanover Co., Carolina Beach , 7­IX­1956, dead in beer can, R. E Woodruff (5); Fort Fisher , 8­IX­1956, dead in beer can, R. E Woodruff (4) . Paratypes in the following collections: FSCA, USNM, BMNH, and the personal collections of the authors .

Remarks. The first known specimens were collected dead in beer cans on two North Carolina beaches by R.E. Woodruff in 1956. The species was not collected again until a single specimen was found in a blacklight trap set in a narrow wooded trail near the shore of Pritchards Island, South Carolina. Additional light trapping in the area has failed to attract any more specimens. Appears to prefer the sand in amongst grass, shaded by trees, not in the more open dune, and appears primarily during autumn. The somewhat similar appearing Geopsammodius hydropicus (Horn) is sympatric in the treeline sand, but that species can also be found in the sand right up to the high tide line and is evidently more common. This species is very similar to L. deyrupi and is difficult to differentiate without comparative material, but the punctures on the pronotum are generally smaller, the shape more parallel sided, the male genitalia are diagnostic, and the known distributions are allopatric.

Etymology. Named for the ACE basin, a coastal wilderness area in South Carolina formed by the confluence of the Ashepo, Combahee, and Edisto Rivers.

Figures

Figs. 10–12. Leiopsammodius acei. 10) male genitalia; 11) ventral aspect; 12) head and pronotum, dorsal aspect.