Afropselaphus taygetensis Davranoglou, Hlaváč & Baňař, 2023

Davranoglou, Leonidas-Romanos, Baňař, Petr, Kakiopoulos, George, Balázs, Attila, Avtzis, Dimitrios N. & Hlaváč, Peter, 2023, Three new species of Afropselaphus Jeannel, 1950 (Staphylinidae: Pselaphinae) from Greece and a redescription of Pselaphogenius treskanus (Karaman, 1940), Zootaxa 5351 (5), pp. 559-570 : 561

Afropselaphus taygetensis Davranoglou, Hlaváč & Baňař , sp. n.

( Figs 2A – 6A , 7A, B )

Material studied. Holotype, ♁: GREECE, with one label: „GREECE, Mt. Taygetos / 37°10‘22.56‘‘N 22°17‘59.89‘‘E / 493m, 21.iv.2021 / Platanus litter / L.R. Davranoglou lgt.” [white, printed] ( NMPC) . Paratypes: 4 ♁♁, 13 ♀♀, same data as for holotype ( MMBC, PCPH) .

Diagnosis. Head 1.5 times longer than wide, scape 1.8 times longer than wide, tergite 1 (IV) 1.3 times wider than long, sternite 2 (IV)1.6–1.7 times wider than long; metaventrite smooth; internal sac of aedeagus with median spine subdivided into three processes that lack any distinct armature.

Description. Body length 1.7 mm. Coloration largely reddish-brown, maxillary palpi and legs lighter, posterior margin of elytra much darker, almost black ( Fig. 2A ). Pilosity of body sparse; head, legs, and antennae covered by sparse, adjacent golden setae; elytra with few rows of setae, which are denser on elytral marginal line; with row of setae on distal margin of elytra; proximal margin of tergite II with very dense pilosity ( Fig. 2A ), remaining segment largely glabrous.

Head 1.5 times longer than wide, each eye composed between 5–7 ommatidia ( Figs. 3A , 4A ); frons with pair of strongly pronounced carinae that slightly surpass proximal margin of eyes, creating a deep frontal fovea (= rostral sulcus) ( Fig. 3A ); gular plate with distinct tuft of setae; antenna ( Fig. 5A ) 0.9 mm long, with strongly foveolate surface; scape cylindrical, 1.8 times longer than wide, and 1.8 times longer than pedicel; pedicel about as long as wide; pedicel and antennomeres 3–8 rounded, subequal in length, about as long as wide; antennal club composed of three antennomeres: antennomeres 9–10 larger than antennomeres 3–8, longer than wide; terminal antennomere (11) as long as 9–10 combined, about 1.5 times longer than wide. Maxillary palpomere 1 shortest, palpomere 2 2.5 times longer than 1; palpomere 3 extremely short and rounded; palpomere 4 1.9 times longer than 2, apex club-shaped, main stem strongly curved.

Pronotum 0.26 mm wide, smooth, about 1.3 times longer than wide, slightly constricted proximally and distally, broadest medially; about 1.1 times longer than head; lacking median sulcus and carinae ( Fig. 6A ); median antebasal fovea weakly impressed, lateral foveae present, weakly impressed; procoxal fovea and prothoracic-mesothoracic junction with a dense tuft of setae.

Elytra about 1.5 times broader than long, and 1.2 times longer than pronotum; elytral surface smooth, lacking striae or distinct punctures; posterior margin with sparse, suberect pubescence; elytra with two basal foveae, and one sutural fovea; striae 1–3 weakly discernible, decreasing in depth from stria 1 to stria 3 and decreasingly distinct towards posterior portion of elytra; metaventrite smooth ( Fig. 6A ).

Abdomen about as broad as elytra; tergite 1 (IV) (excluding paratergites) smooth, medially convex, lacking median keel, about 1.3 times wider than long, its proximal margin covered by a tuft of dense, suberect setae; basal transverse sulcus distinct, covered by elytra in natural position; proximal margin of sternite 2 (IV) also covered by tuft of setae identical to dorsal counterpart; basolateral foveae not visible in dried specimens; remaining abdominal segments extremely narrow, strip-like.

Aedeagus ( Fig. 7A, B ) with internal sac comprising central spine that is dorsally subdivided into three simple branches, and second spine devoid of any armature.

Measurements of holotype (in mm)—W = width, L = length. Body, L—1.73; head, L—0.37, W—0.25; antenna, L—0.89; scapus, L—0.14, W—0.07; pedicel, L—0.07, W—0.06; antennomere III, L—0.05; antennomere IV, L—0.05; antennomere V, L—0.05; antennomere VI, L—0.05; antennomere VII, L—0.05; antennomere VIII, L—0.05; antennomere IX, L—0.07; antennomere X, L—0.09; antennomere XI, L—0.15, W—0.1; maxillary palpomere I, L—0.07; maxillary palpomere II, L—0.19; maxillary palpomere III, L—0.05; maxillary palpomere IV, L—0.36; pronotum, L—0.34, W—0.26; elytra, L—0.44, W—0.32; tergite IV, L—0.44, W—0.69; tergite IV (excluding paratergites) W—0.57; ventrite IV, L—0.42, W—0.7.

Etymology. The new species is named after Taygetos Mountain, the type locality.

Habitat. A. taygetensis sp. n. was collected from a dense accumulation of Platanus orientalis leaf-litter next to a stream ( Fig. 8A ).

Distribution. Greece (so far endemic to Mt Taygetos).

Remarks. The aedeagus of A. taygetensis sp. n. is very similar to that of A. caviventris (Reitter, 1884) , the most widely distributed species in the Peloponnese ( Fig. 1 ). However, several components of the aedeagal sclerites of A. caviventris are not found in A. taygetensis sp. n. (e.g. large subtriangular sclerite behind the two central spines of the internal sac of aedeagus). Furthermore, both sexes of the specimens described here are characterised by a smooth metaventrite ( Fig. 6A ), whereas in A. caviventris the latter is produced into a distinct protruberance ( Besuchet 1961). Future molecular work is needed to test whether the morphological distinctiveness of the Taygetos population is correlated with significant genetic divergence from A. caviventris .

Figures

FIGURE 1. Distribution of Afropselaphus species known from Greece.

FIGURE 2. Habitus photos of examined species of Pselaphini.A) A. taygetensis sp. n.; B) A. tymficus sp. n.; C) A. euboicus sp. n.; D) Pselaphogenius treskanus (Karaman, 1940). Scale bars correspond to 250 um.

FIGURE 3. Scanning electron microscopy image of dorsal view of head in the examined Pselaphini.A) A. taygetensis sp. n.; B) A. tymficus sp. n.; C) A. euboicus sp. n.; D) Pselaphogenius treskanus (Karaman, 1940). Scale bars correspond to 100 um.

FIGURE 4. Scanning electron microscopy image of lateral view of head in the examined Pselaphini.A) A. taygetensis sp. n.; B) A. tymficus sp. n.; C) A. euboicus sp. n.; D) Pselaphogenius treskanus (Karaman, 1940). Scale bars correspond to 100 um.

FIGURE 5. Scanning electron microscopy image of antenna in the examined Pselaphini.A) A. taygetensis sp. n.; B) A. tymficus sp. n.; C) A. euboicus sp. n.; D) Pselaphogenius treskanus (Karaman, 1940). Scale bars correspond to 200 um.

FIGURE 6. Lateral view of metaventrite in the examined Pselaphini, using scanning electron microscopy.A) A. taygetensis sp. n.; B) A. tymficus sp. n.; C) A. euboicus sp. n.; D) Pselaphogenius treskanus (Karaman, 1940). Scale bars correspond to 100 um.

FIGURE 7. Photomicrographs showing the dorsal aedeagal surface of the examined Pselaphini. A) A. taygetensis sp. n.; B) same, schematic; C) A. tymficus sp. n.; D) same, schematic; E) A. euboicus sp. n.; F) same, schematic; G) Pselaphogenius treskanus (Karaman, 1940); F) same, schematic. Blue dashed lines indicate membranous structures. All scale bars correspond to 200 um.

FIGURE 8. Habitat photos of examined species. A) Type locality of A. taygetensis sp. n. in Kastoreion; B) type locality of A. tymficus sp. n.; in Mt Tymfi; C) leaf litter where A. euboicus sp. n. was collected from in Mt Dirfis, the type locality; D) habitat in Mt Vitsi, where Pselaphogenius treskanus (Karaman, 1940) was collected from.