Paratrichius tesari Mückstein, Xu & Qiu, 2020

Mückstein, Petr, Xu, Hao & Qiu, Jian-Yue, 2020, Description of a new species resembling Paratrichius circularis Ma, 1990 (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Cetoniinae) from China, Zootaxa 4763 (2), pp. 259-269 : 262-268

Paratrichius tesari Mückstein, Xu & Qiu , new species

( Figs. 7–12 , 17–20 , 29–31 , 35–37)

Type material examined (4♂♂, 2♀♀). Holotype (♂, MYNU, Figs. 7–9 ): China: Guizhou, Libo County, Maolan Nature Reserve, alt. 750 m, 2018.VI.11–17, Jian-Yue QIU & Hao XU leg. Paratypes (3♂♂, 2♀♀): CHINA: 1♀ (allotype, RMHK), KOUY-TCHÉOU / RÉG. DE PIN-FA / Père Cavalerie 1909; 1♀ ( PMCH, Figs. 10–12 ), KOUY- TCHÉOU / Kouy-Yang [Guiyang] / P.P. Cavalerie et Fortunat 1906; 1♂ ( RMHK), KOUY-TCHÉOU [Guizhou] / RÉG. DE PIN-FA [Pingfa, Yunwu, Guiding County] / Père Cavalerie 1908; 2♂♂ ( MYNU), Guizhou, Libo County, Maolan Nature Reserve, alt. 750 m, 2018. VI.11–17, Jian-Yue QIU & Hao XU leg.

Description of holotype (male). Elongate, with slender legs; color black ( Figs. 7–9 ); antennae fulvous (with slightly darker scapus); elytra with reddish-brown band at margins; body decorated with pale yellowish chalky material as follows: pronotum with a narrow band along margins, slightly wider at the posterior lateral margins; elytral disc with two narrow, sinuate transverse bands, positioned before and behind middle, which do not reach lateral margins (the anterior one divided into two parts); elytral juxtascutellar area with a narrow band along suture and not exceeding the anterior sinuate transverse band; elytral distal declivity with a crescent narrow transverse band (lining the apical umbone); pygidium covered with pale yellowish chalky material at sides only (connected at the middle of upper margin); ventral surface (except anal sternites) completely covered.

Head. Black, without luster. Surface of frons and clypeus covered with scattered, rounded, large, shallow punctuation, each puncture with short, erect whitish seta. Clypeal outline squarish, clypeus slightly depressed behind anterior emarginated margin, sides arcuate, clypeal apex somewhat bisinuate, not raised. Vertex and anterior part of clypeus with sparse, short, yellowish setae. Mentum and gula with sparse, long, yellowish setae. Antennae fulvous, 10-segmented; scapus slightly darker, with conspicuous brush of yellowish bristles posteriorly (the longest bristles in the apical part); antennal clubs developed, about as long as the length of the antennomere 2–7 combined.

Pronotum. Suboctagonal, transverse, moderately convex. Disc with wrinkled impressions, punctuation in basal part rounded, large and shallow, each puncture with one short erect yellowish seta. Sides abruptly convergent anteriorly before the middle, widely rounded posteriorly; anterior angles slightly projected, obtuse and rounded at apex; posterior angles widely rounded without distinct projecting, posterior margin broadly emarginated medially.

Scutellum. Triangular, wider than long, sides arcuate, apex rounded, surface covered with black pruinosity, sparsely punctate, with short, erect, yellowish setae.

Elytra. Longer than wide, widest before the middle; each elytron with six striae dorsally and one on lateral declivity; each striae with a row of horseshoe-shaped punctures (few C-shaped), from second third more or less merged. Elytral suture black, uniformly narrow throughout its length. The whole area of elytra regularly covered with sparse yellowish setae ( Fig. 29 ). Humeral umbone developed. Macropterous.

Pygidium. Convex, wider than long, with apex rounded. Surface with concentric wrinkles, evenly and sparsely covered with slightly recumbent yellowish setae ( Fig. 18 ).

Ventral surface. Metasternal and abdominal ventrites covered with long yellow hairlike macrosetae, denser and longer medially than laterally. Anal sternites hollowed medially.

Legs. Protibia bidentate, with proximal tooth inconspicuous, lacking terminal spur, inner margin of protibia with a row of yellowish setae. Mesotibia slightly curved, with inconspicuous oblique ridge at the apical third of outer margin and a pair of simply spurs apically; inner margin of mesotibia with a row of longer yellowish setae. Mesotarsi clad with minute yellowish setae, mesotarsomeres with some pale yellow brush-like bristles apically. Metatibia straight, with inconspicuous oblique ridge at the apical third of outer margin and a pair of simply spurs apically, the apical third of metatibia inner margin with a row of longer yellowish setae, outer margin with inconspicuous oblique ridge. Metatarsi extensively prolonged, 1.5 as long as mesotarsi; first metatarsomere as long as second; metatarsomeres clothes with minute yellowish setae and also with some pale yellow brush-like bristles apically. Procoxae and mesocoxae with longer yellow hairlike macrosetae, metacoxae glabrous.

Genitalia. Rake shaped in apical view. Parameres slender; apex rounded, arcuate inwards; a long, ensiform protuberance laterally protruding from basal part of paramere ( Figs. 30–31 ).

Sexual dimorphism. Female similar to male, but different in the following characters: antennal clubs shorter; puncture on dorsal surface of pronotum larger and deeper; legs stronger and shorter; protibia wider and teeth on the outer margin distinctly larger; the chalky area on pygidium larger; a small depression in middle of disc of pygidium; abdomen convex with less chalky material.

Measurements. Body length 14.8–15.2 mm (male holotype 15.0 mm), width 6.2–7.0 mm (male holotype 6.8 mm).

Variability. The chalky band along the margin of pronotum divided before scutellum in the male paratype (RMHK), and the anterior chalky band of elytra not divided into two parts in some individuals.

Differential diagnosis. The new species is very similar to P. circularis , from which can be separated by following characters: anterior angles of pronotum slightly projected (distinctly projected in P. circularis ); pronotal disc always without yellow chalky material; the posterior transverse sinuate band on elytra continuous (usually divided into three parts in P. circularis ); lateral protuberances of parameres ensiform, distinctly long and slender (protuberance auriform in P. circularis ). This new species also resembles Vietnamese species P. pejchai Mückstein, 2018 in appearance and parameres, but the anterior angles of pronotum is slightly projected (distinctly projected in P. pejchai ), the color of elytra is darker, the scutellum and pronotal disc without chalky material, and the protuberances of parameres distinctly longer.

Etymology. Named after Zdeněk Tesař (1907–1985), well-known Czech specialist on Scarabaeidae , in whose collection this newly described species was firstly found.

Distribution. China: Guizhou.

Remarks. According to the collecting data, the type specimens of Paratrichius tesari new species in Tesař’s collection were collected by missionary Pére Julien Cavalerie (1869–1927). Father Cavalerie worked at Guizhou province, China from 1894 to 1919, and collected a lot of plants and animals from the places he had worked ( Wu & Tan 2003; Moussay & Appavou 2004). Pin-Fa (i.e. Pingfa), the exact locality given on his label of one paratype, is the type locality of many species ( Léveillé 1906; Olivier 1909; Tsai & Rédei 2010). Pingfa (107°4′54.35″ E, 26°12′44.34″ N, alt. 1,000 m) is a small village in Yunwu township of Guiding County, located in the Yunnan–Gui- zhou Plateau with limestone mountainous environment. However, nowadays it is difficult to find a fit forest habitat for Paratrichius beetles around the village due to the environment changing. Subsequently, the authors (HX and JYQ) went to Maolan, a nearby nature reserve which is famous for its karst landscape at the edge of Yunnan–Gui-zhou Plateau. Finally, three males were captured on flowers of Viburnum sp. (Rubiales: Caprifoliaceae ) during a one-week investigation ( Figs. 35–36 ), but the amount of adults is distinctly less than other Paratrichius species, such as P. marmoreus (Moser, 1902) and P. tergorufus Ricchiardi, 2019 . It is presumed that the peak of activity for adults of P. tesari new species should be slightly later than the collecting date, perhaps later June.

Figures

FIGURES 7‒12. Habitus (dorsal, ventral, and lateral view) of Paratrichius tesari Mückstein, Xu & Qiu, new species. 7–9, male holotype; 10–12, female paratype in PMCH.

FIGURES 13‒20. Habitus (oblique view) and pygidium of Paratrichius Janson, 1881 species. 13–16, P. circularis Ma, 1990: 13–14, male; 15–16, female. 17–20, P. tesari Mückstein, Xu & Qiu, new species: 17–18, male holotype; 19–20, female paratype in PMCH.

FIGURES 21‒31. Variability and details of Paratrichius Janson, 1881 species. 21–28, P. circularis Ma, 1990: 21–22, color- ation variation; 23, setae on elytra; 24–26, illustration (pronotum, elytron, and parameres) of the male holotype of P. circularis (modified from Ma 1990); 27–28, parameres (apical and lateral view). 29–31, P. tesari Mückstein, Xu & Qiu, new species, holotype: 29, setae on elytra; 30–31, parameres (apical and lateral view).

FIGURES 32‒36. Habitat of Paratrichius Janson, 1881 species. 32–34, habitat of P. circularis Ma, 1990: 32, microbiotop in Mount Zhougongshan, Sichuan, China (photographs by Ji-Shen Wang); 33, female on flower of Hydrangea sp. (photographs by Ji-Shen Wang); 34, male on the same host plant. 35–36, habitat of P. tesari Mückstein, Xu & Qiu, new species: 35, karst landscape in Maolan Natural Reserve, Guizhou, China; 36, Viburnum sp., host plant.