Hexarhopalus (Leprocaulus) xui, Ren & Xu, 2011

Ren, G. & Xu, J., 2011, The Genus Hexarhopalus Fairmaire, 1891 In China, With Description Of Three New Species (Coleoptera, Tenebrionidae: Cnodalonini), Acta Zoologica Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae 57 (1), pp. 23-34 : 30-32

Hexarhopalus (Leprocaulus) xui sp. n.

( Figs 19–22 )

Material examined. Holotype: female, CHINA: Yunnan Province, Yingjiang County, 1750 m, 20 June 1995, Zhenghui Xu leg.

Condition of holotype. Right metatarsus is missing.

Description. Female ( Fig. 22 ). Body elongate (length 10.5 mm, width 3.9 mm), subcylindrical, winged, coarsely sculptured dorsally, sparsely and microscopically pubescent. Elytra blackish brown, pronotum and head black, labrum and claws brown-red.

Head narrower than pronotum (ratio 1:1.26), densely punctate, interspaces among punctures shiny and wrinkled. Labrum densely covered with rufescent setae. Frontoclypeal suture well marked. Ocular sulcus fine, nearly invisible, distance between eyes 2.0 times as wide as the transverse diameter of an eye (in dorsal view). Genae arcuate, weakly swollen. Clypeus with a shallow depression in the middle, straight at anterior edge, slightly bent downwards in lateral sides. Antennae ( Fig. 19 ) slightly filiform, pubescent, 1.41 times as long as pronotum, 8th to 10th segments slightly dilated, terminal segment drop-shaped, four distal segments with shallow sensory pores and dense sensory setae, ratio of the length (width) of 2nd–11th segments 10 (7):22 (7):15 (9):14 (9):15 (10):13 (10):14 (14):12 (13):11 (14):17 (14). Mentum obtrapezoidal, with a median elevation prominent anteriad.

Pronotum subcylindrical, a little wider than long (ratio 1:0.90), widest closely before middle, with two moderate dorsolateral swellings ranging over anterior angles and basal third of pronotum; lateral carina visible only in the anterior fourth, slightly denticulate, and obliterated posteriorly; oblique indentation in posterior angles somewhat short, not very deep, curved upward anteriorly, obtusely connected posteriorly with basal groove; disc wrinkled, with irregular, coarse punctures and a shallow median line, wrinkles obvious but small, different in size and partly tuberculated; base with a swelling on each side of median line. Prothoracic hypomeron densely and coarsely wrinkled, but the wrinkles more feeble than those in pronotal median portion. Prosternum pubescent, wrinkled and punctate, prosternal process between coxae enlarged and medio-longitudinally depressed, with margined apex. Scutellum small, triangular.

Elytra 1.75 times as long as its width, 3.25 times longer and 1.67 times wider than pronotum, side subparallel, arcuate in posterior third; dorsum slightly convex posteriad and curved downwards in posterior third; basal rim carinate; striae consist of dense row of deeply and sharply impressed longitudinal punctures; interstices flattened to weakly convex, with irregular row of more or less shiny tubercles; third, fifth and seventh interstices more carinate than the rest due to denser row of tubercles. Epipleuron narrow, smooth, developed throughout length of elytra, slightly depressed and arched at level of fourth abdominal ventrite, then bent to apex, apical half with fine rim.

Metasternum 1.93 times as long as mesocoxa, pubescent and strongly punctate.

Legs densely and regularly punctate and completely pubescent, ventral side of tibiae especially apical half with long yellow hairs.

Abdomenal sternites pubescent, wrinkled and densely punctate.

Ovipositor ( Fig. 21 ) consists of paraprocts and coxites; paraprocts reduced, and partly enclose the base of the coxites, with a pair of rod-like baculi diagonal; coxites 4-lobed, the fold between lobes 3 and 4 fine; basal lobe with a pair of longitudinal baculi, elongate (length 1.68 mm), 2.21 times as long as three apical lobes combined (length 0.76 mm); gonostyles with apices bearing a few cerci, attached dorsolaterally to coxites; spiculum ventrale ( Fig. 20 ) with well-developed median shaft.

Male: unknown.

Etymology. The specific name is named in honour of Prof. Zhenghui Xu of Southwest Forestry University, collector of the holotype.

Remark. This new species resembles H. eva BEČVÁŘ et PURCHART, 2008 and H. jendeki BEČVÁŘ et PURCHART, 2008 , from which it differs in the following characters: lateral carina of pronotum visible only in the anterior fourth, median line of pronotum present, pronotal width to elytral width ratio 1:1.67 (1:1.45 and 1: 1.42 in the latter two species, respectively).

Distribution. China: Yunnan.

Figures

Figs 19–22. H. (Leprocaulus) xui sp. n., female:19 = left antenna, dorsal view; 20 = spiculum ventrale, ventral view, 21 = ovipositor, ventral view. 22 = habitus Scales: 1 mm