Coptodera (Coptoderina) occulta, Hunting, Wesley & Yang, Man-Miao, 2019

Hunting, Wesley & Yang, Man-Miao, 2019, A taxonomic review of the pericaline ground-beetles in Taiwan, with descriptions of new species (Coleoptera, Carabidae, Lebiini), ZooKeys 816, pp. 1-164 : 71-74

Coptodera (Coptoderina) occulta sp. n. Figs 49, 50A, 51 A–D, 58B, 60

Specific epithet.

From Latin occulta , meaning hidden or mysterious. Previous to this work only two specimens were known from collections.

Types and other material examined.

Holotype (male) labeled “Holotype” [circular, ringed with red]; "TAIWAN Pingdong co./Lanren River/2011.IV.30 by light"; leg. Kenting National Park Insect Survey/ 22°2'37.3"N, 120°51'5.5"E /#348"; “6446”; " NCHU# 101601". Seven paratypes of C. occulta : one male and six females. For further details see EH Strickland Virtual Entomology Museum Database.

Type locality.

Taiwan. Lanren River area, Pingdong county.

Diagnosis.

This species is most similar to C. japonica but is easily distinguished by the testaceous margin of the pronotum (black or just slightly lighter in color in C. japonica ) and the almost straight elytral apex.

Description.

OBL 7.33 - 8.67 mm. Length (n = two males, six females): head 0.80 - 0.92, pronotum 1.12 - 1.28, elytra 4.33 - 5.33, metepisternum 1.08 - 1.36 mm; width: head 1.60 - 1.88, pronotum 1.84 - 2.24, elytra 3.16 - 3.83, metepisternum 0.64 - 0.72 mm.

Body proportions. HW/HL 1.91 - 2.12; PWM/PL 1.64 - 1.75; EL/EW 1.27 - 1.43; ML/MW 1.5 - 2.13.

Color. Fig. 49. Dorsum of head rufo-piceous to piceous, area nearest to antennal socket brunneous to rufo-piceous, clypeus and labrum with lateral margins testaceous to brunneo-testaceous, centrally, brunneo-piceous to piceous, antennae and palpi brunneo-testaceous to rufo-brunneous; disc of pronotum rufo-brunneous to rufo-piceous, margins lighter, brunneo-testaceous to rufo-brunneous; elytral disc black, with four testaceous maculae, two anterior and two posterior, anterior macula large, from interval 3 to 8, closest to base of elytra in interval 5, closest to apex of elytra in interval 4, posterior macula, from interval 2 to 8 (sometimes 1), closest to base of elytra in intervals 4 and 5, closest to apex of elytra in interval 4; margins of elytra rufo-brunneous to rufo-piceous; ventral surface rufo-brunneous to piceous; legs with trochanter and femora and tarsi brunneous to rufo-brunneous, tibia rufo-brunneous to piceous on dorsal surface.

Microsculpture. Dorsum of head with microsculpture somewhat granulate and isodiametric, easily visible at 50 × magnification; pronotum somewhat granulate, transverse to almost isodiametric in margins, mesh pattern easily visible at 50 ×; elytral intervals with transverse sculpticells, center of striae with isodiametric sculpticells a few cells wide; ventral surface of head with microsculpture not visible at 50 ×; prosternum, proepipleuron, mesepisternum and metepisternum with sculpticells forming a shallow transverse to nearly isodiametric mesh.

Macrosculpture. Dorsum of head and clypeus smooth, with fine and scattered setigerous punctures, setae hardly visible at 50 ×; pronotum with fine, scattered setigerous punc tures, visible in side view at 50 ×, disc shallowly rugulose; elytra with intervals rounded, single row of fine setigerous punctures in the center of each interval, these punctures larger than additional scattered setigerous puncture throughout disc, striae punctate, with single row of fine setigerous punctures hardly visible in lateral view at 50 ×; ventrally, thoracic and abdominal sclerites with scattered setigerous punctures throughout.

Fixed setae. Elytra with two setae in apical 1/3 of stria 2, one seta near base in stria 3.

Luster. Dorsal and ventral surfaces moderately glossy.

Head. Fig. 50A. Mandibles somewhat curved at apex, relatively long and narrow in form, when measured on outside diameter, visible portion shorter than length of labrum; labrum stout and rounded, slightly wider than clypeus at max width, broadly bilobed and widely emarginated.

Pronotum. Anterior transverse impression deep; posterior transverse impression deep; median longitudinal impression moderately deep; lateral margins explanate, apico-lateral margins broadly rounded, posterio-lateral margins obtuse.

Elytra. Apex slightly sinuate.

Legs. Two rows of small squamo-setae on tarsomeres 1-2 of mid-leg, males with two notches apically on ventral side of mid-tibia.

Male genitalia. Fig. 51 A–D. Length 1.32 - 1.34 mm. Ostium slightly left pleuropic. Phallus cylindrical, right side straight along length, left side curving slightly from mid-length to apex of ostium when viewed ventrally, apical area with short, bluntly rounded apex; endophallus moderately short and stout, microtrichia dispersed some what evenly in apical portion (mtf), small microtrichia in basal 1/3 and increasing in length towards apex, sclerotized ring of spines (esr) near apex.

Female genitalia. Fig. 58B. Width 1.04 mm. One spermatheca (sp1), cylindrical and long, ribbed laterally along length; one spermathecal accessory gland (sg), large and distinctively elongate; spermathecal gland duct (sgd) longer than length of spermatheca, slightly swollen at apical end, just before gland, attachment site on apex of bilobed diverticulum (div) of spermatheca; bursa copulatrix (bc) with distinctive, sac at apical end (bs), constricted near opening to common oviduct, then expanding out into a distinctively large chamber.

Habitat, habits, and seasonal occurrence.

The known elevational range of C. occulta sp. n. is from 200 to 640 meters. Adults of this species are found in mixed forest of montane areas. Little is known of the habits of this species. Specimens have been collected from March to September in Taiwan and methods of collecting include u.v. light, light trap, flight intercept trap, and hand collecting.

Geographical distribution.

Coptodera occulta is known only from Taiwan. See Figure 60.