Liotesba ovaticeps, Zhou & Zhou, 2013

Zhou, Yu-Lingzi & Zhou, Hong-Zhang, 2013, Taxonomy and phylogeny of the genus Liotesba Scheerpeltz (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Staphylininae: Xantholinini) with descriptions of four new species, Journal of Natural History 47 (45 - 46), pp. 2869-2904 : 2885-2889

Liotesba ovaticeps sp. nov.

( Figure 4A–L )

Type material. Holotype: male, CHINA: Sichuan: Baoxing co., Fengtong Zhai, 07 June 1997, Zhou Haisheng collected ( IZ-CAS).

Description

Measurement. BL = 11.40 mm, FL = 5.90 mm, HL = 1.60 mm, HW = 1.50 mm, PL = 1.90 mm, PW = 1.50 mm, EL = 2.20 mm, EW = 1.80 mm.

Body nearly cylindrical, large-sized. Body black, except elytra ferruginous. Legs dark brown, except tarsi much lighter in colour. Antennae dark brown, basal three antennomeres smoother and darker than remaining antennomeres. Maxillary and labial palpi brown.

Head ( Figure 4A ). Suboval (HL to HW ratio 1.1), tempora parenthesis-shaped, posterior angles rounded. Dorsal integument shiny, rather smooth, extensively bearing micropunctures, and with few sparsely scattered punctures on the lateral third of surface of head and near posterior margin; deflexed portion of tempora without any punctures. Each side of cranium with anterolateral puncture near antennal insertion, midlateral puncture approximately a distance of three punctures’ diameter from dorsal margin of eye, temporal puncture at the posterior one-fifth and occipital puncture at the lateral one-third. Frontal furrows relatively long, narrow; anteocular furrows absent. Eye large, equal to temporal length (eye: tempora = 0.54: 0.55 mm), distinctly protruding laterad; four small punctures next to dorsal margin of eye. Epistoma distinctly broad, subrectangular. Distance between antennal insertions being subequal to distance from antenna to eye (0.48 mm). Ventral side shiny and smooth, each side with two large-sized punctures along lateral margin,three or four small punctures near base. Gular plate distinctly broad, gular sutures widely separated.

Antennae ( Figure 4L ). Scape stout, thickened apically, slightly longer than three subsequent antennomeres combined, 0.56 mm; antennomere II subglobular, 0.20 mm; III distinctly elongate, subequal to the length of II, 0.21 mm; IV and V subequal in length, 0.12 mm; last antennomere short, 0.30 mm, distinctly shorter than two preceding antennomeres combined.

Mouthparts ( Figure 4B–E ). Labrum transverse, with a pair of median teeth, and a lateral tooth at each side, which slightly protruding anteriorly ( Figure 4B ). Mandibles falciform, right one with a sharp tooth on inner edge ( Figure 4C ). Maxillary palpus elongate, second segment longest, last segment not slender, and with subtruncated apex, as long as the penultimate ( Figure 4D ). Labial palpus slender, each segment equal in length, last segment slightly dilated subapically ( Figure 4E ).

Neck. Wide (0.68 mm), slightly narrower than half the width of head.

Pronotum. Subrectangular (PL to PW ratio 1.3), longer than head, but of same width. Widened anteriad, lateral margins gradually convergent backwards, anterior angles well defined, posterior angles broadly rounded. Integument extensively covered with micropunctures, and scattered with two large punctures on each anterolateral corner, one large puncture on each posterolateral corner, and also with additional irregular punctures near anterior and lateral margins of pronotum.

Mesoscutellum. Shiny, surface-bearing transverse microstriae, and with three pairs of punctures lined in two rows.

Elytra. Subrectangular, distinctly elongate (EL to EW ratio 1.2), distinctly longer than pronotum, but same in width. Humeri well developed, lateral margins divergent posteriorly, hind margin rounded. Integument shiny, flattened, without microsculpture; each elytron symmetrical with two or three rows of small punctures along median suture, a row of denser punctures along midwidth, and also with two or three rows of punctures on deflexed portion.

Legs. First four segments of protarsi heart-shaped, dilated, and those of meso- and metatarsi slender. Last segment of protarsi and mesotarsi shorter than the II–IV, respectively; last segment of metatarsi subequal to the length of II–IV.

Abdomen. Cylindrical, broadest at segment VI. Tergites III–VII shiny, each segment covered with shallow transverse microstriae, and also with small, sparsely scattered punctures, distance between punctures being about four or five puncture diameters. Each tergite with a basal impression near anterior margin, opaque and darker, bearing transverse microstriae, without any punctures. All abdominal sternites shiny, with microstriae and punctures as those on tergites.

Male ( Figure 4F–K ). Abdominal segment VIII entirely covered with punctures, posterior margin of tergite slightly emarginate, posterior margin of sternite distinctly rounded ( Figure 4F, G ). Tergite IX symmetrical, connected mediobasally. Sternite IX asymmetrical, widest near middle, with relatively obtusely pointed base, and rounded apex ( Figure 4I ). Tergite X symmetrical, with sharp-pointed base, and angulate at lateral margins ( Figure 4H ). Aedeagus pear-shaped, large ( Figure 4K, J ), basal bulb 1.19 mm long; anterior portion relatively long, 0.27 mm, and bearing a pair of black sclerites near apex in dorsal view. Parameres symmetrical, distinctly long, approximately half the length of basal bulb. Internal sac thin, with spines on basal portion, coiled more than four times ( Figure 4J ).

Female. Unknown.

Etymology. The specific epithet is derived from a combination of the Latin words ovatus (egg-shaped, oval) and ceps (head, the short form of caput) and refers to the oval shape of the head.

Distribution. China (Sichuan).

Remarks. Although this new species is similar in body size and coloration to L. hubeiana Bordoni, 2007 , it can be easily distinguished by the combined characters of the suboval head shape, larger eyes and broader epistoma.

Figures

Figure 4. Liotesba ovaticeps sp. nov., (A) head; (B) labrum; (C) right mandible; (D) maxillary palpus; (E) labial palpus; (F) male tergite VIII; (G) male sternite VIII; (H) male tergite X; (I) male sternite IX; (J) aedeagus, dorsal view; (K) aedeagus, ventral view; (L) antennae. Scale bars 0.30 mm.