Gastroserica huaphanensis, Ahrens, Dirk & Pacholátko, Petr, 2003

Ahrens, Dirk & Pacholátko, Petr, 2003, New data on the distribution of species of Gastroserica Brenske, 1897, with descriptions of five new taxa from China and Laos (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Sericini), Zootaxa 342, pp. 1-18 : 6-9

Gastroserica huaphanensis sp. n. ( Figs 7–9 )

Type material: Holotypus: ɗ “Laos­ NE, Hua Phan prov., Ban Saluei, Phu Phan Mt., 20°15'N, 104°02'E, 1500­2000 m, D. Hauck leg. 26.iv.­11.v.2001 ” ( TICB). Paratypes: 2 ɗɗ, 3 ΨΨ ­ same data ( TICB, CA).

Description. Length: 7.4 mm, length of elytra: 4.9 mm, width: 3.8 mm. Body oval, yellowish­brown, frons, antennal club, elytral margins as well as even intervals, and two symmetrical spots on pronotal disc dark brown, dorsal surface dull, dark spots sometimes metallic green, with moderately dense erect setae mixed with dense and short setae.

Labroclypeus subrectangular and moderately broad, widest at middle, lateral margins weakly convex and weakly convergent towards base, anterior angles broadly rounded, lateral border and ocular canthus produced into a distinct obtuse angle, anterior margin moderately reflexed and not sinuate medially but straight; surface feebly convex medially and moderately shiny, finely and coarsely but densely punctate, with numerous long, erect setae; frontoclypeal suture distinctly impressed and weakly curved; smooth area in front of eye as wide as long; ocular canthus moderately long and slender, finely and sparsely punctate, with two terminal setae. Frons with coarse and fine moderately dense punctures and erect setae. Eyes moderately large, ratio of diameter/ interocular width: 0.69. Antenna yellow, 10­segmented; club dark brown with four antennomeres equal in length, club slightly longer than the remaining antennomeres combined. Mentum elevated and flattened anteriorly.

Pronotum long, widest at base, lateral margins in posterior half subparallel, in anterior third strongly convex and convergent, before posterior angles shallowly sinuate, anterior angles not produced and strongly rounded, almost obsolete, posterior angles almost right angled, anterior margin almost straight, with a distinct and fine marginal line, basal margin without marginal line; surface with moderately dense and fine punctures, almost glabrous, with a few erect setae and minute setae in punctures; anterior and lateral borders setaceous; basal margin of hypomeron strongly produced ventrally, before base distinctly transversely sulcate. Scutellum long, apex weakly rounded, with fine and dense punctures, medially smooth, minute setae present in the punctures.

Elytra oblong, widest at middle, striae distinctly impressed and finely densely punctate, intervals weakly convex, with fine and sparse punctures that are almost concentrated along the striae with minute setae in the punctures, odd intervals with single coarse punctures bearing strong erect setae, interior apical angle of elytra with a strong seta; epipleural edge moderately strong, ending at the strongly convex external apical angle of elytra, epipleura densely setaceous, apical border chitinous, without short microtrichomes.

Ventral surface dull with large and dense punctures; setae dense, short, adpressed; metacoxa partly glabrous, laterally with fine adpressed setae; each abdominal sternite with indistinct transversal row of coarse punctures bearing short strong setae between fine and dense punctation, all sternites with fine, short setae. Mesosternum between mesocoxae almost as wide as mesofemur, with irregularly scattered strong setae. Ratio of length of metepisternum/ metacoxa: 1/ 2.0. Pygidium long, apically produced and strongly convex, with fine and dense punctures bearing fine setae and a few robust punctures bearing robust setae, without smooth midline.

Legs moderately slender and shiny; femora finely densely punctate and setose, with two longitudinal rows of setae; anterior edge of metafemur acute, lacking an adjacent serrated line, posterior margin weakly convex, with a few fine setae medially, ventrally weakly widened in apical half but not serrate, dorsally serrate, with short setae. Metatibia moderately broad and short, at middle convexly widened, ratio width/ length: 1/ 3.0, dorsally sharply edged, with two groups of spines, the basal group at one third, apical one at two thirds of metatibial length, basally with a few single spines in punctures; lateral face longitudinally convex, with dense and moderately coarse punctures, some of them longitudinally impressed; ventral edge serrated, with four strong and long, equally spaced spines, medial face not punctate and smooth, apex interiorly near tarsal articulation sharply truncate. Tarsomeres dorsally glabrous and finely punctate, ventrally with sparse, short setae; metatarsomeres dorsally with strong longitudinal impressions, ventrally with a strongly serrated ridge, laterally with a strong longitudinal carina, first metatarsomere as long as the following two tarsomeres combined and twice as long as the upper tibial spur. Protibia short, bidentate, protarsal claws symmetrical.

Aedeagus: Figs 7–9 .

Variability. Length: 7.5–8.2 mm, length of elytra: 4.8–5.2 mm, width: 3.7–4.3 mm. In some paratypes uniformly yellowish­brown or even elytral intervals not dark. Ψ: Antennal club with three antennomeres and a little shorter than the remaining antennomeres combined; eyes smaller than that of male, ratio of diameter/ interocular width: 0.58.

Diagnosis. G. huaphanensis sp. n. is very similar to G. vinhphuensis Ahrens in genital shape and habitus. It may be differentiated from G. vinhphuensis by the shape of the parameres only: the left paramere is distally not bifurcate or sinuate at apex, the right paramere is shorter and more robust.

Derivatio nominis. The new species is named for its occurrence in Hua Phan province.

Figures

FIGURES 7 – 9: Gastroserica huaphanensis sp. n. (Holotype: Laos, Hua Phan prov., Ban Saluei, Phu Phan Mt.); 7, 9 ­ Aedeagus lateral view, 8 ­ Parameres dorsal view. Scale: 0.5 mm.