Astenus (Eurysunius) hititicus, Anlaş, 2024

Anlaş, Sinan, 2024, On the subgenus Eurysunius Reitter of Turkey IX. Three new species from central northern Anatolia, with an identification key to Turkish species (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Paederinae, Astenus), Zootaxa 5474 (1), pp. 68-76 : 71-72

Astenus (Eurysunius) hititicus sp. n. ( Figs. 9–16 ; Map 1 )

Type material. Holotype: TURKEY: ♂, ‘‘ Çorum, Çağşak 5 km SE, 40°22'18''N, 34°31'43''E, 1112 m, 09.V.2022, leg. Kacar & Çelik. / Holotypus ♂, Astenus (Eurysunius) hititicus sp. n. det. S. Anlaş 2024” <red printed label> ( AZMM) . Paratypes: 1♂, 3♀♀, same data as holotype . 1♀, Çorum, Çağşak 1 km NE, 40°21'22''N, 34°33'47''E, 1100 m, 03.IV.2022, leg. Örgel, Kacar & Çelik. 1♀, Çorum, Çağşak 1 km SW, 40°21'25''N, 34°35'52''E, 1095 m, 03.IV.2022, leg. Örgel, Kacar & Çelik. 1♂, 4♀♀, Çorum, Çağşak 2 km NE, 40°21'22''N, 34°33'35''E, 1110 m, 14.IV.2022, leg. Kacar & Çelik. 1♂, 1♀, Çorum, Laloğlu 1 km E, 40°23'46''N, 34°32'45''E, 1030 m, 15.IV.2022, leg. Kacar & Çelik. <all paratypes with red printed label> ( AZMM).

Description. Habitus as in Fig. 9 . Body 4.3–4.6 mm long. Coloration: head and pronotum blackish, sometimes pronotum more or less dark brown, posterior half of elytra reddish, with anterior area brown, abdomen black or dark brown with the posterior margins of segments VI–VIII reddish brown, antennae reddish and legs with the femora dark-brown, the tibiae brown, and the tarsi yellowish brown.

Head transverse, 1.20–1.25 times as wide as long ( Figs 9–10 ); posterior margin concave, punctation umbilicate and very dense, but not very deep; microsculpture indistinct; pubescence yellowish, short, sparse and decumbent. Eyes relatively small in size with slightly protruding, shorter than postocular region in dorsal view. Antennae moderately slender, 1.14–1.18 mm long, all antennomeres oblong, antennomere III approximately 2.2 times as long as wide ( Fig. 9 ).

Pronotum transverse and octagonal shape, 1.18–1.22 times as wide as long ( Figs 9–10 ); approximately as broad as head or slightly narrower than head, slightly widest at anterior angles and narrowed posteriorly; posteriorly with median impression; punctation somewhat coarser, non-umbilicate and sparser than that of head; interstices on average about as wide as diameter of punctures, with shallow microsculpture; pubescence short, decumbent and yellowish, more distinct in middle area of the posterior margin; lateral margins each with three long black setae; one in anterior angle (on avarege 2.5 mm), one at anterior third (on avarege 2.2 mm), and one in posterior angle (on avarege 2.5 mm).

Elytra distinctly transverse, 1.70–1.80 times as long, 1.15–1.20 times as wide as pronotum ( Figs 9–10 ); 0.65 times as long as pronotum; microsculpture absent, punctation dense and granulose, non-umbilicate; pubescence yellowish brown, posterior margin of each elytron with 5–7 long black setae. Hind wings completely reduced.

Abdomen narower than elytra, 0.9 times as broad as elytra; widest at segment V, segments III–VI distinctly transverse ( Fig. 9 ), punctation moderately sparse; interstices with microsculpture; pubescence reddish brown; posterior margin of tergite VII with very narrow rudiment of a palisade fringe.

♂: sternite VII in posterior median area undepressed, with some modified dark and short setae, posterior margin not concave ( Fig. 11 ); sternite VIII deeply and acutely incised posteriorly, pubescence unmodified ( Fig. 12 ); aedeagus approximately 0.65 mm long, as in Figures 13–16 , and apical portion of ventral process with curled-shaped in lateral view.

Comparative notes. The species is distinguished from all its consubgeners except A. sexsetosus Assing, 2002 (Kayseri), A. kociani Assing, 2015 (Nevşehir), A. veyseli Anlaş, 2021 (Sivas) and A. gultekini Anlaş, 2021 (Kırıkkale) by the presence of three (rather than two or one) long setae on either of the lateral margins of the pronotum. It differs from A. sexsetosus , A. kociani , A. veyseli and A. gultekini by the different morphology of the aedeagus, especially apical portion of ventral process with curled-shaped in lateral view, it is additionally separated by the different coloration of the body ( A. sexsetosus : Head, pronotum and abdomen blackish brown, elytra yellowish, sometimes with a more or less infuscate portion near the scutellum. A. kociani : head and pronotum blackish; elytra dark yellowish-brown, with the region near the scutellum infuscate. A. veyseli : head and pronotum black or dark brown, more than anterior half of elytra black or dark brown, with posterior area yellowish brown, abdomen black or dark brown with the posterior margins of segments VI–VIII reddish brown. A. gultekini : head, pronotum and abdomen blackish; elytra yellowish brown, with area near scutellum and anterior margin infuscate).

For descriptions and illustrations of these species see Assing (2002, 2015), Anlaş (2021) and also see key to the Turkish Eurysunius species.

Etymology. Astenus hititicus is named after the Hittites (Turkish: Hititler), an Anatolian ancient people who established an empire from the 17 th century BC to the 12th century BC at Hattusa. The Hittite Capital is located in Çorum province, in the territory in which the new species was discovered.

Distribution and bionomics. The species was collected from five localities from Çorum province ( Map 1 ), in various grassland areas at altitudes of 1030–1110 m. The type specimens were collected in the nests of Tetramorium sp.

Figures

MAP 1. Distribution of Astenus (Eurysunius) species in Turkey (28 species)

FIGURES 9–16. Astenus (Eurysunius) hititicus sp. n. 9—habitus; 10—forebody; 11—Male sternite VII; 12—Male sternite VIII; 13, 14—Aedeagus in lateral view; 15, 16—Aedeagus in ventral view. Scale bars: 0.5 mm (Figs. 9–10), 0.2 mm (Fig. 11–16).