Helluodes devagiriensis, Sabu & Abhitha & Zhao, 2008

Sabu, Thomas K., Abhitha, Prabhakar & Zhao, Danyang, 2008, A new Helluodes Westwood species from Western Ghats with notes on habitat, distribution and phylogenetic relationships of genera Helluodes Westwood and Physocrotaphus Parry of the tribe Physocrotaphini Chaudoir (Insecta: Coleoptera: Carabidae: Anthiinae), Zootaxa 1745 (1), pp. 30-46 : 36-39

Helluodes devagiriensis n.sp.

( Figs. 2 , 6, 7, 8 , 17, 18 , 19, 20 , 23 )

Color. Black to brownish black.

Head. Large and protracted, slightly narrower than pronotum, widest between eyes, wrinkled, moderately setose and punctate. Labrum large, subrectangular, angles weakly rounded, anterior margin distinctly crenulate (4 dents) between angles, dorsal surface with 6 elongate setae, antero-lateral margins with 7–8 curved short setae reflexed anteriorly; lateral margins faintly subserrate with 13–14 short setae. Clypeus as long as wide, sub-truncate, with three elongate setae anteriorly on each side and a pair of setae posteriorly, fronto-clypeal suture clearly impressed. Frons glabrous, impunctate with distinct frontal impressions, separated from neck by a very deep transverse sulcus. Eyes small, semicircular, laterally well projected over orbits. Genae convex, large and densely setose. Vertex slightly convex; occiput strongly convex, Mandibles long, weakly arcuate, medially smooth, apex acuminate, slightly asymmetric, left mandible narrower than right one, and more curved, right mandible stouter and with medial border almost straight, curved inwards near apex. Antenna elongate, pilose from basal antennomere; scape elongate, antennomere 3 slightly longer than 4, antennomeres 5–11 slightly longer than wide, flattened, with glabrous impunctate stripe along middle of dorsal and ventral surface, laterally chagreened and setose, lacinia massive, very elongate, with dense fringe of setae along medial margin and row of elongate seta on dorsal surface near medial margin; galea narrow and very elongate, medial surface slightly concave. Palpi glabrous, narrow and elongate, basal palpomere with sparse and short pilosity, apical palpomeres of both palpi impilose, maxillary palpomere 4 curved, punctate medially and broadly dilated from middle to apex, distinctly truncate, labial palpomere 2 with dense long setae. Mentum with bifid median tooth and one elongate seta on each side and nine pairs of setae on the base. Submentum with a transverse row of six elongate setae and with a few shorter setae. Ligula slender, elongate, apex blunt with three elongate apical setae and six setae along lateral margins. Paraglossae membranous, short and very narrow. Gula narrow.

Pronotum. Large and moderately wide, cordiform, widest at anterior third with explanate lateral margins; apical margin moderately sinuate, with a dense fringe of short hairs medially, without marginal border. Apical angles protruded, rounded at tip, slightly upturned. Lateral margins bordered. Anterior marginal seta situated at greatest pronotal width, just behind anterior third, posterior marginal seta situated at basal angle; lateral borders in anterior third very convex, in posterior two-thirds with elongate sinuation ahead of posterior angles. Anterior and posterior transverse sulci shallow, marked with longitudinal impressions, sparsely punctuate and pilose, with punctation denser near apical and basal margins; surface of disc with very fine micro-reticulation; basal foveae deep and wide, extended anteriorly to anterior third of pronotum; base narrower than apex, distinctly oblique laterally, weakly sinuated medially; posterior angles reflexed, with a tiny notch near posterior angles.

Scutellum. Pointed posteriorly, anterior margin setose.

Elytra. Elongate, twice as long as pronotum, lateral margins subparalleled, weakly sinuated in anterior third faintly subserrate; humerus evenly rounded, smooth without tooth, barely projecting; apices obliquely truncated with wide membranous margins; intervals gently convex, regularly and densely pilose with elongate and decumbent setae; all striae well impressed, not extended to apex, sparsely punctate. Micro-reticulation extremely fine and superficial, consisting of transverse meshes. Surface rather glossy. Interval 9 with series of uninterrupted rows of umbilical setae of very different length; lateral channel with umbilical setae widely interrupted at middle.

Hindwings. Fully developed.

Venter. Proepisternum pilose anteriorly with 13–14 setae, proepimeron and mesepimeron impunctate and impilose, prosternum densely pilose. Metathorax and abdomen densely pilose. Metepisternum elongate, more than twice as long as wide. Abdominal sternites entirely pilose; sternites 3 to 5 in male and, 3 to 6 in female with one pair of paramedian setae; sternite 6 in male and female emarginated in middle with 6–7 marginal setae. Pygidium with numerous very short setae and margin entire in both sexes.

Legs. Slender and elongate. Femora sparsely, tibia more densely setose. Profemur with very dense setae on ventral surface in basal third, mesofemur with slightly less dense setae at base of posterior surface, metafemur with even less dense setae.

Genitalia. Female ovipositor with stylomere 1 triangular, with a few small setae at apical rim; stylomere 2 semilunar in shape, ventro-lateral margin slightly serrate with three very small ensiform setae and an umbilical setae in the middle of outer margin; male genitalia as for genus.

Measurements. Male (Holotype), TLA = 26; TLB = 24; TW = 10; PL = 3; PW = 5.5; EL = 13.5. Male (Paratype) (n=1), TLA = 26.2; TLB = 25; TW = 10.2; PL = 3.5; PW = 6; EL = 15. Female (Paratypes) (n=2), TLA = 24 and 25; TLB = 22.5 and 24; TW = 8.3 and 8.5; PL = 3.2 and 3.5; PW = 5.1 and 6; EL = 13.5 and 15.2.

Type material (n=4). Holotype. Male, India,. Kerala, Arakulam (Thodupuzha) 17. V. 2004, Sabu T.K, rubber plantation litter (deposited in the Coleoptera collections of SJC)

Paratypes: 1 female Kerala, Arakulam (Thodupuzha) 10. IV. 2005, Sabu T.K, rubber plantation litter ( SJC) ; 1 female Kerala, Devagiri , Calicut, 26. II. 2006, Abhitha P, rubber plantation litter ( NPC) ; 1 male, Kerala, Vazhachal , 31. XI. 2006, Sabu T.K; forest litter (deposited in the Coleoptera collections of NPC)

Distribution. Southwest India (Arakulam and Vazhachal in South-Western Ghats moist deciduous forests ecoregion and Kozhikode in Malabar Coast moist deciduous forests ecoregion of Western Ghats).

Collecting circumstances. All the four specimens were hand collected from floor litter; three from the floor of a rubber plantation and the fourth from litter in front of a forest guest house.

Etymology. Named after the local name of the college and research institution “Devagiri”.

Remarks. Helluodes devagiriensis n.sp. differs from H. taprobanae and H. westwoodi in its labrum which is distinctly crenulated in the middle between the rounded anterior angles, and its distinctly slender, inwardly curved maxillary palpomere 4, which is dilated from middle towards apex and truncate. Anterior angles of pronotum in H. devagiriensis n.sp. are inflexed, and not expanded compared to the expanded anterior ones in H. taprobanae . With its less prominent, rounded anterior angles of labrum and in the absence of emargination in the apical margin of labrum, and weak sinuation of the lateral margin of pronotum towards base, H. devagiriensis n.sp. is more similar to H. taprobanae than to H. westwoodi .

Figures

FIGURES 2–5. Mentum (ventral view): 2 Helluodes devagiriensis n.sp.; 3 Physocrotaphus ceylonicus; 4 Pogonoglossus giganteus; 5 Schuelea drumonti. Scale bar = 1 mm.

FIGURES 6–14. Labrum, maxillary palpi and pronotum: 6–8 Helluodes devagiriensis n.sp.; 9–11 Helluodes taprobanae; 12–14 Helluodes westwoodi. Not scaled.

FIGURES 15–18. Median depression and cluster of filamentous setae on 2nd and 3rd sternites of male: 15 Physocrotaphus ceylonicus; 16 Pogonoglossus giganteus; 17 Helluodes devagiriensis n.sp.; 18 2nd and 3rd sternites of female Helluodes devagiriensis n.sp. Not scaled.

FIGURES 19–22. Male and female genitalia (dorsal and lateral view): 19–20 Helluodes devagiriensis n.sp.; 21–22 Physocrotaphus ceylonicus. Scale bar = 1 mm.

FIGURES 23–26. Habitus: 23 Helluodes devagiriensis n.sp.(Holotype); 24 Pogonoglossus giganteus (Holotype); 25 Schuelea drumonti (Holotype); 26 Physocrotaphus ceylonicus (Lectotype). Scale bar = 5 mm.