Hesperus meyeri BERNHAUER 1928

Hromádka, L., 2012, Revision of the Afrotropical species of the genus Hesperus FAUVEL (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Philonthina), Linzer biologische Beiträge 44 (1), pp. 551-589 : 564-565

Hesperus meyeri BERNHAUER 1928 (figs 43-46)

T y p e m a t e r i a l:Cotype: Uganda, // Hesperus (FMNH) .

R e d e s c r i p t i o n: Body length 10.8 mm, length of fore body (to end of elytra) 5.6 mm.

C o l o u r a t i o n: Head, pronotum and scutellum black, elytra red-yellow, abdomen red- brown, posterior margin of all tergites broadly red-yellow, mandibles black-brown, maxillary and labial palpi, legs, antennomeres 1-2 and base of antennomere 3 yellowbrown, remaining antennomeres black.

Head distinctly wider than long (ratio 47: 33), slightly narrowed posteriad, posterior angles obtusely rounded. Eyes slightly convex, slightly longer than temples (ratio 15: 13), from posterior angles towards middle with several coarse punctures, with wide impunctate midline, each side and temporal area with several irregular punctures. Surface without microsculpture.

Antennae reaching posterior fourth of pronotum when reclined. Antennomeres 1-4 and 11 longer than wide, antennomeres 5-10 as long as wide. Antennomere 1 distinctly longer than antennomere 11, antennomere 2 shorter than antennomere 3.

Pronotum highly convex, slightly longer than wide (ratio 45: 43) very slightly narrowed posteriad. Anterior angles conspicuously deflexed,vaguely obtusely rounded, each bearing several bristles of variable length, posterior angles markedly rounded. Each dorsal row with ten coarse, approximately equidistant punctures. With wide impunctate midline, each side with several coarse irregular punctures. Surface without microsculpture.

Scutellum densely and coarsely punctate, diameter of punctures larger than eye-facets, separated by less than a puncture diameter in transverse direction.

Elytra wider than long (ratio 66: 60), slightly widened posteriad. Punctation fine and sparse, punctures much smaller than those in dorsal rows of pronotum, separated by one and half or two puncture diameters. Each side with many bristles of variable length. Surface between punctures without microsculpture. Setation yellowish-brown.

Legs. Metatibia longer than metatarsus (26: 21), metatarsomere 1 as long as matatarsomere 5.

Abdomen wide, from visible tergite II distinctly narrowed posteriad. First three visible tergites with two basal lines, elevated area between lines punctate. Punctation of visible tergites finer and denser than that on elytra. Surface without microsculpture; setation of same colour as that on elytra.

Male. Protarsomeres 1-3 relatively slightly dilated and sub-bilobed, each covered with modified pale setae ventrally, protarsomere 4 narrower than preceding ones. Sternite IX (Fig. 46), aedeagus (Figs 43-45).

Female. Unknown to the author.

C o m p a r a t i v e n o t e s Hesperus meyeri is very similar to H. depressus from which it may be distinguished by the longer pronotum, coarser and sparser punctation of elytra, by the head and pronotum without golden iridescence and by the different shape of the aedeagus, from H. obscurior by the coarser and sparser punctation of elytra and by the paler abdomen.

D i s t r i b u t i o n: Uganda ( HERMAN 2001).