Masuria (Masuria) extensa, Assing, 2012

Assing, V., 2012, On the taxonomy of Masuria. IV. Four new species from China and Nepal, and additional records (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Aleocharinae), Linzer biologische Beiträge 44 (2), pp. 1017-1034 : 1030-1031

Masuria (Masuria) extensa nov.sp. ( Figs 26-31 )

T y p e m a t e r i a l: Holotype: " Nepal Khandbari Distr. Pass NE Mangmaya 2300 m 6.IV.84 Smetana & Löbl / Holotypus Masuria extensa sp.n. det. V. Assing 2012" (cAss).

E t y m o l o g y: The specific epithet (Latin, adjective: stretched) refers to the conspicuously long and slender antennae.

D e s c r i p t i o n: Body length 3.1 mm; length of forebody 1.5 mm. Habitus ( Fig. 26 ) similar to that of some species of Leptusa KRAATZ. Coloration : body reddish, with the head and the abdominal segment VI indistinctly and diffusely darker; legs and antennae reddish-yellow.

Head ( Fig. 27 ) approximately as long as broad; punctation dense, distinct, moderately coarse, and well-defined; interstices glossy, without microsculpture, narrower than diameter of punctures. Eyes of moderate size, approximately as long as postocular region in dorsal view. Antenna ( Fig. 28 ) conspicuously long (1.3 mm) and slender; antennomere II approximately 3 times as long as broad, slightly longer than I; III of similar shape as II, but slightly shorter; IV nearly 3 times as long as broad, slightly shorter than III; V approximately twice as long as broad, somewhat shorter than IV; VI distinctly oblong; VII approximately as long as broad; VIII-X of increasing width and increasingly transverse; X nearly 1.5 times as broad as long.

Pronotum ( Figs 27, 29 ) approximately 1.2 times as broad as long, 1.2 times as broad as head, and as broad as elytra; lateral margins not angled, in posterior half straight in dorsal view; posterior angles obtusely marked; punctation dense, slightly coarser than that of head, and defined; interstices narrower than diameter of punctures and without microsculpture; lateral setae very long.

Elytra ( Fig. 27 ) relatively short, 0.70-0.75 times as long as pronotum; humeral angles marked; lateral margins weakly convex and subparallel in dorsal view; near lateral margins somewhat impressed and at suture somewhat elevated; punctation distinct and granulose, less dense than that of head and pronotum; interstices without microsculpture and glossy. Hind wings completely reduced. Legs slender; metatarsomere I approximately as long as the combined length of II and III.

Abdomen almost as broad as elytra, widest at segment V; tergites III-V with distinct, moderately coarsely and densely punctate anterior impressions; remainder of tergal surfaces with very fine and rather sparse punctation ( Fig. 30 ); interstices without microsculpture and glossy; posterior margin of tergite VII with palisade fringe.

: posterior margin of tergite VIII broadly convex; sternite VIII longer than tergite VIII, its posterior margin strongly convex; median lobe of aedeagus ( Fig. 31 ) 0.43 mm long, base of flagellum moderately dilated, not anchor-shaped.

: unknown. C o m p a r a t i v e n o t e s: Among its consubgeners, M. extensa is characterised by the morphology of the aedeagus, the conspicuously slender antennae and by the following characters combination: reddish coloration, forebody with distinct, defined, and dense puncation; whole body without microsculpture, short elytra, and completely reduced hind wings. In some external (habitus, punctation, coloration) and sexual characters (shape of flagellum in internal sac) M. extensa is similar to M. ferruginea from North India, which has less elongated antennae, a narrower pronotum, and a differently shaped median lobe of the aedeagus (see figures 30-32 in PACE 1989).

D i s t r i b u t i o n a n d n a t u r a l h i s t o r y: Thetypelocalityissituatedin eastern Nepal at an altitude of 2300 m. Additional data are not available.

Figures

Figs 26-31: Masuria extensa nov.sp.: (26) habitus; (27) forebody; (28) antenna; (29) median portion of pronotum; (30) median portion of abdominal tergite V; (31) median lobe of aedeagus in lateral view. Scale bars: 26: 1.0 mm; 27-28: 0.5 mm; 29-31: 0.1 mm.