Notionotus perijanus Garcia , 2000: 252.,

Gonzalez-Rodriguez, Liza M. & Short, Andrew Edward Z., 2022, Revision of the water scavenger beetle genus Notionotus Spangler, 1972 in the Neotropical Region (Coleoptera, Hydrophilidae, Enochrinae), ZooKeys 1109, pp. 141-191 : 141

Notionotus perijanus Garcia, 2000: 252. syn. nov.

Type material examined.

Holotype (male): [only the permanent slide mount of the aedeagus was examined] (MALUZ). As this species was described only from one male and one female specimen, we presume this slide is of the holotype specimen (Fig. 6C ).

Additional material examined

(173 exs.). Costa Rica: Cartago Province: Tapanti National Park, Building by Rio Villegas , 29.v.2006, leg. A.E.Z. Short, HG-vapor light, AS-06-066 (5 exs., SEMC, INBio, including DNA voucher SLE2397) . Panama: Panama province: Barrio Colorado , 9°11'N, 79°51'W, 40 m, 22-25-VI-2000, leg. S. Chatzimanolis, flight intercept trap, PAN1C00 022 (3 exs., SEMC); same data except PAN1C00 024 (5 exs., SEMC); same data except PAN1C00 025 (2 exs., SEMC); same data except PAN1C00 033 (1 ex., SEMC); same data except PAN1C00 0234 (1 ex., SEMC); same data except PAN1C00 014 (1 ex., SEMC); same data except 07-VI-1994, leg. D. Banks (2 exs., SEMC); same data except 08-VIII-1994, leg. D. Banks (1 ex., SEMC), same data except 08-VIII-1994, leg. D. Banks (1 ex., SEMC); same data except 04-VIII-1994, leg. D. Banks (1 ex., SEMC); same data except 01-VIII-1994, leg. D. Banks (1 ex., SEMC); Old plantation Rd. 6.9 km S Gamboa, 09°05'N, 79°40'W, 80 m, 04-07-VI-1995, leg. J, Ashe & R. Brooks, #137 flight intercept trap (1 ex., SEMC), same data except 07-22-VI-1995, #266 flight intercept trap (1 ex., SEMC); Colón, Parque Nacional Soberanía, Pipeline Rd km 6.1, 09°07'N, 79°45'W, 40 m, 07-21-VI-1995, leg. J, Ashe & R. Brooks, #265 flight intercept trap (2 exs., SEMC); Colón, Escobal & Piña Rds, 14 km N jct. 02-11-VI-1996, leg. J, Ashe & R. Brooks flight intercept trap PAN1AB96 181B (1 ex., SEMC) . Venezuela: Aragua State: Henri Pittier Natural Park Río Cumboto, 10.39376°N, 67.79597°W, 130 m, 4.i.2009, leg. Short, García & Miller, river side pools, VZ09-0104-02B (18 exs., SEMC, including DNA voucher SLE2381); Rio La Trilla 10.37319°N, 67.74250°W, 295 m, leg. Short, García & Miller, pools, VZ09-0104-01A (1 ex., SEMC) . Barinas State: Río Santa Barbara, E. Santa Barbara. 7°50.028N, 71°11.188W, 177 m, 26.i.2012, leg. Short, Arias, Gustafson, sandy sidepool in floodplain, VZ12-0126-01B, (1 ex., SEMC) . Portuguesa State: Trib. of Río Guanare, S. Biscucuy , 9°14.457'N, 69°55.994'W, 370 m, 19.i.2009, leg. Short, García & Miller, gravel stream, VZ09-0119-03X (15 exs., SEMC, including DNA vouchers SLE2391 and SLE2392) . Zulia State: Perijá Natural Park Tukuko: Río Manantial, 9°50.490'N, 72°49.310'W, 270 m, 29.i.2009, leg. Short, García & Camacho, gravel margin, VZ09-0129-01A (91 exs., MIZA, SEMC, including DNA vouchers SLE1112 and SLE2371); same data except 29.i.2009, leg. Short, García & Miller, detrital pool, VZ09-0129-01B (1 ex., SEMC); same data except 22.ix.2007, leg. A.E.Z. Short, rock pools/margin, AS-07-020b (8 exs., SEMC); Toromo , 10°03.058'N, 72°49.974'W, 435 m, 31.xii.2005, leg. A.E.Z. Short, small stream and seep, AS-06-001 (6 exs., SEMC); same data except 28.i.2009, detrital pool, VZ09-0128-01A (3 exs., SEMC) .

Differential diagnosis.

See differential diagnosis for Notionotus mexicanus .

Description.

Size and form: Body length 1.6-1.9 mm. Body form elongate oval, strongly convex in lateral view (Fig. 3A ). Color and punctation: Dorsally yellow, head mostly pale brown or yellow, frons brown or dark brown; pronotum paler than elytra, with two small black round spots along posterior margin (Fig. 3A, D, G ). Ventrally brown; maxillary palps, mouthparts, antennae yellow (antennal club slightly darker), legs pale brown (Fig. 3B, E, H ). Clypeus and labrum with dense, fine, and weakly ground punctation (punctures separated by 2 × their width); pronotum and elytra ground punctation fine, weakly impressed and sparser than on head (punctures separated by 3 × their width). Head: Clypeus and labrum shallowly emarginate anteromedially, lateral margins of the labrum bearing setae. Thorax: Prosternum carinate medially, strongly raised, pointing anteriorly and acute. Elevation of mesoventrite with one transversal ridge, elevated medially, lateral sides concave; longitudinal ridge sharp and broadening posteriorly almost to the end, the point where the two ridges merged rounded and obtuse (e.g., Fig. 10A, B ); elevation concave in lateral view; mesoventrite with triangular shape in ventral view. Metaventrite convex in the median region, pubescent with narrow glabrous patch on the medial and posterolateral area; anterior margin extending to mesoventrite elevation. Metafemora densely covered with hydrofuge pubescence on basal three-quarters (Fig. 3B, E, H ). Abdomen: Abdominal ventrites very densely pubescent. Aedeagus (Fig. 6A-I ) basal piece 1.2 × the length of a paramere. Parameres broad, base wider than the base of the median lobe, outer and inner margins convex, pinched at the apex, broad and rounded apex. Length of the median lobe can vary (median lobe as long as the parameres (Fig. 6F, I ), slightly shorter (Fig. 6A, B ) or longer than the parameres (Fig. 6H ), median lobe with triangular shape, wide at base and gradually tapering to apical third, with rounded apex.

Distribution.

Known from Guatemala, Costa Rica, Panama, and Venezuela (Fig. 14 ).

Life history.

This species is found along the margins and in leaf packs of streams in the mountains and foothills of the Northern Andes and Central America. It prefers gravelly or rocky streams, especially in the foothills where it may sometimes be abundant (Fig. 11C, D ).

Remarks.

We examined more than 155 specimens from a dozen localities of this species from Guatemala to several chains of the Venezuelan Andes. Although there are subtle variations in the apex of the aedeagal parameres, this variation is relatively small and not correlated to geography, other morphological characters, or molecular data. These subtle variations in paramere shape likely explain why this species has been described four times, once each from Guatemala and Panama ( Perkins 1979) and twice from Venezuela ( García 2000). Three of these four species were described from single collecting events. However, with significantly more material available to us for this study from a range of additional localities, it is apparent these differences in paramere shape are more easily considered as intraspecific variation in a widespread, common species than as indicative of species boundaries. This hypothesis is also supported by available DNA evidence: we sequenced specimens from Costa Rica, the Serranía de Perijá, the Mérida Andes, as well as the Coastal mountains of Venezuela. All specimens form a clade (Fig. 1 ) with a maximum pairwise divergence in COI of 3.9% (although we only had COI data from specimens from several Venezuelan localities). However, 28S sequence data from specimens from Venezuela and Costa Rica are identical, further supporting the concept of a single, widespread species. In addition, specimens throughout its range were found in very similar habitats: leaf packs or detrital margins of streams with a gravel or rocky substrate

As both N. nucleus and N. tricarinatus were proposed in the same work ( Perkins 1979), we use our authority as first revisors (ICZN article 24.2.2) to give precedence to N. tricarinatus as the valid name for this species.

Figures

Figure 1. Maximum likelihood phylogeny of Notionotus spp. inferred from COI and 28 S sequence data. Extraction numbers are given next to each terminal name (see Table 1).

Figure 3. Habitus and labels of Notionotus spp.: N. tricarinatus (holotype): A dorsal view B ventral view C labels; N. nucleus (holotype): D dorsal view E ventral view F labels; N. edibethae (holotype): G dorsal view H ventral view I labels.

Figure 6. Aedeagi of Notionotus tricarinatus A N. tricarinatus (holotype) B N. nucleus (holotype) C N. perijanus (holotype) D N. edibethae (holotype) E specimen from Barinas State, Venezuela F specimen from Portuguesa State, Venezuela G specimen from Aragua State, Venezuela H specimen from Zulia State, Venezuela I specimen from Costa Rica.

Figure 10. Mesoventral process of Notionotus spp. A N. dilucidus B N. tricarinatus C N. insignitus D N. bicolor. Red marks pointing to transverse ridge in A-D blue marks pointing to second transverse ridge in C, D.

Figure 11. Habitat of Notionotus spp. in the Andean region of Venezuela A Venezuela, Barinas State, seepage habitat of N. liparus (collecting event VZ 12 - 0124 - 02 A) B Venezuela: Aragua, Henri Pittier National Park, seepage habitat of N. liparus, (collecting event AS- 06 - 023) C Venezuela: Zulia, Rio Tukuko, habitat of N. tricarinatus (collecting event VZ 09 - 0129 - 01 A) D Venezuela, Portuguesa, tributary of the Rio Guanare, habitat of N. tricarinatus (collecting event VZ 09 - 0119 - 03 X).

Figure 14. Distribution map of Notionotus spp.