Omalium kumari, Shavrin, 2023

Shavrin, Alexey V., 2023, A revision of the genus Omalium Gravenhorst, 1802 (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Omaliinae) of the Himalayan region, Zootaxa 5369 (2), pp. 151-206 : 194-197

3.2.5.2.4. Omalium kumari sp. n.

( Figs 69–70 , 79–80 , 87–89 )

Type material. Holotype ♁ (dissected): ‘ NEPAL, Dhaulagiri Mts. | Hile Kharka 3000–3100m | 28°29’15’’ N, 83°34’28 E, | 09.V.2009,leg. J. Schmidt’ <printed>, ‘collection | NATURKUNDE- | MUSEUM ERFURT’ <yellow, printed >, ‘ HOLOTYPE | Omalium | kumari sp. n. | Shavrin A.V. des. 2023’ <red, printed> (NME).

Paratypes: 1 ♀ (dissected): ‘ NEPAL, S slope Dhaulagiri | Mts. N Banduk 2400–2600 m | 28°28’35’’N, 83°35’05’’ E | 08.V.2009, leg. J. Schmidt’ <printed>, ‘collection | NATURKUNDE- | MUSEUM ERFURT’ <yellow, printed> (cSh) ; 2 ♀♀: ‘ NEPAL, S slope, Dhaulagari | Mts. Bagar Khola, 2250 m, | 28°30’44’’ N, 83°32’36 E, | 10.V.2009, leg. J.Schmidt’ <printed>, ‘collection | NATURKUNDE- | MUSEUM ERFURT’ <yellow, printed> (NME), 1 ♁ (dissected): ‘E-NEPAL Taplejung Distr. | E-slope Pathibara 35–3750m | 13.V.2016 leg. Schmidt | 27°26’N 87°46’E’ <printed> (cSh). All paratypes with additional red printed label : ‘ PARATYPE | Omalium | kumari sp. n. | Shavrin A.V. des. 2023’.

Description. Measurements (n=5): HW: 0.47–0.57; HL: 0.35–0.40; OL: 0.13–0.15; TL: 0.10; AL (holotype): 0.96; PL: 0.35–0.46; PWmax: 0.57–0.71; PWmin: 0.47–0.67; ESL: 0.75–0.88; EW: 0.77–0.94; MTbL (holotype): 0.30; MTrL (holotype): 0.16 (MTrL 1–4: 0.06; MTrL 5: 0.10); AW: 0.68–0.96; AedL: 0.42–0.49; BL: 2.40–3.00 (holotype: 2.70).

Habitus as in Fig. 72 . Body reddish-brown, sometimes with darker head (holotype and two paratypes) and slightly paler lateral and basal portions of pronotum, elytra and abdomen; antennomeres 6–11 brown; mouthparts, antennomeres 1–5 and legs yellowish-brown to reddish-brown. Punctation of head dense, more or less regular in middle portion or larger and denser in middle, coarser between anteocellar foveae and on infraorbital portions; punctation of pronotum about as that on middle portion of head, sparser and finer in mediobasal third; punctation of elytra slightly larger and coarser than that on pronotum, distinctly sparser in middle along suture. Anterior portion of head with distinct transverse microreticulation; holotype and two paratypes with traces of transverse meshes in medioapical portion of pronotum.

Head 1.3 times as broad as long, with broad clypeus and moderately deep anteriomedian depressions. Surface with shallow transverse elevations between punctures in basal portion of clypeus, with distinct longitudinal elevations in middle portion between eyes, diagonal elongate wrinkles in parts between laterobasal part of clypeus and middle, and distinctly elevated interstices between punctures on infraorbital ridges, forming longitudinal irregular wrinkles (two paratypes with shallow sculpture between punctures on infraorbital portions, without distinct wrinkles); each lateral portion between clypeus and eye with irregular, narrow and long wrinkles stretching posteriad. Anteocellar foveae deep, indistinctly convergent latero-apicad toward level of middle length of eyes. Temples 1.3–1.5 times as long as longitudinal length of eyes. Distance between ocelli slightly or distinctly than twice as long as distance between ocellus and posterior margin of eye. Antenna with slightly transverse antennomeres 9–10; antennomere 5 slightly longer and broader than 4, 6 slightly longer and broader than 5, 7 slightly longer and distinctly broader than 6, 7 distinctly broader than 6, 8–9 distinctly broader than 7.

Pronotum 1.5–1.6 times as broad as long, 1.2 times as broad as head, with moderately narrow preapical part, gradually narrowed apicad toward apical angles; pronotum from widest anterior third slightly narrowed posteriad, with slightly or distinctly concave laterobasal margins. Surface of disc with two wide longitudinal depressions and additional oval depression in medioapical third. Median surface of disc with distinct diagonal elevations between punctures.

Elytra slightly broader than long, about twice as long as pronotum, slightly broadened posteriad. Middle surface of each elytron with moderately strong diagonal and longitudinal elevations between punctures, missing along suture.

Male. Antennomeres 9–10 slightly transverse. Posterior margin of abdominal tergite VIII rounded. Posterior margin of abdominal sternite VIII concave. Aedeagus with very wide basal portion, gradually narrowed toward middle, with long and moderately narrow median lobe, distinctly broadened in middle, from middle strongly narrowed apicad and from preapical portion slightly broadened toward widely rounded apex with slightly crenulate margins; mediolateral portions with moderately short accessory plates with widely rounded apices; parameres very wide, distinctly shorter than apex of median lobe, from widest preapical portions strongly narrowed apicad toward small rounded apices, each paramere with three moderately long apical and one short preapical setae; internal sac narrow and moderatle long, with small transverse and oval sclerotized structures in basal portion ( Fig. 87 ). Lateral aspect of the aedeagus as in Fig. 88 ; preapical portion narrow, curved, with irregularly crenulate inner margin in apical portion ( Fig. 89 ).

Female. Antennomeres 9–10 less transverse. Posterior margin of abdominal tergite VIII straight or rounded. Posterior margin of abdominal sternite VIII rounded. Accessory sclerite with wide transverse basal portion, strongly narrowing apicad ( Fig. 79 ). Spermatheca as in Fig. 80 .

Comparative notes. Regarding the shape of the pronotum widest in apical third, O. kumari sp. n. is somewhat similar to O. flavotestaceum sp. n., from which it differs by the darker coloration of the body and the shape of widely rounded temples. Based on the general shape of the median lobe it somewhat similar to O. japonicum Sharp, 1874 , known from Japan, South Korea and north-western China ( Schülke & Smetana 2015), but differs by the broader apical portion of the median lobe (subacute in O. japonicum ) and other details of the morphology of the aedeagus.

Distribution. Omalium kumari sp. n. is known from several localities in central and eastern Nepal ( Fig. 69 ).

Etymology. The species is named after Kumari (Kumari Devi, the Living Goddess), the traditional worshipping a chosen virgin as manifestation of the divine energy in Dharmic religious traditions which are popular in Nepal.

Bionomics. Specimens were collected by sifting leaf litter at elevations from 2250 to 3750 m a.s.l.

Figures

FIGURE 69. Distribution of Omalium in the Himalayan region: O. angustissimum sp. n. (circle), O. kumari sp. n. (triangles), O. latocavum sp. n. (diamond).

FIGURES 70–72. Habitus of Omalium: 70—O. cariosum (lectotype), 71—O. flavotestaceum (paratype), 72—O. kumari (paratype). Scale bars: 1.0 mm.

FIGURES 76–83. Female accessory sclerite (Figs 76–77, 79, 81–82) and spermatheca (Figs 78, 80, 83) of Omalium: 76— O.cariosum, 77–78—O. flavotestaceum, 79–80—O. kumari, 81—O. latocavum, 82–83—O. secretum. Scale bar: 0.1 mm.

FIGURES 87–89. Aedeagus of Omalium kumari (holotype): 87—aedeagus, parameral view, 88—aedeagus, lateral view, 89— median lobe, lateral view. Scale bar: 0.1 mm.