Pomphopsilla felicitas (Scott) Jałoszyński, 2021

Jałoszyński, Paweł, 2021, New taxonomic and nomenclatural acts in Cephenniini (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae Scydmaeninae), Zootaxa 4996 (1), pp. 171-176 : 173

Pomphopsilla felicitas (Scott) , comb. n.

( Fig. 4 )

Cephennium felicitas Scott, 1922: 200 .

Type material examined. Holotype of Cephennium felicitas : Seychelles ( Félicité Island ): ♀, six labels: “Type” [white circle with red margin, printed], “Felicite, xii.1908 / Seychelles Exp.” [white, printed], “Percy Sladen / Trust Exped. / Brit. Mus. / 1926-246” [white, printed], “ Cephennium / felicitas / TYPE. H. Scott ” [white, handwritten], “ Figured specimen ” [red, largely soiled with black stain, printed], “TYPE” [blue, printed]. The specimen bears also Claude Besuchet’s label “ Cephennomicrus / felicitas Scott / Cl. Besuchet / dét. X 1957 ” ( NHM).

Remarks. The holotype female ( Fig. 4 ) is tiny (body length 0.78 mm) and stout (elytral index 1.13). The internal prothoracic ‘cavities’ are clearly visible as translucent spots near each hind pronotal corner, and the prosternal process is strongly elevated, both features clearly indicating that this species does not belong in Cephennium or Cephennomicrus Reitter , but in Pomphopsilla Jałoszyński. Species of Pomphopsilla are primarily diagnosed by the male genitalia, and identifications of females are difficult and possible only when they have been collected together with males from the same spot. However, P. felicitas is remarkable and unique in having extremely shallow antebasal pronotal pits, especially the outer pair is barely discernible. The inner pair is not connected by a transverse groove, unlike in P. crenata ( Scott, 1922) , the other congener known to occur in Seychelles (but on the island of Mahé). The shallow and barely discernible pits are presumably the reason why Scott (1922) placed this species in Cephennium , despite being much more similar to all remaining Cephenniini described by him based on material from the Percy Sladen Trust Expedition, which he placed in Neseuthia Scott (= Cephennomicrus ), and of which only one was recognized to have been misplaced ( Jałoszyński 2019).

Figures

FIGURES 1–4. Syntype female of Cephennium breviusculum Motschulsky (1); aedeagus of Cephennodes zwaluwenburgi Zim- merman in ventral (2) and lateral (3) views; holotype female of Cephennium felicitas Scott (4).