Protoconnus volcanbaru, Jałoszyński, 2018

Jałoszyński, Paweł, 2018, Revision of the Neotropical genus Protoconnus Franz (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Scydmaeninae), Zootaxa 4392 (1), pp. 41-82 : 77-78

Protoconnus volcanbaru sp. n.

( Figs 14–17 , 84 , 86–87 , 101 )

Type material. Holotype: PANAMA (Chiriquí Province): ♂, two labels: " PANAMA, Chiriqui Prov. / Volcan Baru, 2300-2500 m / 8.848°N, 82.526°W / 0 1.05.2014, litter layer / leg. Tim Struyve" [white, printed], " PROTOCONNUS / volcanbaru m. / P. JAŁOSZYŃSKI, 2018 / HOLOTYPUS " [red, printed] ( MNHW).

Diagnosis. BL 1.45 mm; body slender, elytra 1.80 times as broad as pronotum, which is as long as broad; frons in male between supraantennal tubercles flat; vertex unmodified, flattened at middle and with straight posterior margin; pronotal base with distinct transverse groove and five pits; lateral pronotal carinae distinct in posterior half; humeral carinae indistinct, rounded; aedeagus in ventral view with basal capsule oval, distal region broader than basal capsule, strongly broadened near middle, apical margin slightly emarginate.

Description. Body of male ( Fig. 84 ) strongly convex, brown, covered with setae distinctly lighter than cuticle; BL 1.45 mm.

Head ( Fig. 14 ) broadest at extremely large, strongly convex and coarsely faceted eyes, HL 0.23 mm, HW 0.35 mm; tempora absent; vertex convex but at middle slightly flattened, with its posterior margin straight; frons flat and moderately broad between small supraantennal tubercles. Punctures on frons and vertex inconspicuous; setae relatively long, dense and suberect. Antennae conspicuously long and slender, AnL 0.80 mm, distinctly longer than half BL, club indistinctly delimited; antennomere I three times as long as broad, II about twice as long as broad, III–X each slightly to strongly elongate, XI slightly longer than X, about 1.7 × as long as broad.

Pronotum ( Fig. 14 ) as long as broad, subtrapezoidal, broadest at base; PL 0.38 mm, PW 0.38 mm. Anterior margin nearly straight, lateral margins weakly rounded in anterior third, slightly sinuate in posterior half, so that posterior corners are slightly projecting posterolaterad, posterior margin distinctly bisinuate; lateral carinae distinct in posterior half; transverse antebasal groove and five antebasal pits distinct. Punctures on pronotal disc inconspicuous; setae dense, long, suberect.

Elytra much more convex than pronotum, oval, broadest at middle; EL 0.85 mm, EW 0.68 mm, EI 1.26; humeral carinae indistinct, rounded. Punctures and setae similar to those on pronotum.

Legs moderately long and slender, unmodified.

Aedeagus ( Figs 86–87 ) stout; AeL 0.25 mm; in ventral view basal capsule slightly shorter than distal region, oval; distal region laterally delimited from sides of basal capsule by constriction, strongly broadened near middle, much broader than basal capsule, with apical margin slightly concave at middle, in lateral view distal half slightly bent dorsad; in lateral view area above parameral bases forming a short subtriangular projection; parameres slightly divergent distad, each with one short apical and one long subapical seta.

Female unknown.

Distribution. Western Panama ( Fig. 101 ).

Etymology. Locotypical, after Volcán Barú, the highest mountain of Panama (noun in apposition). Remarks. This species can be easily identified on the basis of its unusual body shape and long, slender antennae with indistinctly delimited club; its aedeagus is similar to that of P. inexpectatus , but externally these species are strikingly different (cf. Figs 84, 85 ).

Figures

FIGURE 101. Distribution of nominal Protoconnus species.

FIGURES 14–17. Morphological structures of Protoconnus volcanbaru sp. n. Head, prothorax and elytral base in dorsal view (14); head, prothorax and anterior portion of mesoventrite in ventral view (15); adcoxal region of hypomeron in ventral view (16); pterothorax in ventral view (17). Abbreviations: abg, antebasal groove; abp, antebasal pit; aest3, metanepisternum; ar, anterior ridge; bef, basal elytral fovea; bs, basisternal part of prosternum; fr, frons; gp, gular plate; hd, humeral denticle; hy, hypomeron; lc, lateral carina; lp1–3, labial palpomere I–III; mn, mentum; msvp, mesoventral intercoxal process; mtvp, metaventral intercoxal process; pcr, procoxal rest; pre, prepectus; psp, prosternal process; scl2, mesoscutellum; smn, submentum; v3, metaventrite; vt, vertex. Arrowhead shows anterior projection of adcoxal portion of hypomeron.

FIGURES 84–85. Dorsal habitus of Protoconnus species. Protoconnus volcanbaru sp. n. (84); P. inexpectatus sp. n. (85).

FIGURES 86–89. Aedeagi of Protoconnus species. Protoconnus volcanbaru sp. n. (86–87); P. inexpectatus sp. n. (88–89).