Serica paralongipes Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu, 2022

Ahrens, Dirk, Fabrizi, Silvia, Bai, Ming & Liu, Wangang, 2022, Taxonomic revision of Serica MacLeay, 1819 (sensu lato) from China and adjacent areas (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Melolonthinae: Sericini), with updates on Nipponoserica Nomura, 1972, Zootaxa 5186 (1), pp. 1-83 : 31-33

Serica paralongipes Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu , new species

Figures 7A–E , 25

Type material examined. Holotype ♂ “ China: N-Yunnan, Baiyungshan (Rai Railing Mts.) 2400m, Yong Ren, VII- 2003 leg. Ying et al.” ( ZFMK) . Paratype: 1 ♂ “ China: N-Yunnan, Baiyungshan (Rai Railing Mts.) 2400m, Yong Ren, VII-2003 leg. Ying et al.” ( ZFMK) .

Description of the holotype. Length: 7.8 mm, elytral length: 5.6 mm, width: 4.9 mm. Body oblong, dark reddish brown, dull, legs brown, antenna yellow, with sparse short and long setae on dorsal surface.

Labroclypeus moderately wide, trapezoidal, lateral margins straight and moderately convergent, producing a distinct angle with ocular canthus; anterior angles strongly rounded; anterior margin moderately sinuate medially, margins strongly reflexed; surface weakly convex, finely and densely punctate, with numerous long and erect setae; frontoclypeal suture indistinct, curved; ocular canthus moderately short and narrow (1/3 of ocular width), finely and densely punctate, with 1–3 short terminal setae. Frons with dull toment, with coarse, dense punctures and numerous long erect setae. Antenna with nine antennomeres, club with three antennomeres, 2.2 times as long as remaining antennomeres combined, strongly reflexed. Eyes small, ratio diameter/ interocular width: 0.54. Mentum convexly elevated and flattened anteriorly.

Pronotum widest at base, lateral margins in basal half straight and weakly convergent towards middle, in anterior half margins convex and convergent anteriorly; anterior angles almost blunt and moderately produced, posterior angles blunt; anterior margin strongly convex, marginal line complete; basal margin without marginal line; surface with mixed coarse and fine, dense punctures, with a few short and longer yellow setae. Hypomeron very weakly carinate ventrally. Scutellum narrow and long, triangular, with fine, dense punctation, at base with a smooth impunctate triangular area, with a very few short setae.

Elytra narrow, elongate, widest in posterior quarter, striae distinctly impressed, finely punctate, intervals weakly convex, finely and densely punctate, punctures concentrated along striae, elytra with moderately dense, long and erect setae in row on each sides of odd intervals, minute setae absent; epipleural margin robust, ending at strongly rounded external apical angle of elytra, sparsely setose; apex of elytra with a fine membraneous rim of short microtrichomes.

Ventral face coarsely and densely punctate, only metasternal plate and lateral metacoxa with a few long setae, otherwise almost glabrous. Mesosternum between mesocoxae as wide as mesofemur. Ratio of length of metepisternum/ metacoxa: 1/ 1.62. Abdominal sternites finely and moderately densely punctate, each with a row of coarse punctures bearing each a robust seta, otherwise glabrous. Pygidium moderately convex, finely and densely punctate, with a few sparse, long setae on apical half.

Legs long and narrow, shiny; femora finely and sparsely punctate, with two longitudinal rows of setae. Metafemur with anterior margin acute, without adjacent serrated line; posterior ventral margin almost straight, weakly widened in apical half, ventrally and dorsally not serrated, sparsely setose. Metatibia long and narrow, widest at apex, ratio width/ length: 1/ 4.1, sharply carinate dorsally, with two groups of robust spines, basal one shortly behind middle apical one at four fifths of metatibial length, basally with a few single robust setae; lateral face longitudinally convex, coarsely and densely punctate, glabrous; apex concavely and narrowly sinuate interiorly near tarsal articulation. Tarsomeres finely punctate dorsally, with moderately dense, fine setae ventrally; metatarsomeres ventrally with a strongly serrated carina, subventrally with a second, smooth longitudinal carina; first metatarsomere little shorter than following two tarsomeres combined and little longer than dorsal tibial spur. Protibia long, bidentate; anterior claws symmetric, interior tarsal claws sharply pointed.

Aedeagus: Fig. 7A–D . Habitus: 7E. Female unknown.

Diagnosis. Serica paralongipes Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu , new species differs from sympatric Serica longipes Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu , new species by the much less dense pilosity on dorsal surface and the left paramere which is narrower and sickle-shaped, almost circular in cross section over almost its entire length. From S. allolongipes Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu , new species Serica paralongipes Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu , new species differs by the simply rounded apex of right almost straight paramere.

Etymology. The name of the new species (adjective in nominative case) is derived from the combined Greek prefix ‘ para -’ (false) and the species name ‘ longipes ’, with reference on the similarity to this synoccurring species.

Variation. Length: 7.6–7.8 mm, elytral length: 5.5–5.6 mm, width: 4.8–4.9 mm.

Figures

FIGURE 7. A–E: Serica paralongipes Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu, new species (holotype); F–J: S. gaoligong Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu, new species (holotype); K–N: S. yini Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu, new species (holotype). A, F, K: Aedeagus, left side lateral view; D, I, M: Aedeagus, right side lateral view; B, C, G, L: Parameres, dorsal view; N: Parameres, ventral view; E, J, N: Habitus (not to scale). Scale: 0.5 mm.

FIGURE 25. Distribution of Nipponoserica daqiao Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu, new species, Serica hailougou Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu, new species, S. huangjing Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu, new species, S. kuankuoshuiensis Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu, new species, S. limbourgi Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu, new species, S. paralongipes Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu, new species, S. pseudogracilipes Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu, new species, S. smetanai Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu, new species, S. taishun Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu, new species, S. tianpingshanensis Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu, new species.