Paratachinus laticollis Cameron

HERMAN, LEE H., 2004, Revision of the Asian Tribe Megarthropsini (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Tachyporinae), American Museum Novitates 3430, pp. 1-72 : 69-71

Paratachinus laticollis Cameron

Paratachinus laticollis Cameron is the type species of Paratachinus . When Ullrich (1975) synonymized Paratachinus with Tachinus (Tachinoderus) , P. laticollis became a junior secondary homonym of Tachinus laticollis Gravenhorst, 1802 , and was replaced by Tachinus oblongopunctatus Ullrich.

After the original description nothing of substance was written about Paratachinus laticollis Cameron until Ullrich (1975: 313) redescribed and transferred the species to Tachinus , designat­ ed a lectotype, and illustrated the tergum and ster­ num VIII of the female. Cameron knew the species only by the females, and Ullrich saw only the type series. Coiffait (1984: 113) included the species in a key but provided no illustrations. Heretofore characters of the male have not been published.

Because Tachinus punctatissimus (Hayashi) was described in Paratachinus , but was found to be congeneric with a group of Southeast Asian species, it was essential to examine the type species of Paratachinus to determine the generic name of the group. Paratachinus punctatissimus shares with species of Lacvietina the metasternal pit, the coarse, dense cephalic, pronotal and ely­ tral punctation, the reflexed cephalic margin, the emarginate posterior margin of the elytron, and the asymmetrical aedeagus, and it differs from Paratachinus laticollis by these same features. Paratachinus laticollis and Paratachinus puncta­ tissimus are not congeneric; the former remains in Tachinus (Tachinoderus) and the latter is transferred to Lacvietina .

Following is a redescription with illustrations of salient features of P. laticollis Cameron ; in­ cluded for the first time are characters of the male. I did not study type material of P. laticollis Cameron ; the description and discussion concerning this species are based on specimens identified by Milton Campbell. The specimens are consistent with the descriptions published by Cameron (1932) and Ullrich (1975). As the name suggests, the elongate pronotal punctation is a characteristic feature of the species.

Tachinus oblongopunctatus Ullrich

Figures 205–211

Tachinus oblongopunctatus Ullrich, 1975: 313 (replacement name).

—Coiffait, 1984: 133.—L.­Z. Li and Ohbayashi, 1996: 160.

Paratachinus laticollis Cameron, 1932: 397 . Type locality: Darjeeling Dist. : Ghum, alt. 9000 feet. Type not examined. Junior secondary homonym of Tachinus laticollis Gravenhorst, 1802 .

DESCRIPTION: Color reddish brown. Head and pronotum usually darker than elytra and abdomen.

Head and clypeus with feeble, scattered punctation; surface polished. Head not explanate laterally and without reflexed supraantennal or clypeal margins; surface near antennal insertion shallowly impressed. Epistomal suture present, complete or interrupted medially, and gradually curved, not angulate medially; midcranial suture absent. Dorsum without median impression or midlongitudinal groove. Postocular lateral margin without ridge or carina extending posterolaterally from eye; vertical postocular carina absent. Gular sutures widely separated and divergent from about middle. Submentum with scattered fine punctation. Antenna moderately long, extending to about basal quarter of elytra; scape more or less parallelsided from near base to apex, not tapered; base of insertion visible from above.

Pronotum strongly convex; anterior and posterior angles broadly rounded; anterior angles produced beyond median portion of anterior margin; lateral margin evenly curved; dorsal surface covered with moderately dense, elongate punctation; punctation finer medially and anteriorly and increasingly coarse laterally and posteriorly; punctation most coarse near posterolateral margin; punctures distinct, not anastomosing.

Elytra convex, moderately convex medially and strongly convex laterally; dorsal surface evenly, densely, and coarsely punctate; lateral margin narrowly reflexed from humeral angle to about middle and with short, spinelike setae; posterior margin without emargination laterally; posterolateral angle rounded, not produced. Mesosternum with midlongitudinal basal carina; paramedial basal carina absent. Metasternum without pit adjacent to apex of mesosternal process (see figs. 146, 197); circum­mesocoxal ridge moderately strongly developed medially.

Abdominal segment II with one pair of paratergites; segment III with two pairs of paratergites; segments IV–VII with one pair of paratergites. Sternum I present as narrow sclerite anterior to II. Sternite II narrow, fused to III, and with median carina. Sternite III with median carina basally. Tergite VII with palisade fringe on posterior margin. Tergites IX divided middorsally by tergum X.

MALE: Sternite V unmodified. Sternite VI with feeble emargination of posterior margin; surface unmodified. Sternite VII (fig. 205) with broad, shallow median depression; depression with cluster of about 16 peg setae; sternite with medially separated row of peg setae adjacent to posterior margin; apical row of peg setae bordered laterally by long, darkly pigmented seta; posterior margin with broad, deep median emargination and with long, stout, sinuate, blunt­tipped seta on lateral fifth of emargination. Sternum VIII (fig. 209) with broad, deep median emargination; lateral margin of emargination sinuate; emargination with narrow, round base. Tergum VIII (fig. 208) with moderately deep, acute emargination between median pair of apical lobes; emargination deeper than wide. Aedeagus (fig. 206) more or less symmetrical in ventral view; parameres contiguous along medial margin; parameres straight and of equal length.

FEMALE: Tergum VIII (fig. 210) with four apical lobes; median pair of lobes shorter than lateral pair. Sternum VIII (fig. 207) with three pairs of lobes. Spermatheca as in figure 211.

DISTRIBUTION AND HABITAT: This species is known from India and Nepal and has been collected at 2000 to 3200 m elevation.

MATERIAL EXAMINED: Nine males and 9 females. Nepal: Khandbari District : Induwa Khola Valley, 2000 m, 14.IV.84, Smetana and Löbl (2 males, ASC) , 16.IV.84 (1 male, 1 female, ASC) , 2050 m, 16.IV.84 (1 male, 2 females, ASC) ; above Sheduwa, 3000 m, 31.III–1.IV.82, A. and Z. Smetana (1 male, ASC) ; Bakan, W of Tashigaon , 3200 m, 5.IV.82, A. and Z. Smetana (2 males, 1 female, ASC) , 3100 m, 8.IV.82, A. and Z. Smetana (1 female, ASC) ; Forest NE Kuwapani, 2400 m, 24.IV.84, Smetana and Löbl (1 male, 1 female, ASC) , 5.IV.84 (1 female, ASC) , 2500 m, 28.III.82, A. and Z. Smetana (1 male, 1 female, ASC) , 11.IV.82 (1 female, ASC) .

Figures

Figs. 205–211. Tachinus oblongopunctatus Ullrich. 205. Sternite VII, male. 206. Aedeagus, ventral. 207. Sternum VIII, female. 208. Tergum VIII, male. 209. Sternum VIII, male. 210. Tergum VIII, female. 211. Spermatheca.