Selasia nigrobrunnea, Kundrata, 2017

Kundrata, Robin, 2017, New species of Selasia Laporte, 1838 (Elateridae: Agrypninae: Drilini) from Nepal and Pakistan, Zootaxa 4344 (2) : -

Selasia nigrobrunnea sp. n.

( Figs 1–2, 5, 7–10 )

Type material. Holotype, male, " NEPAL P: Seti /D: Bajhang way 19 km NE Chainpur, (N29°39'44'', E81°20'54'') to Talkot (N29°36'23'', E81°18'04'') 2000– 1800m, 27.VI.2009, leg. A. Weigel #36" ( NKME).

Diagnosis. Selasia nigrobrunnea sp. nov. is the only Selasia species outside of Africa with the dark brown to black pronotum which is darker than elytra ( Figs 1–2 ). Other species from Nepal differ from S. nigrobrunnea sp. nov. in the body coloration and the shapes of pronotum and male genitalia. Selasia atriventris has pronotum with lateral margins subparallel-sided and posterior angles rectangular (lateral margins diverging posteriorly and posterior angles more prominent in S. nigrobrunnea sp. nov.; Fig. 7 ), and relatively shorter parameres and wider phallobase. Selasia boruckae has pronotum with lateral margins more sinuate, more robust aedeagal median lobe, and relatively shorter and wider parameres ( Fig. 10 ; Kundrata 2012a).

Description. Holotype, male. Body 2.85 times longer than width at humeri; dark brown to black, anterior part of head, antennae, elytra, legs and ultimate abdominal segment pale brown to brown; body surface covered with yellow semi-erect pubescence ( Figs 1–2 ).

Head including eyes 0.80 times as wide as pronotum, without supra-antennal carina; surface rather smooth, with large, shallow median depression, sparsely and shallowly punctured, covered with sparse, long, semi-erect pubescence. Fronto-clypeal region relatively wide, flattened, gradually sloping to base of labrum. Eyes large, their frontal distance 1.45 times as eye diameter ( Fig. 7 ). Labrum transverse, roughly punctate. Mandibles robust, bidentate; base of mandible with long setae, apical part bare, shiny. Maxillary palpi slender, penultimate palpomere shortest, slightly longer than wide, apical palpomere more than twice as long as penultimate palpomere, widened medially, apically flattened, obliquely cut. Antennae flabellate; scape robust, gradually widened apically, pedicel short, antennomere III elongate, with robust branch, more than 2 times longer than antennomere II, about 1.7 times as long as antennomere IV, its branch about as long as stem, antennomeres IV–X short, with long, flattened branches; antennomeres IV–IX subequal in length, antennomere X slightly longer than preceding ones; branch of antennomere IV about 4 times as long as its stem, branches of antennomeres V–X about 6–7 times as long as their stems, ultimate antennomere simple, longest, slightly longer than branch of penultimate antennomere; all antennomeres covered with moderately dense pubescence ( Fig. 5 ).

Pronotum slightly convex, widest at posterior angles, 1.65 times wider than length at midline. Anterior margin almost straight, slightly emarginate medially, lateral margins slightly sinuate, gradually diverging posteriorly, posterior margin simple, roundly emarginate medially. Anterior angles inconspicuous; posterior angles short, rounded, only very slightly produced postero-laterally ( Fig. 7 ). Lateral pronota carina incomplete at anterior pronotal margin. Surface of disc smooth, rugose at posterior angles; sparsely shallowly punctured, with sparse semi-erect pubescence, denser at hind angles. Hypomeron medially smooth, with sublateral carina. Prosternum transverse, prosternal lobe very short, transverse, with long semi-erect setae; prosternal process short, narrow, sharp. Scutellum flat, tongue-like, longer than wide, roughly punctate, anterior margin gradually declivitous, posterior margin rounded. Mesoventrite widely v-shaped, with frontal margin widely concave; mesoventral cavity minute, narrow, located posteriorly. Elytra relatively long, subparallel-sided, 0.75 times as long as body, slightly rugose, indistinctly striate, with apices separately rounded, sparsely punctate, covered with long, semi-erect pubescence ( Figs 1–2 ). Legs slender, slightly compressed, with sparse, long, semi-erect setae; tarsomere I slightly shorter than tarsomere II, widened apically, tarsomere II elongate, longer than tarsomere III, tarsomere IV shortest, minute, extended ventrally, apical tarsomere slender, long, about 2.5 times as long as tarsomere IV; claws simple, slender, slightly curved, each with long seta basally.

Abdomen soft, ventrites with sparse shallow punctures, covered with semi-erect pubescence, denser at margins; penultimate ventrite widely emarginate medially. Tergite IX transverse, from about half abruptly narrowed towards apical part, tergite X apically rounded, covered densely with short setae ( Fig. 8 ). Sternite IX about 1.5 times as long as wide, widely emarginate basally, rounded apically, with apex finely punctate and sparsely setose ( Fig. 9 ).

Male genitalia 2.1 times as long as maximum phallobase width; median lobe robust, curved in lateral view, basally with two minute struts, dorsally with robust subapical hook, hook elongate, about 2.5 as long as wide; parameres elongate, apically partly membranous, with sparse long setae; phallobase robust, slightly longer than wide, basally narrowly rounded ( Fig. 10 ).

Measurements. BL 5.40 mm, WHum 1.90 mm, EL 4.00 mm, WHe 1.15 mm, PL 0.85 mm, PW 1.45 mm, Edist 0.65 mm, Ediam 0.45 mm.

Distribution. The western part of Nepal.

Etymology. The name of this species is derived from the Latin words niger (black) and brunneus (brown), and refers to its coloration.

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 14. Habitus images of Selasia species. 1, Selasia nigrobrunnea sp. nov., dorsal view; 2, S. nigrobrunnea sp. nov., lateral view; 3, S. sabatinellii sp. nov., dorsal view; 4, S. sabatinellii sp. nov., lateral view. Antenna. 5, S. nigrobrunnea sp. nov., 6, S. sabatinellii sp. nov. Selasia nigrobrunnea sp. nov. 7, head and pronotum; 8, abdominal tergites IX – X; 9, abdominal sternite IX; 10, male genitalia. Selasia sabatinellii sp. nov. 11, head and pronotum; 12, abdominal tergites IX – X; 13, abdominal sternite IX; 14, male genitalia. Scale bars = 2.0 mm (Figs 1 – 4), 0.5 mm (Figs 5 – 7, 11), 0.3 mm (Figs 8 – 10, 12 – 14).