Acmaeodera (Acmaeodera) bellamyola Volkovitsh

Volkovitsh, Mark G., 2014, Acmaeodera (Acmaeodera) BellamyolaVolkovitsh (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), a New Species of Jewel Beetle from China, The Coleopterists Bulletin 68 (1), pp. 37-40 : 37-40

Acmaeodera (Acmaeodera) bellamyola Volkovitsh , new species

( Figs. 1–9 )

Type Material. Holotype male: “ China, Yunnan prov., Yulongshan mts., Baishui , 27°08′ N, 100°14′ E, 2900–3500 m, 7– 12.07.1990, Vit Kubáň leg.”, VKCB . Paratypes: 5 males, 7 females, same data as holotype, VKCB, ZIN ; 1?male: “ China, Yunnan Prov., Heishui , 35 km N Lijiang, 27°13′ N, 100°19′ E, 18.06.– 4.07.1993, leg. S. Becvar ”, DGCC ; 1 male: “ Sichuan, Xiangcheng , 3000 m, 21.06.1982 ”, HMCM ; 2 males: same data, Wang Shuyong [leg.], IZCAS ; 1 female, same data, Zhang Xuezhong [leg.], IZCAS ; 1 female: “ Sichuan, Xiangcheng , 2700 m, 27.06.1982 ”, HMCM ; 1 female: “ Sichuan Prov., Yajiangxian, Qingdagou , 2861 m, 26.05.2009, Yang Ganyan [leg.]”, IZCAS . Note: All mentioned specimens have additional red (type) labels: “ Holotype (or Paratype), Acmaeodera (s. str.) sinensis Volkovitsh sp. n. ” (unavailable name) .

Diagnosis. T h i s s p e c i e s b e l o n g s t o t h e A. brunneipennis species-group (formerly called the A. elater species-group) (Volkovitsh 1979, 1986), differing from other eastern Palaearctic and Oriental species of this group by the following combination of characters: coloration of elytra light, without metallic sheen or distinct elytral pattern of markings; complicated shape of pronotal sides and presence of deep medial depression; pronotal sculpture changing from reticulate to punctate toward anterior portion of disc; aedeagus and ovipositor structures are unique. Acmaeodera bellamyola is most similar to A. medvedevi from southern Mongolia and northern China, which differs from the A. bellamyola as follows: elytra and dorsal pubescence uniformly dark brown; pronotal sides arcuately converging from widest point at posterior third to anterior angles; pronotal disc without medial depression (but deep prescutellar fossa present); pronotal sculpture uniformly reticulate; aedeagus of different structure (female unknown).

Description. Body ( Figs. 1, 2 ) of medium size, mean length 7.6 (6.6–8.9) mm, mean width 2.1 (1.9–2.6) mm (n = 19), holotype 7.4 and 2.1 mm, respectively. Body elongate, 3.56 (3.35–3.68) times as long as pronotum at base; flat, without dorsal curvature; black, with coal or feeble steel sheen; elytra fulvous on disc with brown base, humeral swellings and apical third uniformly greyish brown to light brown; body dorsally covered with erect, straight, predominantly brown setae mixed with white setae laterally, ventrally covered with semierect white setae. Head ( Figs. 3, 4 ): Broad, vertex flattened or slightly convex when seen from above; eyes weakly protruding beyond head contour. Frons flattened, without medial line or depression, with nearly straight, slightly diverging sides. Vertex with or without medial carina, 1.90 (1.76–2.10) times as wide as transverse diameter of eye and 1.10 (1.06–1.14) times as wide as frons above antennal sockets. Clypeus relatively broad with arcuate medial emargination. Frons with uniform reticulate sculpture of dense, small, deep umbilicate punctures bearing poorly marked central grains and micropunctures, intervals less than 1/2 diameter of puncture; covered with rather long, erect, brown setae mixed with white setae. Antennal segments ( Figs. 5, 6 ) abruptly expanded from antennomere 5 in both sexes, sexual dimorphism well-expressed; in male 1.97 (1.86–2.08), in female 1.65 (1.57– 1.75) times as long as vertical diameter of eye; in male ( Fig. 5 ) scape long, weakly curved, expanded toward apex; pedicel slightly elongate, feeble swollen, slightly shorter than antennomeres 3 and 4 which are subequal; antennomere 3 elongate, subparallel; antennomere 4 slightly swollen toward apex; antennomere 5 sharply triangular, nearly as wide as long, antennomeres 6–10 sharply triangular, slightly wider than long; antennomere 11 elongate, longer than wide, with truncated apex; in female ( Fig. 6 ) antennomeres 6–10 less expanded and antennomere 11 as wide as long, with emarginated apex. Pronotum ( Figs. 1, 2, 4 ): Pronotum markedly flattened, weakly transverse, 1.56 (1.46– 1.68) times as wide at base as long, widest at posterior third; sides shortly, angularly diverging from base toward widest point, beyond longer, nearly rectilinearly converging toward anterior quarter, then shortly, arcuately converging toward anterior angles. Anterior margin slightly angularly produced at center, basal margin feeble emarginate, nearly straight. Lateral carina poorly defined, fine, partly obliterated. Pronotum dorsally bearing welldefined, rather deep medial depression arising from large, deep foveolate prescutellar depression; lateral fossae well-defined, small and deep. Pronotal surface covered with reticulate, laterally nearly alveolate sculpture consisting of uniform umbilicate punctures with flat bottom; disc with smaller and partly obliterated umbilicate punctures changing to simple punctures at anterior part. Entire surface bearing uniform, rather long, erect, dark brown setae mixed with white setae laterally. Pronotal hypomeron bearing reticulate sculpture of larger punctures with marked central grains. Elytra ( Figs. 1, 2 ): Elongate, 2.74 (2.63–2.87) times as long as wide at base, narrow, flattened, slightly transversely depressed at anterior 1/4; sides weakly expanded at humeri, behind them subparallel toward posterior third, then arcuately converging to narrowly rounded apices. Subhumeral excision absent, subhumeral portion of epipleura weakly curved; epipleural serrations poorly marked, visible at posterior 2/3, apical teeth small, serrate. Strial punctures large, deep, round or oval, separate at anterior half and merging at posterior half of elytral length; striae visible up to base. Intervals flat, subequal, at anterior half crossed by convex transverse wrinkles, sutural striae slightly elevated; 9th interval flat, not serrated; intervals with very fine, inconspicuous, uniseriate micropunctures; covered with moderately long (as long as width of intervals), erect, brown setae, laterally mixed with white setae. Elytra fulvous on disc with brown humeral swellings, base, suture, and apical third, or uniformly greyish brown to light brown. Legs ( Fig. 1 ): Black or blackish brown; metacoxal plates narrow, with posterior margin nearly straight, deeply emarginate laterally, forming rectangular lateral tooth protruding beyond elytral contour but poorly visible from dorsal view. Tibiae slender, slightly expanded toward apices, metatibiae bearing comb of brown setae externally. Tarsomeres 1–4 subequal, short; tarsomere 5 slender, poorly expanded toward apex; pulvilli developed on tarsomeres 1–4, each larger toward distal end. Tarsal claws curved, with small tooth at apical third (male) or mid-length (female). Venter: Anterior prosternal margin feeble bisinuate, nearly straight, bordered with shallow, wide transverse depression; prosternal process flattened, covered with ocellate sculpture of small umbilicate punctures; meso- and metaventrites with same sculpture. Abdomen black with steel sheen; laterally covered with reticulate sculpture of dense, round, superficial umbilicate punctures, toward disc changing to ocellate (ventrite 1) or asperate (ventrites 2–5) sculpture of horseshoe-shaped punctures; surface with moderately long, semi-erect white setae. Anal ventrite relatively short, evenly rounded and bordered with fine groove apically in both sexes.

Male. Aedeagus as in Figs. 7, 8 .

Female. Ovipositor ( Fig. 9 ) very short, ventritelike.

Ecological Data. No larval host is known. According to V. Kubáň (personal communication), who collected a series of this species near Baishui village, Yunnan on 11 July 1990 in the early daytime, A. bellamyola and A. semenovi were collected together on the violet flowers of? Convolvulus sp. on a mountain slope with solitary standing, very old trees of Pinus sp. and Quercus sp. In the late daytime, the beetles were found in the crevices of old dry stumps of Pinus sp. , while the beetles of A. semenovi were found in the crevices and under the trunk bark of Quercus sp. Based on this information, it is difficult to conclude that either the Pinus sp. is a larval host plant of A. bellamyola or the crevices were used by beetles as a rain shelter.

Etymology. The species name is dedicated to the blessed memory of Dr. Charles (Chuck) L. Bellamy who was a good friend and colleague of mine for more than 30 years.

Figures

Figs. 1–9. Acmaeodera (Acmaeodera) bellamyola, male and female paratypes. 1) Dorsal view (length 7.1 mm); 2) Lateral view; 3) Head, frontal view; 4) Pronotum, dorsal view; 5) Right antenna of male; 6) Right antenna of female; 7) Parameres, dorsal view (length 1.5 mm); 8) Median lobe, dorsal view (length 0.85 mm); 9) Ovipositor, dorsal view (length 0.8 mm).