Maladera jatuai Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu, 2021

Fabrizi, Silvia, Liu, Wan-Gang, Bai, Ming, Yang, Xing-Ke & Ahrens, Dirk, 2021, A monograph of the genus Maladera Mulsant & Rey, 1871 of China (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Melolonthinae: Sericini), Zootaxa 4922 (1), pp. 1-400 : 310-311

Maladera jatuai Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu , sp. n.

Figures 73 E–H, 127

Type material examined. Holotype: ♂ “ China, SW Guizhou prov. Xianheping 1400-1700m Nat. Res. 24°59’N 105°36’E Jatua leg., 24.V.-18.VI.2014 / 1038 Sericini Asia spec.” ( ZFMK).

Description. Length: 9.4 mm, length of elytra: 5.5 mm, width: 5.4 mm. Body oblong, dark brown, dull, legs brown, antenna yellow, with a few long setae on dorsal surface.

Labroclypeus wide, trapezoidal, lateral margins convex and moderately convergent, producing a distinct angle with ocular canthus; anterior angles moderately rounded; anterior margin weakly emarginate medially, margins moderately reflexed; surface flat, finely and densely punctate, with numerous erect setae; frontoclypeal suture indistinct, curved; ocular canthus moderately short and narrow (1/3 of ocular width), finely and densely punctate, with 1-2 short terminal setae. Frons anteriorly on sides shiny, with coarse, dense punctures and numerous long setae. Antenna with ten antennomeres, club with three antennomeres, as long as remaining antennomeres combined. Eyes small, ratio diameter/ interocular width: 0.5. Mentum convexly elevated and flattened anteriorly.

Pronotum widest at base, lateral margins weakly convex and convergent anteriorly; anterior angles sharp and distinctly produced, posterior angles blunt; anterior margin moderately convex, marginal line absent; basal margin without marginal line; surface coarsely and densely punctate, punctures with microscopic setae only. Hypomeron carinate but not produced ventrally. Scutellum wide, triangular, punctation as on pronotum.

Elytra narrow, widest in posterior third, striae distinctly impressed, finely punctate, intervals weakly convex, finely and densely punctate, punctures concentrated along striae, odd intervals with a few single short setae apart from minute setae in punctures; 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 or robust setae. Mesosternum between mesocoxae as wide as mesofemur. Ratio of length of metepisternum/ metacoxa: 1/ 1.4. Abdominal sternites finely and moderately densely punctate, each with a row of coarse punctures bearing each a robust seta. Pygidium moderately convex, coarsely and densely punctate, with a few long setae beside apical margin.

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, not widened in apical half, ventrally and dorsally not serrated, sparsely setose. Metatibia moderately long and wide, ratio width/ length: 1/ 3.7, sharply carinate dorsally, with two groups of spines, basal one shortly before middle, apical one at four fifths of metatibial length, basally with a few short setae in line; lateral face longitudinally convex, finely and sparsely punctate; apex concavely emarginate interiorly near tarsal articulation. Tarsomeres impunctate dorsally, with moderately dense, fine setae ventrally; metatarsomeres ventrally with a strongly serrated carina, subventrally with a second, smooth longitudinal carina; first metatarsomere slightly shorter than following two tarsomeres combined and little longer than dorsal tibial spur. Protibia moderately long, bidentate; anterior claws symmetric, interior tarsal claws sharply pointed.

Aedeagus: Fig. 73 E–G. Habitus: 73H. Female unknown.

Diagnosis. Maladera jatuai Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu , sp. n. differs from Maladera chinensis (Moser) in having a longer right and the shorter left paramere, the basal lobe of the right paramere is much shorter than the paramere (or its actual ventral lobe); as well as having the posterior margin of the metafemur smooth.

Etymology. The new species (noun in the genitive singular case) is named after its collector, Mr. Jatua.

Distribution. See map ( Fig. 127 ) and Table 1.

Figures

FIGURE 73. A–D: Maladera shoumanensis Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu, sp. n. (holotype); E–H: M. jatuai Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu, sp. n. (holotype). A, E: aedeagus, left side lateral view; C, G: aedeagus, right side lateral view; B, F: parameres, dorsal view; D, H: habitus. Scale: 0.5 mm. Habitus not to scale.

FIGURE 127. Distribution of the Maladera shenglongi group: Maladera hui sp. n., M. jatuai sp. n., M. maoershana sp. n., M. shenglongi sp. n., M. shoumanensis sp. n., M. xingkeyangi sp. n., M. zhejiangensis sp. n..