Edaphus hlavaci, Assing, 2012

Assing, V., 2012, On the Staphylinidae of Socotra Island, Yemen (Insecta: Coleoptera), Linzer biologische Beiträge 44 (2), pp. 973-986 : 979

Edaphus hlavaci nov.sp. ( Figs 5-8 )

T y p e m a t e r i a l: Holotype: " Yemen, Sokotra , Al Haghier Mts., Scant Mt. env., 12°35'N, 54°02'E, 1450 m, sifted, 12.-13.XI.2010, leg. Hlaváč / Holotypus Edaphus hlavaci sp. n. det. V. Assing 2012" ( NMNHP) . Paratypes: 6, 4: same data as holotype ( OÖLL, cAss, cPut) ; 2 exs.: same data, but leg. Hájek ( NMNHP) .

E t y m o l o g y: This species is dedicated to my friend and colleague Peter Hlaváč, to whom I owe numerous Staphylinidae from Socotra, including the type material of several species described in the present paper.

D e s c r i p t i o n: Body length 1.5-1.9 mm; length of forebody 0.8-0.9 mm. Habitus as in Fig. 5 . Coloration: forebody pale yellowish brown; abdomen brown with yellowish apex; legs, antennae, and mouthparts yellowish. Whole forebody without appreciable punctation, smooth and glossy.

Head transverse; frons deeply and sharply impressed, laterally and posteriorly sharply delimited; impression separated from lateral portions by distinct and curved elevation. Eyes small, almost extending to posterior margin of head posteriorly. Antennae moderately slender, extending approximately to middle of pronotum.

Pronotum approximately 1.1 times as broad as long and about as broad as head; lateral margins distinctly sinuate near posterior angles; on either side with sharp postero-lateral carina of approximately 1/3 the length of pronotum extending anteriad from posterior angle; near posterior margin with short median keel, on either side of this keel with a large and occasionally with an additional small fovea ( Fig. 6 ).

Elytra short, approximately 0.7 times as long as pronotum; laterally with shallow longitudinal impression, laterad of this impression somewhat elevated; humeral angles with distinct and almost sharp elevation. Hind wings completely reduced.

Abdomen slightly broader than elytra; tergite III without median keel; tergites with distinct microsculpture and much less glossy than forebody; punctation not noticeable at magnification of 60 x; posterior margin of tergite VII without palisade fringe.

: sternite VIII with rather deep and U-shaped posterior excision; aedeagus ( Figs 7-8 ) approximately 0.24 mm long and apically very acute in ventral view; paramere subapically with setose projection.

C o m p a r a t i v e n o t e s: According to PUTHZ (pers. comm.), E. hlavaci is distinguished from all impunctate, microphthalmous, and micropterous Afrotropical Edaphus species with a flat frons and with a humeral elevation, e.g., E. luberoensis PUTHZ 1992 from Congo, by the morphology of the aedeagus, particularly also the subapical setose projections of the parameres.

D i s t r i b u t i o n a n d n a t u r a l h i s t o r y: The type locality, the hypothesised distribution, and the circumstances of collection are identical to those of Octavius curtissimus (see above).

Figures

Figs 1-9: Octavius curtissimus nov.sp. (1-4), Edaphus hlavaci nov.sp. (5-8), and E. socotranus nov.sp. (9): (1, 5) habitus; (2) posterior median portion of head and median portion of pronotum; (3) elytra; (4, 8, 9) aedeagus in ventral view; (6) posterior portion of pronotum; (7) aedeagus in lateral view. Scale bars: 1.5: 1.0 mm; 2-4, 6-9: 0.1 mm.