Serica, MacLeay, 1819

Sreedevi, Kolla, Ranasinghe, Sasankha, Fabrizi, Silvia & Ahrens, Dirk, 2019, New species and records of Sericini from the Indian subcontinent (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae) II, European Journal of Taxonomy 567, pp. 1-26 : 22-23

Serica (s. str.) eberlei sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:85FBE853-EDA8-427D-A6BD-4076CD582839

Fig. 4 A–D

Diagnosis

Serica (s. str.) eberlei sp. nov. is in shape of genitalia similar to S. chinhillensis Ahrens & Fabrizi, 2011 . Serica (s. str.) eberlei sp. nov. differs from the latter by the distinctly shorter and straight antennal club of the male, by the laterally straight right paramere and the more basally bent hook of the left paramere.

Etymology

The name of this new species (noun in the genitive case) is dedicated to Dr. Jonas Eberle, in gratitude for his merits in the scarab working group at the ZFMK.

Type material

Holotype

INDIA • ♂; “NE India, Arunachal Pradesh, Sela pass, 27°30′ N, 92°03′ E, 25.VI.2008, 4100 m, leg. C. Reuter / 1028 Sericini Asia spec.”; NME.

Description

MEASUREMENTS. Length: 8.8 mm, length of elytra: 6.3 mm, width: 4.4 mm.

HABITUS AND COLORATION. Body oblong ( Fig. 4D ), dark brown, antennae and legs yellowish, wide parts on elytra and pronotal lateral margins reddish brown, dorsal surface dull; frons, pronotum and elytra with sparse, erect setae.

HEAD. Labroclypeus slightly wider than long, widest at base, lateral margins moderately convex and convergent, anterior angles weakly rounded, anteriorly not deeply but widely sinuate medially, lateral margins moderately reflexed, anterior margin strongly reflexed; surface flat and shiny, coarsely and densely punctate, with a few long, erect setae behind anterior margin; frontoclypeal suture indistinctly incised, slightly elevated and weakly convex; smooth area anterior to eye large and flat, approximately 1.5 times as wide as long; ocular canthus moderately long and slender (⅓ of ocular diameter), smooth, with one short terminal seta. Frons completely dull and flat, with fine and moderately dense punctures, with long, erect setae beside eyes and on posterior part. Eyes large, ratio of diameter/interocular width: 0.71. Antenna with ten antennomeres; antennomeres three to five slightly wider than long, antennomere six and seven transverse and short; club with three antennomeres, 1.5 times as long as remaining antennomeres combined and weakly reflexed. Mentum weakly elevated, anteriorly flattened. Labrum transverse, short, moderately produced, moderately sinuate medially.

PRONOTUM. Transverse, widest at base, lateral margins weakly convex and moderately convergent anteriorly, in anterior quarter moderately convex, anterior angles moderately produced, sharp, posterior angles weakly rounded; anterior margin medially with a complete, broad marginal line and strongly convexly produced medially; surface not densely and finely punctate, a few larger punctures with white, short and appressed setae, otherwise only with very minute setae in punctures; anterior and lateral borders long and densely setose; hypomeron not carinate at base. Scutellum slender and long, triangular, finely and moderately densely punctate, with a few minute setae in punctures.

ELYTRA. Oblong, widest at apical third, in disc nearly completely yellow, striae weakly impressed, finely and densely punctate, intervals slightly convex, with fine, moderately dense punctures concentrated along striae, dark spots completely smooth, intervals with fine, short, white setae which are sparsely scattered, sutural and lateral intervals with a few long, erect setae; epipleural edge fine, ending at moderately curved external apical angle of elytra, epipleura densely setose, apical border finely membranous, membranous rim composed of fine microtrichomes (magnification 100×).

ABDOMEN. Ventral surface dull, finely and not densely punctate, moderately densely setose, metacoxa glabrous, with a few long setae only laterally; abdominal sternites finely and densely punctuate, with a transverse row of coarse punctures, each bearing a short seta. Mesosternum between mesocoxae half as wide as slender mesofemur. Ratio of length of metepisternum/metacoxa: 1/1.48. Pygidium moderately convex and dull, finely and densely punctate, smooth midline lacking, with dense setae, moderately long ones mixed with long erect setae.

LEGS. Very slender; femora with two longitudinal rows of setae, coarsely and not densely punctate between rows, with robust setae on basal half; metafemur dull, anterior margin acute, without a continuously serrated line behind anterior edge, posterior margin serrated ventrally in apical half and not widened, completely serrated dorsally, in basal half with a few long setae which are half as long as width of metafemur. Metatibia slender and long, widest at apex, ratio of width/length: 1/5.1, dorsally sharply carinate, with two groups of spines, basal group at first third, apical group at two thirds of metatibial length, basally with a few single, robust setae; longitudinally concave externally, finely and sparsely punctate, with numerous irregular wrinkles on dorsal portion; ventral edge serrated, with two very widely separated robust setae interspersed with two finer ones, medial face with a shallow longitudinal groove medially, sparsely punctate and along dorsal margin with a row of very robust punctures, each bearing a short seta, apex interiorly near tarsal articulation distinctly but bluntly truncate. Tarsomeres ventrally with sparse, very minute setae, dorsally smooth; metatarsomeres laterally and dorsally carinate, with a strongly serrated ridge ventrally, first metatarsomere as long as two following tarsomeres combined and twice as long as upper tibial spur; mesotarsomeres not carinate, punctures and wrinkles lacking. Protibia moderately long, bidentate, external edge with a few small teeth at base, anterior claws symmetrical, basal tooth of inner claw normally pointed, as external one.

MALE GENITALIA. Aedeagus: Fig. 4 A–C.

Female

Unknown.

Figures

Fig. 4. A–D. Serica (s. str.) eberlei sp. nov., holotype, ♂. E–H. S. (s. str.) tashigaonensis sp. nov., holotype, ♂. A, E. Aedeagus, left side lateral view. C, G. Aedeagus, right side lateral view. B, F. Parameres, dorsal view. D, H. Habitus. Scale bars: 0.5 mm. Habitus not to scale.