Hellerenius monteithi, Wanat, 2013

Wanat, Marek, 2013, The Apionidae (Coleoptera: Curculionoidea) of New Caledonia. Genera Archellerenius gen. nov. and Hellerenius Wanat, Zootaxa 3717 (4), pp. 515-542 : 528-531

Hellerenius monteithi sp. nov.

(Figs 58–91)

Type material. Holotype ♀: a) New Caledonia (N): 21°11.0’S 165°17.6’E [-21.17947/ 165.30182], Aoupinié, 720 m, 18 I 2007, forest, ex Hedycarya chrysophylla , leg. M. Wanat & R. Dobosz (MNHN).

Paratypes (51 ♂ 35 ♀): New Caledonia: Province Nord: same data as holotype, 27 ♂ 19 ♀, 19 I 2007, 21 ♂ 11 ♀ - all leg. MW & RD (MW, USMB, MNHN, IRD, IACP, QLDM, CG, RH, CMN). Aoupinie (top camp), “ 21.10.44 S/165.18.10E” [-21.174/165.3017], 750 m, no. 12281, 2 V 2005, 1 ♀, hand collecting, leg. G. Monteith (QLDM); Aoupinié (refuge), -21.1489/165.3235, 400 m, rainforest, 27 III 2008, 1 ♀, leg. RD & T. Blaik (USMB). Upper Tchamba Valley: Wâo Uni (refuge), -21.0057/165.2487, 400 m, 15 I 2007, 1 ♂, night beating, leg. MW (MW); (above refuge), -21.0008/165.2483, 550 m, 20 III 2008, 1 ♀, leg. RD & T. Blaik (USMB). Mt Mandjélia, above Pouébo, 11–13 May, 1984, 6– 750 m, 1 ♀, leg. G. Monteith & D. Cook (QLDM); (subsummit), -20.398/ 164.5298, 700–750 m, 11 I 2007, night beating, 1 ♂ 1 ♀; (subsummit), -20.4001/164.5279, 750 m, 1 ♂, fogging Pycnandra comptonii - all leg. MW & RD (MW).

Total distribution in Fig. 86.

Diagnosis. Largest member of the genus, the only one exceeding 6 mm of body length without rostrum, also unique in having dull black elytra with the intervals completely matt due to heavy scale-like microsculpture and the striae shallowly impressed as shiny rows, and long and thin rostrum, particularly in female. The species resembles H. lobifer in both male and female sexual characters, namely the structure of last abdominal ventrite, male metaventrite, pygidium and aedeagus, but clearly differs in having larger body, alutaceous black elytral intervals and much longer rostrum, in male over 1.7×, in female over 2.7× longer than pronotum.

Description. Body length 6.2–6.5 mm. Coloration dull black; elytra smooth and alutaceous due to extremely dense scale-like microsculpture on intervals; antennae dark brown.

Rostrum long and thin (Figs 64–66), glabrous, with fine puncturation restricted to metarostrum and better developed on its sides, at base densely microreticulate; underside of prorostrum with distinct subgenal sulci in apical two-thirds ( Fig. 5 ); median part of rostrum underside with single shallow median sulcus. Head small and narrow; frons with elongate median pit; inner eye margins distinctly angulate; vertex with convex and distinctly punctured anterior part well separated from polished remainder (Fig. 60); temples shorter than eye diameter; head underside with short U-shaped wrinkles; subocular tooth indistinct, obtuse. Antennae extremely long and thin (Figs 61, 62); scape as long (♂) or longer (♀) than funicle, length/width ratios of funicular segments: 1st 3.5–4.0, 2nd 4.5– 5.0, 7th 1.2–1.5, club 4.0–4.2; club 0.5 (♂) to 0.4 (♀) scape length, shorter than combined length of 5 distal funicular segments. Pronotum markedly widened and rounded in apical third (Fig. 60); front margin not scratched; disc densely microreticulate, with relatively dense and superficial microscopic puncturation, subapical constriction traced across pronotal disc; subbasal line reduced; posterior lateral groove narrow but well impressed, with vestigial spur; hypomeron with small median prominence on posterior margin; prosternellum small, strongly prominent between coxae. Elytra with extended caudal part, highly convex but not angled in profile (Figs 58, 59); intervals evenly shagreened and totally alutaceous, with no trace of transverse grooves, all gently convex; striae shallow, with only vestigial punctures, distinctly shiny and thus contrasting with completely matt intervals; sensory setae up to 8 ordered along 9th stria and entering 2nd interval. Wings with largely expanded melanisations; radial window vestigial, narrow; anal 1A as two unequal rudiments (Fig. 73). Legs long; femora moderately clavate, metafemur exceeding elytra by ca. 0.25 length; tibiae straight, with dense and short protruding setae along major part of inner margin (Fig.69); protarsus as in Figs 70, 71; claws short, with low triangular teeth (Fig. 68).

Male. Rostrum thicker, with slightly constricted prorostrum (Figs 64, 65); metarostrum shallowly furrowed on sides apart from punctation. Antennal insertion 0.42–0.45. Metaventrite with round median impression and small pointed median tubercle close to metacoxae. Last abdominal ventrite with two raised, shortly setose lobes bordering median depression (Figs 72, 74). Pygidium flattened, in apical third with shallow transverse sulcus FIGURES 58–72. Hellerenius monteithi , male (59, 61, 63–65, 68, 70, 72), female (58, 60, 62, 66, 67, 69, 71): 58) elytra, lateral view; 59) elytra, dorsal view; 60) head and pronotum, dorsal view; 61, 62) antenna; 63) head and pronotum, lateral view; 64– 66) head with rostrum in dorsal (64) and lateral (65, 66) view; 67) rostrum base, lateral view; 68) tarsal claws; 69) fore femur and tibia; 70, 71) protarsus; 72) apex of last abdominal ventrite, posterior view.

FIGURES 73–85. Hellerenius monteithi , male (74, 77, 78, 82), female (73, 75, 76,79–81, 83–85): 73) metathoracic wing; 74– 76) all abdominal ventrites in dorsal (74, 75) and lateral (76) view; 77, 78) pygidium in dorsal (77) and lateral (78) view; 79) spermatheca; 80–82) membranous pouch between tergites VII and VIII in dorsal (80, 82) and lateral (81) view, arrowed; 83) tergite VII; 84) sternite VIII, basal (posterior) part; 85) ovipositor, enlarged apices of gonocoxites with styli (85A). Abbreviations: d, spermathecal duct; gl, s. gland.

separating setose exposed part (Figs 77, 78), on anterior margin with pointed median tooth (Fig. 82). Sternite VIII evenly sclerotised, lobes broadly rounded, shorter than in H. lobifer . Sternite IX with well open basal fork; apodeme with minute tooth close to fork ( Fig. 91 ). Tegminal plate ( Figs 89, 90 ) and penis ( Figs 87, 88 ) similar to those in H. lobifer ; tegminal membranous lobes more acute apically; penis apodemes shorter than pedon and more expanded distally; pedon more elongate (almost 7× as long as broad, while ca. 6× in H. lobifer ); apex of pedon rather triangular than truncate.

Female. Rostrum extremely long and thin (Fig. 66); metarostrum sides basally smooth (Fig. 67). Antennal insertion 0.33–0.37. Last abdominal ventrite broadly rounded, about 2× as wide as long, with elongate median depression and almost vertical, high apical flange provided with distinct marginal rim (Figs 75, 76). Tergite VII almost entire heavily sclerotised, with extended and broadly rounded apical part (Fig. 83), its membrane with large elongate triangular pouch-like process (Figs 80, 81). Tergite VIII elongate, subdivided in mid-length, apical part entire weakly sclerotised, with several short setae. Sternite VIII (spiculum ventrale) twice as long as gonocoxite, rod-like basally (Fig. 84). Ovipositor parallelsided, 6× as long as broad in dorsal view; styli minute, 2× as long as broad; coxites constricted subapically, throughout entire length with rod-like reinforcement (Fig. 85). Foretube darkened, with dense, simple microtrichia. Bursa copulatrix small. Spermatheca as in Fig. 79, with minute gland; spermathecal duct entire thin and finely corrugate, ca. 0.3 of sternite VIII length.

Morphological indices in Tab. 1.

Biology. Teneral beetles were found en masse on leaves of one fruiting tree of Hedycarya chrysophylla Perkins (mid-January), but no attempts to oviposit in unripened fruits were then observed.

Etymology. Named to honor Geoff B. Monteith, a great enthusiast of New Caledonian nature and very efficient explorer of its beetle fauna, who first collected this outstanding species, as well as hundreds of other specimens of the Apionidae .

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 8. Mouthparts and rostrum underside, SEM photographs: 1) Hellerenius monteithi, male mouthparts; 2) H. plumipes, male mouthparts (arrow points on U-shaped stripes on outer side of terminal maxillary palp segment); 3) Archellerenius giustoi, female mouthparts; 4) H. plumipes, sensilla on apex of female maxillary palp, magnification 9600 ×; 5) H. monteithi, female prorostrum, ventral view; 6) H. plumipes, male rostrum, ventral view; 7) H. tibialis, female prorostrum, ventral view; 8) H. plumipes, female prorostrum, ventral view. Abbreviations: ls, mixed setae of labial ligula and maxillary malae; m, mandible; mp, maxillary palp (2 - segmented); pf, palpifer; po, postmentum; pr, prementum; sg, subgenal sulcus.

FIGURES 87 – 95. Hellerenius monteithi, male (87 – 91), Hellerenius plumipes, male (95) and female (92 – 94): 87) penis, lateral view; 88) entire penis, enlarged pedo-tectal part in dorsal view (88 A) and endophallus (88 B) in lateral view; 89) tegminal plate and basal piece, lateral view; 90) entire tegmen, enlarged tegminal plate (90 A), dorsal view; 91) sternites VIII and IX, enlarged fork of s. IX (91 A); 92) spermatheca; 93) metathoracic wing, enlarged radial cell to show vestigial radial window (93 A); 94) elytra, lateral view; 95) pilose mesocoxae, trochanters and femoral bases. Abbreviations: ed, ejaculatory duct; w, radial window.