Pseudosparna marilenae, Nearns & Swift & Santos-Silva, 2023

Nearns, Eugenio H., Swift, Ian P. & Santos-Silva, Antonio, 2023, Three new species of longhorned beetles (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) with notes on additional taxa, Zootaxa 5228 (2), pp. 137-156 : 144

Pseudosparna marilenae sp. nov.

Figures 42–45

Description. Holotype male ( Fig. 42–45 ). Integument mostly dark brown; legs and antennomere IV light brown; prothorax reddish-pink except at base, which is dark brown.

Head. Vertical, subquadrate, frons with medial suture extending from clypeus to behind antennae, with scattered short, light colored, appressed setae, becoming darker between and behind antennal insertions. Eyes deeply emarginate, narrowest portion adjacent to antennae 3 ommatidia wide, upper lobe small, narrow. Genae slightly shorter than lower eye lobe. Antennae elongate, surpassing elytral apices by about 4 antennomeres. Scape elongate and cylindrical, slightly expanded apically, attaining mesocoxae in lateral view; antennomere III dark brown, moderately clothed in short, appressed, black setae, shorter than scape, longer IV; IV light brown, apical 1/8 dark brown, slightly longer than V; V-XI each similar in size and vestiture; antennomeres I-VI with few short, scattered, erect setae. Antennal formula based on length of antennomere III: scape = 1.3; pedicel = 0.05; IV = 0.80; V = 0.80; VI = 0.80; VII = 0.70; VIII = 0.70; IX = 0.70; X = 0.55; XI = 0.65.

Thorax. Prothorax transverse, densely clothed dorsally in short, appressed, orangish pink setae, becoming sparse and dark brown to black ventrally; pleura with acute tubercles placed at basal 1/3 of pronotum, each feebly reflexed, about as wide as elytral humeri. Prosternum clothed in moderately dense pale setae; prosternal process narrow between coxae, expanded posteriorly, procoxal cavities closed. Mesoventrite of similar vestiture as prosternum, slightly exceeding midline of mesocoxae posteriorly, apex truncate. Metaventrite of similar vestiture to prosternum and mesoventrite, broad, flattened, unmodified; medial suture present for length of metaventrite. Elytra. Finely, abundantly punctate on anterior 3/4, gradually sparser toward apex; apex spiniform at outer angle, sinuously slightly oblique toward rounded sutural angle; with long, erect, sparse black setae throughout. Legs. With abundant yellowish pubescence not obscuring integument; mesotibiae with short, erect black setae from basal quarter ventrally and from middle dorsally, distinctly denser about posterior third; metatibiae with short, erect, sparse black setae from basal quarter ventrally and from base dorsally, distinctly denser on posterior third. Protibiae armed with small tooth near middle, apical edge of tooth serrate with about 5 peaks ( Fig. 43, 45 ). Metatarsomere I slightly longer than twice length of II–III together.

Abdomen. Ventrites with abundant yellowish pubescence not obscuring integument; apex of ventrite 5 subtruncate.

Female. Unknown.

Dimensions (mm) (holotype). Total length, 6.50; prothoracic length, 1.1; anterior prothoracic width, 1.3; posterior prothoracic width, 1.5; maximum prothoracic width, 2.3; humeral width, 1.9; elytral length, 5.1.

Type material. Holotype, male: “ PANAMA Chiriqui Prv. Cont’l divide trail 3-4-VII-1997 Wappes & Morris” ( NMNH).

Etymology. We are pleased to name this species for Marilena (Marilou) Salamanou (Easy Greek YouTube channel and podcast, Athens, Greece), for her friendship, generosity, and commitment to bringing people together through language. The epithet is a noun in the genitive case.

Diagnosis and remarks. This species can be separated from congeners by the distinct projections on the protibiae on male specimens and the lack of pale colored ventrites IV-V. In Pseudosparna mantis , males have distinct projections on both the profemora and protibiae and ventrites IV-V are distinctly yellowish. In Pseudosparna dimitrisi sp. nov., both males and females lack distinct projections on the prolegs as well as pale colored ventrites.

Figures

FIGURES 42–45. Pseudosparna marilenae sp. nov., paratype female: 42) Dorsal habitus; 43) Lateral habitus; 44) Head, frontal view; 45) Close-up of pro legs.