Wattius andersoni Smith & Sanchez

Smith, Aaron D. & Sanchez, Lucio A., 2015, Revision of the West Indian Wattius Kaszab (Tenebrionidae, Toxicini, Eudysantina) with lectotype designations for Pascoe's South American species, ZooKeys 537, pp. 111-130 : 115-118

Taxon classification Animalia Coleoptera Tenebrionidae

Wattius andersoni Smith & Sanchez sp. n. Figures 7, 8-9

Type material.

HOLOTYPE (male) labeled: (a) "CUBA: Cienfuegos / Mayari, 2 km E. / 21.96651 -80.11497, 842m / 18.v.2013, R.Anderson / 2013-017X, hardwood forest"; (b) "WORLD / WEEVIL / DATABASE / WWD0104144"; (c) "Tenebrionid Base / Aaron D. Smith / Catalog # 14681"; (d) on red paper, "HOLOTYPE / Wattius / andersoni / Smith & Sanchez 2015" (CMNC). PARATYPE (male) labeled: (a) "CUBA: Topes de Col- / lantes, Sierra de / Trinidad, I.V. prov. / June 11, 1959"; (b) "M. Wattius Sanderson / C59-25"; (c) " Tenebrionid Base / Aaron D. Smith / Catalog # 14154"; (d) on yellow paper, "PARATYPE / Wattius / andersoni / Smith & Sanchez 2015" (CMNC).

Diagnosis.

Wattius andersoni can be separated from the other West Indian members of the genus based on the following character combination: apterous, meso- and metacoxae separated by less than mesocoxal width; pronotal horn reduced, barely projecting past medial anterior margin of pronotum.

Description

(Male). Length 5.4-5.7 mm, width 2.5-2.7 mm (n = 2 specimens). Body, excepting antennae, eyes, underside of head, scutellum, tarsi, and coxae generally coated with thin shellac, often capturing debris on surface. Color ferruginous to black. Head: Frons and clypeus with dense foveae, shallow to absent on clypeus, each fovea with one decumbent scale-like setae near center. Sharp setose tubercle with minute pit at apex present above eye, setae curved towards tubercle apex. Frontoclypeal suture distinct, deeply impressed; clypeus with sharp lip along anterior margin, margin straight. Epistoma between eye and clypeus raised, with one or more tubercles. Deep

impression present around eye from epistoma to apex. Eye reniform; emarginate at epistoma anteriorly, lobes subequal in size, with smooth triangular callus posterior to dorsal lobe on head. Labrum with transverse medial ridge, long golden setae present from ridge to anterior margin on dorsal surface, margin straight with lateral setae on vertical surface. Mandible bifid at apex; maxillary palp four segmented, apical segment securiform; mentum trapezoidal, widest at anterior margin, faint medial longitudinal ridge present, more defined in anterior half. Antenna with distinct three segmented club, club lighter than preceding segments and tomentose, antennomeres 10 and 11 partially fused but with sinus clearly visible; antennomere 3 approximately 1.7 × length of antennomere 4, antennomeres 4-8 subequal in length. Prothorax: Pronotal disc convex, widest near middle; densely foveate, each fovea with one decumbent scale-like setae near center; moderately tuberculate, each tubercle bearing apical minute pit and covered in scale-like setae curved towards apex; anterior fourth of pronotum with short stout medial horn, horn margin straight; posterior fourth of pronotum with slight medial depression near scutellum; lat eral margin distinct and crenulate; anterior apices produced and acute, posterior apices acute, not projecting. Hypomeron densely deeply foveate, each fovea with one decumbent scale-like setae. Prosternum anterior to coxa short, less than length of coxal cavity, medially depressed well below height of prosternal process; prosternal process raised between coxa, apex subacute, projecting behind coxa. Pterothorax: Apterous. Elytron gradually widening to posterior third, before sharply sloping and tapering caudad; stria weakly indicated by deep elongate oval to rounded punctures, interstria with somewhat regularly spaced tubercles and decumbent scale-like setae, tubercle structure as described for those on head and pronotum; 4th, 7th, and 10th interstria with tubercles forming short costae near elytral base. Scutellum glabrous and impunctate, conspicuously lacking shellac coating compared to elytron and pronotum, ~1.6 × as wide as long, U-shaped. Mesoventrite short, anteriorly weakly emarginate behind prosternal process, mesocoxal cavities open. Metaventrite short, separating meso- and metacoxal cavities by less than mesocoxal cavity length. All ventrites on the pterothorax with shallow indistinct punctures, often obscured by shellac, and decembent scale-like setae. Legs: Mesotrocantin exposed; femora lacking spines or other protrusions, sculpturing finely transversely rugose, with decumbent scale-like setae emerging from shallow folds; tibia clothed in decumbent scale-like setae, outer margins with indistinct rows of elongate smooth callosities, inner apical margin with socketed spurs greatly reduced to absent at base of acute weakly curved spine, small patch of golden setae present near anterior apex of protibia; tarsal formula 5-5-4, venter of distal tarsomere on all legs with sparse golden setae, venter of all other tarsomeres clothed with dense long golden setae. Abdomen: Ventrites weakly longitudinally rugose, clothed in sparse decumbent scale-like setae; abdominal intercoxal process broader than prosternal process, anterior margin straight; intersegmental membranes concealed; ventrite 5 lacking submarginal groove; abdominal defensive reservoirs present; sternite viii weakly sclerotized and setose, deeply medially emarginate, emargination V-shaped; parameres fused, sharply acuminate to apex and curved ventrad.

Female. Unknown. Based on an examination of other species in the genus, the female is likely to be very similar to the male, except lacking apical spines on the tibia and emargination on sternite viii.

Distribution.

Both specimens were found above 750m in elevation in the Parque Natural Topes de Collantes, Cuba.

Etymology.

The species epithet honors Robert S. Anderson, weevil expert, avid field researcher, and collector of the holotype.