Neoserica (s. l.) liangi, Liu, Wan-Gang, Fabrizi, Silvia, Bai, Ming, Yang, Xing-Ke & Ahrens, Dirk, 2014

Liu, Wan-Gang, Fabrizi, Silvia, Bai, Ming, Yang, Xing-Ke & Ahrens, Dirk, 2014, A taxonomic revision of the Neoserica (sensu lato) calva group (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae, Sericini), ZooKeys 448, pp. 47-81 : 52

Taxon classification Animalia Coleoptera Scarabaeidae

Neoserica (s. l.) liangi sp. n. Figs 2 E–H, 6

Type material examined.

Holotype: ♂ [China] "Caiyanghe Nature Reserve, Pu’er, Yunnan, 28-29.VII.2007, leg. Liang Geqiu" (LSSYU).

Description.

Body length: 5.9 mm, length of elytra: 4.5 mm, width: 3.6 mm. Body oval, dark reddish brown, antennal club yellowish brown, dorsal surface dull and nearly glabrous, labroclypeus and anterior half of frons shiny.

Labroclypeus subtrapezoidal, distinctly wider than long, widest at base; lateral margins strongly convergent and convex anteriorly; anterior angles blunt; anterior margin distinctly sinuate medially; margins moderately reflexed; surface weakly elevated medially and shiny, finely and densely punctate, with a few single setae. Frontoclypeal suture indistinctly incised, weakly elevated and moderately angled medially. Smooth area anterior to eye approximately twice as wide as long. Ocular canthus short and narrow, finely and sparsely punctate, with a single terminal seta. Frons on posterior half dull; finely and densely punctate; with a few erect setae beside eyes and dense fine setae on posterior half. Eyes large, ratio diameter/interocular width: 0.75. Antenna with ten antennomeres, club with four antennomeres and straight, 1.2 times as long as remaining antennomeres combined. Mentum elevated and slightly flattened anteriorly. Labrum transverse, short, not produced medially, with weak median sinuation.

Pronotum moderately transverse, almost twice as wide as long, widest at base; lateral margins weakly evenly convex and weakly convergent, more strongly convergent in anterior third; anterior angles distinctly produced and sharp; posterior angles strongly rounded; anterior margin with a fine and complete marginal line, weakly convexly produced medially; surface densely and finely punctate, with minute setae in punctures; lateral and anterior border sparsely setose; hypomeron distinctly carinate basally. Scutellum long, with fine, dense punctures, at base punctures less dense, glabrous.

Elytra short-oval, widest in posterior third; striae weakly impressed, finely and moderately densely punctate; even intervals flat, with evenly and moderately dense punctures; odd intervals convex, with sparse, fine punctures concentrated along striae, impunctate medially, with minute setae in punctures. Epipleural edge fine, ending at moderately curved external apical angle of elytra; epipleura densely setose; apical border with a fine rim of microtrichomes (visible at 100 × magnification).

Ventral surface dull, finely and densely punctate. Metasternum except long seta on disc nearly glabrous, sparsely covered with minute setae in punctures. Metacoxa glabrous, with a few single setae laterally. Abdominal sternites finely and densely punctuate, glabrous except minute setae in punctures, with a transverse row of coarse punctures each bearing a robust long seta. Mesosternum between mesocoxae as wide as mesofemur. Ratio of length of metepisternum/metacoxa: 1/1.32. Pygidium weakly convex and dull, coarsely and densely punctate, with narrow smooth midline, with a few long setae at apex, otherwise glabrous.

Legs moderately slender. Femora with two longitudinal rows of setae, finely and sparsely punctate. Metafemur moderately shiny and sparsely finely punctate; anterior margin acute, behind anterior margin without serrated line; posterior margin entirely serrated ventrally and moderately widened at apex; posterior margin finely serrated dorsally, glabrous. Metatibia slender and moderately long, widest at apex, ratio of width/length: 1/3.2; dorsal margin finely carinate, with two groups of spines; basal group at middle, apical group at three quarters of metatibial length; in basal half with a few short robust setae in single robust punctures with serrated margin; external face longitudinally convex, finely and sparsely punctate; ventral margin finely serrated, with three robust setae, with the apical one being more distant; medial face impunctate, glabrous, apex shallowly sinuate interiorly near tarsal articulation. Tarsomeres ventrally with sparse, short setae, not carinate laterally, with fine sparse punctures dorsally; metatarsomeres with a strongly serrated ventral ridge; metatarsomere I as long as following two tarsomeres combined and half of its length longer than dorsal tibial spur. Protibia short, bidentate, not widened laterally before basal tooth; anterior claws symmetrical, basal tooth of inner claw sharply truncate at apex.

Aedeagus. Fig. 2 E–G.

Female unknown.

Diagnosis.

Neoserica liangi sp. n. differs form Neoserica menghaiensis sp. n. by the shape of the aedeagus: the phallobase is strongly widened apically (in lateral view); the left paramere is much wider at base being evenly narrowed towards the apex rather than being narrowed abruptly after base.

Etymology.

The new species is named after the collector of the holotype, Liang Geqiu.