Microserica neosimplex Ahrens, Lukic

Ahrens, Dirk, Liu, Wangang, Lukic, Daniel & Bai, Ming, 2023, A taxonomic review of Microserica Brenske, 1894 from continental Asia (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Melolonthinae: Sericini), Zootaxa 5241 (1), pp. 1-115 : 34-35

Microserica neosimplex Ahrens, Lukic & Liu, new species

Figs. 11E–H , 27

Type material examined. Holotype Ô “ THAILAND bor. Chiang Dao env. 21.5.- 4.6.1995 lgt. Snizek M. / 1110 Sericini Asia spec.” ( ZFMK) . Paratypes: Thailand: 2 ♀♀ “ THAILAND bor. Chiang Dao env. 21.5.- 4.6.1995 lgt. Snizek M.” ( ZFMK) , 1 Ô “ Thai, 17.-24.V.1991 Chiang Dao 1000 m 19°25’N 98°52’E Vit Kubáň leg. / Thailand 91 Thanon Thong Chai D. Král & V. Kubáň / Coll. Dirk Ahrens ” ( ZFMK) , 1 Ô “ THAILAND bor. Chiang Mai 15.5.1997 lgt. M. Snizek ” ( CP) , 1 Ô “NW Thailand, 25.iv.-7.v. Chiang Mai prov., Ban San Pakia 1996 Sv. Bilý leg., 1700 m / TS 125” ( CP) , 1 Ô, 4 ♀♀ “ Thai, 17.-24.V.1991 Chiang Dao 1000 m 19°25’N 98°52’E Vit Kubáň leg. / Thailand 91 Thanon Thong Chai D. Král & V. Kubáň ” ( ZFMK, NMPC) , 1 Ô “839472 / 839472 Microserica spThai_ DE09_3 Thailand L. Dembicky 9.- 13.5.2009 Doi Chiang Dao env. Chiang Mai Prov. 19°24’45’’N 98°51’30’’E 1200m” ( ZFMK) , 1 Ô, 1 ♀ “ Thai 17-24/6.91 Doi Chiang Dao mts. 19.25N, 98.52E lgt. D. Kral 1000m” ( NMPC) , 22 ÔÔ, 2 ♀♀ “ Thai, 17.-26.V.1991 Chiang Dao 1000m 19°25’N 98°52’E Vít Kubáň leg. / ex. coll. Milan Nikodym, Praha ” ( ZFMK) , 5 ÔÔ “NW Thailand, Chieng Dao, Ban San Pakia , 5.-10.v.2004, 1200m, Sv. Bily ” ( NME) , 3 ÔÔ “ Thai, 9.-14.V.1991 Chiang Dao 350m 19°22’N 98°57’E V. Kuban lg. / coll. Milan Nikodym, Praha ” ( ZFMK) , 1 Ô, 1 ♀ “ Thai, 10.-16.V.1991 Chiang Dao 600m 19°24’N 98°55’E V. Kuban leg. / coll. Milan Nikodym, Praha ” ( ZFMK) . China: 1 Ô [China] “ Meng’a, Xishuangbanna , Yunnan, 23.V.1958, 1050-1080m, leg. Zhang Yiran / LW- 386” ( IZAS) , 1 Ô [ China] “ Northern hill of Jingdong , Yunnan, 30.V.1956, leg. Zhao Yi ” ( IZAS) , 1 Ô [ China] “ Menghun, Xishuangbanna , Yunnan, 17.VI.1958, 1200m, leg. Meng Xuwu / LW-391” ( IZAS) , 1 Ô [ China] “ Meng’e, Xishuangbanna , Yunnan, 23.V.1958, 1050-1080m, leg. Zhang Yiran ” ( IZAS) , 1 Ô, 1♀ “ Mt. Xishan, Xiaguan , Yunnan, 29.Ⅴ.1955, 1800-1900m, leg. Krischanovsknja / LW-439” ( IZAS) , 1 Ô “ Shunbixiang , Yangbi County, Yunnan, 21.Ⅴ.2004, leg. Yang Xiujuan, Liu Yushuang / LW-468” ( HBUM) .

Description of holotype. Length: 5.1 mm, length of elytra: 3.1 mm, width: 2.9 mm. Body oval, reddish brown, ventral surface including abdomen, frons, anterior central margin of pronotum, and elytral margins blackish brown, antennal club and legs yellowish brown, dorsal surface dull, sometimes partly iridescent shiny, nearly glabrous.

Labroclypeus little wider than long, widest at base, lateral margins strongly convex and convergent to strongly rounded anterior angles; anterior margin weakly emarginate medially, margins weakly reflexed; lateral margins and ocular canthus produce a blunt angle; surface shiny, flat, finely and coarsely, densely punctate, with numerous long, erect setae; frontoclypeal suture finely incised and bent medially. Frons dull, with sparse, fine punctures, with minute setae in punctures, otherwise glabrous. Smooth area in front of eyes as wide as long. Ocular canthus narrow and moderately long (1/3 of ocular width), sparsely finely punctate, without terminal seta. Eyes small, ratio of diameter/interocular width: 0.57. Antenna with ten antennomeres; club composed of six antennomeres, straight, 1.5 times as long as remaining antennomeres combined. Mentum elevated and slightly flattened anteriorly.

Pronotum wide, widest at base, lateral margins evenly convex and convergent to blunt, moderately produced anterior angles, posterior angles blunt.Anterior margin of pronotum weakly convex, with fine and complete marginal line; basal marginal line absent; surface finely and densely punctate, with minute setae in punctures, lateral and lateral anterior margins glabrous. Hypomeron carinate, weakly produced ventrally. Scutellum triangular, finely and densely punctate, on midline impunctate.

Elytra short oval, widest at middle, striae distinctly impressed, finely and densely punctate, intervals convex, with fine and sparse punctures concentrated along striae, with minute setae in punctures, penultimate lateral interval with a few sparse short setae; epipleural edge robust, ending at slightly rounded external apical angle of elytra, epipleura densely setose, apical border chitinous, without a fringe of short microtrichomes (visible at ca 100x magnification).

Ventral surface dull, finely and densely punctate, metasternum sparsely covered with fine, short, or very minute setae; metacoxa glabrous, with a few single setae laterally. Mesosternum between mesocoxae as wide as mesofemur. Ratio of length of metepisternum/metacoxa: 1/1.67. Abdominal sternites finely punctate, with a transverse row of coarse punctures, each bearing a robust seta. Pygidium moderately convex and dull, with mixed finer and larger punctures, without smooth midline, with numerous short setae and a few longer in the larger punctures.

Legs moderately wide; femora finely and sparsely punctate, with two longitudinal rows of longer setae. Metafemur moderately shiny, anterior margin acute, without submarginal serrated line; anterior row of seta-bearing punctures present; ventral posterior margin entirely smooth, distinctly widened in apical half, dorsal posterior margin serrate, with a few short setae basally. Metatibia moderately long and wide, widest at middle, ratio width/ length: 1/2.83; dorsal margin sharply carinate, with two groups of spines, basal group at one third, apical one at three quarter of metatibial length, in basal third with a few robust single setae; lateral face longitudinally convex, finely and sparsely punctate, along midline smooth, with minute setae in punctures; ventral edge finely serrate, with three robust equidistant setae; medial face smooth, apex interiorly near tarsal articulation bluntly truncate. Tarsomeres with fine, sparse setae ventrally, neither laterally nor dorsally carinate, dorsally smooth; metatarsomeres with a strongly serrated ridge ventrally and a parallel subventral smooth carina immediately beside it; first metatarsomere as long as following two tarsomeres combined, one third of its length longer than dorsal tibial spur. Protibia short, bidentate; anterior claws symmetrical, basal tooth of both claws bluntly truncate at apex.

Aedeagus: Fig. 11E–G . Habitus: Fig. 11H .

Diagnosis. Microserica neosimplex Ahrens, Lukic & Liu, new species is in external appearance and shape of aedeagus most similar to Microserica allovarians Ahrens, Lukic & Liu, new species. Microserica neosimplex Ahrens, Lukic & Liu, new species differs by the right paramere having no mesolateral tooth.

Etymology. The species name is derived from the combined Greek prefix “neo” (new) and the species name “ simplex ”, with reference to the certain similarity to M. simplex .

Variation. Length: 4.3–5.2 mm, length of elytra: 2.9–3.5 mm, width: 2.8–3.1 mm. The species varies from almost entire dark (black) to completely yellow. Female: completely yellow, antennal club short, composed of three antennomeres, little shorter than remaining antennomeres combined; pygidium flat, eyes smaller than in male.

Genbank accessions. Table 1 .

Figures

FIGURE 11. A–D: Microserica allovarians Ahrens, Lukic & Liu, new species (holotype); E–H: Mic. neosimplex Ahrens, Lukic & Liu, new species (holotype). A, E: Aedeagus, left side lateral view; C, G: Aedeagus, right side lateral view; B, F: Parameres, dorsal view; D, H: Habitus (not to scale). Scale: 0.5 mm.

FIGURE 27. Distribution of the Microserica simplex group.