Atrichiana jenisi (Kajcik, 2006) Kajcik, 2006

Perissinotto, Renzo, 2016, Description of the female of Haematonotusjenisi Krajcik, 2006 and placement of the species within the genus Atrichiana Distant, 1911 (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae, Cetoniinae), ZooKeys 561, pp. 39-49 : 40-42

Taxon classification Animalia Coleoptera Scarabaeidae

Atrichiana jenisi (Kajcik, 2006) comb. n. Figures 1, 2

Haematonotus jenisi Krajcik, 2006: 15.

Material examined.

Sixteen male and four female specimens. 2 ♂: South Africa, KwaZulu-Natal, False Bay, Lister’s Point, 2 Apr 2010, found dead on lake shores, R. Perissinotto & L. Clennell leg. (RPPC); 2 ♂: same data as above but 3 Dec 2011 (DMSA, RPPC); 1 ♂: same data as above but Dukandlovu, 25 Nov 2013 found drowning on lake shores (RPPC); 7 ♂, 4 ♀: same data as above but 3 Feb 2015 (TMSA, BMPC, RPPC).

Genus placement.

The summary of characters listed here below and in Table 1 supports the placement of the species within Atrichiana , rather than Haematonotus . With the exception of the pronotal tubercle, which is a feature more typical of Haematonotus , although also visible in Atrichiana as "pronotal elevation" ( Holm and Marais 1992), all other characters fit well into the range reported for the latter genus, including the male genitalia (see figure 8, p. 14 in Krajcik 2006). Neither Atrichiana nor Haematonotus are known to exhibit much longer antennal clubs in male than in female or a sharp hemi-pronotal carina. However, these are characters encountered in various genera and may not reflect generic synapomorphies, but rather adaptive convergence.

Generic characters

(Table 1):

Body dorsally velutinous with elytra asetose;

Extreme reduction and forward orientation of protibial denticles in male;

Tarsi generally elongate, particularly in male;

Presence of anterior elevation on pronotum (forming carina and tubercle - closer to Haematonotus );

Presence of white cretaceous spots on venter and pygidium;

Elytra with marked, uneven costae and diffuse sculpture;

Meso- and metatibia with no or poorly developed outer carina and spines, respectively;

Metatibial spurs widely spatulate in female;

Aedeagus with dorsal parameral lobes narrower than ventral and exhibiting short setae ventro-apically.

Species-specific characters (Figures 1A, C and 2A, C)

Antennal clubs twice as long in male compared to female;

Presence of cretaceous spot on each side of anterior pronotal declivity;

Presence of sharp vertical carina leading to tubercle on anterior half of pronotal midline;

Scutellum with narrow depression at middle of apical half.

Female description

(Figures 1). Size. Length 17.3-19.6 mm; width 10.5-11.2 mm (n = 4).

Body: Generally shorter and wider than male; background colour from black or dark green to dark brown with or without obvious maculae or bands (Figure 1A, C), alternatively light brown with two black/green bands on pronotum and three maculae on apical half of elytra (Figure 2A); presence of cretaceous spots on antero-lateral margins of pronotum, pygidium and base of metatibia.

Head. Black with scattered whitish, long setae and dense round punctures; clypeus slightly upturned, but far less than in male, with depression at center forming two lateral lobes, which together with marked lateral ridges enclose frons into teaspoon-like concavity; frons exhibiting smooth convex ridge at middle, reaching anterior pronotal margin.

Pronotum. Black, brown or dark green, matt with dense round punctures becoming progressively larger from the anterior and lateral margins to the center and posterior margin; anterior and lateral margins bearing thin, long but flattened creamy setae; exhibiting bilateral macula of white tomentum on lateral declivity, approximately at mid length; anterior margin as wide as eyes, but sharply raised with tubercle at center reaching disc as sharp carina; posterolateral angle smoothly rounded, posterior margin markedly sinuate anteriad of scutellum.

Scutellum. Dark green to brown or black; perfectly triangular, with apex slightly rounded; without or with few scattered punctures, mainly along lateral margins; with visible mid-depression on apical half.

Elytron. Exhibiting prominent sutural, discal and lateral costae, with latter two arching markedly towards apical declivity; sparse short creamy setae occurring only on lateral and apical declivities; diffuse crescent to horseshoe sculpture throughout surface, except on costal ridges; colour varying from almost completely black to dark green and even light brown, in latter case with three dark maculae on apical half of elytra.

Pygidium. Dark green to black or brown, with bilateral cretaceous spots drastically reduced or absent; exhibiting short creamy setae near sides and apex; with fine, wrinkled sculpture throughout surface.

Appendages. Antennal clubs reddish brown, of normal length, shorter than pedicel and flagellum combined; pedicel and flagellum with scattered but long, erected creamy setae; protibia broadly expanded, with short and scattered creamy setae, bidentate with apical tooth hypertrophic and falciform; meso- and metatibia with long, dense creamy setae, with no or poorly developed outer carina and spines, respectively; metatibial spurs widely spatulate; profemur, mesepimeron, mesofemur and metafemur all covered with very long creamy setae.

Underside. Shiny black to dark green; creamy, long setae throughout surface, except at center of metasternum and abdominal sternites; mesosternal lobe flat and roundedly expanded; abdominal sternites with visible convexity at center and without any white tomentose markings between midline and lateral margins (Figure 1B, D).

Remarks. Atrichiana jenisi shows a marked sexual dimorphism, with the female exhibiting antennal clubs about half the length of that of its male counterpart and a shorter clypeus, with far less upturned margins than in the male (Figures 1 and 2). The female also has a shorter and broader body shape than the male and does not exhibit large white tomentose markings either on the pygidium or the abdominal sternites. Its protibial surface is far broader than in the male and its apical teeth are strongly developed, indicating an extraordinary adaptation to fossorial activity. It does, however, possess fully developed and functional wings, which are not significantly different to those observed in the male. Atrichiana jenisi is closely related to the only other species currently known within the genus, Atrichiana placida . It differs from the latter in having a generally more oblong body, more marked elytral costae and a predominatly dark green to black, rather than light brown background colour. The most diagnostic characters separating the two species may, however, lie in Atrichiana jenisi exhibiting a carina in the mid anterior third of its pronotal disc, a bilateral white macula on the lateral declivity of the pronotum and a vertical depression in the apical half of its scutellum (Figures 1A, C and 2A, C). None of these characters are present in Atrichiana placida . Otherwise, the two species share a remarkable variability in background colouration, from black to dark or light brown, with various shades of dark maculation. A dark green ground colour is not yet known in Atrichiana placida , while this is predominant in Atrichiana jenisi . The two species are sympatric on the Western Shores of Lake St Lucia, where Atrichiana placida appears to be marginally present in low abundance while showing its preference for the Eastern Shores of the lake and the coastal dune area of the southern Indian Ocean. Conversely, Atrichiana jenisi is completely absent from the coastal area proper and appears to be restricted to the more inland forests, from Dukuduku in the south to False Bay in the north. No records beyond this narrow area are currently known for the species and it is therefore likely that it may be a micro-endemic of the Western Shores of Lake St Lucia.