Ulocyphaleus laetus Leschen, Escalona and Elgueta

Leschen, Richard A. B., Escalona, Hermes E. & Elgueta, Mario, 2016, Phylogeny of the Gondwanan beetle family Ulodidae (Tenebrionoidea), Zootaxa 4138 (3), pp. 441-473 : 454-467

Ulocyphaleus laetus Leschen, Escalona and Elgueta , sp. n.

( Figs 1E–F )

Diagnosis. Ulocyphaleus laetus can be easily distinguished from U. valdivianus by the shape of the pronotum with acute anterior angles, and by the presence of small tubercles on the surface of the elytra.

Description. Total length 11.9 mm. Body glabrous and about 2.3 times as long as wide. Color of body metallic dark green; surface punctate-rugose on the clypeus, frons and posterior half of the pronotum, wrinkled on the head, prothorax and lateral portion of abdominal ventrite I, less so on mesoventrite, and metanepisternum (prepectus coarsely micropunctate), venter glabrous, with very sparse vestiture of erect silver to gold setae. Antenna reaching beyond posterior edge of pronotum to about basal 1/5th of the elytra. Eye in lateral view, somewhat ovoid, not weakly constricted at middle and moderately coarsely faceted; greatest width less than length of antennomere 2; interocular distance larger than length of antennomere 1. Frons not wider than the distance between the antennal insertions; head not depressed behind curved and deeply impressed frontoclypeal suture. Labrum rectangular, apex weakly emarginate. Pronotum about 1.3 times as wide as long (measured at the middle), not strongly convex; surfaces irregular; lateral carinae with edge irregularly undulate, anterior angles projected and acute, extending beyond level of frons. Prosternum without longitudinal furrow; apex not emarginated. Scutellum well-developed, pentangular, 2 times as broad as long. Elytra 2.0 times as long as combined width and 3.8 times as long as pronotum; surface with raised elytral interstices and small tubercles; punctures of striae deeply impressed, size of puncture larger than width of ommatidium; apices with acute processes. Width of meso-metaventral juncture subequal to mesocoxa. Abdomen with intercoxal process subacute; abdominal ventrite V with apex broadly rounded with a marginal bead; relative ratios of ventrites (measured at the middle): V1 / V2: 1.21; V2 / V3: 1.14; V3 / V4: 1.26; V1 / V5: 1.09. Protarsomere 4 about equal to tarsomere 3; metatarsomere 1 equal to tarsomere 4.

Comments. The single specimen of this species is damaged. It is clearly separated from U. valdivianus by several characters, most notably by the presence of acute anterior pronotal angles and acute elytral apices.

Etymology. The species name “ laeta ” is Latin for happy.

Type material examined. Holotype ( MNHN), female [right maxillary palp, right anntenomeres 3–11, left legs, and right middle leg missing; originally pinned in the prothorax], “ Puerto Traiguén, Taitao, Dic. 10, 1956, C. Riffart coll.”. It is located on the northeastern border of Taitao Peninsule, a very humid area near 46° 14’S and 73° 44’W.

72 58 68 A B

Figures

FIGURES 1 A – H. A, Arthopus brouni Sharp, length 5.8 mm; B, C Brouniphylax exiquus (Broun), length 6.1 mm; D, Brouniphylax squamiger (Broun), length 3.8 mm; E, F, Ulocyphaleus laetus sp. n, lateral and dorsal, length 11.9 mm; G, Ulocyphaleus valdivianus (Philippi & Philippi), length 10.3 mm; H, Dipsaconia pyritosa Pascoe, length 7.0 mm.