Anthaxia (Haplanthaxia) palawanensis, Bílý & Kubáň, 2012

Bílý, Svatopluk & Kubáň, Vítězslav, 2012, A revison of the genus Anthaxia from the Philippines (Coleoptera: Buprestidae: Buprestinae: Anthaxiini), Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae 52 (2), pp. 433-442 : 438-439

Anthaxia (Haplanthaxia) palawanensis sp. nov.

( Figs. 7, 10 )

Type locality. Philippines, central Palawan island, Salakot waterfalls, 9º42′N 118º31′E, 800 m a.s.l.

Type specimen. HOLOTYPE: ♂ ( NMPC): PHILIPPINES: Central PALAWAN: “PHILIPPINES, PALAWAN, / 1–21.II. 2000, 800 m, / 9º42′N 118º31′E, / SALAKOT waterfalls, / E. Jendek leg. [p]”.

Diagnosis. Small (3.6 mm), suboval, moderately convex; dorsal surface black with very slight violet tinge, frons blue-green, anterior tibiae and tarsi, posterior pronotal angles and elytral base golden green, elytra with green lustre along suture; ventral surface (including legs) intensively green, abdominal ventrites and mesosternum bronze with green tinge; entire body asetose only abdominal ventrites with indistinct, very short and sparse white pubescence.

Description of the holotype ( Fig. 7 ). Head relatively large, much wider than anterior pronotal margin; frons slightly impressed, clypeus nearly truncate, only slightly emarginate anteriorly; transverse, frontoclypeal depression well-developed; vertex 0.7 times as wide as width of eye; eyes large, subelliptical, strongly projecting beyond outline of head; frontal sculpture consisting of relatively large, dense, polygonal cells with large, flat, lustrous central grains; sculpture of vertex smaller, rougher, with small central grains; antennae missing.

Pronotum transverse, 2.5 times as wide as long, rather convex with well-developed, wide lateroposterior depressions; anterior margin deeply biarcuate with well-developed medial lobe, posterior margin nearly straight; lateral margins almost straight at midlength, steeply, shortly converging both to anterior and posterior angles; posterior angles obtuse-angled; pronotal sculpture rather rough, consisting of small, dense, polygonal cells with tiny central grains; ocellation larger and more distinct in lateroposterior depressions. Scutellum subcordiform to triangular, slightly longer than wide, flat, microsculptured.

Elytra cuneiform, twice as long as wide, nearly regularly tapering from humeri to separately rounded apices; humeral swellings small, transverse, basal depression deep, wide, reaching scutellum; elytra regularly convex, slightly flattened at anterior fourth; elytral epipleura well-developed, wide, reaching elytral apex; only very tips of elytra with indistinct lateral serration; elytra with fine but sharp, subhumeral, lateral carina parallel with lateral margin, reaching elytral midlength; sculpture almost homogeneous, consisting of fine, somewhat transversely widened punctures.

Ventral surface lustrous, widely ocellate with fine central grains; prosternum densely, finely ocellate, nearly matt, prosternal process slightly convex; anal ventrite shortly truncate. Legs slender, relatively short, mesotibiae with small, deep, inner, preapical emargination ( Fig. 7 ), metatibiae with wide, inner, preapical emargination and large, terminal spine ( Fig. 7 ).

Aedeagus ( Fig. 10 ) flat, nearly spatulate, parameres strongly widened at apical third with narrow, pointed apices; median lobe obtusely pointed apically, without lateral serration.

Sexual dimorphism. Female unknown.

Measurements. Length 3.6 mm, width 1.4 mm.

Etymology. The specific epithet is derived from the name of the Palawan Island, the type locality of the species.

Distribution. Philippines (Palawan).

Differential diagnosis. Anthaxia (Haplanthaxia) palawanensis sp. nov. differs from the sympatric species, A. (H.) mindanaoensis by the slender body, rougher sculpture of pronotum, shape of male genitalia (compare Figs. 10 and 11 ) and by the characters mentioned in the key.

Figures

Figs. 7–14. 7–9 – Habitus. 7 – Anthaxia (Haplanthaxia) palawanensis sp. nov., holotype (♂, 3.6 mm, Palawan); 8 – A. (H.) philippinensis sp. nov., holotype (♂, 3.6 mm, Sibuyan); 9 – A. (H.) philippinensis sp. nov., allotype (♀, 3.9 mm, Luzon). 10–14 – Aedeagi (not in the scale). 10 – A. (H.) palawanensis sp. nov., holotype; 11 – A. (H.) mindanaoensis Fisher, 1922, Mindoro; 12 – A. (H.) philippinensis sp. nov., holotype; 13 – A. (H.) boettcheri Obenberger, 1928, Luzon, Abra province; 14 – A. (H.) attenuata Fisher, 1922, holotype, Negros.