Howdeniola polleti, Germann & Ch- & Ch-, 2012

Germann, Christoph, 2012, A new eyeless species of Howdeniola Osella, 1980 from Ecuador (Coleoptera, Curculionidae), Revue suisse de Zoologie 119 (2), pp. 189-193 : 190-192

Howdeniola polleti sp. nov.

Figs 1-6

HOLOTYPE: ♁; (EC) Zamora Chinchipe: San Francisco, Reserva Biológica // San Francisco , all trails, 2000m [m a.s.l.], 03°58'30"S 79°04'25"W, // 25/02/2009 - 3/03/2009 (PT) [pan trap], leg. Marc Pollet & Anja De // Braekeleer, sorted by Marc Pollet - sample code: EC/2009-36/MP&ADB-018 // [red label] Holotype Howdeniola polleti sp. nov. des. C. Germann 2012.

REMARKS: The specimen was caught in a 5% formalin (= 2% formaldehyde) fixative solution with detergent in the traps, and then stored in 70% alcohol. The specimen was treated with Pepsin solution for preparation of the genital organs. The holotype specimen is deposited in the RBINS ( Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences ).

DESCRIPTION: Habitus: Figs 1-2.

Size: 1.96 mm

Body colour: auburn, glossy.

Head, rostrum and antennae: Head (Fig. 3) globose, impunctate and glabrous, abruptly different from rostrum. Eyes lacking. Rostrum about four times longer than wide, elliptical in cross-section, dorsally sparsely punctate, epistoma glabrous and impunctate, fore margin hanging over mouthparts. Scrobes latero-ventral, reaching to the base. Antennal insertion bulged in dorsal view, antennae inserted at beginning of apical third of rostrum. Antennal scape gradually enlarged, as long as funiculus. Funiculus (Fig. 4) consisting of seven segments of following ratios (L/B): 1 st: 1.25; 2 nd: 0.9; 3 rd: 0.6; 4 th to 6 th: 0.5; 7 th: 2.0. Club oval, circular in cross-section, densely clothed with long white setae, and sitting in the bowl-like 7 th segment.

Pronotum: Index (L/B): 1.53. Longer than wide, strongly constricted after the first third, widest after the middle. Surface deeply punctate with interspaces of about the size of punctation. Short bright hairs arise from punctation.

Elytra: Index (L/B): 1.76. Base narrower than pronotum, oval, lacking humeral callus (apterous), widest before the middle, tapered towards base and conical towards apex. Eight deeply punctate striae, intervals including suture narrow, elevated and costate with minute adherent hairs. Intervals (excluding suture) 3, 5, 6 and 7 are incomplete, not reaching the elytral apex. Five sternites, of which 3 and 4 are equal, sternite 5 rounded towards apex, deeply punctate with bowed hairs and slightly bulged in the middle.

Legs: Coxae separated from each other as follows: procoxae by less than ½ of their diameter, mesocoxae by ½ and metacoxae by two times of their diameter. Femora unarmed, punctate, short adherent bright hairs arise. Tibiae punctate with short adherent bright hairs. Inner side of tibiae set with raised bright hairs, fore tibiae with densely standing raised bristles from the middle on. Apex of tibiae with long curved uncus at outer apical angle, and short tooth at inner angle. Tarsi with three well visible tarsal segments, fourth very short. Claw segment as long as first tarsal segment, claws minute and simple.

Aedeagus (Figs 5-6): Apex of aedeagus asymmetrically pointed, ventrally hooklike bowed. Median lobe containing a tubular sclerite diverging towards apophyses.

DIFFERENTIAL DIAGNOSIS: Howdeniola polleti sp. nov. differs from all other four above-mentioned members of the genus by the slender elytra with narrow and costate intervals, the strongly constricted pronotum before its fore margin, and the conspicuously pointed apex of the aedeagus.

DERIVATIO NOMINIS: The new species Howdeniola polleti sp. nov. is named after its collector, dear colleague and renowned dipterist Dr. Marc Pollet (Brussels, Belgium).

BIONOMY: Howdeniola polleti sp. nov. was collected in pan traps, these were dug into the soil until their upper rim. The biome at the altitude of 2000 m a. s. l. can be considered as lower montane rainforest (written communication M. Pollet).

DISTRIBUTION: Howdeniola polleti sp. nov. represents the southernmost find of the genus. Furthermore an undescribed Howdeniola was recorded from Costa Rica (Rancho Quemado, Osa, Puntarenas, leg. F.A. Quesada, det. R. Anderson; record from IABIN (Red Interamericana de Información sobre Biodiversidad)). These further records obviously indicate that many more species of this genus will be discovered in this large area.