Chiloneus tenietensis, Borovec, Roman & Perrin, Hélène, 2016

Borovec, Roman & Perrin, Hélène, 2016, On the systematic position of some species of Chiloneus, Desbrochersella and Sciaphilus, with description of two new species and lectotype selection (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Entiminae), Zootaxa 4109 (2), pp. 131-152 : 144-145

Chiloneus tenietensis sp. nov.

(Figs 7–17)

Type material. Holotype, ♂, ‘[ Algeria, Aïn Defla, Theniet el Had] Teniet el Haad / Mai 1892 [p] // type [hw, yellow] // Brachysomus [hw] // TYPE [p, red] // Museum Paris / Coll. M. Pic [p] // HOLOTYPUS / Chiloneus / tenietensis n. sp. ♂ / Borovec & Perrin det., 2015 [p, red]’ ( MNHN, Pic coll.). Paratypes, 1 ♀, ‘[ Algeria, Aïn Defla, Theniet el Had] Teniet el Haad / de Vauloger [p] // sp.? / vid Bedel [hw] // tenietensis / Pic [hw] // type [hw, yellow] // Platytarsus [hw] // TYPE [p, red] // Museum Paris / Coll. M. Pic [p] // PARATYPUS / Chiloneus / tenietensis n. sp. ♀ / Borovec & Perrin det., 2015 [p, red]’ ( MNHN, Pic coll.); 1 ♂, ‘[ Algeria, Boumerdes, Djebel Bou Berak] Bou-Berak / Kabylie L. PCM [p] // Museum Paris / Coll. M. Pic [p] // PARATYPUS / Chiloneus / tenietensis n. sp. ♂ / Borovec et Perrin det., 2015 [p, red]’ ( RBSC).

Description. Body length holotype 2.47 mm, paratypes 2.38–2.53 mm.

Body brownish to dark brownish; legs and antennae yellowish brown, club and in one paratype also femora darker. Elytra with appressed scales (Fig. 13) sparse, long oval, about twice as long as wide, 1. whitish grey with weak bronze sheen and 2. slightly narrower light brownish, 4–5 across one interval, not covering integument, distance between two scales shorter than width of one scale. Each interval with one regular, inconspicuous row of semiappressed setae, visible mainly in lateral view, slender, subspatulate, greyish white with rounded tip, at posterior declivity slightly longer than on the disc, in female about as long as half of width of one interval, in males shorter than half of width of one interval. Pronotum and head with rostrum with identical sparse appressed scales as elytra, irregularly scattered, wider scales create irregular wide lateral stripes and slender median stripe. Semiappressed setae on pronotum and head with rostrum very short and sparse, hardly visible in lateral view. Femora and tibiae with slender and long, whitish, semiappressed setae; scapes, funicles and tarsi with short semiappressed setae; clubs finely and densely setose.

Rostrum (Figs 7–10) in males 1.32–1.40 times as wide as long, in female wider, 1.56 times as wide as long, at base in both sexes 1.08–1.13 times as wide as at apex, at basal third to quarter distinctly tapered anteriad, than subparallel-sided. Rostrum in lateral view flat, in the same level as head. Epifrons moderately narrow, at middle of rostrum 0.62–0.69 as wide as rostrum at the same place, at base somewhat slenderer than distance between anterior border of eyes, than distinctly tapered anteriad with concave sides, flat, shiny, finely and regularly punctured, distance between two punctures in males shorter than diameter of one puncture, in females equal to their diameter. Frontoepistomal area large, U-shaped, reaching about half of rostral length, shiny, glabrous, unpunctured, slightly shallowly deepened, posteriorly carinate with almost straight posterior carina; laterally declinate anteriad. Antennal scrobe in dorsal view shortly L-shaped, visible as short angle-form furrow, not constricted outline of rostrum in dorsal view; in lateral view in short part parallel with dorsal border of rostrum, then obliquely curved below eye and almost reaching ventral border of rostrum, furrow-shaped. Head with almost indistinct fovea in the middle, regularly vaulted, finely, sparsely regularly punctured, shiny. Eye moderately small, distinctly vaulted and prominent from outline of head, laterally subcircular, placed about at third of rostrum.

Antennae slender; scape 1.3 times as long as funicle, at basal two thirds very slender, almost straight, at apical third weakly curved and moderately gradually enlarged apicad, at apex distinctly narrower than club. Funicle segments 1 and 2 slender, conical; segment 1 1.5–1.6 times as long as wide and 1.2–1.3 times as long as segment 2, which is 1.7–1.8 times as long as wide; segments 3 and 4 1.1 times as long as wide; segment 5 isodiametric; segment 6 1.3 times as wide as long; segment 7 1.4–1.5 times as wide as long; clubs spindle-shaped, 1.7–1.9 times as long as wide.

Pronotum (Figs 11, 12) in males 1.37–1.41 times as wide as long, in females 1.43 times as wide as long, widest at midlength, with distinctly rounded sides, more tapered anteriad than posteriad, with anterior border visibly slenderer than posteriad one, behind anterior border constricted. Disc regularly vaulted, shiny, finely and sparsely, a bit irregularly punctured, distance between two punctures slightly longer than their diameter. Pronotum in lateral view distinctly vaulted.

Scutellum small, triangular.

Elytra (Figs 11, 12) oval, 1.24–1.29 times as long as wide, with regularly rounded sides, widest at midlength, shiny, in females with well developed humeri. Striae narrow, but distinctly punctured, somewhat deepened; intervals wide, almost flat. Elytra in lateral view moderately vaulted.

Femora edentate. Tibiae moderately slender, laterally straight, inside weakly enlarged; apex rounded with fringe of fine and short, yellowish setae, at inner side mucronate. Protarsi more robust than meso- and metatarsi, in males more robust than in females. In males protarsi with segment 2 1.2 times as wide as long; segment 3 1.4 times as wide as long and twice as wide as segment 2; onychium 0.7 times as long as segment 3; metatarsi with segment 2 1.2 times as wide as long; segment 3 1.3 times as wide as long and 1.4 times as wide as segment 2; onychium equally long as segment 3. In females protarsi with segment 2 1.2 times as wide as long; segment 3 1.4 times as wide as long and 1.8 times as wide as segment 2; onychium equaly long as segment 3; metatarsi with segment 2 1.2 times as wide as long; segment 3 1.3 times as wide as long and 1.5 times as wide as segment 2; onychium 1.1 times as long as segment 3.

Penis (Fig. 14) unusual by its shape in the entire genus; in ventral view slightly asymmetrical, widest at basal third, evenly tapered anteriad and posteriad with regularly, at apical third lengthened to long and extremely slender point; in ventral view at basal half very slender and slightly curved, at apical third abruptly enlarged and spongy curved, tip slightly curved and regularly tapered.

Spermatheca (Fig. 15) with long, slender and regularly curved cornu; corpus large, lengthened; ramus small and short, about isodiametric, obliquely directed to basal part of corpus; nodulus small, isodiametric and about equally large as ramus, directed up. Gonocoxites (Fig. 16) moderately long, evenly tapered apicad, at apex shortly obtuse with short styli armed with setae at apex. Sternite VIII (Fig. 17) with long apodeme terminated just inside of plate; plate small, oval, without distinct basal margin, armed with fringe of moderately long setae.

Etymology. We preserve the unpublished name given by Pic in his collection for this species.

Distribution. Known from northern part of Algeria (Aïn Defla, Boumerdes).

Differential diagnosis. Chiloneus tenietensis sp. nov. is similar only to C. barbaricus by its pronotum shiny, with sparse punctures of equal size on the disc, while all other species have pronotum either double punctured or finely but densely punctured, with distance between punctures distinctly shorter than diameter of one puncture. From C. barbaricus it is possible to distinguish it by the following set of characters:

1. Appressed elytral scales elongate-oval (Fig. 13). Semiappressed setae at posterior declivity in males shorter than half, in females as long as half of width of one interval, subspatulate (Fig. 13). Elytra oval, in both sexes 1.24–1.29 times as long as wide (Figs 11, 12). Penis ventrally with long and slender apex; laterally distinctly curved (Fig. 14).... C. tenietensis sp. nov.

- Appressed elytral setae piliform (Fig. 20). Semierect setae at posterior declivity in both sexes slightly longer than half of width of one interval, slender, parallel-sided (Fig. 20). Elytra long-oval, in male 1.41, in female 1.36 times as long as wide (Figs 18, 19). Penis ventrally at apex subtriangular, with rounded tip, laterally almost straight (Fig. 21)..... C. barbaricus (González)