Euboeus (Pelorinus) kalashiani, Nabozhenko, 2022

Nabozhenko, Maxim V., 2022, A taxonomic review of the genus Euboeus Boieldieu, 1865 (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae: Helopini) of the Caucasus, Iran and Turkmenistan, Zootaxa 5159 (4), pp. 451-486 : 468-470

Euboeus (Pelorinus) kalashiani sp. nov.

( Fig. 12 )

Type material. Armenia. Holotype, ♂ ( ZIN) with the Cyrillic label: “ЛичкваЗ—Нор-Аревик Мегринский р-н, Арм ССР 31.5.1980 А.Л. Лобанов” (Armenia, Lichk, Nor-Arevik, 31.v.1980, leg. A.V. Lobanov) . Paratypes: 1♂ ( IZAY): Armenia, Syunik Prov., Tsav , 21.07.1952 (leg. S. Iablokoff-Khnzorian) ; 1♀ ( IZAY): Armenia, Syunik Prov., Srashen , 23.vi.1981 (leg. M. Kalashian) ; 1♀ ( IZAY): Armenia , Syunik Prov., 4–6 km N Shvanidzor, 20.iv.2001 (leg. K. Aghababyan) ; 1♀ ( IZAY): Armenia, Syunik Prov., Pukhrut , 39.1307°N, 46.2205°E, 2130 m, 25.v.2005 (leg. G. Karagyan) ; 3♂, 1♀ ( IZAY): Armenia, Syunik Prov., Meghri, 30–31.v.1923 ( Expedition of Museum of Armenia) ; 1♀ ( IZAY): Armenia, Syunik Prov., Meghri , 24.v.1945 (leg. H. Avetian) ; 1♂ ( IZAY): Armenia, Syunik Prov., Chakaten , 25.v.1942 (leg. H. Avetian) ; 1♂ ( IZAY): Armenia, Syunik Prov., S environs of Lichk, abandoned Nor Arevik vill., 26.iv.1943 (leg. H. Avetian) ; 2♂, 1♀ ( IZAY): same locality, 5.v.1954 (leg. S. Iablokoff-Khnzorian) ; 1♀ ( IZAY): Armenia, Syunik Prov., Vahravar , 27.v.1945 (leg. H. Avetian) ; 1♀ ( IZAY): Armenia, Syunik Prov., S environs of Lichk , 39.0336°N, 46.1932°E, 1700 m, 8.v.2016 (leg. M. Kalashian) ; Armenia, Syunik Prov., N Shvanidzor vill., 38.9851°N, 46.3746°E, 1320 m 1♂ ( IZAY): 9.vi–8.viii.2017 and 1♂, 2♀ ( IZAY): 16.vi–26.viii.2018, soil traps (leg. T. Ghrejyan, G. Karagyan) ; 1♂, 1♀ ( IZAY): Armenia, Syunik Prov., E environs of Kapan, Geghanush , 39.2221°N, 46.4240°E, 1030 m, 8.iv–14.v.2008, soil traps (leg. M. Kalashian) ; 1♂ ( IZAY): Armenia, Syunik Prov., N environs of Kapan, Ghatar locality, 39.2206°N, 46.3880°E, 1120 m, 8.iv–14.v.2008, soil traps (leg. M. Kalashian) ; 1♀ ( ZIN): Syunik Prov., fork to Lichk , 7.vi.1993 (leg. M. Kalashian) ; 1♀ ( ZIN): Armenia, Syunik Prov., Lichk , 4.vi.1995 (leg. Kalashian) ; 1♀ ( ZIN): Armenia, Syunik Prov., Gudemnis , 26.iv.1998 (leg. M. Kalashian) ; 1♀ ( ZIN): Armenia, Syunik Prov., Agarak , 14.iv.–20.v.1995 (leg. M. Kalashian) ; Armenia, Vayotsdzor Prov., Areni , 24.v.1988 (leg. M. Kalashian) . Iran. 1♂ ( HNHM): Iran, Azerbaijan, Makidi Arasbaran Wildlife Refuge , 1650–1800 m, 4–5.vii.1978 (leg. Martens, Pieper) .

Description. Male. Body robust, black, shiny ( Fig. 12A ). Measurements: Y = 1.56; PH w = 1.57; P w P l = 1.18; E l E w = 1.6–1.63; EH w = 2.1; EP w = 1.3; EP l = 2.25. Body length 11.5–16.6 mm, width 4.4–6.4 mm.

Head ( Figs 12C–E ). Anterior margin of epistoma slightly rounded. Head widest at eye level. Eyes moderately convex, circumocular impression narrow. Lateral margins of genae evenly rounded. Puncturation of head moderately coarse and sparse, interpuncture distance 1.5 as long as puncture diameter, genae densely and coarsely punctured. Ventral side of epicranium coarsely and densely punctured, gula with coarse transverse wrinkles. Antennae comparatively short, with only three apical antennomeres, extending beyond base of pronotum, reaching 1/5 of elytral length.

Prothorax ( Figs 12C–F ). Pronotum subcordate, widest at middle, transverse ( Fig. 12D ). Lateral margins of pronotum strongly rounded at middle and widely emarginated at basal half; anterior margin widely evenly emarginated; base straight. Antero-lateral corners not projected, obtuse, pointed; postero-lateral corners weakly straight, narrowly rounded at apex. Lateral margins not beaded; anterior margin shortly beaded only near corners; base beaded at middle. Disc of pronotum evenly weakly convex, not flattened along lateral margin, with two small oblique impressions near base. Puncturation of disc fine and sparse at middle and anterior half (puncture diameter 2–3 times as short as interpuncture distance), denser on sides and at basal quarter; punctures round ( Figs 12D, E ). Prosternum with moderately coarsely and sparse punctured and wrinkled ( Fig. 12C ). Prothoracic hypomera narrowly flattened along margin, with coarse transverse wrinkles only ( Fig. 12F ). Prosternal process smooth and shiny, sparsely punctured and pubescent, convex at apex, not beaded ( Figs 12C, F ).

Pterothorax ( Figs 12A, C ). Scutellar shield with triangle, with straight margins, finely and sparsely punctured. Elytra oval, widest at middle; punctures in striae sligly elongate, closely spaced; punctures in interstriae moderately coarse and sparse, little smaller than strial ones ( Fig. 12A ). Anterior half of mesoventrite pubescent, coarsely wrinkled ( Fig. 12C ). Mesepisterna, mesepimera and metepisterna coarsely and densely punctured by large foveae; metaventrite finely and sparsely punctured and pubescent with recumbent reddish setae.

Legs. Trochanters with dense brush of reddish setae and one long seta. Basal half of femora with the same dense brush on flex side ( Fig. 12C ); another surface of femora with moderately coarse, sparse puncturation and short setae. All tibiae straight. Pro- and mesotarsomeres 1–4 strongly widened, transverse, pro- and mesotarsomere 1 slightly wider than apex of protibia.

Abdomen ( Figs 12C, G–K ). Abdominal ventrites with moderately dense and fine puncturation and simple short pubescence; ventrite 5 with coarser punctures and long strong setae. Genitalia ( Figs 12G–K ). Apical part of basal piece of aedeagus smooth, without rugosity. Apical piece of aedeagus with weak median longitudinal keel; lateral margins almost straight, weakly narrowed to widely rounded apex. Apical third of basal piece smooth, without longitudinal rugosity.

Female ( Figs 12B, C ). Body robuster, dull, elytra matt. Eyes slightly smaller (see measurements). Antennae short, not reaching base of pronotum. Metatibiae straight. Measurements: Y = 1.5; PH w = 1.7; P w P l = 1.3; E l E w = 1.47; EH w = 2.28; EP w = 1.34; EP l = 2.57. Body length 13.5–17 mm, width 5.5–6.6 mm.

Etymology. The species is named in honour of my friend Dr Mark Kalashian (Yerevan, Armenia), a great connoisseur of the insect fauna of the Caucasus and a well-known specialist in Buprestidae .

Differential diagnosis. The new species is similar to E. quadricollis by the robust body, the form of pronotum with rounded lateral margins in apical 2/3 and widely emarginated in basal third, but differs from it by the following characters: lateral margins of pronotum more rounded and wholly not beaded, the lateral portions of base also not beaded (lateral margins lesser rounded and beaded at least near angles and base completely beaded in E. quadricollis ); prothoracic hypomera flattened along outer margin and are with coarse longitudinal wrinkles (the hypomera with irregular fine wrinkles and punctures between them, not flattened along margin in E. quadricollis ); the apical piece of the aedeagus is widely rounded at apex, and its dorsal surface is with longitudinal keel (the apical piece is quadrate or emarginated at middle in E. quadricollis and has the smooth surface). The coarsely longitudinally wrinkled prothoracic hypomera are present only in two species, i.e. E. huedepohli and E. kalashiani .

Notes. This species is interpreted by Russian entomologists as E. vicinus since the paper of Bogatchev (1938), who recorded it for Shikh-Yurdy Mt. (Ordubad District, Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, Azerbaijan). Unfortunately, the Bogatchev’s specimen from this locality was not found in Russian collections and in the collection of the Institute of Zoology of the Azerbaijan Academy of Sciences. This mount is located just a few kilometers from Armenian localities of E. kalashiani . Iablokoff-Khnzorian (1957) listed both E. quardicollis and E. kalashiani as one species Hedyphanes quardicollis with the wide range from Talysh to Aras valley, but indicated characters for E. kalashiani in the key. Abdurakhmanov & Medvedev (1994) and Abdurakhmanov & Nabozhenko (2011) listed this new species as Probaticus vicinus , and Nabozhenko et al. (2021) indicated it as Euboeus (Pelorinus) sp.

Figures

FIGURE 12. Euboeus kalashiani sp. nov., habitus, details of structure. A = male, dorsally; B = female, dorsally; C = female, ventrally; D = male, head and pronotum, dorsally; E = ditto, dorso-laterally; F = prothoracic hypomeron; G = male inner sternite VIII, ventrally; H = spiculum gastrale; I = median lobe of aedeagus with inverted connective membrane, ventrally; J = tegmen, ventrally; K = apical piece of aedeagus, dorsally.