Lomechusoides reitteri Jászay, Hlaváč & Baňař, 2023

Jászay, Tomáš, Hlaváč, Peter & Baňař, Petr, 2023, A taxonomic revision of the myrmecophilous genus Lomechusoides Tottenham, 1939 (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Aleocharinae). Part II. The revision of the strumosus species group, Zootaxa 5343 (6), pp. 539-593 : 570-571

Lomechusoides reitteri Jászay, Hlaváč & Baňař sp. nov.

Figs 89–93

Etymology. Named after Edmund Reitter, one the most prominent coleopterists ever.

Material studied. HOLOTYPE, ♁: RUSSIA: (considerable damaged: missing X–XI left antennomeres and VII–XI right antennomeres): (p) Amur, Reitter / red label (p) HOLOTYPE ♁ Lomechusoides reitteri sp. nov., det. T. Jászay, P. Hlaváč & P. Baňař det., 2021 ( DEI) .

Description. Whole body including appendages unicoloured lighter red.

Head rectangular, longer than wide, ratio: HW/HL: 0.81, with deep, round median frontal impression, which is distinctly microsculptured with fine punctures, dull; disc of head microsculptured and finely punctate; length of eyes 0.26x of length of head; eyes protuberant, temples behind eyes slightly constricted, subparallel posteriad. Antennae long, scape twice as long as wide and 2.25x as long as pedicel, pedicel as long as wide, antennomere III: 1.25x as long as wide, antennomeres IV–IX elongate, IV: 1.13x, V: 1.38x as long as wide, relative length of antennomeres I–IX from base to apex: 18: 8: 10: 9: 11: 12: 12: 12: 12.

Pronotum ( Fig 89 ) trapezoidal, ratio PW/PL: 1.59 with slightly concave anterior margin, anterior corners obtuse, lateral sides in anterior quarter shortly rounded, following part straight and divergent posteriad, posterior corners acute, bearing deep lateral microsculptured impressions, sparse puncturation, pronotal disc unevenly microsculptured, sparsely punctate, shiny, tubercles slightly-defined, median line well-defined; in lateral view lateral margins thick, slightly narrowed anteriad and slightly curved in posterior fifth, lacking sharp visible edge; maximal width of pronotum at posterior corners, here slightly narrower than elytra at humeri; pronotum with macrosetae, anterior margin with about two macrosetae, lateral margins with three to four macrosetae.

Anterior and lateral margins of metaventral process ( Fig 92 ) concave with subparallel lateral lines, anterior margin with transversal groove, in median line with roof-like elevation, posterior part in median line with excentric tiny lentil-like impression, metaventral process microsculptured and evenly punctate; disc of metaventrite with shallow lateral impressions on lateral sides of median line, metaventral disc microsculptured and densely punctate, median line broad and elevated posteriad, metaventrite microsculptured and sparsely punctate, discal setae very short, setae not reaching margin of adjacent puncture.

Elytra finely punctate, 0.96x of length of pronotum, ratio EW/EL: 2.00, with six to seven macrosetae in anterior part, humeral part with one macroseta, distance between punctures on disc about twice as long the diameter of puncture.

Abdomen with visible tergite II densely punctate and setaceous, visible tergites III–IV with dense puncturation, visible tergites V–VII with sparse puncturation and setation only on posterior margin, basal part lacking puncturation, visible tergites VI–VII with sparse and larger puncturation on lateral parts, basal part lacking puncturation, visible tergites II–VII unevenly and sparsely microsculptured.

Aedeagus ( Figs 90–91 ) with smal median lobe, apical lobe tube-like, from ventral view apical part short and sharp, with dense apical pseudopores, ventral side convex in lateral view; lateral sides of apical lobe in ventral view clearly convergent apically. Parameres narrowed apically ( Fig. 93 ), hook-shaped and bent backwards, apex with about four setae with scattered pseudopores and with minute microsetae.

Female unknown.

Measurements. (♁, Holotype): TL 4.45 mm; FB 2.15 mm; HL 0.80 mm; HW 0.65 mm; antennal length (I–IX antenomeres) 1.35 mm; PL 0.85 mm; PW 1.30 mm; EL 0.82 mm; EW 1.60 mm; FTL 0.80 mm; MTL 0.95 mm; HTL 1.20 mm.

Differential diagnosis. L. reitteri is distinguished from very similar L. dlabolai by temples, which are slightly constricted behind eyes and subparallel posteriad, by the shape of the pronotum, its lateral sides are rounded in the anterior quarter, remainded portion is straight and strongly divergend posteriad, by the pointed posterior pronotal corners, by lateral margins in lateral view clearly thinned anteriad and slightly curved in the posterior fifth, by the pronotum at posterior corners slightly narrower than elytra at humeri, and by the metaventral process with roof-like elevation at midline. Also, the apical lobe of aedeagus in ventral view is slender compared to L. dlabolai and lateral sides are clearly convergent apicad in ventral view. From all other species of the L. strumosus complex it differs by the unicoloured and smaller size of the body.

Host ant. Unknown.

Distribution. Russia (region of Amur river, exact locality unknown).

Figures

FIGURES 89–93. Lomechusoides reitteri sp. nov., male holotype. 89, pronotum in dorsal view (L: 0.85 mm, W: 1.30 mm); 90, aedeagus, lateral view; 91, aedeagus, ventral view; 92, metaventral process; 93, apex of paramere. Scale bars in mm.