Lomechusoides dlabolai 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 : 559-561

Lomechusoides dlabolai Jászay, Hlaváč & Baňař sp. nov.

Figs 50–56

Etymology. The species is named after the collector Dr. Jiří Dlabola, a Czech specialist on the taxonomy, biology, faunistics and the zoogeography of Homoptera.

Material studied: HOLOTYPE, ♁: MONGOLIA: (p) Mong. Ulaanbaatar 25.7.65 Dlabola , in litt. loc. 5 / red label (p) HOLOTYPE ♁ Lomechusoides dlabolai sp. nov., det. T. Jászay, P. Hlaváč & P. Baňař det., 2021 ( NMPC) . PARATYPES, 2♁♁: MONGOLIA: (p) Mong. Baga-Tanger 22.7.65 Dlabola in litt. loc. 2 ( NMPC, PCPB) . 1♁: (p) Mong. Nucht loc. 3–4 23.–24.7.65 in litt. Dlabola ( NMPC) . 1♀: (p) Mong. C. Arbaj-Chere 15.–16.8.65 in litt. loc. 42 ( NMPC) . 1♀: Mongolia Zaisan 10.–11.7.65 loc. 10–11 Dlabola ( NMPC) . 1♀: (p) МонголиЯ, Центральный аймак сев. скл. Богдо-ула блиЗ Улан-Батора ЕмельЯнов 14.7.1967 [= Mongolia, Central´nyj aymak sev. skl. Bogdoula bliz Ulan-Batora, Emel´yanov] ( ZIN) . 1♁: (p) МонголиЯ, УвƐр-Хангайский аймак, 40Км ЮЗ Арвай-ХƐрƐ КерЖнер (=АрвайхƐƐр, Өвөрхангай, Монгол улс) 2.8.1969 [= Mongolia, Uver-Khangaykyi aymak, 40km YUZ Arvay-Khere, Kerzhner (= Arvaykher Overkhangay, Mongol uls)]/ (h) L. inflata Zett. (p) W. Schilov 19 ( ZIN) . 2♁♁: RUSSIA: (h) Тува Мугур-Аксы Б. КоротЯев 20.7.1970 [= Tuva Mugur-Aks´, B. Korotyaev)] ( ZIN) . 1 ♀: (p) S отр. xр. Танну-ола, Тува Черепанов 21.7.1948 [=S otr. khr. Tannu-ola, Tuva, Cherepanov] ( ZIN) . All paratypes are bearing printed red label: PARATYPE ♁ or ♀ Lomechusoides dlabolai sp. nov., det. T. Jászay, P. Hlaváč & P. Baňař det., 2021.

Description. Whole body including appendages unicoloured lighter red ( Fig. 50 ). Head trapezoidal, longer than wide HW/HL: ♁ 0.89, ♀ 0.84 with deep, V-shaped frontal median impression which is microsculptured with fine punctures, dull; rest of head with fine punctures, dull; eyes ♁ 0.29x, ♀ 0.26x of length of head; eyes slightly protuberant; temples behind eyes straight, distinctly convergent posteriad.

Antennae long, scape ♁ 1.71x, ♀ 1.65x as long as wide and ♁ 2.57x, ♀ 2.37x as long as pedicel, pedicel ♁ 0.87x, ♀ 1.00x as long as wide, antennomere III: ♁ 1.25x, ♀ 1.25x, IV: ♁ 1.00x, ♀ 1.11x and V ♁ 1.29x ♀ 1.33x as long as wide, antennomeres VI–VIII oval, elongate, terminal segment slender and acute, ♁ 1.38x, ♀ 1.42x as long as scape, relative length of antennomeres from base to apex: ♁: 18: 7: 10: 9: 11: 12: 12: 12: 12: 12: 25; ♀: 19: 8: 10: 10: 12: 13: 13: 13: 13: 12: 27.

Pronotum ( Fig. 51 ) trapezoidal, ratio PW/PL: ♁ 1.61, ♀ 1.47 with slightly concave anterior margin, anterior corners round, lateral sides in anterior half broadly rounded, in basal half straight and convergent posteriorly, posterior corners acute, bearing deep lateral impressions which are evidently deeper in middle, unevenly microsculptured and sparsely punctate, pronotal disc unevenly microsculptured and sparsely punctate, tubercles slightly defined only on basal half, median line well-defined, narrow; in lateral view lateral margins strongly thick, very slightly thinned posteriad, lacking visible edge; maximal width of pronotum at posterior corners, here as wide as elytra at humeri; pronotum with macrosetae, anterior and lateral margins with about four macrosetae.

Anterior margin of metaventral process ( Fig. 54 ) slightly concave, lateral margins concave, evenly microsculptured and densely punctate with lateral subparallel lines, posterior part in median line with small oval deep lentil-like impression, metaventral process lacking microsculpture, sparsely punctate; metaventral disc with subparallel longitudinal spots on sides of median line, metaventrite evenly microsculptured and punctate, discal setae long, exceeding margin of adjacent puncture.

Elytra finely punctate, ♁ 0.94x ♀ 0.92x as long as pronotum, ratio EW/EL: ♁ 1.94, ♀ 1.85; with six–seven macrosetae in anterior part, humeral part with one macroseta, distance between punctures on disc about twice as long as diameter of puncture.

Abdomen with visible tergite II densely punctate and setaceous, posterior margins of visible tergites III–IV with dense puncturation, anterior part lacking punturation, visible tergite V–VII with very sparse puncturation, lateral parts of visible tergites VI–VII very slightly and sparcely punctate, visible tergites II unevenly microsculptured, visible tergites III–V lacking microsculpture, visible tergites VI–VII unevenly mictrosculptured.

Aedeagus ( Figs 52–53 ) with smaller median lobe, apical lobe tube-like, apical part in ventral view short and sharp, with dense pseudopores on apex, in lateral view ventral side convex, lateral sides of apical lobe in ventral view slightly convergent apically. Apical lobe of parameres subparallel-sided ( Fig. 55 ), apex round, with about 3 setae and with some pseudopores, lacking minute microsetae.

Spermatheca ( Fig. 56 ) with apical part 2.4x as long as basal part, 2.00x broader than basal extended part and 2.60x as long as wide, apex conical, narrowed apically, apex pointed.

Measurements. (♁, Holotype): TL 4.50 mm; FB 2.10 mm; HL 0.80 mm; HW 0.71 mm; antennal length 2.15 mm; PL 0.90 mm; PW 1.45 mm; EL 0.80 mm; EW 1.60 mm; FTL 0.77 mm; MTL 1.00 mm; HTL 1.13 mm. (♀, Paratype from Arbaj-Chere): TL 4.45 mm; FB 2.45 mm; HL 0.85 mm; HW 0.71 mm; antennal length 2.35 mm; PL 0.95 mm; PW 1.40 mm; EL 0.87 mm; EW 1.62 mm; FTL 0.82 mm; MTL 1.12 mm; HTL 1.25 mm.

Differential diagnosis. L. dlabolai is separated from very similar L. reitteri by the temples, which are straight and distinctly convergent posteriad, by the shape of the pronotum, by the broadly rounded lateral sides of the pronotum in the anterior half, and divergent lateral sides in the posterior part, lateral margins on pronotum in the lateral view equally thick, and by the lack of a roof-like elevation medially on the metaventral process. Also, the apical lobe of aedeagus in ventral view is clearly thicker compared to L. reitteri and has subparallel lateral sides. From all other species of the L. strumosus species complex differs by the unicoloured and smaller size of the body.

Host ant. Unknown.

Distribution. Mongolia (western and central territory), Russia (Tuva).

Figures

FIGURES 50–56. Lomechusoides dlabolai sp. nov. 50, male paratype, dorsal habitus; 51–55, male holotype. 51, pronotum in dorsal view (L: 0.90 mm, W: 1.45 mm); 52, aedeagus, lateral view; 53, aedeagus, ventral view; 54, metaventral process; 55, apex of paramere; 56, female paratype, spermatheca, locality: Mongolia Zaisan. Scale bars in mm.