Cephennodes (Cephennodes) kusunda, Jałoszyński, 2017

Jałoszyński, Paweł, 2017, Ant-like stone beetles on the roof of the world. Cephenniini of Nepal and Bhutan (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae, Scydmaeninae), Zootaxa 4349 (1), pp. 1-120 : 96-97

Cephennodes (Cephennodes) kusunda sp. n.

( Figs 253 , 267–268 , 274 )

Type material. Holotype: NEPAL ( Kathmandu District ): ♂, one label: " NEPAL: distr. / Kathmandu: Phulcoki / 2550 m, 29.IV.84 / Löbl - Smetana " [white, printed] ( MHNG) . Paratypes (12 exx): 4 ♂♂, 2 ♀♀, same data as for holotype ; 2 ♀♀, " NEPAL: distr. / Kathmandu: Phulcoki / 2500 m, 28–29.IV.84 / Löbl - Smetana " [white, printed] ; 2 ♀♀, " NEPAL Lalitpur / Distr. Phulcoki / 2650m, 13.X.83 / Smetana & Löbl" [white, printed] ; 2 ♀♀, " NEPAL Lalitpur Distr. / Phulcoki N slope / 2600m 16.X.83 / Smetana & Löbl" [white, printed] (paratypes in MHNG and cPJ).

Diagnosis. BL 1.53–1.65 mm; pronotum indistinctly narrower than elytra; elytra broadest far in front of middle; antennomeres V and VI subequal in length; subhumeral line on each elytron relatively sharply marked; median lobe of aedeagus in ventral view with its rod-like apical portion strongly broadened in apical region, apex distinctly asymmetrical and pointed; apical margin of apical projection strongly oblique in relation to the long axis of aedeagus and slightly concave, in ventral view its left lateroapical corner forming long rounded subtriangular projection, and its right corner forming long, very slender, nearly straight and pointed triangular projection.

Description. Body of male ( Fig. 253 ) moderately dark brown, elongate, with shallow constriction between pronotum and elytra, relatively strongly convex, covered with light brown setae; BL 1.5 3– 1.65 mm (mean 1.57 mm).

Head subtrapezoidal, HL 0.20–0.23 mm (mean 0.21 mm), HW 0.38–0.39 mm (mean 0.38 mm); vertex and frons confluent, evenly and weakly convex, supraantennal tubercles small and weakly elevated; eyes moderately large, strongly convex and coarsely faceted. Punctures on vertex and frons small but distinct, sharply marked and densely, nearly evenly distributed, separated by spaces shorter than diameters of punctures; setae short, sparse, suberect. Antennae relatively long and with loosely assembled antennomeres, AnL 0.82–0.88 mm (mean 0.85 mm), club appears trimerous, indistinctly delimited and relatively strongly thickened; antennomere I 1.6 × as long as broad; II slightly narrower and shorter than I, 1.6 × as long as broad; III–VI similar in shape, each narrower than II and about 1.1–1.2 × as long as broad, VII indistinctly broader and longer than VI, about 1.1 × as long as broad, VIII slightly shorter than VII but similar in width, indistinctly transverse, IX and X each much larger than preceding one, distinctly transverse; XI distinctly broader than X, distinctly longer than IX–X together, about 1.9 × as long as broad.

Pronotum in dorsal view nearly semicircular, broadest near middle but indistinctly narrowing posteriorly, PL 0.48–0.50 mm (mean 0.48 mm), PW 0.73 mm; anterior margin arcuate; lateral margins indistinctly microserrate, strongly rounded in anterior half, nearly straight in posterior third; posterior corners slightly obtuse-angled; posterior margin shallowly bisinuate; lateral carinae very narrow, fused with lateral edges; antebasal pits small, shallow and diffuse, each located slightly closer to posterior than to lateral pronotal margin. Punctures on disc distinctly larger and deeper than those on frons and vertex, in median area separated by spaces about half as wide as diameters of punctures, punctures become gradually smaller and shallower toward anterior and lateral pronotal margins, but not toward posterior margin; setae moderately long, moderately dense, suberect.

Elytra elongate, oval, broadest near anterior third, EL 0.85–0.93 mm (mean 0.88 mm), EW 0.78–0.83 mm (mean 0.80 mm), EI 1.06–1.16. Humeral calli small and weakly elevated; subhumeral lines equal to only 0.15 EL and moderately distinct, each developed as a moderately sharply marked stepwise border between more convex humeral region and less convex adsutural area; basal pit on each elytron large, located in small, relatively shallow and nearly circular basal impression; apices of elytra separately rounded. Punctures slightly shallower and smaller than those on pronotum but similarly dense and distinct; setae similar to those on pronotum but more erect.

Hind wings not studied.

Metaventrite with short postmesocoxal impressions, not exceeding anterior 1/3 of ventrite length, median portion finely punctate.

Abdomen and legs unmodified.

Aedeagus ( Figs 267–268 ) elongate, AeL 0.28 mm, median lobe in ventral view with long, moderately broad apical portion strongly constricted in subapical region and with asymmetrical, pointed apex; apical projection broadly T-shaped, with apical margin strongly oblique in relation to the long axis of aedeagus and weakly concave; parameres slender, unequal in length, each with three setae.

Female. Unknown.

Distribution ( Fig. 274 ). Central-eastern Nepal.

Etymology. The species name kusunda (noun in apposition) refers to Kusunda people, the oldest inhabitants of the Kathmandu Valley, today facing extinction.

Remarks. Aedeagus of this species resembles that of C. newar in having a broad and pointed apex of median lobe; see remarks for the latter species.

Figures

FIGURES 247 – 254. Dorsal habitus of Cephennodes (s. str.) gopala sp. n. (247), C. (s. str.) paniporuanus sp. n. (248), C. (s. str.) brachyclavatus sp. n. (249), C. (s. str.) phulchokianus sp. n. (250), C. (s. str.) pokharensis sp. n. (251), C. (s. str.) newar sp. n. (252), C. (s. str.) kusunda sp. n. (253), and C. (s. str.) sindhupalchowk sp. n. (254).

FIGURES 263 – 270. Aedeagus in ventral (263, 265, 267, 269) and lateral (264, 266, 268, 270) views. Cephennodes (s. str.) pokharensis sp. n. (263 – 264), C. (s. str.) newar sp. n. (265 – 266), C. (s. str.) kusunda sp. n. (267 – 268), and C. (s. str.) sindhupalchowk sp. n. (269 – 270). Abbreviations: aml, apex of median lobe; ap, apical projection.

FIGURES 273 – 274. Distribution of Cephennodes (s. str.) pokharensis sp. n. (273, circle), C. (s. str.) newar sp. n. (273, triangle), C. (s. str.) kusunda sp. n. (274, circle), and C. (s. str.) sindhupalchowk sp. n. (274, triangle).