Cylindera (Ifasina) gulbenkiana Serrano

Serrano, Artur R. M., 2007, Notes on tiger beetles from Guinea-Bissau, with description of a new species of Cylindera Westwood (Insecta: Coleoptera, Cicindelidae) *, Zootaxa 1630, pp. 1-21 : 9-13

Cylindera (Ifasina) gulbenkiana Serrano , new species

( Figs. 2 , 3 and 4 )

Type material: Holotype, male, Guinea-Bissau, Guilege (U.T.M. coordinate: 28PET15), 7.VII.2006, (A. Serrano leg.), ( AS: 1899AF). Paratypes, 6 males and 2 females, same locality as holotype, 7.VII.2006 (A. Serrano leg.), ( AS: 1900AF, 1901AF, 1902AF, 1903AF, 1906AF, 1907AF; KW: 1904AF; FB: 1905AF), 3 males and 1 female, same locality as holotype, 11.VII.2006 (A.Serrano leg.), ( AS: 1927AF, 1928AF, 1929AF, 1930AF). The Holotype and eleven paratypes (8 males, 3 females) are deposited at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon, one paratype (male) at Karl Werner collection and another one (male) at Fabio Cassola collection.

Etymology. The specific epithet, gulbenkiana , is used as a noun in apposition based on the name of Calouste Gulbenkian (1869–1955), a humanitarian Armenian Engineer, known in the petroleum industry by the name of “Sir of five percent”. This philanthropic Engineer created by will (1953), in Portugal, the Foundation with his own name, and this foundation has been supporting many educational and health projects in Guinea-Bissau.

Diagnosis. A small and slender Ifasina with head and pronotum finely sculptured, dull bronze with metallic reflections. Head striation fine, parallel near the eyes, waved on frons and vertex. Pronotal sculpture fine, similarly as in C. (Ifasina) lutaria . Elytral markings distinctive, resembling the pattern of C. (Ifasina) decellei Basilewsky. Genae without hairs, pronotum with a few lateral white decumbent hairs.

Description. Length of Holotype: 8.5 mm. Length of paratypes: 7.6–8.5 mm (males), 8.5–9.9 mm (females).

Head slightly wider than long [length: 1.41–1.66 mm (males) and 1.63–1.79 mm (females), width: 2.08– 2.30 mm (males) and 2.30–2.66 mm (females)] with cupreous bronze reflections, glabrous, two juxtaorbital sensorial setae near both eyes; without decumbent white setae on the genae. Striation parallel near the eyes, finely waved on frons, vertex and behind. Labrum ( Fig. 3 a) testaceous, darker on the sides, transverse, similar in male and female, with three small teeth aligned in front, the central one more protruding, the two others roundish at apex, eight setae near forward edge. Mandibles testaceous, slightly darkened on apical and inner teeth. Labial and maxillary palpi testaceous, last palpomere metallic green. Antennae with scape and articles 2–4 metallic green, apical third of 2–4 tinged with metallic bluish reflections, glabrous, with a few white spiniform setae; antennomeres 5–11 brownish-black, finely and regularly pubescent.

Pronotum ( Fig. 3 b) as long as wide (males: 1.01 times, females: 0.97 times) [length: 1.41–1.57 mm (males) and 1.50–1.73 mm (females), width: 1.38–1.57 (males) and 1.55–1.82 mm (females)], dark cupreous bronze with slightly green reflections at sides, sub-parallel, glabrous in the middle and at sides, only a few decumbent hairs near lateral margins; pronotal sculpture finely waved, similar to that of C. (Ifasina) lutaria ; proepisterna green-bluish, pilose; prosternum glabrous and bluish in the middle. Mesepisterna finely rugose in male, smooth in female, the later with a distinct coupling sulci.

Elytron ( Fig. 3 c) 1.8 times longer than wide [length: 4.06–5.02 mm (males) and 4.99–5.63 mm (females), width: 2.37–2.82 (males) and 2.69–3.10 mm (females)] dark cupreous bronze, with many small, evenly spaced, metallic blue-green punctures. Elytral markings ( Fig. 3 c): a humeral spot, a discal anterior dot, a transversal middle band, a roundish discal dot below, nearer to the suture, a subapical roundish spot connected with a short lunule near the apical margin which do not reach the suture. Apical margin finely serrulated, sutural spine distinct in both sexes. Epipleura testaceous.

Abdominal segments blue-green with bluish reflections, covered with sparse erect hairs in the middle, more heavily pubescent in outer third; last segment more or less rufescent in the middle. Legs metallic, green on femora and tibia, violaceous on knees, blue-violaceous on tarsi; trochanters brown-testaceous.

Aedeagus ( Fig. 4 ) straight, tapered, with a short blunt apex; inner sac typical of genus Cylindera .

Remarks. The new species clearly differs from C. octoguttata , its closest species, by the general color and the sculpture of head, pronotum and elytra. Differences can be better appreciated in the structure of the labrum and the coloration of the mandibles. The lateral labral teeth are more protruding in C. gulbenkiana n. sp. than in C. octoguttata . The extension of the dark area of the mandibular teeth is very reduced in the former species, and extensively more darkened and metallic in the later. The pronotum is slightly differently shaped also, rounded at sides in C. octoguttata and sub-parallel in C. gulbenkiana n. sp.. The two elytral anterior discal dots found in C. octoguttata are reduced to a dot near the suture in the new species; the apical lunule is also reduced, not reaching the suture in the new species. The inner angle of the connection of the sub-apical roundish spot with the apical lunule is acute in C. octoguttata , while in the new species it is clearly right. The sculpture of head and pronotum, as well as the characters of the labrum, pronotum and aedeagus clearly separates C. gulbenkiana n. sp. from the other West- African Ifasina such as C. lutaria , C. genofiae Rivalier and C. decellei .

Collecting observations. The adults of this species were captured at the shaded paths of a forest fragment ( Fig. 5 ) by direct observation. Their activity seems to be restricted to the rainy season. Some individuals of Cratohaerea bruneti (Gory) were sampled on termite nests close to the paths where C. gulbenkiana n. sp. was observed.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Facies of the male of Cylindera (Ifasina) gulbenkiana n. sp. Scale: 2 mm.

FIGURE 3. Cylindera (Ifasina) gulbenkiana n. sp. (male holotype): a) labrum, b) Pronotum, and c) right elytron.

FIGURE 4. Aedeagus of Cylindera (Ifasina) gulbenkiana n. sp. (lateral view). Scale: 0.5 mm.

FIGURE 5. The habitat of Cylindera (Ifasina) gulbenkiana n. sp. in Guilege (Guinea-Bissau).