Euconnus (Tetramelus) pellifer Franz, 2024

Jałoszyński, Paweł, 2024, The ‘ curse of Horaeomorphus’ (almost) lifted. Revision of misplaced species from Madagascar, Comoros and Mascarenes (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae, Scydmaeninae), Zootaxa 5505 (1), pp. 1-96 : 72-74

Euconnus (Tetramelus) pellifer Franz , stat rev.

( Figs 272–279 )

Euconnus (Anthicimorphus) pellifer Franz, 1986b: 249 .

Horaeomorphus pellifer (Franz) ; Jałoszyński (2014b): 12 (result of placing Anthicimorphus as junior synonym of Horaeomorphus ).

Type material studied. Holotype ( Madagascar): ♂, three labels: “Madagaskar / Umg.Périnet / lg. H.Franz 1969” [white, printed], “ Euconnus / Anthicimorphus / pellifer m. / det. H.Franz ” [yellowish, handwritten and printed], “Typus” [red, handwritten] ( NHMW).

Revised diagnosis. Body ( Fig. 272 ) slender, only sides of vertex and pronotum with sparse bristles, entire dorsum covered with short and moderately dense setae; head ( Figs 273–274 ) round, with vertex posteriorly broadly rounded; pronotum bell-shaped, broadest near anterior third, with one pair of barely discernible punctiform antebasal pits connected by fine transverse groove; antenna ( Fig. 275 ) short, with antennomeres 1–7 elongate, 8 about as long as broad, and 9–10 each indistinctly transverse; aedeagus ( Figs 276–279 ) in ventral view approximately drop-shaped, broadest slightly distal to middle, ventral apical wall broadly subtriangular with rounded distal margin, dorsal apical wall forming plate-like distal process with bisinuate lateral margins and shallowly concave distal margin, each paramere slender, slightly broadening in apical region, with two long and 2–3 short apical setae.

Redescription. Body of male ( Fig. 272 ) elongate and flattened, moderately dark brown with indistinctly lighter elytra; legs (especially tarsi), antennae and palps slightly lighter than head and pronotum; setae light brown; BL 1.53 mm.

Head ( Figs 273–274 ) in anterodorsal view round, indistinctly transverse, broadest at eyes, HL 0.30 mm, HW 0.33 mm; temple in lateral view ( Fig. 274 ) 1.8 times as long as eye; vertex and frons confluent, together weakly convex and weakly transverse; vertex posteriorly broadly rounded; each eye large and strongly convex but weakly projecting from head silhouette, not emarginate posteriorly. Frons and vertex impunctate and covered with moderately dense, short and slightly suberect setae, genae with sparse thick bristles. Antenna ( Fig. 275 ) slightly shorter than half BL, gradually thickened distally, AnL 1.70 mm, antennomeres 1–7 elongate, 8 about as long as broad, and 9–10 each indistinctly transverse, 11 much longer than 10 but slightly shorter than 9 and 10 combined, as wide as 10, about 1.7 times as long as broad.

Pronotum bell-shaped, broadest near anterior third; PL 0.38 mm, PW 0.35 mm.Anterior margin strongly rounded, lateral margins strongly rounded in anterior half, weakly sinuate in posterior half; posterior corners blunt; posterior margin nearly straight. Base with one pair of barely discernible punctiform pits connected by fine transverse groove. Disc impunctate and covered with moderately dense, short and slightly suberect setae, bristles present on sides of pronotum and hypomera.

Elytra together oval, broadest near middle; EL 0.85 mm, EW 0.55 mm, EI 1.55; humeral calli angulate and weakly elevated, basal elytral foveae barely discernible. Elytra impunctate and covered with setae similarly short as those on pronotum but slightly sparser.

Legs long and slender, unmodified.

Aedeagus ( Figs 276–279 ) relatively stout, AeL 0.33 mm; in ventral view approximately drop-shaped, broadest slightly distal to middle, distally strongly narrowing; ventral apical wall short and broadly subtriangular with blunt distal margin, dorsal apical wall forming plate-like distal process with bisinuate lateral margins and shallowly concave distal margin, endophallic sclerites complex and asymmetrical; each paramere slender, weakly broadening in apical region, with two long and 2–3 short apical setae.

Female. Unknown.

Distribution. Central Madagascar (Alaotra-Mangoro Region).

Remarks. Euconnus pellifer is easy to identify by its uniquely shaped dorsal apical wall of the aedeagus; externally this species differs from other Malagasy Tetramelus spp. in short antennae with antennomeres 9 and 10 each indistinctly transverse, and dorsal surface of head, prothorax and elytra covered with similarly short and moderately dense setae.

Figures

FIGURES 272–279. Euconnus (Tetramelus) pellifer Franz, holotype. Habitus in dorsal view (272); head in anterodorsal view (273); head and prothorax in lateral view (only bristles on head are shown) (274); antenna (275); aedeagus in ventral (276, 278) and lateral (277, 279) views.