Lesticus praestans ( Chaudoir, 1868 )

Fedorenko, D. N., 2022, New or little-known Lesticus Dejean, 1828 (Coleoptera: Carabidae: Pterostichini) from Vietnam, Russian Entomological Journal 31 (3), pp. 260-275 : 266

1. Lesticus praestans ( Chaudoir, 1868)

DIAGNOSIS. Body macropterous and large, metepisternum long. Slight endophallic differences only discriminate males of this species from those of the closely allied species, L. nubilus , namely, bulbs c and d contiguous or almost so; bulb b tubiform, with an additional basal convexity on right side ( Figs 25–26 ); internal sac otherwise with bulb a distinct; c large and extended into long and apically curved dorsal process cd; e large, dilated toward and truncate at apex, its apical branches, dorsal (ed) and ventral (ev), barely differentiated. Female labial palpomere 3 less apically dilated than in L. nubilus , 3/5–2/3 (vs. 3/4–4/5) as wide as long; protarsomere 1 either with (L. p. praestans ) or, mostly, without (L. p. mouhotii ) rudimentary ventral pad.

REDESCRIPTION. Unnecessary here because this species is much described.

Mesofemur with 3–4 anteroventral setae.

GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION. Indochina east to Southern China and south to Greater Sunda Isles (Sumatra and Java ).

HABITATS AND HABITS. Most specimens were taken at light, at low altitudes.

COMMENTS. This species is widespread and monomorphic, except for rather slight differences between adults from different local populations in body colour, as well as in pronotal and elytral sculpture. Based on these differences two subspecies are recognized here.

1a. Lesticus praestans praestans ( Chaudoir, 1868)

Figs 4 , 16 .

Chaudoir, 1868: 154 ( Triplogenius ; Hong-Kong); Andrewes, 1930: 199; Roux et al., 2016: 344. — nigerrimus Straneo 1953: 160 ( Tonkin); Roux et al., 2016: 324, syn.n. — tonkinensis Jedlička, 1962: 322 (‘ Tonkin: Laos’); Roux et al., 2016: 322, syn.n.

MATERIAL. ♂ ( ZIN), China: ‘[illegible], Hong Kong ’; ♀ ( ZIN), ‘ Hong Kong, ‘ Ex-Musaeo / H.W. BATES 1892 ’, ‘ praestans / Chaud. ’, ‘1907./ к. Чичерина’ ; 3♂♂ ( SIEE), Vietnam, 10 km SSW of Ninh Binh, Cuc Phuong Natn. Park , 20°15´09´´N, 105°42´19´´E, 14.IV.2012 (M.A. Dzhus) ; 14♂♂, 6♀♀ ( SIEE), Ha Tinh Prov., Vu Quang Natn. Park, Kim Quang env., h~ 70 m, 18°17´59´´N, 105°22´31´´E, flood-land forest, 24.V–1.VI.2022 (D. Fedorenko) ; ♂ ♀ ( ZIN), [Nghe An Prov.], mountains NE of Con Cuong , 400 m, 20–21.IV.1962 (O.N. Kabakov) ; ♂, 2♀♀ ( ZIN), [Quang Binh Prov.], mountains SW of Dong Hoi, My Duc , 19– 20.III.1963 (O.N. Kabakov). — Internal sac of aedeagus examined in four males.

DIAGNOSIS. Either body dorsum uniform black or head and pronotum with very deep to vague metallic green luster, mostly along sides. Elytral striae deep and very distinctly (moderately coarsely) punctate, with intervals convex in between. Pronotal basal foveae densely to confluently punctate, which peculiarity, combined with no or dull metallic colour of forebody dorsum, makes the subspecies very similar to L. nubilus . Protarsomere 1 with rudimentary ventral pad in female. Body barely smaller in general, BL 23–28 mm.

GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION. Northern in distribution, ranging from southern China ( Hong Kong) to Central Vietnam.

COMMENTS. This subspecies was re-described twice, at first from northern Vietnam, based on single female very similar to L. fortis , and then from northern Laos, based on single male which was compared by Jedlička [1962] with L. magnus only, yet without mention of Straneo’s L. nigerrimus .

1b. Lesticus praestans mouhotii ( Chaudoir, 1868) ,

stat.n.

Figs 5 , 17 , 25–26 .

Chaudoir, 1868: 152 ( Triplogenius ; Cambodia); Roux et al., 2016: 330. — fortis Tschitschérine, 1897: 266 (Malang, eastern Java ); Roux et al., 2016: 450, syn.n.

MATERIAL. ♀ ( SIEE), Vietnam, Gia Lai Prov., 27 km E of Pleiku, Kon Dong, at light, 20.V.2017 (D. Fedorenko); ♂ ( ZIN): Dong Nai Prov., Vinh Cuu Distr., Vinh Cuu Nat. Res. (= Ma Da Forest), TW Cuc Forest Station, 11°22´51´´N 107°03´44´´E, 75 m, 18–27.VI.2011 (L. Anisyutkin, A. Anichkin); 2♂♂, 3♀♀ ( SIEE), Southern Vietnam, Dong Nai Province, Cat Tien National Park, at light HQL 450, 18.V–18.VI.2005 (D. Fedorenko); ♀ ( SIEE), same data except 17–18.X.2004; ♂ ♀ ( SIEE), Cambodia, Mondulkiri Prov., env. Sen Monorom, 19°29´02´´N, 107°10´51´´E, h~ 780 m, at light, 1–5.VI.2014 (I. Melnik); ♂, Thailand, Chiang Rai Prov., 30.VII.2016 (S. Dementiev); ♂ ♀, Phuket, Karon-Kata Beach, 26.X– 4.XI.2016 (E. Shankhiza); Sumatra: ♂ ( ZIN), ‘Sumatra./ A. Koller.’, ‘ Tr. fortis / m./ T. Tschitscherin/ determ.1901’; Java : ♀ holotype of L. fortis (ZIN) , labelled: ‘ Java : / Malang / Stauding [er]’, ‘ L. fortis / typ. m./ Tschitscherin det.’; ♂ ( ZIN), ‘ Java ’, ‘ Lesticus (Triplogen.) / fortis m./ Tschitscherin det.’, ‘1907/ к. Чичерина’. — Internal sac of aedeagus examined in six males.

DIAGNOSIS. Body dorsum contrastingly bicoloured, with forebody bright metallic green, or golden green, or cupreous green, or blue green. Elytral striae less deep, more finely and less distinctly punctate; intervals subconvex and shiny in male, rather dull and almost flat in female. Pronotal basal foveae often rather sparsely punctate, especially in populations from southern Vietnam and Cambodia. Protarsomere 1 mostly without rudimentary ventral pad in female. Body barely larger in general, BL 26–30 mm.

GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION. Indochina west and south of Central Vietnam, south to Sumatra and Java .

Figures

Figs 25–39. Aedeagus: 25–26 — Lesticus praestans mouhotii; 27–28– L. nubilus; 29–30, 38–39 — L. attenuatus sp.n., paratypes; 31– 32, 35 — L. auricollis; 33–34, 36 — L. bellus sp.n., paratype; 37 — L. verticillatus sp.n., paratype; 25–34 — median lobe with everted and inflated internal sac; 25, 27, 29, 31, 33 — caudal aspect; 26, 28, 30, 32, 34 — anterodorsal aspect; 35–39 — right paramere, left aspect; a, b, bb, c, cd, d, e, ed, ev, f — bulbs of internal sac. Scale bars 2 mm (25–34) or 1 mm (35–39). Рис. 25–39. Эдеагус: 25–26 — Lesticus praestans mouhotii; 27–28– L. nubilus; 29–30, 38–39 — L. attenuatus sp.n., паратипы; 31– 32, 35 — L. auricollis; 33–34, 36 — L. bellus sp.n., паратип; 37 — L. verticillatus sp.n., паратип; 25–34 — среднЯЯ долЯ с вывернутым и надутым внутренним меШком; 25, 27, 29, 31, 33 — каудально; 26, 28, 30, 32, 34 — антеродорЗально; 35–39 — праваЯ парамера, слева; a, b, bb, c, cd, d, e, ed, ev, f — пуЗыри внутреннего меШка. МасШтаб: 2 мм (25–34) или 1 мм (35–39).

Figs 1–12. Head: 1–2 — Lesticus nubilus, 2♂♂; 3 — L. attenuatus sp.n., ♂ paratype; 4 — L. p. praestans, ♂ from Cuc Phuong NP, Vietnam; 5 — L. p. mouhotii, ♀ from Mondulkiri Prov., Cambodia; 6 — L. auricollis, ♂ from Bac Giang Prov., Vietnam; 7–8 — L. verticillatus sp.n., ♂ paratype from Song Thanh NP and ♂ holotype; 9 — L. bellus sp.n., ♀ holotype; 10 — L. buqueti, ♀; 11 — L. lakhonus, ♀; 12 — L. laevis sp.n., ♂ holotype; 1, 10–11 — Cat Tien NP, Vietnam; 2 — Mae Vong env., Thailand. Рис. 1–12. Голова: 1–2 — Lesticus nubilus, 2♂♂; 3 — L. attenuatus sp.n., паратип ♂; 4 — L. p. praestans, ♂ иЗ Нац. парка Кыкфыонг, Вьетнам; 5 — L. p. mouhotii, ♀ иЗ пров. Мондулкири, Камбоджа; 6 — L. auricollis, ♂ иЗ пров. БакЗЯн, Вьетнам; 7–8 — L. verticillatus sp.n., паратип ♂ иЗ нац. парка Сонгтхань и голотип ♂; 9 — L. bellus sp.n., голотип ♀; 10 — L. buqueti, ♀; 11 — L. lakhonus, ♀; 12 — L. laevis sp.n., ♂ голотип; 1, 10–11 — Нац. парк Катьен, Вьетнам; 2 — окр. Мае Вонг, Таиланд.

Figs 13–24. Pronotum: 13–14 — Lesticus nubilus, 2♂♂; 15 — L. attenuatus sp.n., ♂ paratype; 16 — L. p. praestans, ♂ from Cuc Phuong NP, Vietnam; 17 — L. p. mouhotii, ♀ from Mondulkiri Prov., Cambodia; 18 — L. auricollis, ♂ from Bac Giang Prov., Vietnam; 19– 20 — L. verticillatus sp.n., ♂ paratype from Song Thanh NP and ♂ holotype; 21 — L. bellus sp.n., ♀ holotype; 22 — L. buqueti, ♀; 23 — L. lakhonus, ♀; 24 — L. laevis sp.n., ♂ holotype; 13, 22–23 — Cat Tien NP, Vietnam; 14 — Mae Vong env., Thailand. Рис. 13–24. Переднеспинка: 13–14 — Lesticus nubilus, 2♂♂; 15 — L. attenuatus sp.n., паратип ♂; 16 — L. p. praestans, ♂ иЗ Нац. парка Кыкфыонг, Вьетнам; 17 — L. p. mouhotii, ♀ иЗ пров. Мондулкири, Камбоджа; 18 — L. auricollis, ♂ иЗ пров. БакЗЯн, Вьетнам; 19–20 — L. verticillatus sp.n., паратип ♂ иЗ нац. парка Сонгтхань и голотип ♂; 21 — L. bellus sp.n., голотип ♀; 22 — L. buqueti, ♀; 23 — L. lakhonus, ♀; 24 — L. laevis sp.n., ♂ голотип; 13, 22–23 — Нац. парк Катьен, Вьетнам; 14 — окр. Мае Вонг, Таиланд.