Neoserica (s. l.) zongyuani, Liu, Wan-Gang, Fabrizi, Silvia, Bai, Ming, Yang, Xing-Ke & Ahrens, Dirk, 2014

Liu, Wan-Gang, Fabrizi, Silvia, Bai, Ming, Yang, Xing-Ke & Ahrens, Dirk, 2014, A taxonomic revision of the Neoserica (sensu lato) calva group (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae, Sericini), ZooKeys 448, pp. 47-81 : 50

Taxon classification Animalia Coleoptera Scarabaeidae

Neoserica (s. l.) zongyuani sp. n. Figs 1 E–H, 6

Type material examined.

Holotype: ♂ [China] “Qingyin’ge, Mts. Emeishan, Sichuan, 20.IV.1957, 800-1000m, leg. Wang Zongyuan" (IZAS). Paratypes: 1 ♂ [China] "Guanyinge, Mts. Emeishan, Sichuan, 24.IV.1957, 800-1000m, leg. Wang Zongyuan" (IZAS), 1 ♂ [China] "Baoguosi Temple, Mts. Emeishan, Sichuan, 22.IV.1957, 550-750m, leg. Lu Youcai" (IZAS), 1 ♂ [China] “Qingyin’ge, Mts. Emeishan, Sichuan, 16.V.1957, 800-1000m, leg. Zhu Fuxing" (ZFMK).

Description.

Body length: 6.0 mm, length of elytra: 4.4 mm, width: 3.3 mm. Body oblong, dark reddish brown, antennal club yellowish brown, dorsal surface dull and nearly glabrous, labroclypeus and anterior two thirds of frons shiny.

Labroclypeus subrectangular, only little wider than long, widest at base; lateral margins in basal half subparallel and straight, strongly convergent and convex anteriorly; anterior angles moderately rounded; anterior margin moderately sinuate medially; margins moderately reflexed; surface weakly elevated medially and shiny, finely and very densely punctate, with a few single setae. Frontoclypeal suture distinctly incised, weakly elevated and moderately angled medially. Smooth area anterior to eye approximately twice as wide as long. Ocular canthus moderately long and narrow, finely and sparsely punctate, with a single terminal seta. Frons on posterior third dull, finely and densely punctate, anterior midline impunctate and slightly elevated; with a few erect setae beside eyes. Eyes large, ratio diameter/interocular width: 0.83. Antenna with ten antennomeres, club with four antennomeres and strongly reflexed, 2.3 times as long as remaining antennomeres combined. Mentum elevated and slightly flattened anteriorly. Labrum transverse, short, not produced medially, with weak median sinuation.

Pronotum moderately transverse, almost twice as wide as long, widest at base; lateral margins nearly straight and weakly convergent in basal half, moderately convex and moderately convergent anteriorly; anterior angles weakly produced and blunt; posterior angles nearly right-angled and moderately rounded at tip; anterior margin with a fine and complete marginal line, weakly convexly produced medially; surface densely and finely punctate, with minute setae in punctures; lateral and anterior border sparsely setose; hypomeron distinctly carinate basally. Scutellum long, with fine, very dense punctures, glabrous.

Elytra oblong, widest in posterior third; striae weakly impressed, finely and moderately densely punctate; even intervals flat, with evenly and moderately dense punctures; odd intervals convex, with sparse, fine punctures concentrated along striae, impunctate medially, with minute setae in punctures. Epipleural edge fine, ending at moderately curved external apical angle of elytra; epipleura densely setose; apical border with a fine rim of microtrichomes (visible at 100 × magnification).

Ventral surface dull, finely and densely punctate. Metasternum except long seta on disc nearly glabrous, sparsely covered with minute setae in punctures. Metacoxa glabrous, with a few single setae laterally. Abdominal sternites finely and densely punctuate, glabrous except minute setae in punctures, with a transverse row of coarse punctures each bearing a robust long seta. Mesosternum between mesocoxae as wide as mesofemur. Ratio of length of metepisternum/metacoxa: 1/1.24. Pygidium moderately convex and dull, coarsely and densely punctate, with narrow smooth midline, with a few long setae at apex, otherwise glabrous.

Legs slender. Femora with two longitudinal rows of setae, finely and sparsely punctate. Metafemur moderately shiny and sparsely finely punctate; anterior margin acute, behind anterior margin without serrated line; posterior margin in apical half serrated ventrally and moderately widened at apex; posterior margin finely serrated dorsally, glabrous. Metatibia slender and moderately long, widest at apex, ratio of width/length: 1/3.9; dorsal margin sharply carinate, with two groups of spines; basal group at middle, apical group at three quarters of metatibial length; in basal half with a few short robust setae in single robust punctures with serrated margin; external face longitudinally convex, finely and sparsely punctate; ventral margin finely serrated, with three robust setae, with the apical one being more distant; medial face impunctate, glabrous, apex sharply truncate interiorly near tarsal articulation. Tarsomeres ventrally with sparse, short setae, not carinate laterally, with fine sparse punctures dorsally; metatarsomeres missing in holotype. Protibia moderately long, bidentate, bluntly widened laterally before basal tooth; anterior claws symmetrical, basal tooth of inner claw sharply truncate at apex.

Aedeagus. Fig. 1 E–G.

Female unknown.

Diagnosis.

Neoserica zongyuani sp. n. differs form Neoserica calva by the slightly smaller eyes and the shape of the parameres: the left paramere is longer than that in Neoserica calva , the right paramere is narrowed abruptly behind base.

Etymology.

The new species is named after one of the collectors of the type series, Wang Zongyuan.

Variation.

Length: 6.0 mm, length of elytra: 4.4-4.6 mm, width: 3.3-3.6 mm.