Platysodes sabatinellii Qiu & Xu, 2020

Qiu, Jian-Yue & Xu, Hao, 2020, Further notes on the flower chafer genus Platysodes Westwood, 1873 (Coleoptera Scarabaeidae: Cetoniinae) with description of a new species from Himalaya, Zootaxa 4890 (2), pp. 192-200 : 193-195

Platysodes sabatinellii Qiu & Xu , new species

( Figs. 1–8 , 24 , 28 )

Platysodes jansoni (nec Arrow): Sabatinelli 1984: 163 (Darjeeling, India), fig. 3 parameres.

Type material. The holotype of Platysodes sabatinellii new species in BMNH was left undissected, and the male genitalia illustrated in the plate belongs to the paratype from Darjeeling ( Figs. 4–5 ) . Holotype (♁, Figs. 1–3 , BMNH): UPPER BURMA: Nam Tamai Valley , 29.vii.1938, R. Kaulback., B.M. 1938-741// Alt. 3,000 ft., Lat. N. 27°42′, Long. E.97°54 ′; Paratypes (2♁♁, 1♀): MYANMAR: 1♁ ( Fig. 6 , CKSJ), 2001.VII, near Putao, N. Kachin, Myanmar; INDIA: 1♀ (allotype, Fig. 7 , MNHN, Coll. De Lisle), Sikkim, März, April, H. Fruhstorfer // Platysodes jansoni Arrow, M. O. de Lisle det. 1968; 1♁ ( NHMB), Darjeeling Distr. , India Bhakta B. // Sakyong, 1140 m, 25.IX.[19]81 .

Holotype (male). General: Body elongate oval, black, glabrous, sparsely microsculptured. Head: Dorsal surface arciform; sides of with sparse, tiny and shallow punctures. Clypeus short, arc-shaped, anterior margin raised. Eye canthus extending laterally, narrow, long. Antenna simple and antennal club dark brown. Mentum expanding, strongly extended basally; with sparse, semicircular punctures. Pronotum: Suboctagonal, flat and smooth; with few small, elliptical punctures near anterior angle. Anterior margin straight, posterior margin notched in front of scutellum. Scutellum: Long triangular; median area glabrous; basal area with few striolae, sides with few punctures. Elytron: Sutural costa wide. Two grooves on disc; longer groove deep, with large, U-shaped punctures, punctures partly combined near discolateral costa; shorter groove shallow and narrow, with few large, U-shaped punctures. Other area of elytral surface with sparse, small, U-shaped or round punctures. Two irregularly shaped, white tomentous maculae: one near middle of sutural costa and the other in longer groove. Distal declivity matt, sparsely punctured. Apicosutural angle obtuse, not pointed. Mesepimeron and metepisternum: Surface with arcuate punctures and sinuous striolae. Metepimeron: Surface with few tiny, round punctures. Sternum: Preprosternum with long, brown setae along anterior margin; preprosternal apophysis slightly raised. Postprosternum glabrous, with-out punctures. Mesosternum with dense, arcuate punctures and sinuous striolae. Disc of metasternum glabrous, without punctures; sides with large, arcuate punctures and sinuous striolae. Pygidium: Surface clad with sparse, small, arcuate punctures. Shape almost semicircular and midline slightly raised in dorsal view. Apex strongly and transversely ridged in lateral view. Abdomen: Seven sternites, six sternites visible. Median portion of abdominal sternites slightly depressed, glabrous; sides with sparse, large U or C-shaped punctures. Last spiracle prominent, rounded. Legs: Mesocoxa strongly approximate. Outer margin of trochanters with short, compact, brown setae. Profemur covered with dense short, sinuous striolae. Femora and tibiae covered with dense sinuous striolae, and elliptical and arcuate setiferous punctures; setae short. Tibiae short, a small white tomentous patch at the base of each tibia. Protibia bidentate, spur acute. Mesotibia and metatibia with a strong external protrusion, two sharp teeth on apex. Tarsi slender, short. Parameres: Falcate in lateral view. In apical view, distal half part of each paramere expanded and divided into two lobes; distal lobes slender, close to each other; basal lobes wide, overlapped each other, apex protruding like barb ( Figs. 4–5 ).

Paratypes. All the three paratypes have a small white tomentous macula behind anteapical umbone of elytron. Each of abdominal sternite II to V with a pair of small white, tomentous patches on both sides in the female paratype. Female is extremely similar to male and only can be distinguished by its abdomen not depressed medially.

Measurements. Body length 23.1–25.0 mm (holotype 23.5 mm), width 9.1–10.9 mm (holotype 9.7 mm).

Differential diagnosis. The new species can be separated from all other Platysodes species by the two longitudinal grooves on the elytral disc.

Etymology. The new species is named in honor of Dr. Guido Sabatinelli, an Italian taxonomist of scarabs who found this species for the first time.

Distribution. India; Myanmar.

Remarks. Platysodes sabatinellii new species is quite different from P. jansoni in elytron. Elytron of the latter is smooth and without groove ( Fig. 26 ), but that of the new species is matt in the distal declivity ( Fig. 3 ) and with two grooves in the disc ( Fig. 24 ). Besides, the basal lobes of their parameres are different in shape, the apex of P. sabatinellii new species is produced ( Fig.5 ), whereas that of the latter is blunt ( Fig. 17 ). Specimen of P. sabatinel-lii new species was firstly reported by Sabatinelli (1984) from Darjeeling, North India. It was misidentified as P. jansoni although he already pointed out that the distal declivity of elytron is matt. He subjectively thought that this feature was overlooked by Arrow (1910). According to the current distributional map ( Fig. 28 ), P. sabatinellii new species probably occurs along the south side of the Himalayas, including the vast multi-altitudes primary forests in southeastern Xizang of China.

Figures

FIGURE 28. Known distribution of Platysodes Westwood, 1873 species (inset photograph shows the dead specimen of P. ma- doni Bourgoin, 1923 found at Mount Fanjingshan, Guizhou, China, provided by Ka-Chen Ou-Yang). Distribution data take from Qiu et al. (2015) and specimens examined in the present work.

FIGURES 1–8. Type specimens of Platysodes sabatinellii Qiu & Xu, new species. 1–3, holotype (BMNH): 1, dorsal view; 2, ventral view; 3, oblique view. 4–5, parameres of paratype in lateral and apical view (Darjeeling, NHMB; provided by Guido Sabatinelli). 6, paratype (CKSJ). 7–8, allotype (MNHN): 7, dorsal view; 8, distal declivity of elytra. Red arrows emphasize the matt area.

FIGURES 24–27. Habitus of Platysodes Westwood, 1873 species in oblique view. 24, P. sabatinellii Qiu & Xu, new species (CKSJ); 25, P. formosanus Kobayashi, 1990 (slightly greasy, CKSJ); 26, P. jansoni Arrow, 1910 (CKSJ); 27, P. verlorenii Westwood, 1873 (greasy, CKSJ).

FIGURES 9–17. Specimens of Platysodes Westwood, 1873. 9–12, P. formosanus Kobayashi, 1990: 9, female habitus (MYNU); 10–11, slightly greasy male and distal declivity of elytra (CKSJ); 12, parameres of holotype in apical view (MSMT; provided by Yu-Tang Wang). 13–17, P. jansoni Arrow, 1910: 13, greasy female with two maculae on elytron (BPBM; provided by James H. Boone); 14, female habitus (CKSJ); 15–16, male habitus and distal declivity of elytra (MNHN); 17, parameres in apical view (provided by Christophe Rivier). Red arrows emphasize the tomentose maculae.