Serica (s. l.) anhua Ahrens, Zhao, Pham & Liu, 2024

Ahrens, Dirk, Zhao, Ming-Zhi, Pham, Phu Van & Liu, Wan-Gang, 2024, Taxonomic updates on Pachyserica Brenske, 1898 and Serica MacLeay, 1819 reveal 38 new species and new challenges of Sericini systematics regarding DNA barcodes and genus-level diagnostic key characters (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Sericinae), Zootaxa 5491 (1), pp. 1-89 : 26-27

Serica (s. l.) anhua Ahrens, Zhao, Pham & Liu , new species

Fig. 10A–E

Type material examined. Holotype ♂ [ China] “ Liubucun, Anhuaxian , Hunan, 16–17.VII.2004, leg. Wang Jiliang / Asia Sericini 1321 spec.” ( HBUM).

Description of holotype. Length: 7.8 mm, length of elytra: 5.9 mm, width: 5.8 mm. Body oval and strongly convex, dark brown, head, pronotum and some spots on elytra with greenish shine, elytra with darker spots, antenna yellow, dorsal surface weakly shiny or iridescent, with dense, short, adpressed white setae.

Labroclypeus distinctly wider than long, widest at base, lateral margins in basal half straight and parallel, anteriorly moderately convex and convergent, anterior angles strongly convex, anterior margin deeply and narrowly emarginate medially; margins weakly reflexed; surface flat, shiny, basally narrowly dull, finely and densely punctate, with a dense and long, erect setae; frontoclypeal suture distinct, slightly elevated, and weakly curved; smooth area anterior to eye 1.5 times as wide as long; ocular canthus long and narrow (1/3 of ocular diameter), with a few fine punctures and a short terminal seta. Frons flat; surface with fine and dense punctures and with fine, white, short, adpressed setae, behind frontoclypeal suture with a few long erect setae. Eyes small, ratio diameter/interocular width: 0.66. Antenna with ten antennomeres; club with three antennomeres, as long as remaining antennomeres combined and straight. Mentum elevated and anteriorly flattened. Labrum elliptical, well produced medially, deeply emarginate medially.

Pronotum trapezoidal, distinctly wider than long, widest at base, lateral margins in basal half straight and strongly convergent anteriorly, in anterior half strongly convex and convergent anteriorly; anterior angles weakly produced and blunt, posterior angles strongly right-angled; anterior margin almost straight, with fine and complete anterior marginal line; surface densely and finely punctate, some smaller patches impunctate, with dense, fine, white, short, adpressed setae; anterior and lateral margins with long sparse setae; hypomeron distinctly carinate, carina not produced ventrally. Scutellum slender and long, dull, triangular, finely and densely punctate, with white setae as in pronotum, base widely impunctate and glabrous.

Elytra oval, widest at middle, striae weakly impressed, finely and densely punctate, intervals weakly convex, with fine, dense punctures, dark spots completely smooth; intervals with dense, short, adpressed, white setae, each interval additionally with a few, single, longer, yellowish scales; epipleural edge fine, ending at moderately curved external apical angle of elytra, epipleura densely setose, apical border membranous, with a fine membranous rim of fine microtrichomes (magnification 100x).

Ventral surface dull, finely and densely punctate, including metacoxa densely setose, metacoxa laterally with a more robust and longer setae; abdominal sternites finely and densely punctate, with a transverse row of coarse punctures, each bearing a short, robust seta, otherwise finely densely setose. Mesosternum between mesocoxae half as wide as the slender mesofemur. Ratio of length of metepisternum/metacoxa: 1/1.41. Pygidium moderately convex and dull, finely and densely punctate, with wide smooth midline, with dense, short scale-like white setae and a few fine, long setae in apical half.

Legs moderately slender; femora with two longitudinal rows of setae, coarsely and densely punctate between rows; metafemur shiny, anterior margin acute, without a continuously serrated line behind anterior margin; ventral posterior margin serrated in apical half and not widened, dorsal posterior margin completely serrated, in basal half with a few long setae which are half as long as width of metafemur. Metatibia slender and moderately long, widest at middle, ratio of width/length: 1/3.1; dorsal margin sharply carinate, with two groups of spines, basal group at middle, apical group at three quarters of metatibial length, basally with a few single, robust setae; lateral face longitudinally concave, coarsely densely punctate, punctures somewhat elongate, with minute setae; ventral margin serrated, with three robust setae of which the two distal ones are more widely separated; medial face sparsely punctate and glabrous; apex interiorly near tarsal articulation indistinctly bluntly truncate. Tarsomeres ventrally with sparse, minute setae, dorsally coarsely punctate; metatarsomeres laterally carinate, with some wrinkles beside punctures, with a strongly serrated ridge ventrally; first metatarsomere little shorter than following two tarsomeres combined and less than twice as long as dorsal tibial spur. Protibia short, bidentate, external margin smooth; anterior claws asymmetrical, basal tooth of inner claw short and concavely truncate at apex, basal tooth of inner claw normal.

Aedeagus: Fig. 10A–C . Habitus: Fig. 10D–E . Female unknown.

Diagnosis. Serica anhua new species differs from the in shape of male genitalia similar S. parasquamosa Ahrens, 2007 by the strongly interiorly bent apex of the right paramere, which is in basal potion also distinctly narrower; the left paramere is slightly reflexed but straight at apex, instead of bent externally as in S. parasquamosa .

Etymology. The name of this new species (noun in apposition) is derived from its occurrence in Anhua County (Hunan, China).

Remark. We were not able to re-examine the paratype of S. parasquamosa Ahrens, 2007 from Hunan province. It might also belong to this new taxon.

Figures

FIGURE 10. A–E: Serica anhua new species (holotype); F–J: S. wuyishan new species (holotype); A, H: aedeagus, left side lateral view; C, J: aedeagus, right side lateral view; B, I: parameres, dorsal view; D, F: habitus, dorsal view; E, G: habitus, lateral view. Scale bar: 0.5 mm. Habitus images not to scale.