Phelister ifficus, Caterino & Tishechkin, 2020

Caterino, Michael S. & Tishechkin, Alexey K., 2020, Recognition and revision of the Phelister blairi group (Histeridae, Histerinae, Exosternini), ZooKeys 1001, pp. 1-154 : 1

19. Phelister ifficus sp. nov. Figs 11G, H , 12E, F , Map 8

Type material.

Holotype male: " Bolivia: Cochabamba, 117 km E Cochabamba, at Lagunitas, 1000 m, 17°06'22"S, 65°40'57"W, 1-6.II.1999, F. Génier, mountain evergreen forest, ex. f.i.t. 99-029" / "Caterino/Tishechkin Exosternini Voucher EXO-00001" (CMNC). Paratype (2): Peru: Junín: ~ 16 km NW Satipo, Rio Venado, 11°11.677'S, 74°46.137'W, 1150 m, 3-8. March 2010, A.V. Petrov, Caterino/Tishechkin Exosternini Voucher EXO-02993 (AKTC, 1ex.); Junín, ~ 15 km NW Satipo, nr. Rio Venado at 11°11.18'S, 74°46.02'W, 1100-1400 m, 4/20/19-5/18/19, A. V. Sokolov (AVSC, 1ex.).

Diagnostic description.

Length: 3.27-3.43 mm (avg. 3.35 mm); width: 2.80-2.84 mm (avg. 2.82 mm). Body elongate oval, slightly depressed, dark rufescent, with conspicuous double punctation throughout, the ground punctation coarse and uniformly intermingled with moderately large secondary punctures; frons rather broad, depressed along midline; supraorbital stria present at middle; frontal stria interrupted at middle; epistoma subcarinate along sides; labrum emarginate and subcarinate apically; mandibles each with small basal tooth; antennal club elongate, with small setose patch near apex of dorsal surface; prescutellar impression small and weak; median pronotal gland openings obscured by punctures, but distinctly annulate and present about midway from anterior margin; marginal pronotal stria complete around lateral and anterior margins; lateral submarginal pronotal stria complete, pronotal disk weakly impressed along its inner edge; elytron with single, complete epipleural stria; outer subhumeral stria interrupted at middle, inner absent; all dorsal striae finely impressed as a series of punctures, complete, with 4th arched to sutural, 5th not quite attaining basal arch; pygidia densely punctate; prosternal keel emarginate at base, striae separated at base, sinuate to united apex; prosternal lobe rounded, with marginal stria complete; mesoventrite produced, its marginal stria complete, continued by postmesocoxal stria toward anterior third of mesepimeron; mesometaventral stria weakly impressed, bluntly angulate at middle; lateral metaventral stria diverging to side, barely separated from postmesocoxal; 1st abdominal ventrite with incomplete lateral stria along inner edge of metacoxa; all ventrites punctate; all tibia slightly broadened; protibia with outer margin strongly dentate, bearing four or five marginal spines; protarsal setae of male not flattened; meso- and metatibiae slightly broadened, mesotibia with several conspicuous spines along outer margins, those of metatibia fewer and finer. Male: basal piece 1/3 length of tegmen; tegmen narrow at base, weakly and unevenly expanded to near apex, apices rounded; tegmen flattened, mostly straight but apically curved in lateral view; medioventral process present, projecting at basal fourth; median lobe ~ 1/2 tegmen length, basal apodemes abruptly narrowed at bases.

Etymology.

This species name is a play on the full binomial, together forming - ter ifficus, in reference to its attractive morphology.

Distribution.

This species only known from two localities, in the Andean foothills of central Peru and Bolivia.

Remarks.

This species seems to be part of a monophyletic lineage, also comprising the following three species. Phelister ifficus is much more densely punctate than the most similar of them, P. vazdemelloi , as well as more elongate, yet not markedly flattened or laterally explanate like P. genieri and P. marginatus are. The two available specimens of this species differ slightly in the appearance of the prescutellar area, the Peruvian specimen having a very weak depression, and the Bolivian one having only a tiny smooth area with a puncture.

Figures

Map 8. Collecting records for Phelister vazdemelloi (black circles), P. praedatoris (white star), P. ifficus (black squares), P. genieri (hexagon), and P. marginatus (black stars).

Figure 11. A, b Phelister sculpturatus: A dorsal habitus B ventral habitus C, D P. tunki: C dorsal habitus D ventral habitus E, F P. praedatoris: E dorsal habitus F ventral habitus G, H P. ifficus: G dorsal habitus H ventral habitus.

Figure 12. Male genitalia A, B Phelister sculpturatus: A aedeagus, dorsal B aedeagus, lateral C, D P. praedatoris: C aedeagus, dorsal D aedeagus, lateral E, F P. ifficus: E aedeagus, dorsal F aedeagus, lateral.