Microserica soppongensis, Ahrens, Dirk, 2005

Ahrens, Dirk, 2005, Description of the two new Microserica species from Laos and Thailand (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Melolonthinae: Sericini), Zootaxa 1064, pp. 31-37 : 34-36

Microserica soppongensis sp. n. ( Fig. 1 D–F)

Type material. Holotype: ɗ “THAI­N 23.–27.v.1999 Mae Hong Son prov. 19°27’N 98°20’E SE of Soppong, 1500 m, D. Hauck leg.” ( MMBC via TICB). Paratypes: 1 ɗ “ THAI 1–8.V.1993 Soppong Pai 1800 m Pacholátko & Dembicky leg.” (CA), 2 ɗɗ, 3 && “ Thailand: Mae Hong Son Prov. Pai­Pangmapka Dist. border 1500–1650 m 19°26’N, 98°19’E, 28­v­2000 D. Yanenga” ( UCRC, CA).

Holotype description. Length: 4.9 mm, length of elytra: 2.7 mm, width: 2.5 mm. Body oblong, black, legs dark brown, elytra reddish brown, elytra with sutural and lateral intervals black, dorsal surface dull, dorsal surface nearly glabrous. Head: Labroclypeus almost semicircular, widest at base with lateral margins in basal half subparallel, strongly convex, convergent anteriorly; anterior angles strongly rounded; lateral border and ocular canthus producing a distinct blunt angle; anterior and lateral margin weakly reflexed; anterior margin distinctly sinuate medially; surface weakly convex medially, shiny, with double punctation; punctures coarse, sparse, each bearing a long, erect seta, mixed with fine glabrous punctures. Frontoclypeal suture indistinct, weakly curved, not elevated; smooth area anterior to eye as wide as long. Ocular canthus moderately long, broad, with fine, dense punctures and a single terminal seta. Frons with fine, moderately dense punctures; glabrous (except for a few erect setae adjacent to eyes). Eyes small, ratio of diameter / interocular width: 0.4. Antenna with ten antennomeres, dark yellow; club brown with five equal in length antennomeres; club twice as long as the remaining antennomeres combined, strongly reflexed at apex externally. Prementum distinctly elevated, convex. Pronotum: widest at base; lateral margins in posterior half almost straight and subparallel; in anterior half straight, strongly convergent; anterior angles strongly produced, acute; posterior angles blunt, weakly rounded; anterior margin weakly convex medially with a distinct, fine marginal line; basal margin without marginal line. Pronotal surface with dense, fine punctation, each puncture bearing a minute setae; anterior and lateral borders setaceous; basal margin of hypomeron not produced ventrally, not transversely sulcate anterior to base. Scutellum : slightly longer than wide; apex weakly pointed; with fine, dense punctures, punctures with minute setae. Elytra: moderately oblong, widest medially; striae distinctly impressed and finely densely punctate; intervals weakly convex with fine, moderately dense punctures mainly concentrated along the striae; punctures on odd intervals with a few short setae. Epipleural edge robust, ending at the moderately convex external apical angle of elytra; epipleura densely setaceous, weakly curved in anterior third of elytra; apical border chitinous, without short microtrichomes. Ve n te r: surface dull with fine, dense punctures; metasternum sparsely setose. Metacoxa nearly glabrous (with a few robust setae laterally). Abdominal sternites with distinct transverse row of coarse punctures bearing thick setae between fine, dense punctation; tegument of sternites without minute transverse polygons (magnification 60x); penultimate sternite without longitudinally impressed line. Mesosternum between mesocoxae narrower than mesofemur with irregularly scattered strong setae. Ratio of length of metepisternum / metacoxa: 1 / 1.44. Pygidium moderately convex, shiny; base dull; covered with fine, dense punctures; punctures with minute setae; setae longer along apical margin; surface without smooth midline. Legs: slender with shiny surface. Femora with two longitudinal rows of setae; with fine, dense, setose punctures. Anterior edge of metafemur acute, lacking an adjacent serrated line; posterior margin weakly convex with a few fine setae medially, weakly widened in apical half ventrally, margin smooth ventrally and dorsally, with short setae. Metatibia moderately slender, long; widest at apex; ratio width / length: 1 / 3.5; dorsal margin sharply carinate, smooth with two groups of spines, the basal group at one third, apical one at two thirds of metatibial length; basally with a few single spines in punctures; lateral face longitudinally convex, almost smooth, with a few fine punctures beside dorsal and ventral margins; ventral edge serrated, with three long, strong, equally spaced spines; medial face with dense, fine punctures; interior apex weakly concavely sinuate adjacent to tarsal articulation. Tarsomeres dorsally glabrous, smooth; basal tarsomeres glabrous ventrally; metatarsomeres dorsally without longitudinal impressions, ventrally with a strongly serrated ridge adjacent to a fine longitudinal carina; laterally without a strong longitudinal carina; first metatarsomere slightly shorter than the following two tarsomeres combined, slightly longer than the upper tibial spur. Protibia short, bidentate. Protarsal claws symmetrical, basal tooth of inner protarsal claw sharply pointed apically. Aedeagus: Fig. 1 D–F.

Var ia t io n. Length: 4.8–5.0 mm, length of elytra: 2.7–2.8 mm, width: 2.5–2.6 mm. Antennal club in female with three antennomeres, as long as the remaining antennomeres combined.

Diagnosis. Microserica soppongensis is similar in habitus to the Anomalophylla species with bicolored elytra. However, the new species differs from Anomalophylla in the following character states (1) basal tooth of interior protarsal claw sharply pointed; (2) tegument of abdominal sternites (60x magnification) without fine mesh pattern formed by microtrichomes; (3) median longitudinal impression on last and penultimate abdominal sternite absent; and (4) phallobase laterally at left side not produced. From the closely related M. panzona , M. soppongensis may be distinguished by the bicolored elytra, the more slender body, as well as by the form of the right paramere (which is not produced medially on the dorsal margin).

Etymology. The new species is named after the type locality of Soppong.

Figures

FIGURE 1. (A – C) Microserica panzona sp. n. (holotype); (D – F) M. soppongensis sp. n. (holotype); (A, D) aedeagus, left side lateral view; (B, E) parameres, dorsal view; (C, F) aedeagus, right side lateral view. Scale bar = 0.5 mm.