Lepidocyrtus barbulus sp. nov.

Figs 18–32, Tabs 1–4

Type material. Holotype: female on slide (CRBA 7880), Kalamafka, Crete (Greece), 502 m above sea level, lat/ long coordinates N35.080339 E25.650831 (LOC191 see Table 1), on soil litter-fall, hand collecting, 6.iv.2009, leg. E. Mateos. Paratypes (27 specimens on slides, see Table 1 for collecting data): Crete, 9 spec. from LOC169, 2 spec. from LOC171, 2 spec. from LOC177; Naxos, 1 spec. from LOC174, 8 spec. from LOC193; Paros, 2 spec. from LOC196, 2 spec. from LOC198; Rhodos, 1 spec. from LOC180. Type material (holotype, one female paratype slide CRBA 7881 from LOC177, and one male paratype slide CRBA 7882 from LOC171) saved in collection of the Centre de Recursos de Biodiversitat Animal, Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona, Spain (http:// www.crba.ub.edu); other slides kept in the E. Mateos’ collection.

Other material. Crete: 36 spec. from LOC169, 8 spec. from LOC171, 5 spec. from LOC177, 4 spec. from LOC191; Naxos: 1 spec. from LOC174, 19 spec. from LOC193; Paros: 2 spec. from LOC196, 7 spec. from LOC198 (Table 1). All specimens preserved in alcohol and kept in the E. Mateos’ collection.

Etymology. The species name refers to the presence of many labial setae as a mode of beard. In Latin “with beard” says “ barbulus ”.

Description. Maximum body length (without head and furca) 2.6 mm. Body yellowish, with dark blue pigment on anterior region of the head, ant.II–IV, and cx.I–III (Fig. 18). The two specimens from locality LOC174 also with diffuse violet pigment on ant.I, lateral and ventral head, and on th.II to abd.IV (Fig. 19). All specimens with dark pigmented ocular areas. When alive the whole animal is dark silver due to light refraction on the scales covering the cuticle. Mesothorax slightly projected over the head.

Antenna with scales on ant.I–II and ant.III basal half (Fig. 20). Antenna:cephalic diagonal between 1.8 and 2.3. Ratio ant.I:II:III:IV such as 1:2:2:2.8. Basis of ant.I dorsally with three microchaetae arranged in triangle. Ant.III organ composed by two subcilindrical and curved sensory rods. Without apical ant.IV bulb. 8+8 eyes of equal size.

Prelabral and labral setae in typical number 4/5,5,4. Prelaberal setae ciliated, labral setae smooth. Inverted Ushaped labral apical intrusion. Four rounded labral papillae with three or four denticles (Fig 21). Outer maxillary palp with two smooth macrochaetae (Fig. 22). Lateral process (sensu Fjellberg 1999) of outer labial papilla curved, tip not reaching the apex of the papilla (Fig. 23).

Labium anterior row (a1–a5) formed by smooth macrochaetae, posterior row formed by ciliated macrochaetae, with three or more M setae and two or more R setae (M1-4 R*1-5 E L1 L2), being all R setae smaller than the other (marked with *) (Fig. 24). Ventral cephalic groove with 4+4 ciliated macrochaetae and 4+4 scales.

The dorsal macrochaetae formula is R0R1R2So/00/0101+3, with a pair of supplementary macrochaetae R1s between R0 and R1. Maximum number of macrochaetae A on the head 18+18. Interocular chaetotaxy with s, t, p ciliated setae, and 5 scales at most (Fig. 25).

Abd.II–III chaetotaxy as in Figs 26–27. Abd. II seta ml present, abd. III seta d3 present. All setae associated with the trichobothria on abd.II–III fan-shaped.

Abd.IV dorsal and dorsolateral macrochaetae of two distinct morphologies: B4, B5, B6, C1, D3, E2, E3, E4, F1, F2, F3 broader and with broad sockets; T6, T7, D2, De 3, E1, E4p, Fe4, Fe5 shorter or longer but always thinner and with sockets of minor diameter (Fig. 28). Macrochaeta F2 online or below macrochaeta E3. Trichobothrium T2 without accessory seta s. Trichobothrial complex setae (D1, a, m, pi and pe) fan-shaped (Fig. 29).

Legs with scales except claws. Trochanteral organ formed by a maximum of 31 smooth straight setae (Fig. 30). Unguis with basal paired teeth at 50% of the inner edge, and with two inner unpaired teeth at 72% (the bigger) and 87% of the inner edge respectively. Unguiculus lanceolate with finely serrate outer margin. Tibiotarsal tenent hair spatulate (Fig. 31).

Furca with scales on dorsal and ventral surfaces. Ratio manubrium:dens:mucro such as 17:19:1. Manubrial plate with 3 inner setae and a maximum of 17 external setae (Fig. 32).

Ecology and distribution. The studied populations have been found in forest litter fall; only in one locality the specimens have been collected on herbaceous vegetation (Table 1).

Discussion. Ellis (1976) studying L. lignorum from Greece indicated symmetric duplications of labial setae M and R in the biggest specimens, with labial chaetotaxic formulae as M1M2M3R1R2R3EL1L2. The present study has shown that specimens referred by Ellis actually correspond to the new species L. barbulus sp. nov. Between the (1)based on specimens from Spain; (2)seta present on one specimen European Lepidocyrtus the labial chaetotaxy is a very conservative character and only the species L. curvicollis Bourlet, 1839 (Dallai 1967, 1969) and L. fimetarius Gisin, 1964 (Wang et al. 2003) show intraspecific variation. Also Mateos (2008a) pointed out that several specimens of L. tellecheae from Spain may have an extra seta M on one side of the labium. So, the constant presence of more than two M and more than one R setae in labial chaetotaxy is a diagnostic character of the L. barbulus sp. nov. Also, the presence of pigmented specimens in one locality is an indication that the new species has chromatic variability in the region. Of the two pigmented specimens collected, one of them was examined by microscope and exhibited the same characters than unpigmented ones.

By dorsal macrochaetae chaetotaxy and morphology of unguis and empodium, L. barbulus sp. nov. is very close to species L. instratus, L. juliae sp. nov., L. lignorum, L. tellecheae and L. violaceus (see Mateos 2008a). Of these five species, L. barbulus sp. nov. can be differentiated by the constant presence of more than two M setae (3– 4) and more than one R setae (2–5) on labial chaetotaxy. The most similar species is L. tellecheae, from which the new species can be also differentiated by having abd.IV macrochaeta F2 online or below macrochaeta E3, lower C1–B4/B4–B6 relation on abd.IV, and labral papillae with three or four denticles (instead of only one denticle in L. tellecheae) (Table 2).