Canthophorus wagneri hyrcanicus n. ssp. (Figures 6 R, 6 S, 7 J)

Type material

Holotype: Turkmenistan, Balkan velayat, Magtymguly etrap, top of Syunt Mt. [38°31 ʹ 16.1 ʺ N 56°22 ʹ 10.1 ʺ E], 3. V.1974 (G. Medvedev), J (ZISP) .

Paratypes: Turkmenistan: Balkan velayat, Magtymguly etrap: “Khazly [?]” [ravine Khozly at Sumbar Riv. б 38°12 ʹ 17.5 ʺ N 57°05 ʹ 27.8 ʺ E], 13.VII.1973 [collector unknown], 1J (ZISP) ; top of Syunt Mt., 3. V.1974 (G. Medvedev), 1♀ (ZISP); Kopet Dag Mt. Range, “Kara-kala” [ Garrygala] env., 28.VII.1974 (Aksent’ ev), 1♀ (ZMUM) ; Ahal velayat, Baharly etrap, gorge urochishche Ipay-Kala [38°20 ʹ 20.1 ʺ N 57° 08 ʹ 09.9 ʺ E], 19.VII.1973 (collector unknown), 1J (ZISP) .

Diagnosis

Ventral lobe of conjunctiva in ventral view slightly widening distally, its apex evenly rounded, with small notch in middle of apical margin; ventral wall of lobe in apical half with narrow desclerotised groove (Figure 6 R); dorsal wall of lobe entirely membranous, with barely noticeable carina and very small impressions at its sides (Figure 6 S). Spicule at conjunctival dorsolateral lobes (Figure 7 J) rather widely curved at base, long, protruding beyond apex of denticle on spicule basal plate slightly less than half of length; beyond middle, spicule curved strongly and sharply; extreme apex of spicule not curved, obliquely truncated. Denticle on anterior end of spicule basal plate longer than in nominotypical subspecies, more or less spear-shaped at apex, directed dorsolaterad and anteriad.

Measurements

Body 6.10–7.65 in length, 3.75–4.85 in width; pronotum 3.35–4.25 in width; head 1.47–1.71 in width; ocular index 3.41–3.68; length of antennal segments I–V: 0.32–0.39: 0.50–0.63: 0.57–0.70: 0.78–0.92: 0.87–0.98.

Remarks

Asanova (1964) distinguished one Turkmenian male from the other specimens of C. wagneri examined in her work by the shape of “the hook of penal appendage”, but she did not decide on an attribution of a taxonomic status to this “deviation” for want of material. The specimen examined by her (“Kara-Kala, Kopet-Dag, 26. V.1935 (Ushatinskaya), 1J”) is currently absent in the ZISP collection, but its spicule figured in Asanova’ s paper completely corresponds to the diagnosis of my new subspecies.

Etymology

The subspecific epithet is derived from the Ancient Greek Ὑρκανία, the name of a satrapy in the Achaemenid Empire at the south-east coast of the Caspian Sea in the territory of present-day Northern Iran and the extreme south-west of Turkmenistan that encloses the type locality of the subspecies.

Distribution

Figure 15. South-Western Turkmenistan (Western Kopet Dag).