Xantholinus (Helicophallus) chiosicus, Assing, 2015

Assing, Volker, 2015, On the Staphylinidae of the Greek island Chios (Insecta Coleoptera), Linzer biologische Beiträge 47 (1), pp. 43-55 : 50-53

Xantholinus (Helicophallus) chiosicus nov.sp. ( Figs 1-5 )

T y p e m a t e r i a l: Holotype 3: " GREECE - Chios [18], Oros Pelinneon: NW-slope, 1000 m, sifted 38°33'30''N, 26°00'02''E, 28.XII.2014, V. Assing / Holotypus 3 Xantholinus chiosicus sp.n. det. V. Assing 2015 " (cAss) . Paratypes: 233, 1♀: same data as holotype (cAss) ; 1♀: " GREECE - Chios [6], Oros Pelinneon: N-slope, 38°33'58''N, 26°00'38''E 700 m, fungi & stones, 24.XII.2014, V. Assing " (cAss) ; 1♀: " GREECE - Chios [7], Oros Pelinneon: N-slope, 38°33'42''N, 26°00'52''E 850 m, grass sifted, 24.XII.2014, V. Assing " (cAss) ; 13: " GREECE - Chios [1], S Fita, 38°30'48''N, 26°00'01''E, 450 m, pine forest, sifted, 22.XII.2014, V. Assing " (cAss) .

E t y m o l o g y: The name (adjective) is derived from Chios, where the species is presumably endemic.

D e s c r i p t i o n: Body length 9.5-10.8 mm; length of forebody 4.6-5.3 mm. Coloration: body distinctly bicoloured, head and abdomen blackish; pronotum and elytra bright-reddish; legs pale-reddish; antennae blackish-brown, with antennomeres I-III reddish.

Head ( Fig. 1 ) 1.21-1.25 times as long as broad, weakly to distinctly dilated posteriad; punctation fine and sparse; interstices without microsculpture. Eyes small, 0.15-0.21 times as long as postocular region in dorsal view.

Pronotum ( Fig. 1 ) 1.40-1.45 times as long as broad and 0.85-0.90 times as broad as head, widest at anterior angles; dorsal series composed of 10-15 punctures each; interstices without microsculpture.

Elytra ( Fig. 1 ) short, approximately 0.6 times as long as pronotum. Hind wings reduced.

Abdomen broader than elytra; interstices with distinct microsculpture composed of transverse meshes; posterior margin of tergite VII without palisade fringe.

3: aedeagus ( Fig. 2 ) approximately 1.4 mm long; internal tube ( Figs 3-4 ) proximally with three characteristic series of spines.

C o m p a r a t i v e n o t e s: The subgenus Helicophallus COIFFAIT, 1956 is represented in the East Mediterranean by numerous micropterous species with more or less restricted distributions. The geographically closest consubgeners are X. moreanus ASSING, 2006 ( Greece: Pelopónnisos) and X. chersonesicus ASSING, 2007 ( Turkey: Çanakkale). Helicophallus species are unknown from other Aegean islands and from adjacent provinces of Turkey (Izmir, Manisa, Aydın, Muğla). Xantholinus chiosicus is distinguished from both X. moreanus and X. chersonesicus by the blackish abdomen (in X. moreanus and X. chersonesicus usually reddish to dark-brown) and by the shapes of the series of spines in the aedeagus. For illustrations of X. chersonesicus and X. moreanus see ASSING (2006c, 2007c).

D i s t r i b u t i o n a n d n a t u r a l h i s t o r y: The known distribution is confined to Oros Pelinneon (including its southern extensions) in the north of Chios. Five of the seven type specimens were sifted from oak and pine litter. Two females were collected from under stones in moist stony pastures with shrubs and on a slope with scattered Quercus sp. All the localities are calcareous and stony. The altitudes range from 450 to 1000 m. The type locality is illustrated in Fig. 5 .

Figures

Figs 1-4: Xantholinus chiosicus nov.sp.: (1) forebody; (2) aedeagus in lateral view; (3) internal structures of aedeagus in squeeze preparation; (4) proximal portion of internal structures of aedeagus in squeeze preparation. Scale bars: 1: 1.0 mm; 2-4: 0.5 mm.

Fig. 5: Type locality of Xantholinus chiosicus nov.sp. (altitude: approximately 1000 m).