Hypotelus laevis ( Solsky, 1872 )

Bortoluzzi, Sidnei, Caron, Edilson & Ribeiro-Costa, Cibele S., 2017, Revision and phylogeny of Hypotelus Erichson: a Neotropical genus of minute rove beetles (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae, Piestinae), Zootaxa 4273 (4), pp. 451-487 : 472-473

Hypotelus laevis ( Solsky, 1872)

( Figs. 18 , 23, 24 , 30 , 103, 104, 105 , 113 )

Piestus laevis Solsky, 1872: 311 (original description: “Monte-Rico ( Pérou)”); Blackwelder, 1944: 100 (distribution, error: Solsky, 1871); Herman, 2001: 1791 (distribution).

Piestus (Piestus) laevis: Bernhauer & Schubert, 1910: 7 (distribution, error: Solsky, 1871). Piestus (Eccoptopiestus) laevis: Scheerpeltz 1952: 295 (characters, distribution, error: Solsky, 1871). Hypotelus laevis: Caron et al., 2012: 550 (species name transferred to Hypotelus , neotype designated, redescription, notes,

distribution).

Type material. Hypotelus laevis ( Solsky, 1872) , neotype deposited in IRSNB, details in Caron et al. (2012).

Additional material. See Appendix 2.

Diagnosis. Hypotelus laevis may be easily distinguished from other species of Hypotelus by a pair of broad and pointed frontal processes on the head, as long as scape ( Figs. 18 , 23–24 ) and well-developed dorsal teeth on the mandibles, in both sexes, forming a bifurcate apex ( Fig. 30 ).

Redescription. BL: 3.0– 3.6 mm, BW: 0.8–0.9 mm. Body slightly convex; light brown to dark brown with apical one-quarter of elytra darker ( Fig. 18 ). Dorsal integument of head and pronotum with fine punctures and undulate microstriae; elytra with dispersed fine punctures and only one longitudinal finely punctate stria close to elytral suture.

Male. Head. Supra-antennal area prominent joined with pair of broad and pointed frontal processes, as long as scape, and basal distance between processes narrower than basal width of each one ( Fig. 23 ). Antennae reaching half-length of elytra; antennomere 3 longer than 2, 5–11 gradually increasing in length toward antennal apex.

Mandibles curved and bifurcate at apex, dorsal teeth shorter than ventral ( Fig. 30 ); inner margin with one acute tooth at middle. Mentum 2 times as wide as long.

Thorax. Pronotum wider than long (PW/PL=1.3); anterior angles rounded and not projected; apical two thirds with somewhat curved sides and basal third gradually narrowing toward the base; with complete internal midlongitudinal ridge and slight longitudinal median sulcus on almost entire length of pronotum. Elytra somewhat longer than wide (EL/BW=1.2), covering partially or entirely abdominal tergite 3.

Abdomen. Tergite 8 with posterior margin rounded; sternite 8 with posterior margin narrower and rounded; tergite 9 with short ventral struts; tergite 10 with some long setae on apex and posterior margin with short fringes; sternite 9 with posterior margin truncate and with two pairs of long setae. Median lobe of aedeagus with bulbous base in ventral view and curved shape in lateral view, with apex a little more expanded and rounded (see Caron et al. 2012, Figs. 246–247).

Female. Similar to male except for: pair of frontal processes slightly less developed than on male (24); sternite 8 with short setae on posterior margin; tergite 9 without ventral struts; tergite 10 with posterior margin weakly pigmented, with short fringes and four setae on each side at apex ( Fig. 104 ); bursa copulatrix elongated ( Fig. 103 ); ovipositor consisting of a pair of weakly pigmented hemisternites and a pair of more apical coxites, and with many long setae on apex; spermatheca as Fig. 105 .

Geographical records. Bolivia and Peru (Cusco) ( Fig. 113 ).

Biological notes. Hypotelus laevis has been collected on rotten palm and by Winkler extraction of leaf litter.

Figures

FIGURE 113. Geographical records of Hypotelus. Hypotelus laevis, Bolivia and Peru; H. micans, Brazil; H. praecox, Colombia and Ecuador; H. castaneus sp. nov., Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela and Peru; H. scheerpeltzi sp. nov., Peru. Countries without dots but colored represent the occurrence but no locality given.

FIGURES 9 – 19. Habitus, dorsal view. 9, Hypotelus insulanus, syntype, male; 10, H. praecox, lectotype, female; 11, H. scheerpeltzi sp. nov., holotype, male; 12, H. testaceus, syntype, male; 13, H. melanodelta sp. nov., holotype, female; 14, H. castaneus sp. nov., holotype, male; 15, H. brevitarsus sp. nov., holotype, male; 16, H. corniculatus sp. nov., holotype, female; 17, H. marginatus, syntype, male; 18, H. laevis, male; 19, H. andinus. Scale bars = 1 mm.

FIGURES 20 – 24. Head and pronotum, dorsal view. 20, Hypotelus castaneus sp. nov., male; 21, H. castaneus sp. nov., female; 22, H. corniculatus sp. nov., female; 23, H. laevis, male; 24, H. laevis, female. Scale bars = 0.5 mm.

FIGURES 25 – 35. 25 – 27, Hypotelus pusillus. 25, antenna, male; 26, antenna, female; 27, labrum, dorsal view, left epipharynx and right setae removed; 28, H. castaneus sp. nov., labrum, dorsal view, left epipharynx and right setae removed; 29, H. pusillus, mandibles, dorsal view, right prostheca removed; 30, H. laevis, mandibles, dorsal view, right prostheca removed; 31, H. pusillus, labium, ventral view, left setae of the ligula and right setae of the mentum removed; 32, H. castaneus sp. nov., labium, ventral view, left setae of the ligula and right setae of the mentum removed; 33, H. pusillus, maxilla, ventral view; 34 – 35, H. pusillus, pronotum, lateral and ventral view, respectively. Scale bars: Figs. 25 – 26 = 0.5 mm; Figs. 27 – 33 = 0.125 mm; Figs. 34 – 35 = 0.25 mm.

FIGURES 83 – 108. Tergites in dorsal view, right setae removed, and genitalia of female. 83 – 84, Hypotelus pusillus. 83, tergite 9, 10 and bursa copulatrix; 84, spermatheca. 85 – 86, H. insulanus. 85, tergite 10; 86, spermatheca. 87, H. marginatus, spermatheca. 88 – 90, H. testaceus. 88, bursa copulatrix; 89, tergite 10; 90, spermatheca. 91, H. melanodelta sp. nov., spermatheca. 92 – 94, H. praecox. 92, bursa copulatrix; 93, tergite 10; 94, spermatheca, 95 – 97, H. castaneus sp. nov. 95, bursa copulatrix; 96, tergite 10; 97, spermatheca. 98 – 99, H. brevitarsus sp. nov. 98, tergite 10; 99, spermatheca. 100 – 102, H. corniculatus sp. nov. 100, bursa copulatrix; 101, tergite 10; 102, spermatheca. 103 – 105, H. laevis. 103, bursa copulatrix; 104, tergite 10; 105, spermatheca. 106 – 108, H. scheerpeltzi sp. nov. 106, bursa copulatrix; 107, tergite 10; 108, spermatheca. Scale bars = 0.125 mm.