Lepanus latheticus Matthews, 1974

Gunter, Nicole L. & Weir, Thomas A., 2019, Revision of Australian species of the dung beetle genus Lepanus (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae): description of 10 new species from the L. australis, L. monteithi, and L. villosus species groups, Zootaxa 4695 (3), pp. 201-252 : 219-220

Lepanus latheticus Matthews, 1974

( Figs 1J , 2E , 3E , 4E )

Lepanus latheticus Matthews, 1974: 109 .

Type material examined. Holotype: ♂ “Little Crystal Ck., N.Q. 30. V.1969, Ferrar-Huppatz” / “ Lepanus latheticus Det. 1972 M., E.G. Matthews HOLOTYPE ” / “ HOLOTYPE ” / “ ANIC Database No. 25 057917” [18°59’0”S, 146°16’0”E] in ANIC (teneral aedeagus) . Paratypes (2 ♀): “Little Crystal Ck., N.Q. 30. V.1969, Ferrar-Huppatz” / “ Lepanus latheticus Det. 1972 M., E.G. Matthews PARATYPE ” [18°59’0”S, 146°16’0”E], (25-057918 2 specimens ♀ in ANIC) .

Other material examined. Fifty specimens from 17 locations were examined. Mount Cook National Park, [15°29’0”S, 145°16’0”E], 10–12.v.1981, A. Calder & J. Feehan (25-059209 1 specimen in ANIC); Bloomfield Road via Helenvale, Australian Biological Resources Study Site 4, [145°19’0”E, 15°48’0”S], 20–27.vii.1974, G.B. Monteith & D. Cook (25-015589 1 specimen in QM) ; Quaid Road , N of Mareeba, top of range, [16°44’0”S, 145°29’0”E], 16.iii–14.iv.1998, S.D. De Faveri & K.H. Halfpapp (25-058576 3 specimens in QDPC) ; Quaid Road , N of Mareeba, top of range, [16°44’0”S, 145°29’0”E], 30.viii.1998, S.D. De Faveri & K.H. Halfpapp (25-058578 2 specimens in QDPC) ; Quaid Road , N of Mareeba, top of range, [16°44’0”S, 145°29’0”E], 5.i–9.ii.1998, S.D. De Faveri & K.H. Halfpapp (25-058577 2 specimens in QDPC) ; Quaid Road , N of Mareeba, top of range, [16°44’0”S, 145°29’0”E], 10.ii–10.iii.1998, S.D. De Faveri & K.H. Halfpapp (25-058575 2 specimens in QDPC) ; Quaid Road , Mareeba, [16°44’11”S, 145°28’37”E], 14.iv–1.vi.1998, S.D. De Faveri & K.H. Halfpapp (25-058574 3 specimens in QDPC) ; Cairns (general), [16°53’0”S, 145°44’0”E], 4.ii.1975, H.F. & A.T. Howden (CMNEN-00030174 in CMNC) ; Fitzroy Island , Site 2, 16°56’8”S, 145°59’16”E, 10.ii–20.iv.1999, (T 79182 in ANIC, T79183, T 79184 in QM) ; Fitzroy Island Site 4, 16°56’8”S, 145°59’5”E, 10.ii–20.iv.1999, (T 79185 in QM) ; 19.5 km ESE of Mareeba , [17°4’0”S, 145°36’0”E], 20.xi–24.xii.1986, R.I. Storey (25- 032598 1 specimen in DPIM) ; 19.5 km ESE of Mareeba , [17°4’0”S, 145°36’0”E], 30.x–20.xi.1986, R.I. Storey (25-059208 1 specimen in ANIC) ; Bramston Beach via Innisfail, [17°21’0”S, 146°1’0”E], 18.ix–11.xi.1987, A. Walford-Huggins (25-059210 1 specimen in ANIC) ; S1 Mission Beach , [17°52’0”S, 146°4’0”E], 40 m, 29.i–4.iii.1996, M. Cermak (25-059212 1 specimen in ANIC) ; base of Kirrama Range via Kennedy, 18°13’0”S, 145°47’0”E], 8.v.1974, R.I. Storey (25- 032597 3 specimens in QDPC, 25-058480 7 specimens, 25-058481 3 specimens in QM, 25-059207 1 specimen, 25-059217 1 specimen in ANIC, CMNEN-00030172-00030173 in CMNC) ; Scraggy Point , Hinchinbrook Island, [18°17’0”S, 146°6’0”E], 15.i.1989, S. Shattuck (25-059213 1 specimen in ANIC) ; Little Ramsay Bay , Hinchinbrook Island, [18°19’0”S, 146°18’0”E], 11–19.viii.1975, E.N. Marks, (25-058482 1 specimen in QM) ; Wallaman Falls , 18°36’10”S, 145°48’21”E 5– 12.ii.1996, (T 54587 in ANIC, T54588, T 54589 in QM) ; Little Crystal Creek [18°59’0”S, 146°16’0”E], 30.v.1969, P. Ferrar & R.J. Huppatz (25-059211 2 specimens in ANIC) ; 12 km WSW of Paluma , [19°0’0”S, 146°3’0”E], 13.i–14.ii.1989, R.I. Storey & Brown (25-059204 2 specimens in ANIC) ; 12 km WSW of Paluma , [19°0’0”S, 146°3’0”E], 16.xii.1988 – 13.i.1989, R.I. Storey & Dickinson, (25-059206 1 specimen in ANIC) ; Ewan Road , Paluma, 19°0’43”S, 146°7’34”E, 900 m, 14–15.iii.2012, G.B. Monteith (25-05320 1 specimen also as COL 2406 in ANIC) ; 9 km W of Paluma , [19°1’0”S, 146°4’0”E], 10.i.1989, R.I. Storey (25-059205 2 specimens in ANIC) .

Description. Holotype is a teneral male, uniformly light brown in colour. One of the paratypes is also uniformly light brown while the other is dark brown. Antennal clubs grey.

Total length: 2.2–2.6 mm. Holotype measurements: total length 2.6 mm, elytral width 1.5 mm. Note: the head and pronotum of the holotype is separated from the rest of the body and carded, thus measurements are an approximation.

Male. Head. Surface with light punctation, setae absent. Basal carina absent. Dorsal part of the eyes narrow, separated by an interocular space approximately 13–14 times the eye width (68: 5); eye canthus dividing eye. Head 1.6 x wider than long (43:27).

Prothorax: Pronotal surface with very fine punctation anteriorly to fine punctation posteriorly. Anterior angles almost 90°. Basal margin slightly angulate. Hypomeral surface smooth. Hypomeral striae about half the length of the hypomeron and very close to the lateral margin almost appearing double. Pronotum 1.6 x wider than long (68:42).

Elytra: Surface smooth with lightly impressed, impunctate striae, striae 1–3 or 1–4 appearing double, striae 5–7 appearing sngle; intervals very finely punctate with very superficial setae. Stria 6 extending to elytral base and stria 7 converging towards stria 6 at the base. Stria 8 confined to groove posteriorly. Elytra 1.1 x wider than long (82:73).

Legs: Front edge of protibiae deeply angulate.

Abdomen: Pygidium simple, very finely punctate, often appearing impunctate. Abdominal ventrites reticulate right across. Ventrite 6 punctate.

Pterothorax: Medial lobe of metaventrite very finely punctate and broadly margined between the mesocoxae. Lateral lobe of metaventrite punctate, with inner border beside metacoxae anteriorly curving to meet lateral border. Mesoventrite with minute notch anteriorly. Mesoventrite smooth and nitid. Mesepimeron smooth. Metanepisternum reticulate.

Female. As per L. australis species group.

Distribution. Known from a variety of habitats including rainforest, wet sclerophyll forest, and coastal melaleuca swamps of the Australian Wet Tropics from Cooktown to Paluma in the Australian Wet Tropics bioregion ( Fig. 6B ). Specimens have been collected from sea-level to 900 m elevation.

Comments. The majority of specimens have been collected in flight intercept traps but some have been collect- ed in baited pitfall traps (mushroom and dung), in berlesed leaf litter and at light.A recent study on bait preference of Australian dung beetles listed L. latheticus from kangaroo and domestic fowl dung and vertebrate and invertebrate carrion, and suggests this species is a generalist feeder ( Ebert et al. 2019).

Two specimens identified as Lepanus latheticus were included in the phylogeny of Gunter et al. 2019, one from Paluma, which is close to the type locality (25-05320 1 specimen ♂ also as COL 2406 in ANIC), and one from Lambs Head, approximately 225 km north of the type locality (25- 063059 1 specimen ♂ in ANIC also as COL3025). These two specimens are genetically distinct, falling in two positions in the tree. The specimen from Paluma formed a relationship with an undescribed species from the L. palumensis species group while the specimen from Lambs Head is a teneral male and was recovered sister to L. dukungarri . Upon closer examinination, we believe the Lambs Head specimen fits more closely to L. dukungarri than L. latheticus . The diagnostic metafemoral expansion of L. dukungarri is absent and the pygidium and aedeagus are missing and as such, we cannot confirm with certainty the identity of this small teneral male. Thus we have not included it as material examined for either L. dukungarri or L. latheticus . These two species occur in the same geographic region and can most easily be differentiated by the degree of impression of the elytral striae and male characters including the shape of the metafemora and aedeagi. Matthews (1974) designated a specimen from Boar Pocket Road, November 1969 collected by G. Brooks as part of the paratype series of L. latheticus . This specimen (25-057919 x specimen ♂ in ANIC) is designated as a paratype of L. dukungarri new species in this revision on the basis of diagnostic external morphology and aedeagus.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Some diagnostic characters of the Lepanus australis species group. A, Male protibia of Lepanus eungella dotted line depicts triangular apical digit (grey arrow) and truncate front edge; B, female protibia of Lepanus eungella dotted line depicts truncate front edge, black arrow points to apical spur; C, male protibia of Lepanus australis dotted line depicts elongate apical digit (grey arrow) and deeply angulate front edge; D, female protibia of Lepanus australis dotted line depicts shortened apical digit (grey arrow) and deeply angulate front edge, black arrow points to apical spur; E, lateral view of Lepanus dukungarri white arrow points to row of punctures on metanepisternum; F, lateral view of Lepanus australis, dotted line indicates anteriorly straight inner border of lateral lobe of metaventrite, note the absence of puntures on metanepisternum and straight lower edge of elytral epipleura; G, lateral view of Lepanus oxleyi white arrow points to row of fine punctures on metanepisternum, grey arrow inducates curved lower edge of elytral epipleura; H, male metafemora of Lepanus dukungarri showing medial expansion; I, Head of Lepanus oxleyi white arrow points to interrupted basal carina; J, lateral view of Lepanus latheticus dotted line indicates anteriorly curved inner border of lateral lobe of metaventrite; K, Lepanus australis at bird droppings (image: Geoff Williams).

FIGURE 2. Habitus of species within the Lepanus australis species group. A, Lepanus australis; B, Lepanus burnetti; C, Lepanus dukungarri; D, Lepanus eungella; E, Lepanus latheticus; F, Lepanus oxleyi. All specimens in comparative scale. Scale bar 1 mm.

FIGURE 3. Left, dorsal, and right view of aedeagi of species within the Lepanus australis species group. A, Lepanus australis; B, Lepanus burnetti; C, Lepanus dukungarri; D, Lepanus eungella; E, Lepanus latheticus; F, Lepanus oxleyi. All specimens in comparative scale. Scale bar 0.2 mm.

FIGURE 4. Pygidial configuration of species within the Lepanus australis species group. A, Lepanus australis; B, Lepanus burnetti; C, Lepanus dukungarri; D, Lepanus eungella; E, Lepanus latheticus; F, Lepanus oxleyi. All specimens in comparative scale. Scale bar 1 mm.

FIGURE 6. Map of known records including predicted distribution estimated with BIOCLIM models for A, Lepanus dukungarri; B, Lepanus latheticus. QLD, Queensland.