Cephennodes (Cephennodes) popeye, Jałoszyński, 2017

Jałoszyński, Paweł, 2017, Ant-like stone beetles on the roof of the world. Cephenniini of Nepal and Bhutan (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae, Scydmaeninae), Zootaxa 4349 (1), pp. 1-120 : 19-21

Cephennodes (Cephennodes) popeye sp. n.

( Figs 33 , 47–48, 66–67, 88)

Type material. Holotype: BHUTAN (Paro District): ♂, one label: "West BHUTAN / Paro Distr., Chiley-La / 21.VI.1988, 3000 m / leg. C. Holzschuh" [white, printed] ( NME). Paratype: 1 ♂, same data as for holotype ( NME).

Diagnosis. BL ~ 1.6 mm; elytra long, EI 1.1 3–1.17; body reddish-brown with slightly darker head and pronotum; antennae unmodified; protibiae in male strongly modified, curved inwards, strongly thickened dorsoventrally and with long patch of dense spatulate setae on mesal surface; apical projection of median lobe in ventral view weakly narrowing distally, in lateral view strongly curved dorsobasally; each paramere with one apical and one subapical setae which are unequal in length and only slightly thickened.

Description. Body of male ( Fig. 33 ) dark reddish-brown with slightly darker head and pronotum, relatively slender, with distinct constriction between pronotum and elytra, moderately convex, covered with light brown setae; BL 1.58–1.60 mm.

Head subtrapezoidal, HL 0.23 mm, HW 0.36–0.38 mm; vertex and frons confluent and weakly convex; supraantennal tubercles distinct but weakly elevated; eyes moderately large, strongly convex, coarsely faceted. Punctures on frons and vertex small and shallow, with diffuse margins but distinct, separated by spaces about 0.5 × as wide as diameters of punctures; setae very short, sparse, suberect. Antennae moderately long and strongly thickened, AnL 0.75 mm; antennomeres relatively compactly assembled, pentamerous club sharply delimited and much longer than half AnL, surface of five terminal antennomeres matte, contrasting with glossy antennomeres I– VI; antennomere I about 1.3 × as long as broad; II distinctly narrower but only slightly shorter than I, 1.2 × as long as broad; III and IV subequal in shape, each slightly narrower than II and much shorter, slightly transverse, V slightly broader and longer than IV, transverse, VI indistinctly broader but not longer than V, transverse, VII much broader and distinctly longer than VI, strongly transverse, VIII and IX each subequal in shape, broader and slightly longer than VII, strongly transverse, X as broad as IX but much longer, about 1.1 × as long as broad, XI indistinctly broader than X, slightly longer than IX–X together, nearly 2.5 × as long as broad.

Pronotum in dorsal view subtrapezoidal, broadest near posterior third, PL 0.50 mm, PW 0.61 mm; pronotum strongly convex at middle and strongly flattened near each hind corner but the flattened area very small; anterior margin in strictly dorsal view slightly convex; lateral margins not microserrate, strongly rounded in anterior half and weakly so in posterior third; hind pronotal corners indistinctly obtuse-angled; posterior margin shallowly bisinuate; lateral carinae very narrow, fused with lateral margins; antebasal pits small and shallow, diffuse, each located distinctly closer to posterior than to lateral pronotal margin. Punctures on disc fine, inconspicuous, surface glossy; setae short and moderately dense, suberect.

Elytra elongate, oval, broadest between middle and anterior third, EL 0.85–0.88 mm, EW 0.75 mm, EI 1.13– 1.17. Humeral calli weakly elevated, elongate; subhumeral lines absent; basal pit on each elytron large and located in very short, deep, round basal impression; apices of elytra separately rounded. Punctures more distinct than those on pronotum and dense, but still only superficial and inconspicuous; setae similar to those on pronotum.

Hind wings not studied.

Metaventrite with indistinct postmesocoxal impressions, median area covered with fine punctures.

Protibiae (Figs 47–48) strongly thickened dorso-ventrally and curved inwards, with a long patch of dense spatulate setae on mesal surface.

Abdomen, middle and hind legs unmodified.

Aedeagus ( Figs 66–67 ) in ventral view with largely symmetrical median lobe broadest near base, AeL 0.48 mm, median lobe in ventral view with broadly and shallowly emarginate and distinctly asymmetrical distal margin; apical projection in ventral view strongly elongate and weakly narrowing distally, in lateral view strongly curved dorsally, with its tip directed proximally, curved portion long; each paramere with one apical and one subapical seta unequal in length, setae only slightly thickened.

Female. Unknown.

Distribution ( Fig. 88 ). Eastern Bhutan.

Etymology. Cephennodes popeye is named after the cartoon character Popeye the Sailor, in reference to the enlarged protibiae resembling Popeye's massive forearms.

Remarks. Among all known species of the C. excavatus group, C. popeye can be easily identified by its remarkable body shape, with the relatively long pronotum strongly narrowing anteriorly and distinctly narrower than elytra; by the strongly thickened antennal club longer than half AnL, with each of antennomeres VII–IX strongly transverse but X indistinctly elongate; strongly modified protibiae in males; and aedeagal structures.

The type locality written in the label as Chiley-La is more commonly spelled as Chele La (a mountain pass between Paro Valley and Haa Valley).

Figures

FIGURES 32 – 39. Dorsal habitus of Cephennodes (s. str.) bagmatianus sp. n. (32), C. (s. str.) popeye sp. n. (33), C. (s. str.) clavodentatus sp. n. (34), C. (s. str.) meredaranus sp. n. (35), C. (s. str.) yangrianus sp. n. (36), C. (s. str.) suturalis sp. n. (37), C. (s. str.) karnaliensis sp. n. (38), and C. (s. str.) churtanus sp. n. (39).

FIGURES 64 – 71. Aedeagus in ventral (64, 66, 68, 70) and lateral (65, 67, 69, 71) views. Cephennodes (s. str.) bagmatianus sp. n. (64 – 65), C. (s. str.) popeye sp. n. (66 – 67), C. (s. str.) clavodentatus sp. n. (68 – 69), C. (s. str.) meredaranus sp. n. (70 – 71). Abbreviations: ap, apical projection.

FIGURES 88 – 89. Distribution of Cephennodes (s. str.) bagmatianus sp. n. (88, circle), C. (s. str.) popeye sp. n. (88, triangle), C. (s. str.) clavodentatus sp. n. (89, circle), C. (s. str.) meredaranus sp. n. (89, circle), C. (s. str.) yangrianus sp. n. (89, triangle).