Goudotostes andohahelae, Ballerio, 2021

Ballerio, Alberto, 2021, The Ceratocanthinae of Madagascar and Comoro Islands: a revision of the genera Synarmostes and Goudotostes, and of the flightless Philharmostes, with description of 64 new species (Coleoptera: Scarabaeoidea, Hybosoridae), Fragmenta entomologica 53 (2), pp. 105-282 : 171-172

Goudotostes andohahelae sp. nov.

( Figs 54 d-h, 56 a-g, 77) http://zoobank.org/ urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:86831EEA-9480-4FE4-AAB6-6CC8B543F52D

Type series. Holotype, ♂, deposited in the collection of the Field Museum of Natural history, Chicago, IL, USA, labelled as follows: / Madagascar: Enakara (11 Km NW), Rés. Andohahela, 24°34’S, 46°49’E, 800 m, rainforest, 17.XI.1992 / FMHD #92-163, Winkler extraction of sifted litter (leaf mold, rotten wood) B. L. Fisher #492 (1-50) Field Mus. Nat. Hist. / Goudotostes andohahelae n. sp. det. A. Ballerio 1998 Holotypus ♂ / Photographed S. Ware 2020 EMu catalog / FMNHINS 3982342 Field Museum Pinned / [distended specimen glued on a card, dissected, male genitalia glued on a separate card, same pin]. Paratypes: 2 ♀♀ (1 in FMNH and 1 in ABCB), same collecting data as holotype . 1♀ ( CASC): / Madagascar: Toliara Parc National Andohahela, Col de Tanatana, 33.3 km NW Tolagnaro elev. 275 m 22-24 November 2006 / 24° 45’ 31” S 046° 51’ 13” E California Academy of Sciences coll. Brian L. Fisher et al. sifted litter rainforest collection code: BLF15100 /.

Diagnosis. Goudotostes andohahelae sp. nov. can be differentiated from all other species of Goudotostes by the following combination of characters: a) large size, b) dorsal ocular area present, c) head punctation very large, sparse and impressed, d) pronotal anterior carina bilobate (although in the paratypes the lobe seems single in frontal view and a furrow separating two small lobes is visible only in dorsal view), e) pronotal basal carina weakly bilobate, f) pronotal disc lacking any carinae and/or tubercles, g) elytra dorsally with two spaced out thin weakly raised rows of short carinae and small tubercles, f) aedeagus with short asymmetrical parameres as in Figs 56 e, d, h, g . The species more similar to it are Goudotostes insularis sp. nov. and Goudotostes electrimontis sp. nov., because of dorsal sculpturing of elytra and pronotum. It differs from them both because of the head dorsal punctation, which in those latter two species is smaller, less impressed and much denser, moreover the first elytral row of carinae and tubercles in G. andohahelae sp. nov. is somewhat oblique whereas the other two species is parallel to elytral suture. The large punctation of head would also suggest some similarities with G. simplicipennis sp. nov., the latter has, however, denser and smaller compared to the one found in G. andohahelae sp. nov..

Description. Size: HL = 1.3 mm; HW = 2.0 mm; PL = 1.7 mm; PW = 3.0 mm; EL = 3.0 mm; EW = 3.0 mm. Overall morphology as in generic diagnosis. Large-sized Goudotostes . Body weakly convex compared to the other species. Black, dorsum with sparse fine short setae (50×), apparently absent in the paratype from Tanatana, underside, tarsi and antennae dark reddish-brown, setation yellowish-brown. Head: W/L ratio = 1.48; clypeal apex obtuse, apical projection present and sexually dimorphic but weakly developed, sides almost rectilinear apart from slightly unaligned genae; dorsal ocular area present and small, interocular distance about 20 times the maximum width of dorsal ocular area, genal canthus indistinct, ventral ocular area medium-sized, genae rounded, distinctly protruding outwards, genal suture indistinct; head dorsal surface covered by very large and impressed comma shaped punctures and short large lines, all them centripetally oriented, disc of clypeus almost completely impunctate. Pronotum: subrectangular (dorsal view) (W/L ratio = 2.01), convex and unevenly sculptured, fore angles gently subtruncate; surface without tubercles and/or carinae, pronotal basal carina very weakly bilobate, weakly raised bilobate anterior carina with lobes very close to each other (in the paratypes the lobe seems single in frontal view and a furrow separating two small lobes is visible only in dorsal view), uniformly covered by dense deep large simple punctures, each one bearing a short fine seta in the middle, interpunctural distance inferior than or equal to punctural diameter, interpunctural spaces raised, giving a granulose appearance; pronotal bead visible only on pronotal sides. Scutellum : surface covered by dense large comma-shaped punctures. Elytra: longer than wide (W/L ratio = 0.89), subovoidal (dorsal view), moderately convex; humeral callus indistinct; elytral surface uniformly covered by sparse large deep punctures, transverse comma-shaped on proximal third, then becoming simple of median and distal thirds, each one bearing a short fine seta; interpunctural distance equal to or twice punctural diameter; inferior sutural stria deep and complete, striated articular area hardly visible in lateral view, relatively narrow and short; marginal area medium-sized; elytral articular process developed, smooth and shiny, with a deep line bordering scutellar sides. Elytral sculpturing as follows: dorsal area of elytra with two longitudinal irregular and asymmetrical rows (excluding elytral suture, which bears some short weak longitudinal carinae only distally) of weakly raised carinae of variable length, sides and apical portion with denser tubercles mixed to irregular carinae slightly more raised than on dorsal portion. The inner row is slightly oblique with respect to elytral suture. Wings: flightless. Male genitalia: aedeagus (L = 2.4 mm) with parameres as in Figs 56 e, d, h, g , spiculum gastrale (L = 2.2 mm) as in Fig. 56 a .

Etymology. Latin noun in the genitive case, referring to the type locality.

Distribution and habitat. Known only from two localities in the Andohahela massif. Collected by sifting litter in rainforest. For details on the collecting localities see under Synarmostes tibialis .

Goudotostes andreonei sp. nov.

( Figs 52 a-h, 53 a-f, 77) http://zoobank.org/ urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:96F7E86C-350D-418B-BD3E-6FC0337A3F2A

Type series. Holotype, ♂, deposited in the collection of the California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, CA, USA, labelled as follows: / CASTYPE 20261 / CASENT 8011723 / Madagascar: Province d’Antsiranana, Montagne des Français , 7.2 km 142° SE Antsiranana (= Diego Suarez), elev. 180 m., 22-28 Feb 2001 / 12°19’ 22” S 49°20’ 17” E, coll. Fisher, Griswold et al., Calif. Academy of Sciences , sifted litter in tropical dry forest, collection code: BLF3128 / Goudotostes andreonei n. sp. det. A. Ballerio 2020 Holotypus ♂ / [distended, glued on card, dissected, male genitalia glued in DMHF resin on a separate card, same pin]. Paratypes [5 ♂♂ dissected]: 12 ♂♂ and 22 ♀♀ (29 in CASC and 5 in ABCB), same collecting data as holotype. 22 ♂♂ and 13 ♀♀ (29 in CASC and 6 in ABCB): / Madagascar: Province d’Antsiranana forêt de l’Orangea, 3.6 km 128° SE Ramena Elev. 90 m 22-28 Feb. 2001 / 12° 15’ 32” S 049° 22’ 29” E coll. Fish- er, Griswold et al. Calif. Academy of Sciences sifted litter littoral rainforest collection code: BLF3200 /.

Diagnosis. Goudotostes andreonei sp. nov. can be differentiated from all other species of Goudotostes by the following combination of characters: a) medium size, b) dorsal ocular area present, c) head with a very weak tubercle on clypeal disc, d) pronotal anterior carina monolobate, e) pronotal anterior carina obtusely triangular in frontal view, f) pronotal anterior carina raised without giving rise to a longitudinal sharp carina visible in dorsal view (i.e. there isn’t a smooth sharp carina and the cariniform process has the same microsculpturing of the remaining pronotal surface), g) pronotal basal carina monolobate, h) pronotum weakly saddle-shaped in lateral view, i) pronotal disc with gibbosities and lacking any distinct carinae and/or tubercles (apart from the monolobate anterior and posterior carinae), j) elytra with irregular rows of strongly raised tubercles and short longitudinal carinae (distinct interstriae can be seen between those carinae and tubercles), k) aedeagus with a distinctive median lobe as in Fig. 53 D-E. The species falls within the scabrosus group of species and can be differentiated by the other species of the group by the combination of characters c), e), f), h) and k).

Description. Size: HL = 1.1 mm; HW = 1.5 mm; PL = 1.4 mm; PW = 2.5 mm; EL = 2.4 mm; EW = 2.3 mm. Overall morphology as in generic diagnosis. Medium-sized Goudotostes . Body strongly convex. Dark-brown with slight bronze/metallic green sheen, dorsum with fine short setae (50×), underside, tarsi and antennae dark reddish-brown, setation yellowish-brown. Head: W/L ratio = 1.42, clypeal apex obtuse, apical projection present and sexually dimorphic but weakly developed, sides almost rectilinear apart from slightly unaligned genae; dorsal ocular area present, interocular distance about 30 times the maximum width of dorsal ocular area, genal canthus fused with occipital area of head, ventral ocular area small-sized, genae acute, distinctly protruding outwards, genal suture indistinct; head dorsal surface uniformly covered by large impressed simple punctures, vertex with a short longitudinal smooth weakly raised tubercle, clypeus with a weakly raised irregular large tubercle with surface covered by large deep simple punctures. Interpunctural distance inferior than punctural diameter (punctures almost adjacent to each other). Pronotum: subrectangular (dorsal view) (W/L ratio = 1.98), convex and unevenly sculptured, base and sides broadly round- ed, fore angles distinctly subtruncate; surface of disc uniformly covered by dense deep large simple and comma-shaped punctures, each one bearing a short fine seta in the middle, interpunctural distance inferior than punctural diameter, only near fore angles punctures become small horseshoe-shaped; pronotal anterior carina monolobate, weakly raised, with the same microsculpturing as remaining pronotal surface, portion raised having the shape of an inverted wide V in frontal view, disc with a depression in the middle, sides of disc with one slight depression, pronotal posterior carina weakly raised, dorsally not marked by any longitudinal sharp carina, inverted small V- shaped in frontal view. Pronotal bead not visible from above. Scutellum : base smooth, remaining surface covered by dense large transverse deep comma-shaped punctures, each one bearing a setigerous puncture internally. Elytra: longer than wide (W/L ratio = 0.97), subovoidal (dorsal view), strongly convex; humeral callus indistinct; elytral surface uniformly covered by sparse large deep horseshoe-shaped punctures with opening directed inwards or outwards, each one bearing a short fine seta internally; interpunctural distance inferior than punctural diameter; inferior sutural stria complete and deep; striated articular area hardly visible in lateral view, relatively narrow and short; marginal area medium-sized; elytral articular process developed, smooth and shiny. Elytral sculpturing as follows: elytral suture marked by a longitudinal row of raised tubercles and short carinae (parasutural tubercles), base with one longitudinal short carina near apex of scutellum, next to two longitudinal shorter carinae, then another carina which marks the humeral area (humeral tubercle), remaining elytral surface with irregular rows of raised tubercles and short carinae (distinct interstriae can be seen between those carinae and tubercles), sides and apical portion with denser and more irregular tubercles and short carinae. Wings: flightless. Male genitalia: aedeagus (L = 0.9 mm) with parameres as in Figs 53 a-d, spiculum gastrale (L = 1.2 mm) as in Fig. 53 f .

Etymology. Noun in the genitive case. Named after the herpetologist Franco Andreone (Museo regionale di Scienze Naturali, Torino, Italy), who helped the author to organize his first trip to Madagascar.

Distribution and habitat. Known two localities in northern Madagascar. The series from Montagne des Français was collected by sifting leaf litter in tropical dry forest ( Fig. 90 ). The vegetation cover of the area consists of “Western dry forest” ( Moat & Smith 2007) also known as “dry deciduous forest”, mixed to patches of dry thicket and of semi-deciduous forest at the bottom of canyons ( Goodman et al. 2018). The collecting locality falls within the protected area “Paysage Harmonieux Protégé d’Ambohi- tr’Antsingy – Montagne des Français”. For details on the collecting locality of the specimens from Orangea forest see under Goudotostes orangeanus sp. nov..

Figures

Fig. 54 – Goudotostes scabrosus, female from Parc National de Zahamena. a, dorsal view of distended specimen; b, lateral view of rolled up specimen; c, dorsal view of rolled up specimen; Goudotostes andohahelae sp. nov., female paratype. d, dorsal view of distended specimen; e, ventral view of rolled up specimen; f, dorsal view of rolled up specimen; g, ventral view of rolled up specimen; h, lateral view of rolled up specimen.

Fig. 56 – Goudotostes andohahelae sp. nov., holotype (photos by FMNH), a, spiculum gastrale; b, lateral view of distended specimen; c, dorsal view of distended specimen; d, endophallus; e, aedeagus in lateral view; f, detail of head and pronotum; g, other side of endophallus; h, other side of aedeagus.

Fig. 52 – Goudotostes andreonei sp. nov., paratypes from Montagne des Français. a, dorsal view of distended specimen; b, pronotum of rolled up specimen; c, dorsal view of rolled up specimen; d, ventral view of rolled up specimen; e, lateral view of rolled up specimen; f, ventral view of rolled up specimen; g, dorsal view of rolled up specimen; h, lateral view of rolled up specimen.

Fig. 53 – Goudotostes andreonei sp. nov., paratype. a–d, four views of aedeagus (eml: endophallite of median lobe); f, spiculum gastrale.

Fig. 90 – Habitat, a, Montagne des Français (Antsiranana), view of the dry forest and b, a detail of the understory where samples of leaf litter have been taken, habitat of Goudotostes andreonei sp. nov. and Cryptosphaeroides hystrix.