Baconia jacinta, Caterino, Michael S. & Tishechkin, Alexey K., 2013

Caterino, Michael S. & Tishechkin, Alexey K., 2013, A systematic revision of Baconia Lewis (Coleoptera, Histeridae, Exosternini), ZooKeys 343, pp. 1-297 : 80-82

Baconia jacinta sp. n. Figs 18 G–H 20Map 6

Type locality.

GUATEMALA: Sacatepequez [14.61°N, 90.72°W].

Type material.

Holotype male: "Finca San Rafael, Sacatepequez, VII:1:48 GUAT. Elev. 6900 ft." / "CNHM Guatemala Zool.Exped.(1948) R.D.Mitchell let." / "under bark" / "FMNH-INS 0000 069 301" (FMNH). Paratypes (2): GUATEMALA: Zacapa: Santa Clara, in interior valley of Sierra de las Minas (N. of Cabañas), 5500 ft, 9.viii.1948, under bark, R. Mitchell (FMNH, MSCC).

Other material.

1: MEXICO: Veracruz: 15 mi W Tlapacoyan, 28.ii.1972, F. Parker & D. Miller (CHSM).

Diagnostic description.

Length: 2.3-2.4mm, width: 1.9-2.1mm; body elongate oval, moderately depressed, glabrous; head and pronotum metallic blue, usually faintly greener than deep blue metallic elytra and pygidia, venter rufo-brunneus with faint metallic tinge; frons elevated over antennal bases, depressed along antero-posterior midline, ground punctation rather conspicuous, with few secondary punctures within frontal depression, frontal stria present along inner margin of eye, curving mediad, but usually interrupted above antennal bases, at middle, or both, supraorbital stria absent; antennal scape short, club rounded; epistoma truncate to weakly emarginate; labrum about 3 ×wider than long, weakly emarginate along apical margin; both mandibles with acute basal tooth; pronotal sides weakly convergent in basal half, arcuate to apex, depressed in anterior corners, marginal stria complete along lateral and anterior margins, slightly crenulate in front, lateral submarginal stria absent, ground punc tation of pronotal disk fine, inconspicuous across middle, sparsely interspersed with small secondary punctures toward sides; elytra with two complete epipleural striae, outer subhumeral stria absent, inner subhumeral stria present in basal fifth, dorsal striae 1-3 usually complete, 3rd stria may be abbreviated apically, 4th stria present in basal half only, slightly abbreviated from apex, 5th stria absent, sutural stria present in up to apical half, may be very weak, mostly obsolete, elytral disk with few coarse punctures in apical fifth; prosternum moderately broad, weakly convex, keel weakly emarginate at base, carinal striae complete, divergent anterad and posterad, separate throughout; prosternal lobe about one-half keel length, apical margin bluntly rounded, marginal stria weak, fragmented; mesoventrite weakly produced, marginal stria complete, mesometaventral stria absent; lateral metaventral stria extending from near mesocoxa posterolaterad toward outer third of metacoxa, sinuate apically, outer lateral metaventral stria absent, metaventral disk impunctate at middle; abdominal ventrite 1 with lateral stria abbreviated, middle portion of disk impunctate; protibia 4-5 dentate, basal denticles weak, outer margin serrulate between teeth; mesotibia with one marginal spine and short series of weak submarginal spines toward base; outer metatibial margin smooth; propygidium without basal stria, but with several small discal punctures subserially arranged near basal margin, discal punctures otherwise small, ocellate, irregularly separated by 1 –3× their diameters, sparser in apical half; propygidial gland openings evident about one-third from anterior and lateral margins; pygidium with ground punctation conspicuous, secondary punctures very small and restricted to near basal margin. Male genitalia (Fig. 20): T8 slightly longer than broad, sides weakly rounded, convergent to apex, basal emargination shallowly rounded, basal rim weakly explanate, apical emargination deep, narrow, ventrolateral apodemes separated by about three-fourths maximum T8 width, extending beneath to about one-third from base; S8 very short, halves separate, with dense setal fringe along entire apical margin, apical guides moderately well developed, similar in length throughout; T9 with basal apodemes moderately thin, short, about one-fourth total T9 length, apices long, gradually narrowed, ventrolateral apodemes fused for about one-fourth total T9 length beneath; S9 wide throughout, slightly narrowed in basal half, sides otherwise subparallel, lateral margins more strongly sclerotized, apical margin broadly emarginate; tegmen widest just basad midpoint, narrowed to base and apex, in lateral aspect slightly thickened in apical half, curved ventrad near apex; median lobe and basal piece each about one-third tegmen length.

Remarks.

This species is moderately distinctive externally, with its 4th stria abbreviated from apex, 5th absent (Fig. 18G), mesometaventral stria absent, pygidium with very few secondary punctures (Fig. 18H), no basal propygidial stria, relatively few lateral pronotal punctures, and hints of metallic ventrally. In addition it has highly distinctive male genitalia, with a very short, strongly fringed 8th sternite, and a ventral fusion of the halves of the 9th tergite. The specimen from Veracruz, Mexico is excluded from the types series as it shows a much more strongly impressed elytral sutural stria.

Etymology.

This species’ name refers to its blue coloration, ‘jacinta’ being Spanish for hyacinth.