Baconia maculata, 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 : 64-66

Baconia maculata sp. n. Figs 15 D–F, H, K–L 16AMap 5

Type locality.

ECUADOR: Orellana:Res. Ethnica Waorani [0.67°N, 76.43°W].

Type material.

Holotype male: "ECUADOR: Depto. Orellana:Res. Ethnica Waorani, 1km S Onkone Gare Camp, Trans. Ent., 0°39'10"S, 76°26'W, 220m, 25 June 1996, T.L. Erwin et al. collectors" / "Insecticidal fogging of mostly bare green leaves, some with covering of lichenous or bryophytic plants in terra firme forest. Project MAXUS Lot 1536 Trans. 2 Sta. 6" / "Caterino/Tishechkin Exosternini Voucher EXO-00448" (USNM). Paratype (1): FRENCH GUIANA: Bélvédère de Saül, point de vue. 3°1'22"N, 53°12'34"W, FIT, 17.i.2011. SEAG leg. (CHND).

Diagnostic description.

Length: 1.7-1.8mm, width: 1.2-1.3mm; body elongate oval, subdepressed, glabrous; head and pronotum metallic greenish-blue, elytra metallic blue with distinct rufescent maculations extending across middle of disc from approximately sutural stria laterad to margin; frons together with epistoma strongly convex, weakly depressed at middle, uniformly coarsely punctate, interocular margins very weakly convergent dorsad, frontal stria present along inner margin of eyes, interrupted above antennal bases and at middle; antennal scape short, apex obliquely truncate, club elongate, subquadrate; epistoma convex along apical margin, weakly emarginate; labrum about 4 ×wider than long, apex broadly, shallowly emarginate; mandibles short, each with small, acute basal tooth; palpomeres stout, flattened; pronotal sides subparallel in basal half, weakly arcuate to apex, marginal stria complete around lateral and anterior margins, submarginal stria present close to lateral marginal, ending about one-fifth from anterior corner; pronotal disk with fine ground punctation and slightly coarser secondary punctures more or less uniformly dispersed throughout; elytra with two complete epipleural striae, outer subhumeral stria absent, inner subhumeral stria present in basal two-thirds, but interrupted in middle, dorsal striae 1-5 complete to base, progressively more abbreviated apically mediad, with 5th stria obsolete in apical fourth, sutural stria present in apical two-thirds, obsolete at base; elytral disk with secondary punctures in apical fourth; prosternal keel narrow, weakly convex, base trun cate, carinal striae complete, bent mediad at apices, but ending freely; prosternal lobe about two-thirds keel length, broadly rounded, marginal stria slightly fragmented at sides; anterior edge of mesoventrite weakly sinuate, marginal stria complete; mesometaventral stria arched forward, crenulate, detached at sides, inner lateral metaventral stria originating close to mesocoxa, extending posterolaterad toward middle of metacoxa, outer lateral metaventral stria short, oblique, metaventral and 1st abdominal disks impunctate at middle; abdominal ventrite 1 with complete inner lateral stria and posterior fragments of outer stria; protibia with five marginal denticles, the basal two weak, outer margin serrulate between; mesotibia with 2-3 marginal spines; outer metatibial margin smooth; propygidium without transverse basal stria, with moderately large, ocellate punctures uniformly separated by about their diameters; propygidial gland openings evident about one-third from anterior and one-fourth from lateral margins; pygidium with fine, sparse ground punctation denser in apical half, with sparse secondary punctures principally in basal half. Male genitalia (Figs 15 D–F, H, K–L): T8 distinctly shorter than broad, sides subparallel, basal emargination broad, apical emargination narrow, shallow, with ventrolateral apodemes separated by about two-thirds maximum T8 width, extending about two-thirds distad beneath; S8 divided, short, inner margins approximate at base, strongly divergent to apex, bearing conspicuous fringe of setae along apical one-third, outer margins subparallel, to weakly divergent, apical guides well developed in apical half, apices broadly rounded; T9 with basal apodemes thin, about one-half total length, T9 apices narrow, bluntly subacute, weakly opposed, glabrous, ventrolateral apodemes moderately strongly projecting beneath; S9 very weakly widened in basal two-thirds, desclerotized along midline, head broad, with apicolateral points short, subparallel; tegmen with sides broadly rounded in basal half, weakly narrowed to apex, dorsal surface near base narrowly, transversely impressed, dorsobasal edge weakly arcuate, tegmen weakly sinuate in lateral aspect; median lobe broad, about two-thirds tegmen length, bearing conspicuous fine denticles on dorsal surface; basal piece nearly one-half tegmen length.

Remarks.

While this species’ male genitalia associates it clearly with the Baconia godmani group, in external characters it is highly distinctive, with its narrow elongate body form and red-maculate elytra (Fig. 16A).

Etymology.

This species is named for its distinctive elytral maculations.