Lithocharodes fusciventris SHARP, 1885

Irmler, Ulrich, 2021, The Neotropical species of the genus Lithocharodes SHARP, 1876 (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Staphylininae: Xantholinini), Beiträge Zur Entomologie = Contributions to Entomology 71 (1), pp. 29-85 : 45-46

Lithocharodes fusciventris SHARP, 1885

Figs 33 a-c, 44 N, 49 B

Lithocharodes fusciventris SHARP, 1885: 492

Lithocharodes gracilis SHARP, 1885: 493 , new synonymy

Lithocharodes rambouseki BLACKWELDER 1943: 500 , new synonymy

Lithocharodes cameroni BLACKWELDER 1943: 497 , new synonymy

Type material examined: male, holotype, Guatemala, San Géronimo, leg. Champion ( BMNH); 1 male lectotype, 1 female syntype of L. gracilis , Panama, Peña Blanca, 3000- 4000 ft., leg. Champion; 2 female syntypes: Panama, Tolé, leg. Champion ( BMNH); I saw 4 syntypes of L. gracilis ; among these, 1 male was found and labelled as lectotype; 1 female paratype of L. rambouseki BLACKWELDER, 1943 , Cuba, Soledad, 24.1.1927, leg. Darlington ( MCZ); 1 male of L. rambouseki : Cuba: Habana, Sept. 1933 leg. A. Bierig ( BMNH; the specimen was not included as paratype by Blackwelder in his description but labelled as paratype by BMNH and as cotype by Bierig. Thus, it must be from the type series of Bierig which was used by Blackwelder for his description); 1 female holotype of L. cameroni Blackwelder, 1943 ( USNM), Cuba, Cayamas, 10.6., leg. E.H. Schwarz; BLACKWELDER (1943) separated L. cameroni from L. rambouseki by the lighter colouration. Indeed, the specimen of L. cameroni is lighter than the L. rambouseki specimen but it seems that this can be explained by the teneral state of the specimen. Thus, I also decided to synonymise L. cameroni with L. fusciventris .

Additional material: Cuba: Prov. Habana, male, Febr. 1929, leg. A. Bierig ( BMNH, also labelled as cotype by Bierig but not as paratype by BMNH) ; Rio Arignabo , female, 10.3.1929, leg. A. Bierig ( BMNH) (the latter two specimens were also labelled M. Cameron bequest, which certainly means that they were transferred to BMNH by Cameron’s collection) ; male, Habana, Rio Cristal , Mar. 1938, leg. A. Bierig ( FMNH) ; female, Natanzas Prov. Buenavides, leg. A. Bierig ( FMNH) ; female, Rio Almendares , 28.12.1929, leg. A. Bierig ( FMNH) ; Mexico: without more information, female, #12718 ( SDEI) ; Chiapas, Palenque , 2 females, 10.9.1974, leg. G. Bohart, W. Hanson ( KNHM) ; Guatemala: Petén, Parque Natural Ixpanpajul (89.8151 W, 16.8734 N), 160 m elev., metal halid/UV fluorescent lights, 15 females, 24.22. & 23.11.2016, leg. Z.H. Falin & J. Monzón, #GUAT1F16 067 (14 KNHM, 1 UIC) ; Parque National El Rosario , station (90.1603 W, 16.5241 N), metal halide/UV fluorescent lights female, 22.11.2016, leg. Z.H. Falin & J. Monzon, #GUAT1F16 058 ( KNHM) ; El Salvador: female, San Salvador, Rio Vicente , 24.3.1943, leg. A. Bierig ( FMNH) ; Nicaragua, Grenada Dept., Volcan Mombacho Res. Nat. (85°58.8'W, 11°50.0'N), elfin cloud forest litter, 150 m elev., female, 2.- 5.6.2002, leg. R. Anderson , # RSA 2002- 033 ( KNHM) ; same location but 1150 m elev., flight intercept trap, 2.-5.2002, leg. S. Peck, #NIC1P02 003 ( KNHM) ; Matagalpa Dept., 6 km N Matagalpa, Selva Negra (85°54.6'W, 12°59.9'N), 1480 m elev., ridgetop cloud forest litter, female, 20.5.2002, leg. R. Anderson , # RSA 2002-025 ( KNHM) ; Granada, Reserva Silv., Priv. , Domitila (85.9533 W, 11.7083 N), Mercury vapor light, female, 9.6.2011, leg. C.W. Shin, # NIC-CWS-2011, 066 ( KNHM) ; Managua (86°12'W, 12°09'N), in house, 2 females, Oct. 2007, leg. M. Irmler ( UIC) ; Costa Rica: Puntarenas, Manzanillo , Coyolito Co., 5 males, 3 females 7.- 8.1.2009, leg. W. Rossi (6 VAC, 2 UIC) ; Manzanillo env., female, 9.1.2009, leg. W. Rossi ( VAC) ; Puntarenas, Coyolito, Sundt Finca , 2 females, 31.1.2008 (1 VAC, 1 UIC) ; Puntarenas, La Ensenada env., male, 9.1.2009, leg. W. Rossi ( VAC) ; Heredia, 3 km S Puerto Viejo, OTS La Selva (84°01'W, 10°26'N), 100 m elev., 2 female, X.1992, IX.1992, leg. P. Hanson ( KNHM) ; Guan. , 14 km S Cañas, 2 females, 7.-10.3., 1.- 4.9.1989, leg. F.D. Parker ( KNHM) ; Heredia, La Selva, Biol. Stat. 3 km S Puerto Viejo (84°01'W, 10°26'N), Malaise trap, second growth, male, 3.- 8.8.1992, leg. G. Wright ( KNHM) ; Puntarenas, Monte Verde , leaf litter & fruit fall, 1400 m elev., female, 5.5.1989, leg. J. Ashe, R. Brooks, R. Leschen, #031 ( KNHM) ; 1 male, 1 female, Atenas ( Salas ), 750 m elev., 1.3.1939, 3.4.1943, leg. A. Bierig ( FMNH) ; 3 males, 4 females, San Rafael Ojo de Agua , 5.9.1941, leg. A. Bierig ( FMNH) ; 1 male, 2 females, Sardinal , 23.2.1941, leg. A. Bierig ( FMNH) ; female, Chorones ( Marín ), 22.10.1940, leg. A. Bierig ( FMNH) ; female, Caldera , 5.11.1943, leg. A. Bierig ( FMNH) ; female, Desmonte, San Mateo , 500 m elev., 28.2.1939, leg. A. Bierig ( FMNH) ; male, San José, 1935, leg. A. Bierig ( FMNH) ; female, San José, 1937, leg. A. Bierig ( FMNH) ; female, Puntarenas, 11.8.1939, leg. A. Bierig ( FMNH) ; 5 males, 2 females, La Caja, San José, Feb. , Apr. 1940, 1931, leg. Schmidt ( FMNH) ; female, San Rafael de San Ramón , Feb. 1940, leg. Moya ( FMNH) ; Panama: Miramari (82.19-24W, 8.95-99N), car net, 2 females, 30.7.2014, leg. T. Struyve ( TSC) ; male, Puerto Amurelles, Aug. 1930, leg. A. Bierig ( FMNH) ; Ecuador: Sucumbios, Sacha Lodge (76°27'35"W, 0°28'14"S), flight intercept trap, female, 21.- 24.3.1999, leg. R. Brooks, #ECU1B99 047 ( KNHM) ; Bolivia: female, Dept. Beni, Prov. Vaca Diez , Isla de Montacu , forest leaf litter, 16.8.1990, leg. A. Parillo & P. Betella ( FMNH) ; female, same region but 2 km NW Tumichucua , forest, leaf litter in sunken area, 12.8.1990, leg. A. Parillo ( FMNH) .

Diagnosis: Regarding the sparse punctation of the head, L. fusciventris indeed resembles L. fuscipennis as mentioned in Sharp (1885). However, L. fusciventris is darker and without the light coloured pronotum of L. fuscipennis . In colouration and punctation, L. fusciventris resembles L. sordida and L. bicornis but punctation of head is distinctly sparser than in these species. Regarding the aedeagus, the endophallus of L. fusciventris is covered by minute teeth, whereas the endophallus of L. sordida and L. bicornis carries large teeth.

Description: Length: 4.4 mm. Colouration: Brown; elytra and pronotum lighter brown; elytra lightened toward posterior margin; antennae and legs slightly lighter brown than head, pronotum, and abdomen.

Head: 0.75 mm long, 0.61 mm wide; eyes not prominent; short; postocular space three times as long as eyes; slightly divergent posteriad but with widely rounded posterior angles; short part of posterior margin straight; interantennal furrows deep; divergent posteriad; reaching mid-length of eyes; setiferous punctation deep and irregularly dense; on average, interstices between punctures as wide as diameter of punctures; wide midline impunctate; space between interantennal furrows impunctate; surface without microsculpture; glossy. Antennae with first antennomere as long as half-length of head; second and third antennomere thick; conical and one third longer than wide; subsequent antennomeres wider than long and increasing in width; fourth antennomere at least twice as wide as long; tenth antennomere more than 2.5 times as long as wide; all antennomeres pubescent. Pronotum: 0.81 mm long, 0.56 mm wide; widest in anterior fourth; anteriad, conically narrowed toward neck; posteriad distinctly narrowed toward middle; posterior half approximately parallel; setiferous punctation less deep and dense than on head; on average, interstices between punctures 1.5 times as wide as diameter of punctures; wide midline impunctate; surface without microsculpture; glossy. Elytra: 0.79 mm long, 0.68 mm wide; humeral angles obtuse; sides slightly divergent posteriad; posterior angles sub-rectangular; posterior margin retreated to suture; setiferous punctation dense and deep; partly nearly coriaceous; surface less shiny than head and pronotum. Abdomen with dense setiferous punctation; at base of segments with isodiametric microsculpture; apex of segments without microsculpture; glossy; tergite VII of male straight; extremely slight emarginate; sternite VII of male semi-circular. Mesotibia with two, metatibia with three subapical ctenidia. Aedeagus small; oval; endophallus in posterior half as wide stripe covered by numerous minute teeth; several times folded; paramere short and approximately straight; widest in middle part; apex shortly rounded; inner face with pairs of short setae.

Figures

Fig. 31–36: L.-??-group: Lithocharodes spinigera (31), L. curtipennis (32), L. fusciventris (33), L. nigerrima (34), L. puncticeps (35), L. bicolor (36); aedeagus (a), paramere (b), sternite VII of male (c), tergite VII of male (d); scale bare: A–D: 0.2 mm; B: 0.1 mm.