Baconia cavei, 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 : 117-119

Baconia cavei sp. n. Figs 34 I–N 35AMap 9

Type locality.

Honduras: Cortés: Parque Nacional Cusuco [15.48°N, 88.22°W].

Type material.

Holotype male: "Honduras: Cortés, Parque Nacional Cusuco, 5 km N Buenos Aires, 15°29'N, 88°13'W, 30.VIII.1995, leg. R. Cave" / "Malaise trap in oak/pine cloud forest" / "Caterino/Tishechkin Exosternini Voucher EXO-00475" (FMNH).

Other material.

(2) COSTA RICA:1: Heredia: Est. Biol. La Selva, 10°26'N, 84°01'W, 50-150 m, 14.x.1994, Pentaclethra macroloba (INBI). 1: Limón: Sector Cerro Cocori, Finca de E. Rojas, 150 m, ix.1993, E. Rojas (INBI).

Diagnostic description.

Length: 1.7mm, width: 1.3mm; body elongate, parallel-sided, weakly depressed, glabrous; color rufescent, shining; head with frons swollen over antennal bases, slightly depressed at middle, interocular margins convergent dorsad, frontal disk smooth at center, few small punctures dorsad, frontal stria absent; antennal scape short, club rounded, rather large; epistoma flat, apex weakly emarginate; labrum about 2.5 × wider than long, apical margin weakly arcuate; mandibles short, each with median tooth; pronotum with sides subparallel in basal half, weakly arcuately narrowed to apex, lateral marginal and lateral submarginal striae merging near anterior corner, submarginal stria very close to marginal throughout, continued around anterior margin, slightly removed from margin above head, crenulate; pronotal disk narrowly depressed along anterolateral margin, ground punctation fine, very sparse, with small, sparse secondary punctures present in lateral thirds, few along basal margin; elytra with single complete epipleural stria, outer and inner subhumeral striae absent, dorsal stria 1 shortened apically, may be fine and scratchlike beyond apical half, stria 2 nearly complete, striae 3-4 progressively apically abbreviated mediad, 4th stria arched to meet base of sutural stria, 5th stria absent, sutural stria obsolete in apical third, elytral disk with small, shallow secondary punctures in apical half, fewer towards sides; prosternal keel moderately broad, weakly convex between striae, emarginate at base, carinal striae subparallel throughout, diverging only slightly posterad; prosternal lobe about one-half keel length, apical margin rounded, marginal stria obsolete at sides; mesoventrite produced at middle, marginal stria complete; mesometaventral stria arched slightly forward, distinctly crenulate, meeting or nearly meeting anterior ends of inner lateral metaventral stria, which extends posterad toward inner third of metacoxa, outer lateral metaventral stria present as short, oblique postmesocoxal fragment; metaventral disk impunctate at middle; abdominal ventrite 1 with inner lateral stria slightly abbreviated, curved mediad apically, outer lateral stria absent, disk impunctate at middle, ventrites 2-5 finely punctate across middle; protibia narrow, with three weak marginal denticles, the distal pair relatively close together, margin serrulate between; mesofemur with posterior marginal stria weakly impressed around distal margin; mesotibia with two marginal spines, basalmost may be weak; outer metatibial margin smooth; propygidium lacking basal stria, ocellate secondary punctures sparse, slightly denser toward basal margin, propygidial gland openings inconspicuous; pygidium with fine ground punctation and very small, sparse secondary punctures. Male genitalia (Figs 34 I–N): T8 broad, short, sides weakly convergent to apex, basal emargination very shallow, basal rim moderately well sclerotized, apex narrowly, acutely emarginate, ventrolateral apodemes small, inner apices separated by three-fourths T8 width; S8 divided, slightly longer than T8, inner margins approximate in basal third, divergent apically, outer margins diverging apically, apical guides closed, apical velar membrane absent, apex with few conspicuous setae; T9 with proximal apodemes short, about one-third total length, dorsal lobe large, subtriangular, narrowed to slightly curved, rounded apex, ventrolateral apodeme bluntly dentate beneath; S9 wide, shallow, stem absent, basal edge wide, distal arms divergent, with apices bent abruptly inward, inner basal margin with acute median tooth; tegmen moderately broad, sides rounded, widest basad middle, narrowed distally, apices narrowly rounded, tegmen in lateral aspect rather evenly rounded from base to apex; median lobe about two-thirds tegmen length; basal piece about one-third tegmen length.

Remarks.

Compared to other species in this group, Baconia cavei has a relatively broad prosternum (Fig. 35A), elongate, slender legs, and a large head. The male genitalia have the apices of the 8th sternite narrowed and only finely setose, the aedeagus narrowed basally and apically, and the spiculum gastrale deeply apically emarginate, the entire sclerite more or less forming a ‘W’ shape.

There are some evident strial differences among all three available specimens, therefore we limit the type series to the single male from Honduras. Discovery of a male from Costa Rica may well support these differences as specific.

Etymology.

We are pleased to name this species for Dr. Ron Cave, collector of the holotype specimen.