Catascopus (Catascopoides) horni Jedlicka

Hunting, Wesley & Yang, Man-Miao, 2019, A taxonomic review of the pericaline ground-beetles in Taiwan, with descriptions of new species (Coleoptera, Carabidae, Lebiini), ZooKeys 816, pp. 1-164 : 46-50

Catascopus (Catascopoides) horni Jedlicka Figs 23B, 30, 31, 32 A–D, 33A, 34D, 35

Catascopus (Catascopoides) horni Jedlička, 1932: 82; Jedlička 1963: 383; Straneo 1994: 143; Lorenz 2005: 454.

Catascopus (Dentiscopus) horni Jedlička: Straneo, 1994: 148.

Types and other material examined.

Holotype (female) labeled: "Banshoryo - Disfr./Sokutsu (Formosa)/H. Sauter VI. 1912"; “Holotypus” [rectangular, red paper]; “TYPE” [rectangular, red paper, black border]; " Catascopus Horni sp. n./mihi/DET.ING.JEDLICKA"; "DEI Coleoptera /# 200416". 23 specimens of C. horni : seven males and 16 females. For further details see EH Strickland Virtual Entomology Museum Database.

Type locality.

"Formosa, Sokutsu". Formosa is the old name for Taiwan and Sokutsu refers to Hsiaolin, Kaohsiung county.

Taxonomic notes.

Both C. ( C. ) mirabilis and C. ( C. ) horni were recorded from Taiwan (Taiwan being the type locality of C. ( C. ) horni Jedlička). From the images and illustrations, it appeared that two species were superficially very similar so it is possible that they might be conspecific. All of the major collections in Taiwan were examined, and most known Taiwanese material was borrowed. Fresh material was collected from the wild. The holotype of C. ( C. ) horni and three paratypes of C. ( C. ) mirabilis are deposited SDEI, Germany where, upon examination, it was clear that the species could be distinguished from one another but that it was more of a total collection of subtleties than any one obvious external character that set them apart. Catascopus ( C. ) mirabilis differs from C. ( C. ) horni in that it has slightly larger eyes, a slightly more cupreous sheen, apical and basal angles of pronotum that are that are slightly more lobed and explanate, elytral microsculpture that is more granulate and raised, giving a duller appearance, and broken striae (primarily 3, 5, 7) that are somewhat more raised. All of these characters are slightly variable and difficult to define so it became clear that without a lot of material to compare, confusing these two species would be easy. After going through the material however, a few good characters were consistent and allowed for discrimination of species. C. ( C. ) mirabilis has females with the ventral surface of the fore-femur with a dense field of yellow setae (more than 20), while C. ( C. ) horni only has a field of ~twelve setae. Females of C. ( C. ) mirabilis also have a genitalic character, the bursa copulatrix sclerite (bsc, Fig. 33C), that makes them easily distinguishable from C. ( C. ) horni . After dissecting the available material including the specimens that were examined and thought to be C. ( C. ) mirabilis by both Jedlička (1963) and Habu (1967), it seems apparent that C. ( C. ) horni is restricted to Taiwan while C. ( C. ) mirabilis is known from Vietnam, Laos and China. See also "Geographical distribution".

Diagnosis.

Specimens of this species are easily distinguished from other pericalines by the distinctly asymmetrical mandibles and metallic black dorsal coloration.

Redescription.

OBL 15.5 - 19 mm. Length (n = seven males, ten females): head 1.24 - 1.56, pronotum, 2.76 - 3.44, elytra 8.25 - 10.50, metepisternum 2.08 - 2.68 mm; width: head 3.00 - 3.72, pronotum 2.92 - 3.76, elytra 5.00 - 5.83, metepisternum 1.08 - 1.20 mm.

Body proportions. HW/HL 2.35 - 2.49; PWM/PL 1.07 - 1.16; EL/EW 1.65 - 1.83; ML/MW 1.93 - 2.31.

Color. Fig. 30. Dorsum of head brunneo-piceous to piceous, with faintly metallic violaceous sheen; antennae with segments 1-4 rufo-piceous to piceous, segments 5-11 brunneous to rufo-piceous; palpi rufo-brunneous to rufo-piceous; clypeus and mentum rufo-piceous; pronotum piceous, with faintly metallic violaceous sheen; elytra piceous, with faintly metallic violaceous sheen; elytral epipleura piceous; thoracic sclerites rufo-piceous to piceous; abdominal sterna rufo-piceous medially, rufo-piceous to piceous at lateral margins; legs with trochanter and femora rufo-piceous, tibia rufo-piceous to piceous.

Microsculpture. Dorsum of head with microsculpture not visible at 50 × magnification; pronotum with transverse mesh pattern faintly visible at 50 × magnification; elytra with shallow, transverse sculpticells on majority of disc, lower depressions of striae are nearly isodiametric, easily visible at 50 × magnification; ventral surface of head, prosternum, proepipleuron, mesepisternum, and metepisternum with sculpticells forming a shallow transverse mesh.

Macrosculpture. Dorsum of head with scattered punctures laterally in front of eye to mid-way between basal supraorbital setae and pronotum apex, punctures near base of head are deep and confluent, more separated and shallow towards apex; pronotum rugulose; elytra with 3-4 diagonal impressions on disc, impressions evenly spaced with first impression near lateroapical angle of elytral base to suture, joining suture ~1/3 from base, first and third impressions deeper than others; intervals carinate, intervals 3,5,7, more strongly carinate in basal half than others, intervals convex to flat where interrupted by diagonal impressions; intervals 7 and 8 distinctly carinate and rounded at apical 1/4, disrupting normal contour of elytra; striae punctate along length; ventrally: prosternum, prosternal process, mesosternum, mesocoxa, and mesosternal intercoxal process, metasternum, hind coxa and base of abdominal sternite 3 with scattered and deep punctation, often confluent and rugulose in appearance; metasternum with several lateral striations on either side of suture (comb-like in appearance); abdominal sterna with scattered, shallow punctures; fore femur of males with more than twenty deep punctures in basal half of ventral surface, females with less (eight to fifteen), not all bearing setae.

Pilosity. Fig. 31. Dorsum of head, pronotum and disc of elytra with scattered micro-punctures; ventrally: prosternum, prosternal process, mesosternum, mesocoxa, and mesosternal intercoxal process and metasternum with moderate to long, blonde, setae associated with deep punctures; fore and mid femora of males with long, blonde setae associated with each puncture; fore and mid femora of females with several (fewer than males) blonde setae of various lengths in most punctures, some punctures without setae.

Fixed setae. Two pairs of supraorbital setae; clypeus with two lateral setae; labrum with six setae along apical margin; one pair of suborbital setae; pronotum with one seta at base of lateral margin; elytra with one seta at basal quarter of interval 3, one seta in interval 3 at mid-length, one seta in apical quarter of interval 3; 16-17 lateral (umbilical) setae in interval 9; two setae on each of abdominal sterna III to VI, two setae along apical margin of sternum VII in males, four setae along apical margin of sternum VII.

Luster. Head capsule, pronotum and elytra moderately glossy to glossy; ventral thoracic sterna and abdominal sterna moderately glossy.

Head. Fig. 23B. Mandible long and almost straight, obtuse tooth near apex of inside margin of each mandible, tooth of left mandible larger and situated lower than right, left mandible with additional tooth on inside cutting surface above mid-length of mandible; labrum unevenly bilobed, right lobe always longer that left; mentum with single broad tooth; eyes convex; palpi cylindrical, elongate.

Pronotum. Anterior transverse impression moderately deep; posterior transverse impression and median longitudinal impression deep; apical margin narrowly curved forming short, acute latero-apical lobes; lateral margins sinuate toward base; posterio-lateral margins almost right-angled.

Elytra. Humeri broadly rounded; elytral margin shallowly impressed in basal 1/3; elytral apices each with one small lateral spine and two apical spines, outside apical spine always longer than inside apical spine.

Hind wings. Macropterous.

Legs. Tarsal claws smooth. Males with adhesive vestiture ventrally, two rows of squamo-setae on tarsomeres 1-3 of fore-leg.

Abdominal sterna. Abdominal sternum VII bilobed, with shallow notch apically.

Male genitalia. Fig. 32 A–D. Length 3.52 - 4.00 mm. Ostium left pleuropic. Phallus cylindrical, narrowest at base of shaft, expanded on left side from base towards median in ventral view, constricted again before apex; apical area distinctively long and narrow, apical curve visible in left and right view. Endophallus relatively long and distinctly curled left when viewed from left lateral aspect; sclerite near endophallus base, left side of ostium when viewed from left lateral aspect; one basal endophallic lobe near center of ostium opening; one meso-endophallic lobe on inside of the curled endophallus when viewed from left lateral aspect; two microtrichial fields present (see fig. 32A)

Female genitalia. Figs 33A, 34D. Width 1.84 - 2.12 mm. Gonocoxite 2 (gc2) wide at base, narrowing sharply toward apex, highly curved; two lateral ensiform setae (les) and one dorsal ensiform seta (des) present (not visible from dorsal view). Sensory furrow, furrow pegs and associated nematiform setae not observed; Bursa copulatrix highly textured with many infoldings; large, distinctively shaped sclerite (bsc) (type 1) internally at base, between apex of lateral tergites (not visible from dorsal view), differing from the bursal sclerite of Horniulus andrewesi Jedlička (Fig. 94B) in that the sclerite appears to be inside the tissue of the dorsal surface of the bursa and not open to the interior cavity; one spermatheca (sp1) long and narrow; One spermathecal accessory gland (sg) long and narrow; spermathecal gland duct (sgd) very long and narrow, attachment site at base of spermatheca.

Habitat, habits, and seasonal occurrence.

The known elevational range of C. horni is from 300 to 2000 meters. Only two specimens have been collected below 1000 meters altitude, with most specimens being collected from 1500 to 2000 meters. Adults of this species are found in mixed primary and secondary forest of montane areas. Adults are crepuscular or nocturnal with most activity observed on trunks of fallen or dying trees at night. Specimens have been collected from March to December but are most commonly collected from March to June. Methods of collecting include u.v. light, sugar baits painted on tree trunks (have not been observed at actual bait, only near), hand collecting and malaise trap. The only confirmed tree species from which C. ( C. ) horni has been collected is Pinus morrisonicola Hayata. Adults are very fast runners and when they are lit at night, they will quickly run to the dark side of the tree.

Geographical distribution.

Catascopus horni is known only from Taiwan. See Figure 35.