Bellavalentis kuzugamii (Shibata)

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 : 23-25

Bellavalentis kuzugamii (Shibata) Figs 13, 14 A–C, 15A, 16

Dolichoctis kuzugamii Shibata, 1967: 65; Lorenz 2005: 459.

Types and other material examined.

Holotype (female) labeled "LIUKUEI/TAIWAN/18. IV. 1978/K. KUZUGAMI" [yellow, handwritten]; "HOLOTYPE/ Dolichoctis / kuzugamii /Shibata, 1987" [barn door, red]; " NCHU#/101475". 69 specimens of B. kuzugamii : 34 males and 35 females. For further details see EH Strickland Virtual Entomology Museum Database.

Type locality.

Taiwan. Kaoshiung City, Maolin District “Liukuei” on the holotype label refers to the Liouguei Research Center.

Diagnosis.

This species is readily separated from all other Taiwanese pericalines by its small size, as well as distinctively rounded and convex elytra.

Redescription.

OBL 3.16 - 3.76 mm. Length (n = ten males, ten females): head 0.28 - 0.40, pronotum 0.52 - 0.64, elytra 1.84 - 2.24, metepisternum 0.28 - 0.44 mm; width: head 0.60 - 0.74, pronotum 0.80 - 1.00, elytra 1.52 - 1.92, metepisternum 0.24 - 0.32 mm.

Body proportions. HW/HL 1.67 - 2.25; PWM/PL 1.50 - 1.69; EL/EW 1.13 - 1.21; ML/MW 1.13 - 1.43.

Color. Fig. 13. Various. Dorsum of head, clypeus and labrum brunneo-testaceous to brunneo-piceous, clypeus and labrum somewhat darker centrally, antennae and palpi testaceous to rufo-brunneous; disc of pronotum brunneous to rufo-brunneous, lateral margins somewhat translucent, slightly lighter in color; elytral disc piceous, with four testaceous to brunneo-testaceous maculae, two anterior and two posterior, anterior macula near humerus, from stria 6 to elytra margin, subsquare in shape, posterior macula, extended from interval 1 to interval 8, closest to base in interval 4, closest to apex in interval 6 and 7; margins of elytra somewhat translucent, brunneous to rufo-brunneous; ventral surface testaceous to brunneo-testaceous, metepisternum darker, apical edge of abdominal sterna rufo-brunneous to piceous; legs with trochanter and femora testaceous, tibia with dorsal surface partially piceous.

Microsculpture. Dorsum of head with microsculpture somewhat granulate, easily visible at 50 × magnification, slightly transverse to almost isodiametric; pronotum with shallow, transverse mesh pattern; elytra with shallow, transverse sculpticells; ventral surface of head with microsculpture transverse, faintly visible at 50 ×; prosternum, proepipleuron, mesepisternum, and metepisternum with sculpticells forming a shallow transverse mesh.

Macrosculpture. Dorsum of head smooth; pronotum with shallowly rugulose to smooth, disc with one small circular impression medially on each side; elytra with intervals somewhat flat.

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 two pairs of setae, one at base of lateral margin and one on lateral margin at pronotum max width; elytra with two setae in stria 2, one just before mid-length of elytra and one in apical 1/5; 16 lateral (umbilical) setae in interval 9; Ventral surface with fine, scattered setigerous punctures, two setae on each of abdominal sterna III to VI; two setae along apical margin of sternum VII in males, females with four setae near apical margin of sternum VII.

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

Head. Mandibles curved at apex, relatively short, mostly covered by labrum; labrum rounded at apex, longer than wide; mentum with no tooth; eyes suboval; palpi cylindrical, elongate, setose.

Pronotum. At least 1.5 × wider than long. Disc with one round shallow depression on either side; anterior transverse impression shallow; posterior transverse impression moderately shallow; median longitudinal impression moderately shallow; lateral margins somewhat explanate, apical edge highly emarginate and apico-lateral margins acutely rounded forming distinctive lobes, posterio-lateral margins slightly sinuate, obtuse.

Elytra. Humeri broadly rounded, disc distinctly rounded and convex in lateral profile; lateral margins slightly explanate.

Hind wings. Reduced.

Metepisternum. Subquadrate, least 1.13 × longer than wide.

Legs. Tarsal claws denticulate, five denticles per claw, males with adhesive vestiture ventrally, two rows of squamo-setae on tarsomeres 2 and 3 of fore-leg.

Male genitalia. Fig. 14 A–C. Length 0.40 - 0.44 mm. Ostium anopic. Phallus cylindrical but somewhat flattened dorso-ventrally, apical area with very short, bluntly rounded apex, positioned to the right of center in ventral view, endophallus not observed due to small size.

Female genitalia. Fig. 15A. Width 0.44 - 0.56 mm. Gonocoxite 2 (gc2) wide at base, narrowing significantly and slightly curved towards apex; two lateral ensiform setae (les) and one dorsal ensiform seta (des) present. Sensory furrow, furrow pegs and associated nematiform setae not observed. Our interpretation of the following characters of this species is based on similar species within the percalines. One diverticulum (div), curled along length and attached to base of spermathecal base; one spermatheca (sp1), narrowing sharply into long, narrow tube-like apex; one spermathecal accessory gland (sg) with attachment site near the narrowing point of the spermatheca.

Habitat, habits, and seasonal occurrence.

The known elevational range of B. kuzugamii is from 640 to 850 meters. Adults of this species are found in mixed forest of montane areas, and many specimens of this species were all found on deadwood. Specimens have been collected in April and August in Taiwan and the only known method of collection has been hand collecting.

Geographical distribution.

Bellavalentis kuzugamii is known from Okinawa, Japan and Taiwan. For Taiwan localities see Figure 16.