Blaps effeminata Soldati, 2017

Laurent Soldati, Fabien L. Condamine, Anne-Laure Clamens & Gael J. Kergoat, 2017, Documenting tenebrionid diversity: progress on Blaps Fabricius (Coleoptera, Tenebrionidae, Tenebrioninae, Blaptini) systematics, with the description of Fve new species, European Journal of Taxonomy 282, pp. 1-29 : 6-9

Blaps effeminata Soldati sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:1D90B029-4826-4525-9A59-22B6B0A91806

Fig. 1A–I

Etymology

The name of this species refers to the lack of abdominal hair tufts in males.

Material examined

Holotype

LIBYA: ♂, “Tombe a Nord di Cirene / Cirenaica, 27.IV.1967, G. Dellacasa & P. Maifredi / Museo Civico di Genova / Blaps polychresta ssp. effeminata Soldati , Holotype” (MCG).

Allotype

LIBYA: ♀, “Tombe a Nord di Cirene / Cirenaica, 27.IV.1967, G. Dellacasa & P. Maifredi / Museo Civico di Genova / Blaps polychresta ssp. effeminata Soldati, Allotype ” (MCG).

Paratypes

LIBYA: 17 spec., “Cirene, Cir. 7.6.1936 R.e C. Koch” (HNHM); 16 spec., same data as holotype and allotype (MCG); 1 ♂, “18.IV.1968,Apollonia, Cirenaïque, Libye, D. Seiler leg.” (CS); 2 ♂♂, “Cyrenaika, Cirene, Wohlb. 4.34” (CS); 1 ♀, “Tombe a Nord di Cirene / Cirenaica, 27.IV.1967, G. Dellacasa & P. Maifredi” (CS).

Other material (13 specimens, HNHM; 8 specimens, MCG)

LIBYA: Cyrene, E Libya, (HNHM); Sho-Hat (HNHM); Al Baida, 32°38.047′ N, 21°47.425′ E (MCG); Al Qubbah, Cyrene, Marsa (Tobruch) (MCG); Uadi el Magrum, E Libya, 15 km W of Tobruch (MCG); Uadi Pescara, E Libya, 16 km W of Tobruch (MCG).

Description

Length: 26.0–43.0 mm; width: 12.0–15.0 mm. Dull black. Oval-oblong, elongated ( Fig. 1A–C ). Elytra costulated. Upper surface covered with very fne and sparse punctures, progressively denser from elytra to head.

HEAD. Clypeus arcuately emarginated, with lateral angles protruding frontwards, clypeo-labial membrane slightly visible. Clypeo-frontal suture reduced to thin, superfcially engraved glossy line. Middle of frons (disc) with faint, generally obliterated, transverse depression. Mentum transverse, punctate, with anterior third sloping toward anterior edge. Gula microshagreened, dull. Labium triangularly emarginated in middle of front edge.

ANTENNAE. Long and slender, reaching pronotal base when directed backwards ( Fig. 1D ).

PRONOTUM. Broadest in its middle, sides more strongly narrowed toward base than forward, not or barely sinuous before posterior angles and arcuately narrowed frontwards. Anterior angles rounded. Posterior angles blunt. External rim fne, complete on lateral margins, but obliterated in middle of front edge and base. Disc convex. Punctation fne, uniform. Carina of anterior foramen of pronotum thick and neckshaped below. Episternum of prosternum wrinkled near coxae and lighter toward margins. Prosternal apophysis oblique or steep and upright towards apex, S-shaped, just behind anterior coxae, then shortly denticulate in middle at apex.

ELYTRA. Ovoid, broadest around its middle, fat on disc. Upper surface leathery and covered with extremely fne and sparse punctures. Elytra costulate. Each elytron bearing 10 costae, alternate ones (3-5-7-9) slightly higher than others. Pseudopleural carina only visible on anterior half (in ♂♂ and ♀♀) from above, because of transversal convexity of elytra. Caudal extension at apex of elytra (mucro) measuring between 2.0 and 4.0 mm. Seen from above, right, parallel: deep suture fanked by two thick, transversely wrinkled ribs, which end in acute angular gap ( Fig. 1E ). In lateral view, mucro narrow, elongated, progressively narrowed to apex ( Fig. 1F ) and often bent upwards. Below, mucro grooveshaped, with external edges blurred and bottom transversally wrinkled.

ABDOMEN. Ventrites heavily wrinkled-punctate; anal ventrite fnely and densely punctate, transversally impressed on disc, external rim complete and fne.

LEGS. Long and slender. Protibiae with internal face sinuous, external one straight in males; similar but less pronounced in females. Outer and posterior face of protibiae and posterior face of mesotibiae superfcially grooved. Mesotibiae almost straight. Tarsi long, slender.

SEXUAL DIMORPHISM. In males, no tuft of bristles between ventrites 1 and 2, and presence of light callosity near base of intercoxal process of ventrite 1. This callosity reduced to short transverse strip, with some longitudinal and oblique folds on front side, and coarse transversal wrinkles behind. In lateral view posterior declivity of elytra steeper in females. Mucro longer in males (3.5–4.0 mm) than in females (2.0– 2.5 mm) ( Fig. 1E, G ). In males, rear edges of median and especially hind tibiae strongly denticulated. In males, metatibiae straight and fat on inner face; less pronounced in females.

AEDEAGUS. Parameres widely open, subcordiform, on sternal face ( Fig. 1H ) with apex triangular. In lateral view ( Fig. 1I ), parameres very thick and parallel, then abruptly narrowed at apex.

Bionomics

Most known specimens were collected in antique ruins between April and October.

Distribution

Libya. This species appears to be endemic to the eastern part of Libya (formerly known as Cyrenaica).

Remarks

This species belongs to the Blaps gigas species group (sensu Condamine et al. 2011). It is morphologically close to Blaps polychresta Forskål, 1775 from Egypt, from which it differs by: (i) its stronger elytral costulation, especially on the disc; (ii) the absence of the abdominal hair tuft in males (between ventrites 1 and 2); (iii) in males, the presence of a very reduced abdominal callosity located near the base of the intercoxal process of ventrite 1.

In Eastern Libya, Blaps effeminata sp. nov. can also be confounded with other species of Blaps with costulate elytra, namely B. bifurcata Solier, 1848 , B. doderoi Schuster, 1922, B. nitens laportei Ardoin, 1973 , B. rhumeri Seidlitz, 1893 , B. sulcifera Seidlitz, 1893 and B. wiedemannii Solier, 1848 . In Blaps bifurcata , B. nitens laportei , B. rhumeri and B. sulcifera , the mentum is longitudinaly impressed in the middle, with the front edge emarginated. In Blaps doderoi and B. wiedemannii , the antennae are shorter (reaching only ¾ of pronotal length when directed backwards), the abdominal ventrites are much less densely punctuated, the mucro is shorter and much less narrow, the male abdominal callosity is high and rearward, and males exhibit a yellow hair tuft between ventrites 1 and 2.

Figures

Fig. 1. Blaps effeminata Soldati sp. nov. A. ♂, habitus (dorsal view). B. ♂, habitus (lateral view). C. ♂, habitus (ventral view). D. ♂, left antenna (dorsal view). E. ♂, mucro (dorsal view). F. ♂, mucro (lateral view). G. ♀, mucro (dorsal view). H. ♂, aedeagus (ventral view). I. ♂, aedeagus (lateral view). Scale bars: A – C = 10 mm; D = 5 mm; E – G = 2 mm; H – I = 3 mm.