Oxytelus nigriceps Kraatz, 1859

Lü, Liang & Zhou, Hong-Zhang, 2012, 3576, Zootaxa 3576, pp. 1-63 : 36-38

Oxytelus nigriceps Kraatz, 1859

( Figs. 13A–N)

Kraatz, 1859: 171 (Type locality: India orientalis; Ceylan); Fauvel, 1904a: 45 ( China); Bernhauer, 1922: 223 ( Formosa); Cameron, 1930: 233 (subgenus Caccoporus ; Hong Kong and Formosa); Herman, 1970: 410; Hammond, 1975: 149, 150, 153 ( Ceylon; China: Hong Kong, Chusan Island, and Taiwan); Herman, 2001: 1444; Ades and Kendrick, 2004: 53 ( Hong Kong); Smetana, 2004: 517 (subgenus Oxytelus ; distribution); Lee and Ahn, 2007: 26.

Material examined. 249 specimens, 124 males and 125 females. CHINA, Fujian : 1 male, 1 female, Chong’an [=Wuyishan=Mt. Wuyi], Xingcun, Sangang , 740m, light trap, 7.VIII.1960, Yi-Ran Zhang leg., Oxytelus nigriceps Kr. det. P.M.Hammond 1980 ( IZ-CAS) ; CHINA, Guangxi: 1 female, Guilin, Yanshan , 200m, light trap, 12.V.1963, Chun-Guang Wang leg., Oxytelus nigriceps Kr. det. P.M.Hammond 1980 ( IZ-CAS) ; CHINA, Hainan: 1 male, 1 female, Jianfeng , 70m, light trap, 26.III.1980, Fu-Ji Pu leg. ( IZ-CAS) ; CHINA, Hubei: 1 male, Zigui, Maoping , 80m, light trap, 28.IV.1994, Jian Yao leg. ( IZ-CAS) ; CHINA, Hunan: 2 females, Hengyang , 8.XII.1939, T. Maa [= Tsing-Chao Maa] leg., Oxytelus nigriceps Kr. det. P.M.Hammond 1981 ( IZ-CAS) ; CHINA, Yunnan: 1 male, Menglaxian , 670m, light trap, 20.IV.1982, Su-Bai Liao leg. ( IZ-CAS) ; 1 male, 2 females, same data as previous except: Pei-Yu Yu leg. ( IZ-CAS) ; CHINA, Taiwan : 7 males, 2 females, Hsin-chu Hsien (Dist.), Kuan-hsi , white light trap, 8.X.1970, P. C. Lien leg. ( FMNH) ; 1 male, Hua-lien Hsien ( Dist. ), Ho-p'ing, black light trap, 13.V.1974, F. J. Santana leg. ( FMNH) ; 4 males, 1 female, I-lan Hsien (Dist.), Nan-ao , black light trap, 12.X.1973, F. J. Santana leg. ( FMNH) ; 1 male, Nan-t'ou Hsien (Dist.), Pi-hou , Wu-she , 1500m, white light trap, 18.VI.1972, F. J. Santana leg. ( FMNH) ; 1 male, P'ing-tung Hsien (Dist.), K'enting Pk. , 250m, black light trap, 3.IX.1974, F. J. Santana leg. ( FMNH) ; 8 males, 4 females, T'ai-tung, Peiyuan, Tungho , 200m, 12.VI.1972, C. I. Cheng & T. S. Lo legg. ( FMNH) ; 25 males, 19 females, T'ai-tung Hsien (Dist.), Peiyuan , Tungho , 200m, black light trap, 12.VI.1972, C. I. Cheng & T. S. Lo legg. ( FMNH) ; 11 males, 11 females, same data as previous except: white light trap ( FMNH) ; 10 males, 13 females, same data as previous but without elevation ( FMNH) ; 14 males, 14 females, T'ai-tung Hsien (Dist.), Tungho , Taiguan , 100m, black light trap, 1.IX.1972, F. J. Santana leg. ( FMNH) ; 13 males, 15 females, T'aitung, Tungho, Shih-Nan, Peiyuan , black light trap, 2.IX.1972, F. J. Santana leg. ( FMNH) ; 18 males, 32 females, same data as previous except: 200m [elevation] ( FMNH) ; INDIA: 1 female, Madhya Pradesh, Bhopal , at ultraviolet light, 13.VII.1992, J. F. Cornell leg. ( FMNH) ; JAPAN: 1 female, Kyushu , near Fukuoka, 0 ft, 18.VIII.1947, Maj. H. T. Wright leg. ( FMNH) ; MALAYSIA: 1 male, MALAY INSEL, Kraatz leg., Oxytelus nigriceps Kr. (minor) det. M. Bernhauer ( FMNH) ; PHILIPPINES: 1 male, Leyte Prov., San Jose , at light, 30- 31.I.1945, E. Ray leg. ( FMNH) ; RYUKYU IS., Okinawa Is.: 1 male, 2 females, Sunabe , at light, 21-23.V.1945, E. Ray leg. ( FMNH) ; 2 males, 1 female, same data as previous except: 13/ 18.VI.1945 ( FMNH) ; 1 male, same data as previous except: 28.VIII.1945 ( FMNH) ; 1 female, Sunabe , 21-24.IV.1945, E. Ray leg. ( FMNH) ; 1 female, same data as previous except: 29-30.IV.1945 ( FMNH) ; 1 female, Iwa. , at light, 30.VII.1945, E. Ray leg. ( FMNH) .

Redescription. Body brown, medium-sized. Head disc pitchy and darker than other body parts. Pronotum with dark posterior and lateral margins. Length [average] male, 4.1 mm; female, 4.1 mm.

Male. Head ( Fig. 13A) sub-pentagonal, widest at eyes. Disc punctate posteriorly, not pubescent. Clypeus subrectangular, flat, almost 1/3 head length, surface impunctate and coriaceous; anterior margin truncate. Epistomal suture with lateral portions incurved and running posteriorly to level of anterior margin of eyes. Vertex weakly convex, definitely distinguished from neck by middle portion of occipital suture; with mid-longitudinal suture distinct. Eyes with coarse facets, convex and protruding laterally, and covering most of lateral plate of head. Temples extremely obsolete. Occipital suture broadly curved in dorsal view; nuchal ridge present and visible in middle, dorsal basal ridge present.

Mandible ( Fig. 13C) slender and slightly curved; two denticles on inner edge near middle and closely situated. Antenna (type I) almost equal to head and pronotum together, with apical antennomere longer than preceding one.

Pronotum transverse, broadest at near anterior 1/3, wider than head. Disc punctate and 3-sulcate (as Fig. 1H); two paralateral depressions shallow, striate; lateral margin smooth in front and weakly crenulate behind, with posterolateral angles rounded. Elytra punctate and rugose, with lateral longitudinal ridge present.

Abdomen coriaceous and covered with dense fine hairs, broadest at segment V. Sternite VII ( Fig. 13E) with posterior margin broadly protruding in middle and truncate at apex. Sternite VIII ( Fig. 13F) with subbasal ridge straight; posterior margin broad with two deeply V-shaped ruptures near middle, forming large and rectangular median plate, and posterior margin of which bi-emarginate, with sharp tubercle behind, with mid-longitudinal internal ridge. Tergite X ( Fig. 13H) longer than wide, posterior margin truncate with small notch in middle, with two lines of setae on haired posterior part.

Aedeagus ( Figs. 13K–N). Median lobe oblong in ventral view, wider in basal half; with complex membranous structures inside median lobe; apical orifice smaller than median lobe width; apico-medial hook flattened U-shaped and bent at middle, with apical tip pointed, strongly carinate along middle of downside of apical part, which projected at near middle corner, basal process well developed and with round tip; dorsal membranous area covering almost dorsum. Paramere with seta dwelling at 1/3 of apical arm, with highlighted zone nearby; apex pointed, with two small processes at corner of each piece, with shallow furrow on basal arm.

Female. Head ( Fig. 13B) and pronotum similar to male. Mandible ( Fig. 13D) same as in male but a little thinner.

Abdominal sternite VII with posterior margin straight and not modified. Sternite VIII ( Fig. 13G) similar to that of O. bengalensis . Tergite X ( Fig. 13I) longer than male.

Spermatheca ( Fig. 13J) slim and bent twice, with base a little inflated and apex lightly curved.

Distribution. China (Fujian, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, Heilongjiang, Hong Kong, Hubei, Hunan, Jilin, Liaoning, Taiwan, Xizang, Yunnan, Zhejiang); South Korea; Japan; Philippines; Vietnam; Thailand; Myanmar; Malaysia; Singapore; Indonesia; New Guinea; Papua New Guinea (Bismarck Islands); Pakistan; India; Nepal; Sri Lanka; Bangladesh.

Remarks. In this paper we consider O. bengalensis , O. nigriceps , O. piceus , O. varipennis , and O. ruptus as piceus -allied species, because their body and head look similar and they have similar posterior margin of abdominal sternites VII and VIII as well as tergite X. The males of O. bengalensis and O. piceus share almost same shape of the posterior margin of sternite VIII, and that of O. nigriceps and O. ruptus looks similar; the posterior margins of sternite VII are alike between O. bengalensis and O. ruptus , or between O. piceus and O. varipennis . In females, sternite VII of O. bengalensis resembles that of O. nigriceps , and those of O. piceus and O. varipennis are nearly indistinguishable. Such “cross resemblances” may indicate something about their evolutionary history. Additionally, we obsereved that the species O. javanus Cameron is also very much similar to O. nigriceps ( Cameron 1936: 32) .