Anaulacaspis cristata, Assing, 2016

Assing, Volker, 2016, Revision of the Anaulacaspis species of the Palaearctic region (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Aleocharinae), Beiträge Zur Entomologie = Contributions to Entomology 66 (2), pp. 201-255 : 239

Anaulacaspis cristata spec. nov.

( Figs 132–135 , Map 5 )

Type material: Holotype ♂: “ PAK, Northern Areas , Ghizar valley, Thiee, 36.0229°N, 74.1681°E, 5.7.2007 1760 m, leg. H. Mühle / Holotypus ♂ Anaulacaspis cristata sp. n., det. V. Assing 2016” ( MNB).

Etymology: The specific epithet is an adjective derived from the Latin noun crista. It alludes to the enormous crista apicalis of the aedeagus.

Description: Body length 2.3 mm; length of forebody 1.2 mm. Coloration: head pale reddish-brown; pronotum reddish; elytra yellowish, with a rather pale and diffusely delimited medio-lateral infuscate spot; abdomen reddish with blackish segments VI and VII; legs yellowish; antennae brown with the basal three antennomeres pale-reddish.

Head approximately 1.1 times as broad as long, probably with weak sexual dimorphism. Eyes indistinctly longer than postocular region in dorsal view. Antennae: antennomere IV weakly oblong; antennomeres V–X of gradually increasing width and increasingly transverse, X approximately 1.5 times as broad as long.

Pronotum approximately 1.1 times as broad as long and approximately as broad as head, evidently with distinct sexual dimorphism.

Elytra approximately as long as pronotum; punctation dense and very fine. Hind wings present.

Abdomen narrower than elytra; punctation distinct; tergite VIII ( Fig. 132 ) rather weakly transverse, posterior margin truncate, postero-laterally without a cluster of long thin setae on either side, marginal setae unmodified and moderately long.

♂: head with distinct punctation and with weakly pronounced median impression posteriorly; pronotum with extensive and distinct median impression in posterior two-thirds and with dense and distinct punctation; posterior margin of sternite VIII ( Fig. 133 ) indistinctly, obtusely pointed in the middle; median lobe of aedeagus ( Figs 134–135 ) 0.35 mm long; ventral process narrow, short (in relation to capsule), and weakly curved in lateral view, of triangular shape in ventral view; crista apicalis enormous.

♀: unknown.

Comparative notes: As can be inferred from the shapes and chaetotaxy of tergite and sternite VIII, as well as from the general morphology of the aedeagus, A. cristata belongs to the A. naevula group. Among the species of this group, it is characterized particularly by the morphology of the aedeagus, above all the enormous crista apicalis.

Distribution: The type locality is situated in North Pakistan ( Map 5 ) at an altitude of 1760 m.

Figures

Map 5: Distributions of Anaulacaspis flavomarginata (white diamonds), A. pamphylica (black star), A. inexpectata (white circles), and A. persica (black circles) in the West Palaearctic and Middle Asia, based on revised records.

Figs 113–135: Anaulacaspsis seclusa (113–120; 115–116: holotype of A. klapperichi; 113–114, 117–120: Iran), A. gratilla (121–131; 121–124: lectotype of A. lutzi; 128–131: nanistic male from Azerbaijan), and A. cristata (132–135): male tergite VIII (113, 121, 128, 132); male sternite VIII (114, 122, 129, 133); median lobe of aedeagus in lateral and in ventral view (115–118, 123–126, 130–131, 134–135); female tergite VIII (119); female sternite VIII (120, 127). Scale bars: 0.1 mm.