Saprinus (Saprinus) australis (Boisduval, 1835)

Lackner, Tomas & Leschen, Richard A. B., 2017, A monograph of the Australopacific Saprininae (Coleoptera, Histeridae), ZooKeys 689, pp. 1-263 : 83-89

Saprinus (Saprinus) australis (Boisduval, 1835) Figs 337, 338-343, 344-352, 759

Hister australis Boisduval, 1835: 148.

Saprinus tasmanicus Marseul, 1855: 386 - Synonymized by Gemminger and Harold (1868): 783.

Type locality.

Australia.

Type material examined.

Hister australis Boisduval, 1835: none. The type material of this species has not been located despite our extensive search and numerous visits in several European museums and its whereabouts are currently unknown.

Saprinus tasmanicus Marseul, 1855: Lectotype, present designation: ♀, glued on a mounting card, three tarsomeres of the left protibia broken off, right meso-tarsus and right hind leg missing, with the following labels: tiny, yellow rectangular label, followed by: " Saprinus / tasmanicus / m. / Australia further illegible / Dej. / V. Diemen / T. Dej. 67" (pink round label, written); followed by: “TYPE” (red-printed label); followed by: "MUSEUM PARIS / tasmanicus / COLL. / DE MARSEUL 1890" (pink label, printed-written); followed by: " Saprinus tasmanicus / Marseul, 1855 / LECTOTYPE / des. T. Lackner 2014" (red label, written) (MNHN). This species has been described from unknown number of specimens and the lectotype designation fixes the identity of the species.

Additional material examined.

AUSTRALIA. Queensland: 1 spec., Queensland, without further data (ZMHUB); 3 specs., Ewan Road, 8 miles W Paluma, 15.i.1970, J.G. Brooks (fish lure) (ANIC); 3 specs., Mount Mee, 7 km SW, 27°05'S, 152°42'E, 12.x.1991, Tom Gush (under dead snake on road) (ANIC); 7 specs., Mt. Tambourine, xii.1919, H. Pottinger (QM); 2 specs., National Park, xii.1919, H. Hacker (QM); 1 spec., Brisbane, ii.1920, H. Pottinger (QM); 1 spec., Caloundra, 28.ix.1913, H. Hacker (QM); 1 spec., Kroombit Tops (Lower Dry Creek), 45 km SSW Calliope, 9.-19.xii.1983, G. Monteith & G. Thompson (open forest) (QM); 1 spec., McAfee’s Lookout, 300 m, 27°26'S, 152°53'E, 18.x.1999, G. Monteith (open forest, under dead goanna) (QM); 2 ♀♀ & 1 spec., Bally Knob Summit, 1100 m, 17°39'S, 145°30'E, 6.xii.1998-6.ii.1999, Monteith & Cook (open forest, FIT) (QM); 1 ♂, Mt. Spurgeon, 16°27'S, 145°11'E, 1100 m, 19.-22.xi.1997, D.J. Cook (open forest, dung traps) (QM); 1 ♂, Mt. Spec., 11.i.1969, J.G. Brooks, fish lure (ANIC). Australian Capital Territory: 1 spec., Canberra, 14.x.1965, E. Britton (coast road, under dead wombat) (ANIC). Victoria: 1 spec., Melbourne, without further data (ZMHUB). New South Wales: 1 ♂, Richmond River, N.S. Wales (BMNH); 1 spec., env. Port Macquarie, 5.iii.1965, Exp. Dr. J. Balogh (HNMH); 1 ♂, Great Dividing Range, Mt. Coricudgy, 941 m, 32°50.8'S, 150°17.8'E, 7.-9.x.2000, R. de Keyzer leg. (HMNH); 2 specs., Lilyvale, 9.ix.1972, D.A. Doolan (MAMU); 1 spec., Ulong, East Dorrigo, ii.-iv.1923, W. Heron (MAMU); 2 specs., Mooney Mooney near Gosford, 18.i.1980, B.J. Day & D.K. McAlpine (MAMU); 4 specs., Dorrigo, W. Herron (SAMA). South Australia: 4 specs., Kangaroo Island, Rocky River, xii.1934, Museum Expedition (SAMA). Tasmania: 4 ♂♂ & 5 ♀♀, St. Helena, 10 km NW, 12.xii.1981, Bornemissza leg. (HMNH). Unknown localities: 1 ♀, Ballaarat, 1938, without further data (BMNH); 1 spec., Australien, no further data (ZMHUB); 1 spec., Australia occid. 1192, no further data (HNMH); 1 spec., Dividing Range, Blackburn’s Collection, no further data (SAMA).

Biology.

Saprinus (S.) australis is a predator of the open landscape collected both on dung and on carcasses.

Distribution.

Australia: Tasmania, New South Wales, Queensland, Australian Capital Territory, and South Australia (Fig. 759).

Remarks.

Boisduval’s description (1835: 148) of Hister australis is very concise and cannot be used to differentiate the species from other Australian congeners. Gemminger and Harold (1868: 783) synonymized Marseul’s Saprinus tasmanicus with Hister australis without any explanation. It is possible that Gemminger and Harold had seen Boisduval’s type specimen(s) and based their synonymy on syntype examination. We base our determinations on numerous inspected specimens that had been previously identified as S. (S.) australis by worldwide authorities on the Saprininae , like Dahlgren or Kanaar. This species is well characterised by the strongly shortened third dorsal elytral stria, whereas the second and the fourth are almost the same length, slightly surpassing elytral half apically (Fig. 337).

Re-description.

Body length: PEL: 3.50-4.75 mm; EL: 2.00-3.00 mm; APW: 1.25-1.50 mm; PPW: 2.50-3.50 mm; EW: 3.00-4.00 mm.

Body (Fig. 337) rectangular oval, convex, elytra dark blue to black, shining, with slight metallic luster, pronotum dark bronze, metallic; legs, mouthparts and antennal scape castaneous brown; antennal club black.

Antennal scape (Fig. 338) slightly thickened, punctuate, with few setae; antennal club (Figs 339) wider than long, truncate apically, covered with dense short sensilla intermingled with sparse longer erect setae; sensory structures of antennal club in form of four elongate ventral sensory patches, vesicle(s) not examined.

Mandibles dorso-laterally finely punctuate, rounded, outer margin slightly carinate, mandibular apex acute, sub-apical tooth on left mandible obtuse; labrum finely and sparsely punctuate, convex, with deep median excavation; labral pits present, each with two labral setae; other mouthparts not examined.

Clypeus (Fig. 338) even, covered by punctures of various sizes separated by several times their diameter intermingled with microscopic punctation; frontal and supraorbital striae complete, occasionally frontal stria weakened medially; frontal disc (Fig. 338) with similar punctation as that of clypeus, but punctures denser; eyes convex, well visible from above.

Pronotal sides (Fig. 337) moderately narrowing anteriorly, apical angles obtuse, pronotal depressions present, anterior incision for head rather deep; marginal pronotal stria complete, carinate, visible along its entire length from dorsal view; pronotal disc laterally with a band of deep dense elongate punctures originating approximately in pronotal depressions, reaching basal angles of pronotum, between it and pronotal margin a narrow smooth band present; rest of the pronotal disc with only scattered microscopic punctation; several rows of punctures present along pronotal base weakening around ante-scutellar area; pronotal hypomeron glabrous; scutellum small, visible.

Elytral epipleura with sparse fine punctures; marginal epipleural stria complete; marginal elytral stria well impressed and slightly carinate, continued as complete apical elytral stria that is connected to incomplete sutural elytral stria. Humeral elytral stria well impressed on basal third, occasionally doubled, sometimes connected to short inner subhumeral stria; four dorsal elytral striae 1-4 well impressed, in fine punctures, first and second striae reaching approximately elytral half apically, third dorsal elytral stria always abbreviated apically, usually present only on basal elytral fourth, fourth stria slightly shorter than first or second, ending short of elytral mid-length, basally curved towards sutural elytral stria, but not connected with it (only occasionally connected with it); sutural elytral stria abbreviated on basal fifth, well-impressed, in fine punctures, apically connected with apical elytral stria; elytral disc on apical half (roughly) punctate, punctures fine, sparse, separated by several times their diameter; punctures becoming sparser and finer apically, occasionally not reaching elytral apex.

Propygidium very densely punctate, punctures separated by less than their own diameter, almost confluent; pygidium with similar, if somewhat sparser but larger punctation, interspaces in both cases imbricate.

Anterior margin of median portion of prosternum (Fig. 340) rounded; marginal prosternal stria present laterally and also as medial fragment; prosternal process between carinal prosternal striae slightly convex, sparsely and finely punctate, surface near united apices of carinal prosternal striae distinctly depressed; carinal prosternal striae carinate, bisinuate, united in front (Fig. 340); lateral prosternal striae carinate, rather short, apically attaining carinal prosternal striae at about three-fourths of their length.

Discal marginal mesoventral stria (Fig. 341) well impressed, carinate, complete; disc with sparse fine punctation, punctures separated by several times their diameter, occasionally punctation on mesoventrite coarser and denser, intermingled with much finer and sparser punctures; meso-metaventral sutural stria indicated by a row of large punctures; intercoxal disc of metaventrite in males with faint median longitudinal depression, in females convex; disc of metaventrite for the most part almost smooth, surface around longitudinal depression with scattered microscopic punctation, punctures of various sizes, along lateral and basal margin several rows of punctation appear; lateral metaventral stria (Fig. 342) well impressed, carinate, almost straight, shortened; lateral disc of metaventrite (Fig. 342) slightly concave, with dense and large setigerous punctures; metepisternum (Fig. 342) similar, but punctures deeper and smaller and without setae, on fused metepimeron punctures becoming much sparser; metepisternal stria present along fused metepimeron, along metepisternum present as short intermittent fragments.

Intercoxal disc of first abdominal ventrite completely striate laterally; disc along basal and lateral margins with shallow punctures of various sizes; rest of sternite with scattered microscopic punctation.

Protibia (Fig. 343) slightly dilated, outer margin with around 8 low teeth topped by large triangular denticle, denticles diminishing in size proximally; setae of outer row regular, short; protarsal groove shallow; anterior protibial stria present on basal two-thirds, next obliterated; setae of median row shorter and much sparser than those of outer row; two tarsal denticles present near tarsal insertion; protibial spur bent, growing out from apical margin of protibia; apical margin of protibia ventrally with three tiny denticles; outer part of posterior surface slightly obscurely variolate, separated from glabrous and narrow median part of posterior surface by a ridge bearing a row of setae; posterior protibial stria complete, bearing along its length sparse row of microscopic setae turning into several minuscule denticles apically; inner row of setae single, lamellate.

Meso-and metatibia similar to those of other congeners.

Male genitalia. Eighth sternite (Figs 344-345) strongly sclerotized, fused medially, apex asetose, vela present, asetose; eighth tergite apically not emarginate, straight; eighth tergite and eighth sternite fused laterally (Fig. 346). Ninth tergite (Figs 347-348) typical for the subfamily; tenth tergite basally inwardly arcuate, rounded apically; spiculum gastrale (Figs 349-350) dilated on apical third, apex strongly sclerotized; basal end slightly dilated, outwardly arcuate. Aedeagus (Figs 351-352): parameres widely separated around mid-length (roughly), divergent apically, separated parameres with short regular setae mesally; basal piece of aedeagus short, ratio of its length: length of parameres 1: 6; aedeagus almost straight, on apical fifth strongly curved from lateral view.