Melanterius abbreviatus, Pinzón-Navarro & Jennings & Oberprieler, 2017

Pinzón-Navarro, Sara V., Jennings, Debbie & Oberprieler, Rolf G., 2017, Host associations of Melanterius Erichson (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Cleogonini), with a diagnosis and delimitation of the genus and description of five new species, Zootaxa 4298 (1), pp. 1-77 : 29-32

Melanterius abbreviatus sp. n.

( Figs. 50–53 )

Description (female only). Size: length 2.35–3.0 mm; width 1.1–1.5 mm. Colour and vestiture: body blackish; head, pronotum and elytra sparsely clothed with minute short white setae, legs sparsely covered with larger, pale hair-scales. Head with large, dense, relatively deep and closely spaced punctures becoming confluent on forehead. Eyes large, flat, dorsally separated by slightly more than width of rostrum at base. Rostrum about 1.25x longer than prothorax, very slender and strongly downcurved; dorsally at base with a few large, setiferous punctures and short grooves (confluent punctures), rest glabrous with sparse, minute punctures. Antennae inserted in middle of rostrum; with funicle 1.36x longer than scape, funicle segments 1 and 2 subequal, each slightly shorter than 3+4, club 2x longer than wide in middle. Prothorax trapezoidal in outline, at apex 0.6x as wide as at base, length along midline 0.7x of width at base; pronotum densely covered with large, oval, moderately deep, closely set punctures, each in posterior wall carrying a stiff, spatulate, pale seta as long as a puncture and curving anteriad. Elytra 3.4x longer than pronotum, at base nearly as wide as pronotum but across humeri 1.25x wider; interstriae broad, all except 1 (sutural) subcostate on disc, all costate on declivity, 4 with costa not extending to base of elytra ( Fig. 52 ), surface rugulose, with a row of sparse subspatulate pale setae on either side of midline (costa). Metanepisterna with a single row of large, shallow, subcontiguous punctures, metanepisternal sutures ventrally fringed with row of indistinct sclerolepidia (more distinct only at anterior and posterior ends). Prosternum ventrally deeply excavate, forming short, narrow canal with strongly raised edges (flanges) anteriorly of procoxae but laterally open behind procoxae, flanges with deep anterior cavity but not peep-hole, each extended posteriorly into stout acute process abutting anterior surface of procoxa. Mesoventrite with median process deeply broadly foveate, with short prominent flanges in front of mesocoxae; surface of fovea finely shagreened. Metaventrite with disc laterally produced into carina extending between meso- and metacoxae but sometimes not reaching the latter; surface densely covered with large, shallow punctures each with a stout, broad, blunt, pale seta inserted in anterior wall and directed caudad. Abdominal ventrites 1 and 2 laterally only ca. 0.3x longer than 3 and 4; 3 and 4 each with two transverse rows of large punctures with fine pale setae. Legs. Procoxae separated by slightly less than half width of rostrum at base, meso- and metacoxae separated by about their width; femora with strong ventral tooth, on inside of tooth with shallow groove for reception of tibiae; tibiae with small but distinct uncus arising at inner side of apex and continuing into bare flange across tibial apex (forming false corbel, particularly on metatibiae), flange at outer angle bluntly produced (forming a broad lobe on metatibiae), setal comb slightly oblique on all tibiae. Genitalia. Spermatheca ( Fig. 53 ) evenly thick, straight with abruptly angled, slightly inflated cornu with narrowed, kinked apex; gland large, bulbous, with short, straight, sclerotized duct inserted on elongate, apically slightly inflated ramus.

Material examined (8 ♀). New South Wales. Holotype ♀: 2901’37 S 15129 ’55E / NSW: Bruxner Highway / above Dumaresq River / 18 Sept 2013 / S. Pinzón-Navarro // NSW S84 P584 / beating Acacia leiocalyx / DNA 4151 // ANIC Database No. / 25 0 63528 // ♀ // HOLOTYPE / Melanterius abbreviatus / Pinzón-Navarro, Jennings & Oberprieler, 2017” ( ANIC). Paratypes (all labelled “ PARATYPE / Melanterius abbreviatus / Pinzón-Navarro, Jennings & Oberprieler 2017, in ANIC): 1 ♀: same data as holotype except “ DNA 4149 // ANIC Database No. / 25 063527 ; 1 ♀: same data as holotype except “ DNA 4150 // ANIC Database No. / 25 067266 ; 1 ♀: same data as holotype except “ DNA 4152 // ANIC Database No. / 25 0 64662 // ANIC / Image ; 1 ♀: 3528’12 S 15020 ’51E / NSW: 1375 Princes Highway , / Meroo N. P. / 0 5 October 2013 / S. Pinzón-Navarro // Jervis S 9 P640 / beating Acacia sp. / DNA 4251 // ANIC Database No. / 25 0 63530. Queensland . 1 ♀: 2642’41 S 15137 ’49E / QLD: Road from Kumbia / 5 Mar 2012 483m / S. Pinzón-Navarro / Beating Acacia loroloba / DNA 2413 // ANIC Database No. / 25 0 63524 // ANIC / Image ; 1 ♀: 2652’40 S 15030 ’21E / QLD: Kogan-Tara Rd / 15 Sept 2013 / S. Pinzón- Navarro // QLD 2 S11 P509 / beating Acacia leiocalyx / DNA 4040 // ANIC Database No. / 25 063526 ; 1 ♀: 2704’05 S 15050 ’25E / QLD: Kogan-Condamine / Road / 21 Sept 2013 / S. Pinzón-Navarro // QLD 2 S104 P605 / beating Acacia leiocalyx / DNA 4187 // ANIC Database No. / 25 0 63529.

Distribution. The species is thus far only known from northern New South Wales and southern Queensland ( Fig. 70 ).

Host-plants. The type series was collected mainly from Acacia leiocalyx , though a single specimen was collected on A. loroloba ( Table 1).

Remarks. The species is characterised foremost by the abbreviated costa of interstriae 4 (not reaching the base of the elytra), a condition not occurring in any other species as studied. It is otherwise most similar to: M. baridioides , which differs also by its more compact shape, finer pronotal punctation and smooth, shallowly punctate interstriae on the elytral disc; M. interstitialis , which differs by having only convex, not costate, interstriae on the elytral disc, a slightly different pronotal punctation and longer ventrites 1 and 2; M. legitimus , which has a sparser pronotal punctation (larger interstices between the punctures), broader and distinctly punctate interstriae and the strial punctures more strongly confluent; M. maestus , which is reddish in colour and has the interstriae acostate on the elytral disc; M. tesseymani , which has a finer pronotal punctation, the interstriae acostate on the elytral disc and a shorter rostrum and femora; M. oleosus , which is distinctive in its elongate, sometimes partially confluent pronotal punctures. All these species also do not have as sharp and high a carina between the meso- and metacoxae. The male of M. abbreviatus is as yet unknown.

Melanterius abbreviatus is named for the abbreviated costa of the 4 th elytral interstriae, which does not reach the base of the elytron as the costae of the other interstriae do. The name is an adjective.

Figures

FIGURE 70. Known distribution of Melanterius abbreviatus sp. n., M. psittacoides sp. n., M. pungalinae sp. n., and M. tesseymani sp. n. in south-eastern Queensland and north-eastern New South Wales (single record of M. abbreviatus from Meroo National Park in south-eastern New South Wales not shown).

FIGURES 50 – 53. Melanterius abbreviatus sp. n. 50: holotype, female, dorsal habitus (New South Wales, Bruxner Highway above Dumaresq River); 51: holotype, female, lateral habitus; 52: holotype, female, elytra showing abbreviated costae of interstriae 4 (arrows pointing at slight callus where costae end); 53: spermatheca (New South Wales, Bruxner Highway above Dumjaresq River).