Neobarombiella emma, Bolz & Wagner, 2012

Bolz, Helmut & Wagner, Thomas, 2012, 3463, Zootaxa 3463, pp. 1-112 : 82-83

Neobarombiella emma sp. n.

( Figs 141–144)

Etymology. Named after Emma Schollmeier, the grandmother of Helmut Bolz’s girl-friend Susanne Schöler.

Total length. 3.40–4.40 mm (mean: 3.74 mm) (n=10).

Head. Head and maxillary palp black or brownish-black. Antenna very long and slender, yellowish-brown, terminal antennomeres darker ( Fig. 141); Length of second to third antennomere 0.63–0.72 (mean: 0.67), and length of third to fourth antennomere 0.59–0.67 (mean: 0.62) ( Fig. 143). Eyes small and widely separated ( Fig. 141), width of eye to interocular distance 0.33–0.41 (mean: 0.38).

Thorax. Pronotum trapezoidal, coarsely punctuated, black in about two thirds of material examined, the rest brownish-yellow, with fine microsculpture and polished leather-like sheen. Pronotal width 1.02–1.36 mm (mean: 1.16 mm), pronotal length 0.56–0.68 mm (mean: 0.63 mm), and pronotal length to width 0.50–0.56 (mean: 0.54). Elytron brownish-black, slender; as pronotum with microsculpture and a polished leather-like sheen ( Fig. 141); elytral length 2.45–3.20 mm (mean: 2.68 mm), elytral width 1.40–2.00 mm (mean: 1.63 mm), and maximal width of both elytra to length of elytron 0.55–0.65 (mean: 0.61). Meso- and metathorax brownish-black, legs reddishyellow; length of basi-metatarsus to metatibia 0.50–0.52 (mean: 0.51).

Abdomen. Brown or brownish-black.

Male genitalia. Median lobe long, slender, and parallel-sided in ventral view, straight in lateral view with blunt apex ( Fig. 142); apical section with deep V-shaped incision and lacking characteristic sclerotized structures; endophallic brush small, lacking spiculae, and fully covered by tectum and median lobe.

Diagnosis. This species is well characterized by its small size, elongate antennomeres, the non-metallic brownish to black colouring, and its restricted distribution in the KwaZulu-Natal Province of eastern South Africa. Most similar in appearance is N. pakhassana , a species which occurs sympatrically but is even smaller, total length in N. pakhassana : 2.20–3.15 mm (3.40–4.40 mm in N. emma sp. n.), and has broader elytra, width of both elytra to length of elytron 0.69–0.77 (0.55–0.65 in N. emma sp. n.) ( Figs 106, 141). Neobarombiella nigrocaerulea has dark metallic green elytron which are usually combined with a yellow pronotum, and N. punctatolineata has elytron with the same fine microsculpture, and polished leather-like, oily sheen, are similar to N. emma sp. n. in size. Both these species differ in having sub-regular, linear, elytral punctuation. Neobarombiella punctatolineata can be distinguished by its large eyes, width of eye to interocular distance 0.56–0.71 (0.33–0.41 in N. emma sp. n.) and more distinctly transverse pronotum (pronotal length to width 0.45–0.54 (0.50–0.56 in N. emma sp. n.) ( Figs 48, 141). Furthermore, N. punctatolineata has a Guineo-Congolian distribution which is far removed from that of N. emma sp. n. in, South Africa ( Fig. 51).

Distribution. Only recorded from one location, near Port St. John, in the KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa.

Type material. Holotype, male: “ S. Africa., R. E. Turner., Brit. Mus., 1923-463. / Port St. John, Pondoland., Aug.15-31.1923. / Holotype, Neobarombiella emma, Bolz & Wagner 2010 / AfriGa, specimen ID:, 1878, specimen data, documented, 10.III.2011 ” ( BMNH; Fig. 144). Type locality: South Africa, KwaZulu-Natal, Port St. John , 31°38'S / 29°33'E .— Paratypes: South Africa: KwaZulu-Natal. 11 specimens with the same label data as the holotype are paratypes ( BMNH) .