Himalopenetretus Zamotajlov, 2002: 98

Yan, Weifeng, Shi, Hongliang & Liang, Hongbin, 2020, First discovery of the genus Himalopenetretus (Coleoptera, Carabidae, Patrobini) in China, with description of a new species, ZooKeys 997, pp. 145-154 : 145

Himalopenetretus Zamotajlov, 2002: 98

Type species.

Ledouxius franzi Zamotajlov & Sciaky, 1998

Generic characters.

The genus can be identified by the following combination of character states: a medium sized Patrobini with dorsal side reddish brown; body elongate with inconspicuous eyes; first antennomere plurisetose, with one seta distinctly longer than the others; head with four to six pairs of setae between eyes and neck constriction; mandibles strongly elongated, apical tooth absent; submentum with two pairs of setae; lateral margins of pronotum with two to five pairs of setae before middle; elytra without scutellar pore, discal setiferous pores only present on the third interval; fifth meso- and metatarsomeres glabrous or with only a few very minute setae ventrally; apical lamella of aedeagus narrow, nearly straight in lateral view and more or less twisted leftwards in dorsal view, without a tooth or other apical protuberances; endophallus with two groups of copulatory pieces: proximal one near middle, with sharp and hooked apex and a rudimentary flagellum; distal one near end of apical orifice, smaller and bilobed.

Himalopenetretus is most similar to the genus Ledouxius , as follows: first antennomere plurisetose; submentum with two pairs of setae; lateral margins of pronotum plurisetose; fifth meso- and metatarsomeres without long setae ventrally. However, it can be differentiated from this genus by: (1) head with four to six pairs of setae between eyes and neck constriction; (2) mandibles strongly elongated; (3) eyes less prominent, pronotum subcordate to nearly quadrate; (4) elytra without scutellar pore; (5) apical lamella of aedeagus narrow and more or less twisted leftwards in dorsal view, endophallus possessing a rudimentary flagellum on proximal copulatory pieces. The subgenus Hasarotretus of the genus Ledouxius especially resembles Himalopenetretus in the absence of apical teeth on the mandibles, but is different in the many important characters mentioned above.

Besides with Ledouxius , species of Himalopenetretus also share some characters with the genus Deltomerodes , including the extremely long temporae, the leftwards twisted apical lamella of the aedeagus, and basal part of proximal copulatory piece forming a flagellum. However, the latter genus is different in: (1) mandibles normal, not elongated; (2) head with two to four pairs of setae between eyes and neck constriction; (3) pronotum somewhat elongate and flask-shaped, lateral margins with only one (rarely two) pairs of setae before middle; (4) elytra with additional discal setiferous pores present on the fifth or seventh intervals.

Himalopenetretus includes the following three species occurring in the Western Himalayas (Map 2 ):

Himalopenetretus falciger (Heinz & Ledoux, 1989): Pakistan (Gilgit);

Himalopenetretus franzi (Zamotajlov & Sciaky, 1998): India (Uttar Pradesh, Tapovan);

Himalopenetretus burangensis sp. nov.: China (Xizang, Burang).

Figures

Map 2. Distribution map for Himalopenetretus species: H. burangensis sp. nov. (red); H. franzi (blue); H. falciger (magenta).