Neuraphoconnus Franz, 1971

Jałoszyński, Paweł & Newton, Alfred F., 2017, Taxonomy of ' Euconnus complex'. Part XV. Disentangling the Euconnus - Sciacharis knot (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae, Scydmaeninae), Zootaxa 4344 (3), pp. 401-443 : 411-413

Neuraphoconnus Franz , status rest.

( Figs 7 , 22–25 , 36–39, 45)

Neuraphoconnus Franz, 1971: 46 . Type specIes: Neuraphoconnus caledonicus Franz, 1971 (des. orIg.). SynonymIzed wIth Magellanoconnus by Franz (1986a); here resurrected as genus.

Revised diagnosis. Antennae gradually thickened; head subpentagonal with long tempora and occipital constriction slightly broader than half width of head; frontoclypeal groove indistinct; submentum lacking lateral sutures; hypostomal ridges not reaching posterior tentorial pits; pronotum with complete or nearly complete lateral carinae and transverse antebasal groove interrupted at middle; basisternal part of prosternum much shorter than coxal part; notosternal sutures complete; hypomeral ridges marked only posteriorly, but adcoxal part of hypomeron distinctly demarcated as asetose area contrasting with densely setose outer part of hypomeron; procoxal cavities broadly closed; interprocoxal region with faint trace of median carina; head and pronotum with bristles; each elytron with one barely discernible and asetose rudiment of basal fovea; mesoventral intercoxal process carinate but incomplete, separating mesocoxae only in their anterior half; metaventral intermetacoxal process subtriangular and not separating metacoxae; aedeagus with symmetrical and weakly sclerotized median lobe; endophallus asymmetrical; parameres free and slender.

Redescription. General body shape ( Fig. 7 ) elongate and moderately convex, pronotum flattened, body deeply constricted between head and pronotum and between pronotum and elytra.

Head ( Figs 22–23 ) large in relation to pronotum; divided by occipital constriction into large anterior and small posterior part ('neck' region), posterior part retracted into pronotum. Occipital constriction about as broad as half width of head. Anterior part of head capsule convex dorsally and flattened ventrally, subpentagonal; tempora longer than compound eyes; vertex transverse and not bulging posterodorsally, with posterior margin not demarcated, anteriorly vertex confluent with subtrapezoidal frons; supraantennal tubercles feebly marked; frontoclypeal groove indistinct. Gular plate ( Fig. 23 ; gp) broad and with distinct gular sutures; posterior tentorial pits ( Fig. 23 ; ptp) strongly elongate, slot-shaped and located in front of transverse impression separating 'neck' region from anterior part of head. Tempora, genae and postgenae with thick bristles. Submentum ( Fig. 23 ; smn) subtriangular; hypostomal ridges ( Fig. 23 ; hr) incomplete, nearly straight, not reaching posterior tentorial pits; mentum ( Fig. 23 ; mn) subtrapezoidal; prementum small and transverse, largely membranous; labial palps short; maxillae unmodified; mandibles only partly visible in the studied specimen, subtriangular and evenly curved, mesal margins not visible.

Antennae ( Fig. 7 ) long and slender, gradually but weakly thickened.

Prothorax ( Figs 22, 24 ) flattened, elongate, broadest in front of middle, with sides weakly rounded in anterior half and slightly constricted in front of base; anterior corners indistinct, posterior corners well-marked, obtuseangled; base lacking sublateral carinae or pits, with transverse groove ( Fig. 22 ; abg) interrupted at middle; sides of pronotum with nearly complete lateral carinae ( Fig. 22 ; lc) or edges. Prosternum ( Fig. 24 ) with basisternal part ( Fig. 24 ; bst) much shorter than coxal part; notosternal sutures ( Fig. 24 ; nss) complete; hypomeral ridges ( Fig. 24 ; hyr) marked only posteriorly, but entire adcoxal part of hypomeron differentiated by its asetose surface, contrasting with densely setose outer part of hypomeron; procoxal cavities broadly closed; interprocoxal region with barely discernible trace of narrow carina; hypomera covered with bristles.

Mesothorax. Mesoscutellum in intact specimens entirely covered by posterior pronotal margin, its posterior tip not exceeding posterior margin of elytral articulating lobe. Mesoventrite ( Fig. 25 ) with a pair of transverse setose impressions functioning as procoxal rests ( Fig. 21 ; pcr) in anterior region, impressions separated at middle and with all margins diffuse; mesoventral intercoxal process ( Fig. 25 ; msvp) carinate, its posterior tip well-defined, subtriangular and located near middle of mesocoxal cavities.

Metathorax. Metaventrite ( Fig. 25 ) much longer than mesoventrite, subtrapezoidal; anterior metaventral process ( Fig. 25 ; amvp) present; intermetacoxal area weakly expanded posteriorly and forming short subtriangular metaventral intercoxal process ( Fig. 25 ; mtvp) not separating metacoxae.

Elytra ( Figs 7 , 22 ) oval, with rounded apices and base distinctly broader than posterior pronotal margin; humeral calli and basal impressions distinct; each elytron with one vestigial asetose basal fovea ( Fig. 22 ; bef) barely discernible in intact specimens.

Metathoracic wings present.

Legs ( Fig. 7 ) moderately long and slender, unmodified.

Abdomen elongate, gradually narrowing posteriorly, suture between two terminal visible sternites (i.e., VII and VIII) less distinct than between remaining sternites.

Aedeagus (Figs 36–39) with symmetrical and weakly sclerotized median lobe; endophallic structures asymmetrical, parameres slender, with apical setae.

Remarks. Neuraphoconnus clearly differs from Sciacharis in the incomplete mesoventral intercoxal process not reaching posterior margins of mesocoxal cavities and in the presence of the anterior mesoventral process. These characters are similar to those in Australian Spinosciacharis Jałoszyński, 2014c ; the latter differs from Neuraphoconnus in the pronotum lacking lateral carinae; the basisternal part of prosternum subequal in length to the coxal part; the hypomeral ridges complete; and each elytron with two deep and distinct foveae.

Composition and distribution. Neuraphoconnus currently includes 16 valid species names; the genus is distributed in New Caledonia and New Zealand.

Lectotype designation. Franz (1971) mentioned 17 specimens in his original description of Neuraphoconnus caledonicus Franz, 1971 , but he did not fix one of them as holotype. Consequently, all specimens are syntypes. The male preserved at NHMW ( Fig. 7 ) with the aedeagus extracted (Figs 38–39), bearing the set of labels illustrated in Fig. 45, is here designated as the lectotype (des. P. Jałoszyński).

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 9. RepresentatIves of all genus-group names prevIously or currently Included In Sciacharis; dorsal habItus. Euconnus (Austroconophron) tindoui Franz, comb. rest. (type specIes of Austroconophron) (1); Sciacharis (s. str.) lanosa (Broun) (type specIes of Allomaoria) (2); Sciacharis (s. str.) fulva Broun (type specIes of Sciacharis) (3); Sciacharis (Maorinus) alacer (Broun) (type specIes of Maorinus) (4); Magellanoconnus (s. str.) laurisilvae (Franz), comb. rest. (type specIes of Magellanoconnus) (5); Magellanoconnus (Anthicimimus) anthiciformis (Franz), comb. n. (type specIes of Anthicimimus) (6); Neuraphoconnus caledonicus Franz, comb. rest. (type specIes of Neuraphoconnus) (7); Microscydmus (Valdivioconnus) stenichniformis (Franz), comb. n. (type specIes of Valdivioconnus) (8); and Kangarooconnus carinifrons (Franz), comb. n. (type specIes of Kangarooconnus) (9).

FIGURES 22 – 25. MorphologIcal structures of Neuraphoconnus caledonicus Franz, comb. rest. (type specIes of Neuraphoconnus). Head, prothorax and elytral base In dorsal vIew (22); head In ventral vIew (23); prothorax and anterIor portIon of mesothorax In ventral vIew (24); pterothorax In ventral vIew (25). AbbrevIatIons: abg, antebasal groove; amvp, anterIor metaventral process; bef, basal elytral fovea; bst, basIsternal part of prosternum; gp, gular plate; hr, hypostomal rIdge; hyr, hypomeral rIdge; lc, lateral carIna; mn, mentum; msvp, mesoventral Intercoxal process; mtvp, metaventral Intermetacoxal process; nss, notosternal suture; pcr, procoxal rest; ptp, posterIor tentorIal pIt; smn, submentum.

FIGURES 18 – 21. MorphologIcal structures of Magellanoconnus (s. str.) laurisilvae (Franz), comb. rest. (type specIes of Magellanoconnus). Head, prothorax and elytral base In dorsal vIew (18); head In ventral vIew (19); prothorax In ventral vIew (20); pterothorax In ventral vIew (21). AbbrevIatIons: abp, antebasal pIt; amvp, anterIor metaventral process; bef, basal elytral fovea; bst, basIsternal part of prosternum; gp, gular plate; hr, hypostomal rIdge; hyr, hypomeral rIdge; mc, medIan carIna; mn, mentum; msvp, mesoventral Intercoxal process; mtvp, metaventral Intermetacoxal process; nss, notosternal suture; pcr, procoxal rest; ptp, posterIor tentorIal pIt; slc, sublateral carIna; smn, submentum.