Pseudobironium merkli, Lobl & Liang Tang, 2013

Löbl, Ivan & Tang, Liang, 2013, A review of the genus Pseudobironium Pic (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Scaphidiinae), Revue suisse de Zoologie 120 (4), pp. 665-734 : 684-685

Pseudobironium merkli sp. nov. Figs 5, 6, 21-23

HOLOTYPE: Ƌ, VIETNAM, Cuc Phuong , Nihn Binh, 3-10.V.1966, exp. Gy. Topál / Nr. 249 singled material ( HNHM).

PARATYPES: VIETNAM, with the same locality data as the holotype, 2 ♀ ( HNHM, MHNG) . – CHINA, Yunnan Prov., Menlun, Xipian , 985m, 1.VI.2009, 2 Ƌ, 1 ♀ leg. Wen-Xuan Bi ( SNUC, MHNG) .

DESCRIPTION: Length 2.65-3.0 mm, width 1.80-2.15 mm. Head and pronotum blackish, elytra becoming somewhat lighter apically. Ventral side of body black to dark brown, apical abdominal segments dark brown, femora and tibiae brown, antennae and tarsi lighter, almost yellowish. Maxillary palpi with palpomere IV tapering, about 4 times as long as wide. Length ratio of antennomeres as II 12: III 10: IV 16: V 18: VI 14: VII 19: VIII 18: IX 19: X 19: XI 19; antennomere XI about 3 times as long as wide. Punctation on frons and pronotum conspicuously dense, punctures on frons about as large as puncture diameters. Pronotal punctures slightly coarser than those on head, with puncture intervals mostly about as to twice as large as puncture diameters. Elytra lacking lateral impressions, without humps, with punctation distinctly coarser than that on pronotum, punctures fairly well delimited, puncture intervals mostly about twice as large as puncture diameters. Prohypomera impunctate, covered by dense microsculpture consistings of waves and striae. Mesoventrite with low mesal ridge, distinctly punctate apically, with short pubescence and few striae. Metaventrite with strigulate microsculpture on apicomedian surface, hardly convex in median part, lacking impression, almost entire median part very densely and fairly coarsely punctate and indistinctly pubescent, smooth mesal area narrowed posteriad, puncture diameters to part larger than puncture intervals, punctures small near metacoxal proces. Lateral parts of metaventrite sparsely, very finely punctate. Submesocoxal area about as long as third of shortest interval to metacoxa. Metacoxal process small, impunctate, with transversely strigulate microsculpture and truncate margin, raised mesally. Mesotibiae and metatibiae curved, mesotibial ventral spur straight. Abdominal sternites with strigulate microsculpture appearing mesh-like on lateral parts of sternite 1 pending on angle of lighting, sternite 1 very finely punctate, with basolateral transverse stria and large transverse lateral impression posterior mid-length. Following sternites lacking wrinkles.

Male: Protarsus distinctly shorter than protibia, with tarsomeres 1 to 3 widened, narrower than apex of protibia, bearing fairly long tenent setae. Aedeagus (Figs 21-23) 1.07-1.08 mm long. Median lobe with basal bulb shorter than apical process, latter hardly inflexed, convex ventrally, with curved, hook-like tip. Parameres gradually narrowed and weakly bent in dorsal view, slightly arcuate and narrowed toward apices in lateral view. Internal sac with long median guide-sclerite, with paired median plates weakly sclerotized except at subapical folds followed by membranous, tubular section and bearing apical, very fine hair-like structures. Flagellum and admesal complex of sclerites with invaginated rods absent.

DISTRIBUTION: China: Yunnan, Vietnam.

ETYMOLOGY: The species is names in honour of our colleague Otto Merkl,

Budapest, Hungary, in acknowledgment of his kind assistances.

COMMENTS: This species is unique in having prohypomera covered by dense, undulate and strigulate microsculpture. It resembles in other external characters to P. bilobum and P. montanum described below, although it may be also readily distinguished by the very densely and distinctly punctate frons. In addition, it differs notably by dense elytral punctation, darker body, impunctate prohypomera, and punctulate abdominal microsculpture. The aedeagal characters are distinctive, notably by the structures of the internal sac.