Pseudotetraclipeoides, Dellacasa & Dellacasa & Gordon, 2015

Dellacasa, Marco, Dellacasa, Giovanni & Gordon, Robert D., 2015, Pseudotetraclipeoides tetraodon, new genus and new species of Mexican Aphodiini (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Aphodiinae), Insecta Mundi 2015 (408), pp. 1-3 : 1-2

Genus Pseudotetraclipeoides new genus

Type species. Pseudotetraclipeoides tetraodon new species, here designated.

Description. Small species (length 4.5 mm), oblong, convex, shiny, glabrous. Piceous. Head with epistome coarsely, irregularly, subrugosely, rather randomly punctured; clypeus acutely bidenticulate on either side of feeble median sinuosity; genae strongly protruding from the eyes; frontal suture obsolete. Pronotum feebly transverse, convex, dually punctured, lateral margins sparsely ciliate, base distinctly bordered. Scutellum small, triangular. Elytra convex, elongately oblong, feebly widened posteriorly, finely striate; striae subcrenulate; interstices almost flat, sparsely punctured. Foretibiae distally tridentate and proximally serrulate on outer margin; upper side smooth, only with few coarse punctures proximally. Hind tibiae with strong transverse carinae on outer face; apically fimbriate with unequal spinules. Pygidium almost dull, roughly subrugosely punctured, each puncture bearing a recumbent yellowish seta; apical margin sparsely elongately ciliate. Sexual dimorphism possibly shown in males by middle tibial lower spur shortened and inwardly hooked apically. Aedeagus with parameres rather stout, acuminate and lacking membranous processes. Epipharynx feebly inwardly sinuate on anterior margin, widely round laterally; epitorma campaniform; corypha feebly protruding from the anterior margin, with two stout and short apical celtes; pedia almost glabrous, with transverse rows of stout short spines; chaetopariae moderately elongate, not densely arranged.

Distribution. Mexico.

Etymology. The name results from the combination of the prefix pseudo- [= false] and the genus name Tetraclipeoides . The gender is masculine.

Discussion. The diagnostic characteristics of Pseudotetraclipeoides , new genus, are:

- scutellum small, triangular;

- hind tibiae apically fimbriate with unequal spinules;

- pronotum with lateral margins fimbriate and base bordered;

- clypeal margin acutely bidenticulate on either side of feeble median sinuosity;

- epipharynx with corypha widely campaniform.

The new genus apparently is closely allied to Tetraclipeoides Schmidt, 1913 , but is easily distinguishable from it by the strongly different shape of the epipharynx and by the hind tibiae apically fimbriate with unequal spinules. Pseudotetraclipeoides follows the couplet 100 in the key to genera of Aphodiini by Dellacasa et al. (2001):

100a.

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Clypeal margin obtusely round on either side of median sinuosity. Length 7.0–12.0 mm. Neotropical region: Andes ................................................................... Paranimbus Schmidt

Clypeal margin acutely bidenticulate on either side of median sinuosity. Length 4.5 mm. Neotropical region: Mexico............................................. Pseudotetraclipeoides new genus