Thyreocephalus brunneiventris ( Tottenham, 1956 ) Tottenham, 1956

Janák, Jiří & Bordoni, Arnaldo, 2015, Revision of the genus Thyreocephalus and description of Afrus gen. nov. of Africa south of the Sahara (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Staphylininae), Zootaxa 4038 (1), pp. 1-94 : 29

Thyreocephalus brunneiventris ( Tottenham, 1956) comb. nov.

( Figs. 29 , 57–63 )

Eulissus brunneiventris Tottenham, 1956: 252 ; Herman, 2001: 3625.

Type locality. Rwanda, Rubengera, Kibuye.

Type material examined. Holotype ♂: RWANDA: “Coll. Mus. Congo, Ruanda: Rubengera, 1900 m, terr. Kibuye, P. Basilewsky 12. II-53 ”, “ Eulissus , brunneiventris, Tottenham , TYPE ”, “ Thyreocephalus brunneiventris (Tott.) , J. Janák det. 2006” ( MRAC).

Additional material examined. DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO: 2 ♂, 1 ♀: Kivu, Mulungu, Tshibinda, xi.1951, P. C. Lefèvre ( MRAC, JJRC). RWANDA: 1 ♀: Cyangugu Pref., Umg. Wyakabuye, 15– 26.iv.1985, R. Mühle ( MFNB); 1 spec.: Umg. Cyangugu, 15–26.iv.1985, R. Mühle ( MFNB); 1 spec.: Cyangugu Pref., Umg. Nyakabuyo, 15–26.iv.1985, R. Mühle ( MFNB).

Description. Body length 18–23 mm; length from anterior margin of head to posterior margin of elytra: 10–12 mm. Head and pronotum black, elytra yellowish with black scutellum, metasternum black, abdomen yellowish with tergites 3 and 4 black with yellow paratergites; scape and legs brown dark, antennomeres lighter. Body large and massive. Head and pronotum with very fine and dense micro-punctation. Head and pronotum and related punctation as in Fig. 57 ; labrum as in Fig. 58 . Elytra as long as pronotum, slightly dilated posteriad and there as wide as pronotum, with rounded humeral angles. Surface with sparse and superficial punctation, arranged in three series, one near suture, one median and one lateral. Abdomen with fine and dense, transverse micro-striation and fine, not sparse punctation.

Male. Lateral part of temples with series of moderately coarse punctures. Tergite 10 and sternite 9 of male genital segment as in Figs. 59, 60 . Aedeagus ( Fig. 61, 62 ) 1.5 mm long; median lobe strongly enlarged apically, posterior margin with small or larger median protrusion; inner sac narrow and short, covered with fine, sparse scales.

Female. Lateral parts of temples impunctate or at most with few fine punctures.

Differential diagnosis. Thyreocephalus brunneiventris is very similar to T. secretus and differs especially in the posterior margin of the median lobe of the aedeagus with protrusion. The black spots on tergites 3 and 4 are quite variable, but the basal part of tergite 3 is generally completely black and only the paratergites are yellow.

Distribution. The species is distributed in Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda ( Fig. 29 ).

Remarks. As the superior line of pronotal hypomeron is turning downwards well before middle, joining or almost joining inferior line next to front margin of procoxae and continuing onto anterior margin of pronotum, the species was transferred from Eulissus to Thyreocephalus .

Figures

FIGURE 29. Distribution of species in Thyreocephalus pilosus group (● = T. africanus (Bernhauer), Δ = T. brunneiventris (Tottenham), ▲ = T. pilosus (Roth), ☆ T. pseudoafricanus sp. nov., ○ = T. secretus (Bernhauer), ★ = T. tsingidianus sp. nov.).

FIGURES 57 – 63. Thyreocephalus brunneiventris (Tottenham); 57, head and pronotum; 58, labrum; 59, male tergite 10; 60, male sternite 9; 61, aedeagus of paratype; 62, apical part of median lobe of holotype; 63, paramere.