Thinodromus nigerius Gildenkov, 2000

Makranczy, György, 2013, Review of the southern African species of Thinodromus (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Oxytelinae), Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae 53 (1), pp. 177-208 : 188

Thinodromus nigerius Gildenkov, 2000

( Figs 13–16 , 75–76 , 83 )

Thinodromus (Thinodromus) nigerius Gildenkov, 2000: 54 .

Thinodromus kedougouensis Makranczy, 2009: 44 , syn. nov.

Thinodromus nigerius: MAKRANCZY (2009: 53) .

Material examined. CÔTE D’IVOIRE: Kafolo , Comoé (river) [09°35′N, 04°18′W], 28.iv.1988, leg. F.-T. Krell (1 ♀, SMNS) . GHANA: Kumasi [06°41′N, 01°37′W], 6.vii.1967, leg. S. Endrődy-Younga (1 ♀, MHNG). BÉNIN: Departement Zou, Za-Kpota & Covè, Zou riv., bridge at road Abomey - Covè , 07°12′04.5″N, 02°17′19.8″E, 7.ii.2006, leg. Goergen, Komarek & Hounguè (3 ♂♂ 1 ♀, NHMW) . NIGERIA: Federal Capital Territory, Abuja [09°04′N, 07°29′E], 2 November 1998, R. D. Ward (1 ♂, CMNH), same but 1-7 October 1998 (1 ♀, CMNH) . REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA: N Transvaal [= Limpopo prov.], Kruger N.P., Skukuza research camp [Sabie river, 270m], 24°59′S, 31°35′E, 7.iii.1996, leg. S. Endrődy-Younga (E-Y 3220), UV light (1 ♂ 2 ♀♀, TMSA; 1 ♂ 1 ♀, SMNS), same but 25°00′S, 31°35′E, 19.ii.1995 (E-Y 3102), UV light & trap (1 ♂, TMSA), Rep. S. Africa: E. Transvaal, Kruger Pk., Skukuza [24°59′S, 31°36′E], 12–14.xii.1985, FMHD #85-848, leg. S. Peck (P# 85-281), thorn scrub & riverine light traps (1 ♀, FMNH) .

Taxonomic note. In 2009, I attempted to interpret the identity of Thinodromus nigerius Gildenkov, 2000 based on two male specimens from Côte d’Ivoire and Nigeria (see redescription in MAKRANCZY 2009: 53). Immediately after the publication of the paper, I received two more Thinodromus specimens from Nigeria, a male ( Figs 13, 15–16 ) and a female ( Fig. 14 , without elytra). These specimens doubtlessly belong to the same taxon that I discussed as T. nigerius . The study of the previously unavailable female ringstructure ( Fig. 83 ), i.e. the only diagnostic female genitalic feature in this group of species, revealed that it is closely similar to that of T. kedougouensis Makranczy, 2009 described from Senegal. Therefore, it seems that we are dealing with a single externally variable species and the known specimens are just parts of its morphological continuum. Specimens previously mentioned by me as T. nigerius (see Figs 19, 20, 21 , 31, 32 , 68 in MAKRANCZY (2009) for terminalia and genitalia) and T. kedougouensis ( Figs 47, 48, 49 , 55, 56 in MAKRANCZY (2009), and Figs 75–76 and 83 here) seem therefore to be conspecific. This is also supported by the examined specimens from Bénin (all from the same collecting event and likely from the same microhabitat) which contain two conspecific males (based on morphology of the genitalia), with entirely different antennae: one has shorter antenna much similar to that illustrated in the original description of T. nigerius , the other has much more elongate antenna, as that in Fig. 15 in this study.

For the reasons given above, T. kedougouensis Makranczy, 2009 is here conditionally synonymized with T. nigerius Gildenkov, 2000 . The synonymy needs to be confirmed by more material from the type locality of T. nigerius .

Figures

Figs 13–18. 13–16 – Thinodromus nigerius Gildenkov, 2000 (13 – head and pronotum;14 – female antenna; 15 – male antenna; 16 – elytron and abdominal base); 17–18 – T. sudanensis (Scheerpeltz, 1974) (17 – head and pronotum; 18 – elytron and abdominal base). Scale bar: 0.5 mm for 13–16, 0.7 mm for 17–18.

Figs 70–76. 70–74 – Thinodromus capensis (Bernhauer, 1934), male (70 – sternite VIII; 71 – tergite X; 72–73 – aedeagus; 74 – paramere); 75–76 – T. nigerius Gildenkov, 2000, male (75 – sclerotized subapical plate of aedeagus; 76 – apical copulatory sclerite).Abbreviations:AC – apical copulatory sclerite; BA – basal sclerites, BM – basomedial sclerites, MA – medioapical sclerites ML – medial lamellae. Scale bar: 0.05 mm for 76, 0.08 mm for 75, 0.11 mm for 72–74, 0.12 mm for 71, 0.14 mm for 70.

Figs 81–85. 81–83 – female ringstructures.81 – Thinodromus tibialis (Fauvel, 1907); 82 – T. dasys Gildenkov, 2000; 83 – T. nigerius Gildenkov, 2000. 84–85 – female ringstructures with spermathecae. 84 – T. facilis Gildenkov, 2000; 85 – T. gildenkovi sp. nov. Scale bar: 0.10 mm for 85, 0.12 mm for 81 and 83–84, 0.14 mm for 82.

Figs 19–27. 19 – Thinodromus facilis Gildenkov, 2000, female protarsus; 20 – T. gildenkovi sp. nov., male protarsus; 21 – T. gildenkovi sp. nov., male, fringe of tergite VII. Antennae. 22 – T. sudanensis (Scheerpeltz, 1974), female; 23 – T. meridionalis sp. nov., female; 24–25 – T. gildenkovi sp. nov. (24 – female; 25 – male); 26–27 – T. dasys Gildenkov, 2000 (26 – female; 27 – male) Scale bar: 0.065 mm for 19, 0.08 mm for 20, 0.12 mm for 21, 0.24 mm for 24–25, 0.3 mm for 22 and 26–27, 0.33 mm for 23.

Figs 28–33. 28–31 – Thinodromus tibialis (Fauvel, 1907) (28 – head and pronotum; 29 – female antenna; 30 – male antenna; 31 – elytron and abdominal base); 32–33 – T. gildenkovi sp. nov. (32 – head and pronotum; 33 – elytron and abdominal base). Scale bar: 0.45 mm for 28–31, 0.55 mm for 32–33.

Figs 64–69. 64–66 – Thinodromus meridionalis sp. nov., male (64–65 – aedeagus; 66 – paramere); 67–69 – T. facilis Gildenkov, 2000, male (67–68 – aedeagus; 69 – paramere). Abbreviations: AC – apical copulatory sclerite; BA – basal sclerites, BM – basomedial sclerites, MA – medioapical sclerites ML – medial lamellae. Scale bar: 0.10 mm for 64–66, 0.12 mm for 67–69.

Figs 46–51. 46–47 – Thinodromus dasys Gildenkov, 2000, male (46 – sternite VIII; 47 – tergite X); 48–49 – T. gildenkovi sp. nov., male (48 – sternite VIII; 49 – tergite X); 50–51 – T. rhodesianus (Scheerpeltz, 1974), male (50 – sternite VIII; 51 – tergite X). Scale bar: 0.10 mm for 49 and 51, 0.13 mm for 47–48 and 50, 0.15 mm for 46.

Figs 52–57. 52–54 – Thinodromus rhodesianus (Scheerpeltz, 1974), male (52–53 – aedeagus; 54 – paramere); 55–57 – T. tibialis (Fauvel, 1907), male (55–56 – aedeagus; 57 – paramere).Abbreviations:AC – apical copulatory sclerite; BA – basal sclerites, BM – basomedial sclerites, MA – medioapical sclerites ML – medial lamellae. Scale bar: 0.10 mm for 55–57, 0.12 mm for 52–54.