Liodessus andinus Guignot, 1957

Balke, Michael, Megna, Yoandri S., Zenteno, Nilver, Figueroa, Luis & Hendrich, Lars, 2020, New Liodessus species from the high Andes of Peru (Coleoptera: Dytiscidae Bidessini), Zootaxa 4852 (2), pp. 151-165 : 153-155

Liodessus andinus Guignot, 1957

( Figs 1D, E , 4B , 6 D–F, 7)

Liodessus andinus Guignot, 1957: 3 (original description); Nilsson & Hajek 2020: 120 (world catalogue).

Type locality. Bolivia, La Paz Dept., Lake Titicaca, Huatajata , ca. 3,900 m, -16.203° -68.694° (our alt / lat / long data inferred from GoogleEarth) .

Type material. Holotype female ( ZSM). “Titicacasee, Huatajata ca. 4000 m, 6.- 17.7.1954 / Bolivia 1954, leg. W. Förster / Type ♀ / F. Guignot, 1955, Liodessus andinus n.sp., Type ♀ ”. 3 female paratypes ( ZSM) from the same sampling event. According to Guignot, 1957, there is a male “ Allotype ” from Peru, Chucuito, Lake Titicaca, Chucuito, ca. 3,900m, -15.905° -69.888°, not studied here but possibly stored in the Guignot collection at MNHN.

Other material studied (130 exs.). 2 exs., “ Peru: Cusco, Acomayo, Acopia District, Lagoon Misk′iqocha , 3787 m, 27.viii.2018, -14.123° -71.460°, Y. S. Megna & N. Zenteno ( MUSM, ZSM); ( PER _YSM_2018_35)” ; 128 exs., “ Peru: Cusco, Canchis, San Pedro District , 3486 m, 27.viii.2018, -14.189° -71.339°, Y. S. Megna & N. Zenteno ( PER _YSM_2018_36)” ( MUSM, ZSM) .

Notes. This is a moderately large and (in many but not all specimens) appearing more broadly oval species with characteristic coloration of darker spots on otherwise mainly yellowish dorsal surface ( Figs 1D, E ). TL 2.3–2.6 mm, TL-H 2.2–2.3 mm; TW 1.2–1.4 mm. Head with cervical line; pronotum with basal plicae; elytron with short basal plicae. Male genitalia as in Fig. 4B , median lobe in lateral view thickened before apex, paramere with apical piece rather long and narrow. Dorsal surface of male shiny, female dull due to fine mircoreticulation. Metathoracic wings fully developed.

BOLD platform. We provided eight entries in the “COLLI” project, all retrieved in one cluster. Assignment to that cluster was unambiguous, meaning all specimens were correctly assigned to this morphologically delineated species.

Distribution. High Andes in southeastern Peru and Lake Titicaca of Bolivia ( Fig. 7 ), ca. 3,400 –4,000 m.

Habitat. Shallow and exposed puddles, collected with strainer out of mats of vegetation ( Figs 5C ; 6 D–F). Other Dytiscidae associated with this species were species of Rhantus Dejean, 1833 and Lancetes Sharp, 1882 .

Figures

FIGURE 1. Dorsal habitus of Liodessus acollensis, male (A), female (B), light colored female (C), from Peru, Junín, Acolla near Jauja; L. andinus, male (D) and female (E), both from Cusco, Acomayo, Acopia District, Peru. Scale bar = 1 mm.

FIGURE 4. Median lobe of aedeagus in ventral and lateral view, and paramere in lateral view of paratypes of Liodessus acollensis (A); L. andinus (B); L. alpinus sp. nov. (C), L. rhigos sp. nov. (D) and L. thespesios sp. nov. (E). Scale bar = 0.3 mm.

FIGURE 5. Habitat of: Liodessus acollensis (A), Junín, Juaja, Lagoon Tragadero, 3,459 m, (PER_YSM_2018_03); (B) Junín, La Oroya, Nueva Ciudad Morococha, 4,244 m, (PER_YSM_2018_04); L. alpinus sp. nov. (C), Junín, Junín, Shalacancha, 4,320 m, (PER_YSM_2018_10); L. acollensis and L. rhigos sp. nov. (D), Junín, Junín, Lagoon Huacra, 4,461 m, (PER_YSM_2018_ 13); L. acollensis and L. alpinus sp. nov. (E), Junín, Junín, Lagoon Estancia Azulmito, 4,452 m, (PER_YSM_2018_14); L. acollensis and L. rhigos sp. nov. (F), Junín, Junín, Lagoon Yanamyacu, 4,327 m, (PER_YSM_2018_16).

FIGURE 6. Habitat of: Liodessus thespesios sp. nov. (A, B), Cusco, Quispicanchi, Pirhuayani, 4,662 m (PER_YSM_2018_ 25); L. acollensis (C), Cusco, Acomayo, Acopia District, Lagoon Pomacanchi, 3,675 m, (PER_YSM_2018_33); L. andinus (D), Cusco, Acomayo, Acopia District, Lagoon Misk′iqocha, 3,787 m, (PER_YSM_2018_35); L. andinus (E, F), Cusco, Canchis, San Pedro District, 3,486 m (PER_YSM_2018_36).

FIGURE 7. Distribution map of Liodessus species treated in this publication.