Mesoceration littlekarroo Perkins, 2008

Bilton, David T., 2015, New species and new records of Mesoceration Janssens, 1967 from South Africa (Coleoptera, Hydraenidae), Zootaxa 3972 (4), pp. 495-520 : 517

Mesoceration littlekarroo Perkins, 2008

Described from the south side of the Groote Swartberg, on the edge of the Little Karoo. New records are all from further west in the Groote Swartberg range, from both northern and southern slopes: 24/ix/2009 Western Cape, Groote Swartberg, stream on R328 2 km N of De Top, on N side of pass, 1,700m—abundant; 24/ix/2009 Western Cape, Groote Swartberg, Dorpsrivier ca. 12 km S of Prince Albert—abundant; 1/i/2014 Western Cape, Groote Swartberg, permanent stream below Kangoberg on Gamkaskloof road ( Fig. 6 C)—abundant; 1/i/2014 Western Cape, Groote Swartberg, stream on S side of Swartberg pass, below Oliewenberg—abundant; 2/i/2014 Western Cape, Groote Swartberg, first stream on N side of Swartberg Pass—abundant. The aedeagi of all these Swartberg specimens ( Fig. 4 D) have a distal lobe that is more strongly curved in ventral view than that illustrated by Perkins (2008) —otherwise they do not differ from the description, and would appear to belong to this species.

Figures

FIGURE 4. Aedeagi of Mesoceration species. A) M. rugulosum sp. nov., holotype; B) M. sewefonteinense sp. nov., holotype; C) M. sinclairi sp. nov., holotype; D) M. littlekarroo, Swartberg, permanent stream below Kangoberg on Gamkaskloof road. Scale bar = 0.25 mm

FIGURE 6. Habitats of Mesoceration species in South Africa. A) Western Cape, Matsikammaberg, permanent stream 1 km SE of Sewefontein farm— M. foggoi sp. nov., M. sewefonteinense sp. nov., M. umbrosum; B) Western Cape, False Bay, small stream on R 44 road below Boskloof Peak— M. sinclairi sp. nov., M. brevigranum; C) Western Cape, Groote Swartberg, permanent stream below Kangoberg on Gamkaskloof road— M. barriotum, M. littlekarroo, M. reticulatum, M. splendorum; D) Western Cape, Table Mountain National Park, Table Mountain, stream in Echo Valley— M. abstrictum, M. tabulare. Photos D. T. Bilton.