Laccophilus brancuccii, Bistroem, Olof, Nilsson, Anders N. & Bergsten, Johannes, 2015

Bistroem, Olof, Nilsson, Anders N. & Bergsten, Johannes, 2015, Taxonomic revision of Afrotropical Laccophilus Leach, 1815 (Coleoptera, Dytiscidae), ZooKeys 542, pp. 1-379 : 211-212

Taxon classification Animalia Coleoptera Dytiscidae

Laccophilus brancuccii sp. n. Figs 170, 352, 499, 567

Type locality.

Central African Republic: Bozo.

Type material

(1 ex.). Holotype, male: "Bozo (lum.) XI. 1981 / R. Centr. Afr. N. Degallier" (NHMB; habitus in Fig. 499).

Diagnosis.

Laccophilus brancuccii resembles most of dark specimens of Laccophilus contiro but it is separated externally from this species by smaller body. Moreover, distinct differences in shape of penis apex separate the two species; penis of Laccophilus contiro is almost straight and almost evenly broad while penis of Laccophilus brancuccii is slightly curved and medially slightly expanded.

Description.

Body length 3.5 mm, width 2.0 mm. Dorsal, colour pattern of body distinct (Fig. 499).

Head: Pale ferrugineous; at pronotum head slightly darker but change to darker colour is gradual. Submat, finely microsculptured. Reticulation double. Larger meshes only slightly more strongly developed than small meshes. Large meshes contain 3-5 small meshes. Impunctate, except at eyes, with fine, irregular punctures, the area of which extends for a short distance towards middle of head-disc.

Pronotum: Pale ferrugineous, at base and frontally in middle with a fairly broad blackish to dark ferrugineous marking. Submat, finely and densely microsculptured. Large meshes somewhat more strongly developed than fine meshes; large meshes contain 2-5 fine meshes. Impunctate, except frontally and laterally; with very fine to fine, irregular punctures.

Elytra: Blackish ferrugineous with rather limited pale ferrugineous colour pattern; humeral region with 2-3 small, pale spots, Posterior to middle with an irregular, transverse, pale marking, interrupted narrowly at suture. Apically, with some irregular, rather small, pale spots (Fig. 499). Submat, finely and densely microsculptured; reticulation double but large meshes strongly reduced and only rudiments discernible, in part large meshes absent. Impunctate, except for a discal row, the punctures of which are fine and irregularly distributed. Outside discal row, a dorsolateral and a lateral row are indicated by a few, fine punctures. Preapical–lateral row of punctures finely pubescent.

Ventral aspect: Blackish to dark ferrugineous, prothorax paler. Rather shiny although in part very finely microsculptured. Basal ventrites with fine, curved striae. Impunctate, except for some fine punctures apically on abdomen. Apical ventrite broken (one lateral part is lost), as in Fig. 170. Metacoxal plates with very fine, shallow, in part indistinct, transverse furrows. Apex of prosternal process broken.

Legs: Pale ferrugineous to ferrugineous. Pro- and mesotarsus somewhat enlarged, with suckers.

Male genitalia: Penis in lateral aspect quite broad, from base to middle almost straight, medially bent and slightly enlarged. Extreme apex broad, weakly pronounced (Fig. 352).

Female: Unknown.

Etymology.

The name is a noun in its genitive form based on the name of the late Dr. Michel Brancucci, Basel, Switzerland, who kindly provided a large material of African Laccophilus for this revision, including the holotype of the new species. During the years Brancucci worked intensively with the taxonomy of the genus Laccophilus and the tribe Laccophilini .

Distribution.

Central African Republic, only known from the type locality (Fig. 567).

Collecting circumstances.

Almost unknown, collected with light.