Neoserica (s. str.) hongheana, Ahrens, 2021

Ahrens, Dirk, 2021, Two new species of the Neoserica (sensu stricto) group from China (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Melolonthinae: Sericini), Journal of Natural History 54 (45 - 46), pp. 2927-2936 : 2928-2931

Neoserica (s. str.) hongheana sp. nov.

( Figures 1 (a–d), 2)

Type material examined

Holotype: ♂ ‘ China, Yunnan: Honghe Gulinqin , 520 m, LFF 22°43 ʹ 30.7 ʺ N, 103°50 ʹ 56.9 ʺ E, 11. VI.2018, primary forest leg. A. Weigel’ ( NME) . Paratype: ♂ ‘ China, Yunnan: Honghe Gulinqin , 520 m, LFF 22°43 ʹ 30.7 ʺ N, 103°50 ʹ 56.9 ʺ E, 11 .VI .2018, primary forest leg . A . Weigel’ ( ZFMK) .

Description of the holotype

Length: 6.8 mm, length of elytra: 4.8 mm, width: 4.2 mm. Body oval, black, dorsal surface with iridescent shine, with dense, fine, yellowish, adpressed setae, mixed with dense erect black setae, which on head and pronotum are directed anteriad.

Labroclypeus subrectangular, widest at base, lateral margins weakly convex and with moderately convergent to broadly rounded anterior angles, lateral border and ocular canthus producing a distinct obtuse angle, anterior margin straight, moderately reflexed; surface weakly convex and shiny, coarsely and sparsely punctate, with dense, long, erect setae; frontoclypeal suture indistinctly impressed and moderately curved, smooth area anterior to eye nearly twice as wide as long; ocular canthus moderately short and robust, finely and densely punctate, with several short setae. Frons finely and densely punctate, with dense, adpressed, short yellow setae, interspersed with coarse punctures bearing erect black setae. Eyes small, ratio of diameter/interocular width 0.6. Antenna with 10 antennomeres; club with four antennomeres, as long as remaining antennomeres combined, first joint of club subequal to half of club length. Mentum elevated and flattened anteriorly.

Pronotum moderately wide, widest at base, lateral margins in basal half slightly concave but weakly convergent, strongly curved and convergent in anterior half, anterior angles not produced and strongly rounded, nearly obsolete, posterior angles slightly acute, anterior margin straight, with distinct and fine marginal line, basal margin without marginal line; surface with large and dense punctures each bearing a yellowish, adpressed seta interspersed with coarser punctures each bearing an erect blackish seta; anterior and lateral borders moderately setose; hypomeron carinate, basal margin of hypomeron moderately produced ventrally. Scutellum subtriangular, apex moderately rounded, with fine and dense punctures and moderately adpressed setae.

Elytra short, widest at middle, striae distinctly impressed, with fine and dense punctures, intervals convex, with fine, dense punctures concentrated along striae and fine, adpressed setae, each interval with numerous larger single punctures each bearing an erect, long, blackish seta; epipleural edge moderately strong, ending at strongly rounded external apical angle of elytra, epipleura densely setose, apical border chitinous, without short microtrichomes.

Ventral surface dull, including metacoxa with large, dense punctures and dense, short, lightly adpressed setae, metacoxa with some robust setae laterally, abdominal sternites finely and densely punctate and setose, each sternite with an indistinct transverse row of coarse punctures each bearing a short, robust seta. Mesosternum between mesocoxae slightly wider than mesofemur, with numerous strong setae on an indistinct semicircular carina. Ratio of length of metepisternum/metacoxa 1/1.7. Pygidium strongly convex at apex, with fine, dense punctures and fine setae, with numerous robust setae in coarse punctures, without smooth midline.

Legs moderately slender, femora with fine and dense punctures, densely setose; anterior edge of metafemur acute lacking an adjacent serrated line, posterior margin weakly convex, with a few fine setae medially, weakly widened in apical half ventrally but not serrate, serrate dorsally. Metatibia moderately long, moderately widened at middle, width/length ratio 1/3.2, dorsally sharply carinate, with only one group of spines at threequarters of metatibial length, with a few single robust spines in punctures along entire length of metatibia, beside dorsal margin with a blunt, indistinctly serrate carina from base to apex; lateral face longitudinally convex, finely and densely punctate and setose, ventral edge serrate, with four equidistant robust spines; medial face very sparsely punctate and with a few fine setae, apex interiorly near tarsal articulation deeply and sharply truncate. Tarsomeres glabrous and impunctate dorsally, with sparse, short setae ventrally; metatarsomeres without longitudinal impressions dorsally, with a strongly serrated ridge ventrally and a strong longitudinal carina laterally, first metatarsomere distinctly longer than dorsal tibial spur, as long as following two tarsomeres combined. Protibia short, bidentate, anterior claws symmetrical, with a sharply pointed basal tooth.

Aedeagus: Figure 1 (a–d).

Diagnosis

The new species is in colour, external shape and shape of aedeagus rather similar to N. kalliesi Ahrens, 2003 , from northern Vietnam. It shares with it the lateral lamina at the ventral phallobase. Neoserica hongheana sp. nov. differs from N. kalliesi by the dorsoapical phallobase having a large lamina, the right paramere being more slender and long (both of its lobes), and the left paramere having no dorsal lobe.

Etymology

The new species is named (adjective in nominative case) according to its occurrence in Honghe prefecture.

Variation

Length: 6.5–6.8 mm, length of elytra: 4.8–5.0 mm, width: 4.2–4.3 mm.

Figures

Figure 1. (a–d) Neoserica hongheana sp. nov. (holotype); (e–h) N. pachecoae sp. nov. (holotype). (a, e) Aedeagus, lateral view of left side; (c, g) aedeagus, lateral view of right side; (b, f) parameres, dorsal view; (d, h) habitus. Scale bars: 0.5 mm.