Microplinthus jaegeri Meregalli, 2020

Meregalli, Massimo, 2020, Revision of the Nepalese genus Microplinthus Zherichin, 1987 (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Molytinae), with description of 25 new species, Zootaxa 4794 (1), pp. 1-63 : 42

Microplinthus jaegeri Meregalli n. sp.

http://zoobank.org/ urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:AC4CC546-6FFA-4089-91E4-BBB74629F86F

Fig. 21

Material examined. Holotype ♂: “ Nepal Himalaya / Mt. Panchase / 20 km W Pokhara [28°13’N 83°48’E] // Waldobodengesiebe / 2300 m, 20.V.1997 / leg. O. Jäger ” ( MTD)

Diagnostic description. Length 3.60 mm. Body elongate, integument moderately glossy. Vestiture composed of very few short, broad, spatulate setae appressed to integument. Rostrum short, robust, dorsal side subparallel, width at apex only slightly narrower than at base, in lateral view strongly curved, thick, flattened beyond antennal insertion, junction with head concave, dorsal sculpture composed of dense round punctures, partly merged longitudinally, longitudinal lines irregular, distinctly curved outwards, sculpture extended to antennal insertion, apex completely smooth, glossy. Antennal scape short, sharply thickened apicad; funicle antennomers 1 globose, barely longer than wide, 2 shortly conical, 3 globose, 4–5 slightly transverse, 6 larger, 7 as large as 6, shorter, more transverse. Eye oval, slightly convex, with about 30 ommatidia. Pronotum subcylindrical, sides subparallel from base to apical third, moderately and regularly narrowed apicad; median line absent, all dorsum with round punctures irregularly impressed, deep, reciprocally isolate, interspaces in part reticulate, obtusely raised, as wide as punctures. Elytra elliptical, scarcely broader than pronotum, sides weakly curvilinear, intervals regularly obtusely convex from base to apex, with very few oblong low humps on declivity, visible only in profile, with a few setae on top; striae deep, as wide as intervals in basal part, progressively narrowed towards apex, with deeply impressed punctures, interspaces between punctures half as long as punctures. Femur robust, thickened medially, with sharp inner tooth; tibia slender, narrowed towards apex, inner side sublinear, apex completely oblique. Tarsomere 3 narrow, lobes scarcely developed, symmetrical; claws simple. Ventrites with sides weakly and linearly convergent, integument matt, 1 deeply and sparsely punctured, interspaces between punctures as wide as or wider than punctures, 2 more sparsely punctured, 3–4 smooth, 5 shortly semicircular, shallowly rugose. Penis almost flattened in lateral view, sides weakly broadened at midlength, slightly narrowed towards apex, lamella very short, slightly prominent.

Differential remarks. This species is sympatric with M. schawalleri , which belongs to the Falsanchonus species group and thus has rostrum thickened and strongly curved; moreover, it has pronotum longer than wide and elytra with poorly delimited intervals. See description of M. godawaricus for differentiation from that morphologically similar species.

Origin of the name. This species is named after the collector, my friend, Olaf Jäger ( MTD).

Distribution. Western Nepal, mountains on the east side of the Gandakhi river valley, south-east of Pokhara.

Figures

FIGURE 21. Microplinthus jaegeri, Holotype ♂. Body (A, B); rostrum (F, H); antenna (C); pronotum (E); elytra (D); femur (L); tarsus (G); claws (N); ventrites (K); penis (I, J, M). Bar: 2 mm.