Cypha prominens, Assing, 2014

Assing, V., 2014, Three new species, redescriptions, a new synonymy, and additional records of Cypha from the West Palaearctic region (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Aleocharinae), Linzer biologische Beiträge 46 (2), pp. 1167-1178 : 1173-1174

Cypha prominens nov.sp. ( Figs 11-14 )

T y p e m a t e r i a l: Holotype: "18.3.84 Tunesien, Umg. Teboursouk, leg. H. Meybohm / Holotypus Cypha prominens sp. n. det. V. Assing 2014" (cAss). Paratype: same data as holotype (cAss).

E t y m o l o g y: The specific epithet (Latin, adjective) alludes to the conspicuously prominent base of the ventral process of the aedeagus.

D e s c r i p t i o n: Body length 1.3-1.5 mm; length of forebody 0.75-0.80 mm. Habitus as in Fig. 1 . Coloration: whole body, including the mouthparts, legs, and antennae, black.

Head strongly transverse; punctation very fine and sparse; interstices with shallow microreticulation, glossy. Antenna approximately 0.65 mm long, without distinct club; antennomeres I and II large and somewhat flattened; III-IX distinctly oblong; VII-IX gradually increasing in width; X strongly elongated, approximately 3.5 times as long as broad and distinctly longer than the combined length of VIII and IX.

Body length 1.7 mm; length of forebody 0.8 mm; length of antenna 0.6 mm. External characters as in C. tarsalis , distinguished only by the morphology of the aedeagus.

Pronotum approximately 1.9 times as broad as long and 1.4 times as broad as head; punctation extremely fine and sparse; interstices with very shallow microreticulation and glossy.

Elytra slightly longer than pronotum; punctation and microreticulation more distinct than those of pronotum. Protarsomere I unmodified.

Abdomen with moderately sparse, fine punctation and with distinct, but shallow microreticulation.

: median lobe of aedeagus ( Figs 12-14 ) 0.30-0.33 mm long and of highly distinctive morphology; ventral process weakly curved and basally conspicuously convexly produced in lateral view, slender and apically acute both in lateral and in ventral view; internal sac with pair of relatively short semi-transparent spines.

C o m p a r a t i v e n o t e s: The new species is distinguished from all its congeners particularly by the conspicuous shape of the ventral process of the aedeagus in lateral view, from the similarly dark C. tenebricosa ASSING, 2004 additionally by the longer and more slender antennae.

D i s t r i b u t i o n a n d n a t u r a l h i s t o r y: The type locality is situated to the west of the Teboursouk pass (approximately 36°30'N, 9°10'E) in northern Tunisia. The specimens were collected from under stones on a grassy slope at an altitude of 700 m (MEYBOHM pers. comm.).

Figures

Figs 8-14: Cypha rubripennis (8-10) and C. prominens (11-14): (8, 12-13): median lobe of aedeagus in lateral view; (9) ventral process of median lobe in ventral view; (10) basal portion of median lobe in dorsal view; (11) habitus; (14) median lobe of aedeagus in ventral view. Scale bars: 11: 0.5 mm; 8-10, 12-14: 0.1 mm.

Figs 1-7: Cypha tenuicornis, syntype (1), C. tarsalis (2-5; 2-3: holotype of C. tarsalis; 4-5: holotype of C. tbilisiensis), and C. truncata, holotype (6-7): (1) habitus; (2-7) median lobe of aedeagus in lateral and in ventral view. Scale bars: 1: 0.5 mm; 2-7: 0.1 mm.