Paederus apfelsinicus WILLERS, 2001

Assing, Volker, 2015, On the Harpopaederus fauna of China (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Paederinae), Linzer biologische Beiträge 47 (1), pp. 163-190 : 185

Paederus apfelsinicus WILLERS, 2001 ( Map 3 )

M a t e r i a l e x a m i n e d China H u b e i 1133, 41♀♀, Daba Shan , pass E Da Shennongjia, 12 km NW Muyuping, 31°30'N, 110°21'E, 1950 m, dry stream valley, mixed deciduous forest, sifted, 16.-22.VII.2001, leg. Schülke & Wrase (cSch, cAss) ; 233, 4♀♀, Daba Shan , mountain range NE Muyuping, 31°32'N, 110°26'E, 2380 m, young deciduous forest, with shrubs, 17.-21.VII.2001, leg. Schülke & Wrase (cSch) ; 633, 4♀♀ [2 teneral], Daba Shan , stream valley 8 km NW Muyuping, 31°29'N, 110°22'E, 1540 m, bank of small stream, 18.VII.2001, leg. Schülke & Wrase (cSch, cAss) ; 233, 5♀♀, Daba Shan , stream valley 11 km NW Muyuping, 31°30'N, 110°22'E, 1960 m, mixed deciduous forest, sifted, 18.VII.2001, leg. Schülke & Wrase (cSch, cAss) .

C o m m e n t: The original description is based on a male holotype and twelve paratypes from Da Shennongjia in Hubei ( WILLERS 2001a). The species was subsequently reported from additional localities in Shennongjia County by LI & ZHOU (2007) and PENG et al. (2015). The record from Shaanxi in SMETANA (2004) is based on misidentified material. The currently known distribution is illustrated in Map 3 .

This species is characterized particularly by the pronounced dimorphism of the head (larger, more transverse, and with more distinctly marked posterior angles in males than in females) and of the mandibles (longer, curved, and with the molar teeth distinctly separated in males), by the coloration (legs blackish; antennomeres IV-XI apically more or less distinctly infuscate; preapical palpomere of the maxillary palpi apically infuscate), the morphology of the aedeagus, the broadly semi-transparent and strongly convex posterior margin of the female tergite VIII, and by the shape of the female sternite VIII. For illustrations of P. apfelsinicus see WILLERS (2001a).

Figures

Map 3: Distributions of Harpopaederus species in the Qinling Shan and the Daba Shan in Shaanxi, Hubei, North Sichuan, and Chongqing (some doubtful female-based literature records omitted): Paederus xui (filled diamonds); P. konfuzius (open stars); P. brevior (triangles); P. lineodenticulatus (open circles); P. cultellatus (filled triangle); P. apfelsinicus (filled circles); P. multidenticulatus (open triangle).