Anhoraeomorphus anosyensis (Franz) Jałoszyński, 2024

Jałoszyński, Paweł, 2024, The ‘ curse of Horaeomorphus’ (almost) lifted. Revision of misplaced species from Madagascar, Comoros and Mascarenes (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae, Scydmaeninae), Zootaxa 5505 (1), pp. 1-96 : 26-28

Anhoraeomorphus anosyensis (Franz) , comb. n.

( Figs 91–98 )

Horaeomorphus anosyensis Franz, 1986b: 151 .

Type material studied. Paratype ( Madagascar): ♂, two labels: “Madagascar (Süd) / Forét N Ft. Dauphin / lg. Alluaud 1900” [white, printed], “ Horaeomorphus / anosiensis {sic!} m. / det. H.Franz ” [yellowish, handwritten and printed] ( NHMW) .

Revised diagnosis. Body ( Fig. 91 ) slender; head ( Figs 92–93 ) round, with vertex posteriorly broadly rounded; pronotum ( Fig. 91 ) bell-shaped, broadest in anterior third, with one pair of large antebasal pits; antennomeres 3–6 ( Fig. 94 ) each elongate; all femora similarly slender; metatibiae in male modified, strongly broadening to distal third, then narrowing to apex, with tuft of setae on outer surface at widest point; aedeagus ( Figs 95–98 ) in ventral view broadest near base, apical region of dorsal wall in lateral view weakly curved dorsally, distolateral endophallic sclerites narrowly separated, each strongly elongate and with subtriangular apex, each paramere with subapical group of five short setae distant from apex.

Redescription. Body of male ( Fig. 91 ) moderately dark brown, tarsi and palps distinctly lighter, setae yellowish; BL 2.15 mm.

Head ( Fig. 92 ) in anterodorsal view round, broadest at eyes, HL 0.33 mm, HW 0.40 mm; temple in lateral view ( Fig. 93 ) subequal to eye; vertex and frons confluent, together weakly convex and weakly transverse; vertex posteriorly broadly rounded; each eye moderately large and weakly convex, oval, weakly projecting from head silhouette. Punctures on vertex fine, inconspicuous; setae short, dense and suberect; frons and vertex densely covered with thick bristles directed posteriorly. Antenna ( Fig. 94 ) slender but short, as long as half BL, AnL 1.05 mm, antennomeres 1–6 each weakly elongate, 7–10 each about as long as broad, 11 much shorter than 9 and 10 combined, as wide as 10, about 1.8 times as long as broad.

Pronotum bell-shaped, broadest in anterior third; PL 0.58 mm, PW 0.50 mm. Anterior margin strongly rounded, lateral margins rounded in anterior half, weakly sinuate in posterior half; posterior corners blunt; posterior margin nearly straight. Base with one pair of large round pits, and with short but distinct sublateral carinae. Disc with fine, inconspicuous punctures; setae dense, short and suberect, lateral surface of pronotum with dense thick bristles.

Elytra together oval, broadest distinctly in front of middle; EL 1.25 mm, EW 0.85 mm, EI 1.47; humeral calli weakly elevated, basal elytral foveae vestigial, barely discernible. Punctures small and shallow, but more distinct than those on pronotum, those in anterior half separated by spaces subequal to diameters of punctures; setae sparse, short and suberect.

Legs moderately long, slender, unmodified except large and concave patch of adhesive setae on apical mesal region of protibia and slightly recurved and strongly broadening metatibiae, which are broadest near distal third, where outer margin bears tuft of long setae, and from this point tibia is narrowing distally and its outer margin is concave.

Aedeagus ( Figs 95–98 ) slender,AeL 0.40 mm; in ventral view broadest near base, drop-shaped, distally gradually narrowing towards broadly subtriangular apex with rounded tip; in lateral view apical region of dorsal wall weakly curved dorsally; endophallus with asymmetrical and conspicuously long distolateral sclerites and with strongly asymmetrical assemblage of median proximal sclerotized structures, distolateral sclerites narrowly separated, each with subtriangular apex; parameres broad and their apices slightly projecting beyond aedeagal apex, each paramere with twisted short distal region appearing in ventral view as an apical ‘loop’, and with subapical group of five short setae distant from apex.

Female. Not studied (see Remarks).

Distribution. Southern Madagascar (Anosy Region).

Remarks. Anhoraeomorphus anosyensis is highly similar to A. roussettensis . These are the only species with males having metatibiae strongly broadening distally, but in subapical regions rapidly narrowing, so that the outer subapical margin is concave, and there is a tuft of setae on the outer angulate broadening near distal third. These two species share also some structures of the aedeagus, e.g., a pair of very long and dark distolateral endophallic sclerites. However, A. anosyensis has distinctly slenderer antennae with antennomeres 3–6 each elongate, whereas in A. roussettensis antennomeres 3–6 are as long as broad, and the antennae are distinctly more massive.

The holotype male and a paratype female of this species are deposited in Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris and were not available for my study. The examined paratype male ( NHMW) has the aedeagus matching the illustration in the original description (including the uniquely shaped parameral apices). Fort-Dauphin indicated in label data is a French name for the Malagasy city Tolagnaro .

Figures

FIGURES 91–98. Anhoraeomorphus anosyensis (Franz), paratype. Habitus in dorsal view (91); head in anterodorsal view (92); head and prothorax in lateral view (only bristles on head are shown) (93); antenna (94); aedeagus in ventral (95, 97) and lateral (96, 98) views.