Euconnus (Tetramelus) vulgaris (C. Schaufuss), 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 : 78-80

Euconnus (Tetramelus) vulgaris (C. Schaufuss) , stat rev.

( Figs 296–303 )

Cyrtoscydmus vulgaris C. Schaufuss, 1890: 589 .

Euconnus (Anthicimorphus) vulgaris (C. Schaufuss) ; Franz (1986b): 246.

Horaeomorphus vulgaris (C. Schaufuss) ; Jałoszyński (2014b): 12 (result of placing Anthicimorphus as junior synonym of Horaeomorphus ).

Material studied (6 exx.). ♂, “ Fampanambo / b. Maroantsetra / X. 1956, lg. Vadon ” [white, printed], “cum Typo / comparatum / 19-1-1970 ” [red, handwritten], “ Euconnus / Anthicimorphus / vulgaris Schf. / det. H.Franz ” [yellowish, handwritten and printed] ( NHMW) ; ♀, same data but without red label ( NHMW) ; ♀, “ Madagascar Est / Maroantsetra / J. Vadon ” [white, handwritten], “INSTITUT / SCIENTIFIQUE / MADAGASCAR ” [bluish, printed], “ ♀ ” [white, printed], “ Euconnus / Anthicimorphus / vulgaris Schf. / det. H.Franz ” [yellowish, handwritten and printed] ( NHMW) ; ♀, “ Maroantsetra / Ambodivoangy / J. Vadon ” [white,. printed], “ ♀ ” [white, printed], “ Euconnus / Anthicimorphus / vulgaris Schf. / det. H.Franz ” [yellowish, handwritten and printed] ( NHMW) ; 1 ex., “ Moramanga / O. Madagascar / 6.8.69, lg. Gomy ” [white, handwritten], “ Euconnus / Anthicimorphus / vulgaris Schauf. / det. H.Franz ” [yellowish, handwritten and printed] ( NHMW) ; ♀, “Madagascar-E. / Marojejy o Ouest / 1140 m, X.1959 / lg. P. Soga ” [white, handwritten], “ Euconnus / Anthicimorphus / vulgaris Schf. var.? / det. H.Franz ” [yellowish, handwritten and printed] ( NHMW) .

Revised diagnosis. Body ( Fig. 296 ) slender, bristles present only on genae (extremely short) and on anteroventral regions of hypomera, entire dorsum asetose; head ( Figs 297–298 ) transversely oval, with vertex posteriorly weakly rounded; pronotum bell-shaped, broadest slightly in front of anterior third, with one pair of minute punctiform antebasal pits connected by fine transverse groove; antenna ( Fig. 299 ) short, with antennomeres 1–7 each weakly elongate, 8 and 9 each about as long as broad and 10 slightly transverse; aedeagus ( Figs 300–303 ) in ventral view approximately drop-shaped, broadest near basal third, ventral apical wall broadly and weakly rounded distally, dorsal apical wall forming broad subtriangular process with rounded distal margin, each paramere slender, weakly and gradually broadening distally, with three long apical setae.

Redescription. Body of male ( Fig. 296 ) elongate and flattened, head and pronotum dark brown, elytra and antennae slightly lighter; legs (especially tarsi), and palps slightly lighter than elytra; setae light brown; BL 1.53 mm.

Head ( Figs 297–298 ) in anterodorsal view strongly transversely oval, broadest at eyes, HL 0.28 mm, HW 0.35 mm; temple in lateral view ( Fig. 298 ) indistinctly shorter than eye; vertex and frons confluent, together weakly convex and strongly transverse; vertex posteriorly weakly rounded; each eye large and strongly convex but weakly projecting from head silhouette, with posterior margin strongly concave. Frons and vertex impunctate and asetose, genae with extremely short and sparse thick bristles.Antenna ( Fig. 299 ) as long as about half BL, gradually thickened distally, AnL 0.73 mm, antennomeres 1–7 each weakly elongate, 8 and 9 each about as long as broad and 10 slightly transverse, 11 much longer than 10 but much shorter than 9 and 10 combined, as wide as 10, about 1.7 times as long as broad.

Pronotum bell-shaped, broadest near anterior third; PL 0.40 mm, PW 0.33 mm. Anterior margin strongly rounded, lateral margins strongly rounded in anterior half, weakly sinuate in posterior half; posterior corners blunt; posterior margin nearly straight. Base with one pair of minute punctiform pits connected by fine transverse groove. Disc impunctate and asetose, bristles present on anteroventral regions of hypomera.

Elytra together oval, broadest near middle; EL 0.85 mm, EW 0.60 mm, EI 1.42; humeral calli angulate and weakly elevated, basal elytral foveae barely discernible. Elytra impunctate and asetose.

Legs long and slender, unmodified.

Aedeagus ( Figs 300–303 ) slender, AeL 0.30 mm; in ventral view approximately drop-shaped, broadest near basal third, distally strongly narrowing; ventral apical wall broadly and weakly rounded distally, dorsal apical wall forming broad subtriangular process with rounded distal margin, endophallic sclerites complex and asymmetrical; each paramere slender, weakly and gradually broadening distally, with three long apical setae.

Female. Externally indistinguishable from male. BL 1.38–1.63 mm; HL 0.25–0.30 mm, HW 0.30–0.35 mm, AnL 0.65–0.75 mm; PL 0.38–0.43 mm, PW 0.35–0.38 mm; EL 0.75–0.93 mm, EW 0.55–0.63 mm, EI 1.36–1.48.

Distribution. Northern Madagascar (Alaotra-Mangoro, Atsinanana and Sava Regions).

Remarks. All studied specimens come from Franz Coll. at NHMW, but none of them was mentioned in Franz (1986b). The aedeagus of the lectotype male illustrated by Franz (1986b: fig. 219) seems to agree with that of the male labeled as “cum Typo comparatum”, and the Franz’s redescription matches features of this specimen. The lectotype and five paralectotypes of this species are deposited at the Senckenberg Deutsches Entomologisches Institut, Müncheberg, Germany.

Euconnus vulgaris differs from all Malagasy Tetramelus spp. in a distinctly transverse head, and in uniquely shaped aedeagus.

Figures

FIGURES 296–303. Euconnus (Tetramelus) vulgaris (C. Schaufuss), non-type. Habitus in dorsal view (296); head in anterodorsal view (297); head and prothorax in lateral view (298); antenna (299); aedeagus in ventral (300, 302) and lateral (301, 303) views.