Xestipyge garbigliettii (Marseul)

Warner, William B., 2021, A brief review of the New World Xestipyge Marseul (Coleoptera: Histeridae: Dendrophilinae: Paromalini) with description of a new species from the southwestern USA, Insecta Mundi 2021 (854), pp. 1-12 : 5-6

Xestipyge garbigliettii (Marseul)

Figures 6–7 , 15

Carcinops (Xestipyge) garbigliettii Marseul 1867: 55 . Type locality: Brazil; Lewis, 1888: 209.

Xestipyge garbigliettii: Lewis 1905: 37 .

Diagnosis. Head with vertex moderately cribrately punctate at each side, punctures abruptly much sparser on front, mostly lacking along midline and on clypeus; pronotum coarsely and densely punctate in about lateral thirds and in narrow band about 3 punctures deep along posterior margin, leaving roughly triangular middle portion subimpunctate. Elytron with outer subhumeral distinct medially, obsolete to obsolescent basally and apically, inner subhumeral complete behind humerus, not reaching elytral base, dorsal striae complete except for 5th reaching about basal quarter beneath sutural arch which is complete (sutural stria not effaced basally), all dorsals with strial punctures contiguous to separated by up to approximately twice their own diameters, punctures distinctly crenulating strial channels, dorsal intervals 2–4 in about apical 2/3 to ¾ each with both scattered coarse punctures and 2 to 3 pseudostriae formed by irregularly discontinuous and wavy vermiform line segments, these incised nearly as deeply as striae but much narrower and not crenulated, pseudostriae nearly reaching base in first and second intervals. Tegmen with basal piece nearly twice as long as parameres; parameres gradually triangularly expanded at about apical third, widest width slightly less than 1/3 length ( Fig. 15 ).

Length: 2.1 mm; total length: 2.3–3.0 mm; widest width: 1.5–1.9 mm (3 specimens measured).

Range. “ Brazil, Mexico ” ( Lewis 1888). I have examined specimens from the Mexican states of Durango and Veracruz.

Habits. Apparently attracted to excrement: one specimen examined was labelled “oak-madroño-pine woodland, at dung trap (human),” and another “cow dung.”

Remarks. This species can only be confused with X. multistriatum amongst the New World Xestipyge but differs in having the elytral pseudostriae broken into sinuous segments vs. straight and more continuous in X. multistriatum .

The above diagnosis is sensu Lewis (1888), and was made from Mexican specimens. I have examined photographs of Marseul’s type, which indeed appears very similar to Mexican specimens though differing very slightly in some sculptural details. Without confirmation via examination of tegmen shape of the type nor Brazilian specimens of X. garbigliettii , assignment of Mexican specimens to that taxon should be considered provisional.

Figures

Figures 6–7. Xestipyge garbigliettii, Durango, Mexico. 6) Dorsal habitus. 7) Close-up of elytral sculpture.

Figures 15–19. Xestipyge species tegmena, dorsal view. 15) X. garbigliettii, Durango, Mexico. 16) X. multistriatum, Veracruz, Mexico. 17) X. conjunctum, SC, USA. 18) X. skelleyi, holotype. 19) X. geminatum, NC, USA.