Euhemicera smeraldina, Ando, Kiyoshi & Ruzzier, Enrico, 2016

Ando, Kiyoshi & Ruzzier, Enrico, 2016, New species of Tenebrionidae Latreille, 1802 (Coleoptera: Tenebrionoidea) from the Philippines, Zootaxa 4175 (5), pp. 480-486 : 482-484

Euhemicera smeraldina sp. nov.

( Figs. 2A,B )

Type material. Holotype: male, Philippines: Dimanayat, San Luis, Aurora, NE Luzon , IV–2012, Local collector leg. ( EUMJ) ; Paratypes: 1 female, Philippines: NE Luzon, Sierra Madre , Quirino, XII–2011 ( ERPC) ; 1 female, Philippines, North Luzon, Quirino, Sierra Madre , VII–2012, Local collector leg. ( ERPC) ; 1 female, Philippines, Dingalan, Aurora, North Luzon , V–2012, Local collector leg. ( ERPC) 1 male, Philippines: NE Luzon, Sierra Madre, Quirino, III–2 0 12, Local collector leg. ( ERPC) ; 1 female, Philippines, Isabela, VII–2013, Local collector leg. ( ERPC) ; 1 male, NE Luzon, Ifugao, Pola , VIII–2014, Local collector leg. ( KAPC) ; 1 female, NE Luzon, Ifugao, Pola , VIII–2014, Local collector leg.( ERPC) .

Description. Dimensions (n = 8). Body length: 12.0– 14.8 mm (holotype: 13 mm). ♂ (n = 3): IE/TD = 2.40 (holotype: 2.40); PW/PL = 1.71–1.80 (holotype: 1.80); EL/EW = 1.24–1.27 (holotype: 1.24); ♀ (n = 5): IE/TD = 2.14–2.31; PW/PL = 1.70–1.79; EL/EW = 1.25–1.31.

Oblong-oval, strongly convex above. Colour dark reddish brown to blackish brown; dorsal side sleek metallic green; pronotum more or less glaucous; elytra with strong reddish purple sheen; legs greenish blue; venter dark metallic blue, metallic green in part; antennae infuscate ( Fig. 2A ).

Male. Head transversely elliptical, finely punctate on frontoclypeus and genae, sparsely so on frons; anterior part of the head weakly convex in middle, distinctly and widely emarginate; fronto-clypeal suture fine and feebly impressed; genae gently raised along sides; frons broad and gently convex, very smooth among punctures; eyes transverse, convex, strongly invaded by genae, inner ocular sulci broad and deep. Antennae short, reaching before base of pronotum; six distal antennomeres strongly dilated and forming compact club; eleventh semicircular. Ultimate maxillary palpomere distinctly securiform, emarginate at apex. Mentum subtrapezoidal, convex in middle, deeply emarginate at apex in V-shape, densely setiferous. Submentum pentagonal, smooth. Gula styloid, with fine transverse rugulosities; gular suture fine.

Pronotum trapezoidal, weakly convex, widest at base, broadly sulcate along sides, finely and sparsely punctate, with a pair of basal foveae and a pair of longitudinal depressions; anterior margin distinctly emarginate, almost straight in middle; lateral margins weakly rounded, sinuate in the basal third, somewhat reflexed, distinctly bordered; anterior angles rounded, a little more obtuse than rectangular, produced; posterior angles acute and weakly produced, not pointed at the tip. Scutellum weakly convex, almost smooth.

Elytra oval, strongly convex, widest at apical third, narrowly bordered at sides, with bases nearly as wide as pronotal base; humeral calli weakly humped; striae fine, partially interrupted, seventh and eighth striae terminating behind humeral calli; strial punctures sparse and depressed, resembling foveas, much more impressed in lateral and apical portions; each fovea-like depression sometimes enclosing more than one puncture; interstirae almost flat in the first and second intervals, moderately convex from the third to the ninth, impunctate; scutellar striae short, various in density of punctures; epipleuron flattened, smooth.

Prothoracic hypomera densely microsculptured, weakly rugulose. Prosternum short, raised in the middle, impunctate; prosternal process cuneiform with sparse setiferous punctures in the apical portion. Mesosternum with V-shaped posterior ridge short, roundly sloping forwards in lateral view, with several setae. Metasternum rather short, rugose laterally, impunctate. Abdomen with very fine and sparse microscopical punctures except for the fifth ventrite which is densely punctate.

Aedeagus slender, lanceolate; parameres gently tapering from base to apices, with few echinulate hairs laterally ( Fig. 2B ).

Legs short; femora rather slender, devoid of appendage; tibiae short and robust, inner margin of metatibiae slightly emarginate and densely pubescent in apical half; tarsi simple.

Female. Inner margins of metatibiae sparsely pubescent in apical half.

Etymology. Smeraldina , feminine of latin adjec. “smeraldinus” = emerald coloured.

Diagnosis. This new species cannot be confused with any other species previously recorded from the Philippines due to its hemispherical body shape and foveate elytra; for the same features it is similar to Euhemicera schawalleri Ando, 2003 (typ. loc.: Malaysia), but it differs from the latter in the following characters: dorsal surface brilliant metallic green with strong reddish purple reflection; head transversely elliptical, space between eyes more than two times as wide as an eye; elytra widest at apical third, seventh and eighth striae not reaching humeral calli, intervals weakly convex, almost smooth; aedeagus lanceolate, parameres more slender and long; posterior margin of male meso- and metafemora without pubescent sulci.

Figures

FIGURE 2 A, B. Euhemicera smeraldina sp. nov., holotype. A—habitus in dorsal view, scale bar 5 mm. B—aedeagus in dorsal (left) and lateral view (right), scale bar 1 mm.