Belonuchus cifuentesi Rodríguez & Navarrete-Heredia, 2016

Márquez, Juan & Asiain, Julieta, 2022, Taxonomy of the Mexican species of Belonuchus Nordmann (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae), Zootaxa 5152 (1), pp. 1-129 : 71-72

Belonuchus cifuentesi Rodríguez & Navarrete-Heredia, 2016

Figs. 7a , 20a , 24e , 32a

Belonuchus cifuentesi Rodríguez & Navarrete-Heredia, 2016: 445 .

This species has been recently described by Rodríguez & Navarrete-Heredia (2016); therefore, a redescription is not necessary. We only include some taxonomic comments and some illustrations of diagnostic structures.

Taxonomic comments. This species can be confused with B. dichrous and B. flavipennis . The means of separation from B. dichrous is mentioned in the taxonomic comments of that species. Belonuchus cifuentesi is distinguished from B. flavipennis by having the legs and first two visible abdominal segments reddish as elytra, male genital sternite very elongate (3.28 times longer than wide), aedeagus large (3.1 mm), oval-elongate shape, with apex subacute ( Fig. 24e ). While B. flavipennis has legs and all abdomen black, except anterior border of sixth visible segment, male genital sternite short (2.21 times longer than wide), small aedeagus (1.13 mm), with elongate shape, convex apex, slightly acute in ventral view and moderately acute in lateral view ( Fig. 24g ). Belonuchus cifuentesi also can be confused with B. arizonicus . According with Rodríguez & Navarrete-Heredia (2016: 450), “ B. cifuentesi is recognized by the black abdominal segments from tergite V, the pleurites VI and VIII are black in more than half of specimens, antennomeres pubescent, tempora less than twice as long as the length of the eyes, the first 4 antennomeres are longer than width, anterior corners and pronotal hypomera reddish-brown, frons with wide fovea and with a longitudinal impression, dorsal surface with scattered umbilicate punctures, first three antennomeres bearing only sparse strong setae, outer antennomeres (4–11) with microtrichia and long setae, profemur with two lines of spines of irregular size, metafemur with two lines of small and strong spines; tibiae with several spines; tarsi filiform, first and fifth tarsomeres longer than each one of the second to fourth, aedeagus small, narrow and elongate, median lobe subparallel-sided to slightly, evenly narrowed toward obtuse apex and smaller than B. arizonicus ( Fig. 9 )”.

Type material examined (two males): Paratypes: “ México: Jalisco, Teocuitatlán de Corona, Cerro de García , colecta manual en Agave inaequidens, 2-VII al 3-VIII de 2014, 20°09´N, 103°19´W, 2314 msnm, col. William D. Rodríguez / Paratype Belonuchus cifuentesi Rodríguez & Navarrete-Heredia (2015) ” (m 1, CEZUG). Same data as previous, except: “3-VIII al 3-IX de 2014” (m 1, CEZUG) .

Figures

FIGURE 7. Dorsal view of males (except figures d and f) of: a) Belonuchus cifuentesi (paratype), b) B. dichrous (NHM©, Biologia Centrali-Americana), c) B. dichrous, d) B. flavipennis (female holotype shared by A. Kovalev©), e) B. flavipennis, f) B. iridescens (female holotype shared by A. Kovalev©), g) B. iridescens. Scale bars = 2.5 mm.

FIGURE 9. Dorsal view of males of: a) Belonuchus sp. Q, b) B. cyanipennis (holotype), c) B. godmani. Head of B. dichrous showing the temporal carina (red arrow): d) lateral view (male), e) dorsal view (male). Dorsal view of the mandibles of males of: f) B. platypterus, g) B. viridipennis. Mandibles of Belonuchus sp. Q (male): h) dorsal view, i) ventral view. Antennae of males of: j) B. godmani, k) B. cyanipennis. Scale bars = 2.5 mm.

FIGURE 20. Male genital sternite of: a) Belonuchus cifuentesi, b) B. dichrous, c) B. flavipennis, d) B. aenigmaticus, e) B. iridescens, f) B. nigerrimus, g) B. optatus, h) B. platypterus, i) B. juanmorronei, j) B. abnormalis, k) B. pectinipes, l) B. viridipennis, m) Belonuchus sp. Q, n) B. cyanipennis, o) B. godmani. Scale bars = 0.5 mm.

FIGURE 24. Ventral (left) and lateral (right) view (except e) of the aedeagus of: a) Belonuchus rufiventris, b) B. xanthomelas (at center, detail of the apex of the median lobe), c) B. ephippiatus, d) B. moroni, e) B. cifuentesi (left: detail of paramere, right: ventral view; from Rodríguez and Navarrete-Heredia, 2016), f) B. dichrous, g) B. flavipennis, h) B. aenigmaticus, i) B. iridescens, j) B. nigerrimus, k) B. optatus, l) B. platypterus. Scale bar = 0.5 mm (all figures, except e).

FIGURE 32. Geographical distribution in Mexico and Guatemala of: a) Belonuchus cifuentesi, B. connexus and B. pectinipes; b) B. dichrous, B. iridescens and B. xanthomelas.