Ottistira koghiensis, Kuschel, 2008

Kuschel, Guillermo, 2008, Curculionoidea (weevils) of New Caledonia and Vanuatu: Basal families and some Curculionidae, Mémoires du Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle 197, pp. 99-250 : 179

Ottistira koghiensis n. sp.

Fig. 76

DESCRIPTION. — Derm rark brown, tip of rostrum antennae anf legs reddish brown. Scaling dull, dense, ash-grey on sides and underside, dorsal surface yellowish or dark rusty brown; scutellum yellowish brown.

Frons as wide as intrascrobal distance, with few semierect setae mainly against eyes. Rostrum in lateral view not tapering apicad, distinctly depressed across base, curved, sloping behind transverse sulcus, slightly flattened on middle behind epistome. Epistome strongly asymmetric, convex, emarginated, right difr considerably more advancing forward than left side, bluntly edged posteriorly, with deep, uninterrupted sulcus behind. Scape with subsquamiform setae at apex. Prothorax weakly humped on anterior two-fifth, slightly sinuate at base, weakly rounded on sides. Elytra parallelsided, jointly rounded at apex, each elytron curved forward between scutellum and humeral angles. Striae well-marked; suture at end of dorsum with a low, blunt spine; interstriae 3 and 5 distinctly raised to short costae about middle; setae on dorsum and declivity distinctly raised above surface. Metasternum with bare impression. Fore coxae nearly contiguous, separated by about thickness of funicle. Fore femora not pedunculate at base, here weakly compressed, inner face flattened at basal half, squamose, lacking tooth, not transversely strigose; fore tibiae straight at first, weakly curved on lower edge at apical half. Claws connate, very thin, fused to such an extent for nearly or even becoming just one claw.

Length: 2.5-2.9 mm.

TYPE MATERIAL. — Holotype male, 2.8 x 1.2 mm, Mt. Koghi , 12.X.1978, G. Kuschel , NZAC. Paratypes with MNHW, NZAC, QBMA .

MATERIAL EXAMINED. — New Caledonia. 1 male, Mt. Koghi , 600 m, 12.X.1978, G. Kuschel; 2 males, Mt. Koghi, 450-600 m, 21.I.2004, M. Wanat; 2 males, 3 females, Rivière Bleue Park, Grand Kaori, 160 m, 25.I.2004, M. Wanat. 8 specimens .

ETYMOLOGY. — The species epithet comes from the name of Mt. Koghi plus the Latin suffix -ensis to convey a locality.

REMARKS. — The specimen of O. koghiensis was collected at the same locality, altitude and time as some specimens of Maleuterpes montanus , the two species differing from the other Ottistirini in having semierect setae. Partly subcostate interstriae 3 and 5 are similar to those in M. acutus . The left fore tarsus of the holotype specimen has one claw only.