Entomoculia (Entomoculia) melonii, Fancello & Hernando & Leo, 2009

Fancello, Luca, Hernando, Carles & Leo, Piero, 2009, The endogean beetle fauna of the Marganai-Oridda-Valle del Leni area (SW Sardinia), with description of seven new species of Staphylinidae Leptotyphlinae (Coleoptera) *, Zootaxa 2318, pp. 317-338 : 323-324

Entomoculia (Entomoculia) melonii sp. nov.

( Figs 5, 10–11)

Diagnosis. An Entomoculia ascribable to the nominal subgenus for its robust build, the presence of chitinized thickenings on the male genital segment and for the characters of the male and female genitalia; welldifferentiated from its congeners by the conformation of the aedeagus and female copulatory plates.

Type locality. SW Sardinia, Medio Campidano prov., Villacidro, San Sisinnio .

Type series. Holotype ♂: “SW Sardinia, Villacidro (Medio Campidano), San Sisinnio , 250 m, 2.I.1987, leg. P. Leo ” ( MSNG) . Paratypes: Villacidro (Medio Campidano prov.), San Sisinnio, 250 m, 8.V.1986, leg. P. Leo, 3 ♂♂ and 1 ♀ (2 ♂♂ and 1 ♀ CLF-PL, 1 ♂ CNBFVR) ; 2.I.1987, leg. P. Leo, 2 ♀ ( CLF-PL); 15.III.1987, leg. P. Leo, 1 ♀ ( CLF-PL); 9.XII.1989, leg. P. Leo, 1 ♂ and 1 ♀ ( CLF-PL); 24.IV.1990, leg. P. Leo, 1 ♂ ( CLF-PL) .

Description. Total length 1.00–1.10 mm. Head shiny, with diverging edges, distinctly widening posteriorly, and with inconspicuous frontal carinas; microreticulation faint, punctuation strong and sparse. Pronotum about as long as wide, shiny, with imperceptible microreticulation; punctuation slightly thinner than on head and slightly sparser; median longitudinal dimples lacking. Elytra shiny with imperceptible microsculpture and scattered punctuation. Aedeagus as in Fig. 10, with sternal lamina strongly bending downward, short, robust and tapering at apex. Female genital armature complex, structured as in Fig. 11.

Observations. Entomoculia melonii sp. nov. is clearly separable from all congeners by the genital characters of both sexes.

Ecological notes. The type specimens were found in samples taken at the base of old olive trees. The sampling locality is situated on argilloschist Palaeozoic soil. No other endogean beetles were collected together with the new species.

Etymology. We dedicate this species to our friend Carlo Meloni from Cagliari, an expert of the Sardinian insect fauna with whom we have shared countless excursions.