Medon punctatus ( COIFFAIT 1975) Assing, 2011

Assing, V., 2011, The Sunius species of the Palaearctic region (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Paederinae), Linzer biologische Beiträge 43 (1), pp. 151-193 : 186-187

Medon punctatus ( COIFFAIT 1975) , nov.comb. ( Figs 66-68 )

Hypomedon punctatus COIFFAIT 1975: 178 f.

T y p e m a t e r i a l e x a m i n e d: Holotype: "Kali-Gandaki-Tal, zw. Ghasa u. Lete / Zentral-Nepal, Sept.-Okt.1971, lg. H. Franz / Holotype / Hypomedon punctatum [sic] H. Coiffait 1975 / Medon punctatus (Coiffait) , det. V. Assing 2011" ( NHMW).

C o m m e n t: The original description is based on a single female from "Kali- Gandaki-Tal entre Ghasa et Lete, Népal central" ( COIFFAIT 1975). The holotype was located in the Franz collection at the NHMW. The species is tentatively attributed to the Medon ferrugineus group, mainly because the labrum is not distinctly dentate on either side of the anterior median excision and because of the presence of similar representatives of the M. ferrugineus group in the Himalaya. The male sexual characters would be essential to confirm this hypothesis.

R e d e s c r i p t i o n: Body length 4.2 mm. Habitus as in Fig. 66 . Coloration: head, pronotum, and abdomen blackish; elytra dark-brown; legs reddish-brown with slightly darker femora; antennae reddish.

Head ( Fig. 67 ) approximately 1.05 times as wide as long; punctation moderately coarse, defined, and dense; interstices without microsculpture, on average narrower than diameter of punctures ( Fig. 68 ). Eyes rather large, almost as long as postocular region in dorsal view.

Pronotum ( Fig. 67 ) as wide as long and as wide as head; punctation dense, slightly less coarse than that of head; midline narrowly impunctate only in posterior half.

Elytra approximately 1.05 times as long and 1.25 times as broad as pronotum; humeral angles marked ( Fig. 67 ); punctation fine and dense; interstices without microsculpture. Hind wings fully developed.

Abdomen slightly narrower than elytra; punctation fine, denser on anterior than on posterior tergites; interstices with shallow microsculpture composed predominantly of short transverse meshes; posterior margin of tergite VII with palisade fringe.

: unknown.

C o m p a r a t i v e n o t e s: Among the Himalayan Medon species , M. punctatus is characterized particularly by the dense and defined punctation, as well as by the long elytra.

D i s t r i b u t i o n a n d n a t u r a l h i s t o r y: The species is known only from the type locality in central Nepal. Bionomic data are not available.

Figures

Figs 62-68: Medon gratus CAMERON (62-65) and M. punctatus (COIFFAIT) (66-68): (62) male sternite VII; (63) male sternite VIII; (64-65) aedeagus in lateral and in ventral view; (66) habitus; (67) forebody; (68) median dorsal portion of head. Scale bars: 66: 1.0 mm; 67: 0.5 mm; 62-65, 68: 0.2 mm.