Podistra madelineae, PANKOWSKI & Fanti, 2023

PANKOWSKI, MAXIMILIAN G. & Fanti, FABRIZIO FANTI, 2023, Six new species of fossil soldier beetles (Coleoptera: Cantharidae) from Eocene Baltic amber, Palaeoentomology 6 (3), pp. 300-312 : 303-304

Podistra madelineae sp. nov.

( Fig. 2 )

Holotype. Female , inclusion in Baltic amber, housed at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, USNM PAL 787824 .

Syninclusions: Air bubbles, detritus and botanical fragments.

Etymology. Species named in honor of Madeline Pankowski, the first author’s younger sister and valued partner in palaeontological projects.

Diagnosis. The last maxillary palpomere securiform, the long elytra and the rectangular pronotum place this taxon in the genus Podistra . Based on the absence of the basal tooth of claws but with an obtuse enlargement, the species could be placed in the subgenus Pseudoabsidia . However, this subgenus has recently been synonymized with the subgenus Podistra ( Kazantsev, 2023) , and the taxonomy of the subgenera remains largely unclear.

The new species is most similar to Podistra guthriei Fanti, 2021 but is significantly larger than that species (7.5 mm vs. 5.7 mm). Antennomeres III–V of the new species also are not subequal, unlike in P. guthriei ( Fanti, 2021) .

Locality and horizon. Amber mine in the Yantarny settlement, Sambian Peninsula, Kaliningrad region, Russia. Middle Eocene (Lutetian) (47.8–41.2 Ma) to late Eocene (Priabonian) (37.8–33.9 Ma).

Description. Female, defined on the basis of the short antennae and the last sternite small and rounded. Body length: about 7.5 mm. Head black, other body parts entirely dark brown.

Head not completely exposed, wide, rounded, equipped with scattered short setae and without punctation. Eyes relatively small, rounded, located in upper lateral part of the head. Mandibles falciform. Maxillary palpi 4-segmented, with the last palpomere securiform. Labial palpi 3-segmented with the last palpomere securiform. Antennae 11-segmented, filiform, short, surpassing the humeral region of the elytra, inserted close to the upper part of the eyes, all antennomeres pubescent with short and long setae; antennomere I elongate, club-shaped, enlarged apically; antennomere II short, slightly elongate, rather robust, about 2.4–2.5 times shorter than antennomere I; antennomere III about 1.4 times longer than antennomere II; antennomere IV robust, longer than previous one; antennomeres V–X subequal and shorter than previous ones; antennomere XI filiform, elongate, rounded apically. Pronotum longer than wide, rectangular, about as wide as head, surface slightly granulous and equipped with several setae and slightly bulged in the posterior part, anterior margin rounded and not bordered, posterior margin and sides straight and slightly bordered, propleura small and rounded. Scutellum very wide, triangular shaped, with apex slightly rounded, equipped with scattered setae. Elytra wider than pronotum, elongate, covering and slightly surpassing the last abdominal segments, surface slightly wrinkled and equipped with scattered and long setae, parallel-sided, rounded apically. Hind wings semitransparent, slightly longer than elytra. Legs short, relatively robust, densely pubescent; coxae robust, elongate, rounded apically; trochanters elongate with rounded apex; femora slightly enlarged, straight, cylindrical; tibiae thin, cylindrical, with apical spur that is short and robust, pro- and mesotibiae shorter than pro- and mesofemora, metatibiae slightly longer than metafemora. First tarsomere elongate and robust; second tarsomere shorter than first tarsomere; third tarsomere triangularshaped, with apical margin straight; tarsomere IV conspicuously widened, very shortly bilobed; tarsomere V thin, elongate, curved; claws simple without teeth but with an obtuse enlargement at base. Metasternum elongate, equipped with scattered long setae, rounded apically. Sternites transverse, wide, pubescent. Last sternite short, small, rounded. Male unknown.

Remarks. The yellow, nearly square amber piece measures approximately 12 × 11 × 8 mm. The specimen is bent. One posterior leg is not preserved and the last sternite is partially covered by a white emulsion.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Podistra madelineae sp. nov. in Baltic amber. Holotype (USNM PAL 787824). A, B, Lateral views, scale bars = 0.5 mm. C, Dorsal view, scale bar = 0.5 mm. D, Detail of last abdominal segments, scale bar = 0.1 mm.