Microhoria almukalla Kejval, 2020

Kejval, Zbyněk & Chandler, Donald S., 2020, Generic revision of the Microhoriini with new species and synonymies from the Palaearctic Region (Coleoptera: Anthicidae), Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae 60 (1), pp. 95-154 : 127-128

Microhoria almukalla Kejval , sp. nov. ( Fig. 86 )

Type locality. Yemen, Kawr Sayban Mount, NW of Al Mukalla, 14°37′N 49°03′E, alt. 575 m.

Type material. HOLOTYPE:, ‘S YEMEN Kawr Saybān mt. NW Al Mukāllā 575 m N14°37′ / E49°03′ (light) 29.III.2007 M. Rejzek [11] [p]’ ( NMPC).

Description. Male (holotype). Body length 2.2 mm. Head and pronotum dark brown, elytra yellowish with vaguely outlined dark markings: brown base, transverse band at about midlength, apices, suture, and lateral margins brownish; femora brown, tibiae and tarsi yellowish-brown, antennae largely dark brown, antennomeres II–VI somewhat paler.

Head 1.1 times as long as wide, moderately widely rounded posteriorly; eyes medium-sized, convex. Surface moderately glossy, minutely and rather densely punctate; punctures distinctly spaced; setation short, subdecumbent, with few, short erect setae. Antennae moderately enlarged in apical half; antennomeres X nearly 1.2 times, XI 2.4 times as long as wide.

Pronotum 1.1 times as long as wide, moderately narrower than head including eyes, unevenly rounded anteriorly, pronotal disc moderately convex, outline in dorsal view with lateral margins moderately impressed posteriorly. Surface moderately glossy, distinctly and densely punctate; punctation coarser, setation as on head, rather uniform, including latero-basal sides.

Elytra 1.7 times as long as wide, subparallel, slightly impressed medially in basal half; humeri distinctly protruding; apices modified, channel of gland forming minute cavity at pointed protrusion of margin. Surface at most moderately glossy, minutely and rather densely punctate; punctation and setation similar to head, with scattered short erect setae.

Legs slender, simple; all tibiae with paired terminal spurs.

Abdominal sternum VII slightly produced and rounded apically; sternum VIII forming simple, subtriangular paired sclerites, separate, moderately produced posteriorly. Aedeagus ( Fig. 86 ): tegmen shortly tubular, with simple, rounded to moderately emarginate apex; endophallic armature with numerous robust, simple spinules.

Female. Unknown.

Differential diagnosis. Microhoria almukalla sp. nov. belongs to the M. schimperi species-group. It is externally very similar to M. cervi sp. nov. from Oman, differing by its markedly smaller eyes, more weakly defined punctation on the head, by the simple, subtriangular sclerites of male sternum VIII (strongly narrowed and elongate, sabre-like in M. cervi sp. nov.), and by characters of the aedeagus (cf. Figs 86 versus 88).

Etymology. Named after the type locality; noun in the nominative case, standing in apposition.

Distribution. Yemen.

Figures

Figs 85–87.Aedeagus: 85 – Microhoria paupercula (LaFerté-Sénectère, 1849) comb. nov.; 86 – M. almukalla sp. nov., ventral view; 87 – M. schimperi (Pic, 1898) comb. nov. in ventral (left) and lateral (right) view. Scale bars: 0.2 mm – A (Fig. 85), B (Fig. 86), C (Fig. 87).