Allenipeplus philippinensis, Kirejtshuk, Alexander G. & Kovalev, Alexey V., 2016

Kirejtshuk, Alexander G. & Kovalev, Alexey V., 2016, A new genus of the subfamily Cillaeinae (Coleoptera, Nitidulidae) from the Philippines and New Guinea with notes on the taxonomy and phylogeny of the subfamily, Zootaxa 4205 (3), pp. 226-242 : 231-232

Allenipeplus philippinensis sp. nov.

( Figs. 1–6 , 22 )

Type specimens. Holotype, female ( ZIN)—“ Philippines, E Luzon, Sierra Madre, Isabela, xi.2012, I. Lumawig ” ; 1 paratype, female ( FMNH)—“ Baguio, Benguet, Baker ”.

Diagnosis. In addition to the characters mentioned in the key below, this new species has the widest female protarsi, subparallel pregenal processes along mentum, and more oval antennal club among the congeners, and also differs from:

- A. alius sp. nov. in the larger body, finer punctation, more oval (not subrectilinearly narrowing posteriad) head

with maximum width behind eyes (not at eyes), shorter and denser setae at posterior edge of prosternal process; - A. harmonicus sp. nov. in the more oval (not subrectilinearly narrowing posteriad) head with maximum width

behind eyes (not at eyes), shorter and denser setae at posterior edge of prosternal process;

- A. vitellinus sp. nov. in the pronotum more widened anteriorly, pregenal processes subangularly curved at base

of mentum, somewhat smaller mesocoxal paramedian depressions on mesothorax with more divergent mesal

edges and ovipositor with narrower gonocoxites.

Etymology. The epithet of this new species is taken from name of the insular area of its origin.

Description of holotype (female). Length 14.7, width 2.7, height 1.1 mm. Elongate, slightly convex dorsally and rather convex ventrally; dorsum mostly blackish with dark reddish anterior part of head and mandibles and reddish humeral patches on elytra and exposed dorsal sclerites of abdominal segment 5; underside dark reddish with darker abdomen and lighter metaventrite; antennae and legs reddish with somewhat infuscate femoro-tibial articulations and anterior part of tibiae; body with a faint shine; covered with very short and subrecumbent reddish hairs, 1/5–1/3 as long as distance between their insertions; setae along apex of prosternal process comparatively short and dense. Head and pronotum with irregular punctures, much larger than eye facets, separated by 2–4 puncture diameters, interspaced by very fine and somewhat obliterated microreticulation; elytra with somewhat finer and sparser punctation; uncovered tergites and ventrites with nearly obsolete punctation and more pronounced microreticulation. Prosternum and metaventrite with coarser and more regularly oval punctures than those on head and pronotum, separated by 2–3 puncture diameters, interspaced by somewhat obliterated mesh microreticulation, although punctation becoming much sparser at median part of posterior third of metaventrite.

Head ( Figs. 2–3 ) transverse (markedly shorter than distance between eyes), widest behind eyes and arcuately narrowing posteriorly, gently convex and with a transverse depression between rather elevated antennal insertions, its anterior edge truncate, unbordered and with rounded lateral angles. Antennae about 3/4 as long as head width, each of antennomeres 1–3 comparable in length, their oblong club about 1/4 of total antennal length, almost 1 and 1/3 as long as wide, antennomeres 9 and 11 comparable in length. Pronotum slightly transverse and somewhat widened anteriorly, subflattened at disc and with gently sloping sides, sides and base at posterior angles finely bordered, anterior margin bi-emarginate, posterior margin slightly convex. Scutellar shield subtriangular with somewhat arcuate sides, about twice as wide as long. Elytra flattened at disc and steeply sloped at extremely narrowly explanate sides, apical outer angle widely rounded, posterior margin truncate, leaving three last abdominal segments and more than half of previous one uncovered. Three last tergites slightly convex in the middle and rather depressed at sides; pygidium (last tergite) subtriangular, widely rounded and crenellate at apex, nearly 1.5× as long as wide and almost twice as long as each of tergites 5 and 6.

Pregenal processes ( Fig. 3 ) at hypostomal sinuses moderately narrow and only slightly curved and along sides of mentum nearly subparallel-sided. Mentum ( Fig. 3 ) about three times as wide as long, with strongly projecting anterior angles. Ultimate labial palpomere and ultimate maxillary palpomere truncate at apex. Prosternum slightly convex and with subflattened process, not curved along coxae (in lateral view), only slightly widened before widely rounded apex (which is somewhat narrower than antennal club). Distance between mesocoxae subequal to that between metacoxae and slightly greater than that between procoxae. Submesocoxal and submetacoxal lines unexpressed. Hypopygidium slightly longer than wide. Epipleura about as wide as metepisterna and markedly narrower than antennal club, gradually narrowed distally, moderately elevated laterally.

Legs moderately long. Tibiae about as long as antennal flagella, subtriangular and somewhat narrower than antennal club; protibia with clear apical outer angle; meso- and metatibiae slightly narrowing to rounded apex; their outer edges with spines gradually increasing posteriorly. Femora 2.5–3.0× as wide as tibiae. Tarsi about 2/3 as long as tibiae, protarsi almost 3/5 as wide as protibiae, meso- and metatarsi markedly narrower, claws simple.

Ovipositor as in Fig. 22 , moderately sclerotized.

Variation. The paratype is somewhat smaller (10.8 mm long) and lighter (dark brownish with reddish median part of head, subunicolorous legs and slightly lighter median stripes of preapical tergites and pygidial apex), with somewhat more conspicuous pubescence on tergites.

Distribution. This species is known only from two localities on the island of Luzon, Philippines.

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 6. Allenipeplus philippinensis gen. et sp. nov. — holotype, female (“ Philippines, E Luzon, Sierra Madre, Isabela, xi. 2012, I. Lumawig ” — ZIN). 1: body, dorsal; 2: anterior part of head, dorsal; 3: head, ventral; 4: thorax, ventral; 5: oblong spiracles of abdominal segments 5 and 6 (at base of segments between tergite and laterosternite); 6: abdominal apex, ventral. Scale bars = 1.0 mm.

FIGURES 22 – 25. Ovipositor of species of Allenipeplus gen. nov. — ventral. 22: A. philippinensis sp. nov. (“ Philippines, E Luzon, Sierra Madre, Isabela, xi. 2012, I. Lumawig ” — ZIN); 23: A. alius sp. nov. (“ Philippines, Mindoro, Mt Hallon, xi. 2013, I. Lumawig ” — ZIN); 24: A. harmonicus sp. nov. (“ E slope Mt. McKinley, Davao Prov., Mindanao, Elev. 6500 ft, ix- 13 - 1946, lot # 55, petiole of dead tree fern frond ” — ZIN); 25: A. vitellinus sp. nov. (“ New Guinea, Torecella M., 1.700 fts. iv- 1939, G. P. Moore, B. M. 1939 - 479 ” — ZIN). Scale bars = 1.0 mm.