Psyrassa obscuriventris García and Santos-Silva, 2022

García, Kimberly & Santos-Silva, Antonio, 2022, The multiform genus Psyrassa Pascoe (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae: Elaphidiini): new species, new records, synonyms and transfers, Insecta Mundi 2022 (953), pp. 1-26 : 10-11

Psyrassa obscuriventris García and Santos-Silva , new species

( Fig. 74–82 )

Description. Holotype female ( Fig. 74–80 ). Head capsule dark reddish-brown, except gradually yellowish-brown posterior half of gulamentum, and partially dark brown apex of antennal tubercles; mandibles reddish-brown on posterior 2/3, except dark brown lower margin, and black on anterior third; scape orangish brown; pedicel and antennomere III blackish; antennomeres IV–V mostly blackish with irregular dark reddish-brown areas; antennomeres VI–XI dark reddish-brown, with some irregular areas blackish; ventral mouthparts light reddish-brown, except maxillary palpomeres I–III and labial palpomeres yellowish-brown, and maxillary palpomere IV mostly dark brown. Prothorax and ventral surface of meso- and metathorax reddish-brown, except orangish brown apex of prosternal process. Elytra dark reddish-brown, with some irregular areas darkened. Coxae, trochanters, and femora orangish brown; tibiae blackish on basal half, gradually dark reddish-brown on remaining surface; tarsi mostly brown. Abdominal ventrites 1–3 mostly black, posterior area with pale transverse band close to dark reddish-brown apex, posterocentral region of ventrites 1–2 dark reddish-brown, and central region of ventrite 3 mostly dark reddish-brown; ventrites 4–5 mostly dark reddish-brown, with irregular blackish areas interspersed, except pale apex of ventrite 4.

Head. Frontal plate smooth, glabrous; remaining surface of frons coarsely, somewhat abundantly punctate, except denser, confluently punctate area between antennal tubercles and clypeus; with short, bristly, sparse yellowish-white setae on wide central area, more abundant between antennal tubercles and clypeus. Vertex coarsely, abundantly punctate; with short, decumbent, sparse yellowish-white setae and long, erect setae of same color interspersed. Antennal tubercles coarsely, somewhat abundantly punctate, except smooth apex; punctate area with sparse, decumbent yellowish-white setae, glabrous on smooth area. Area behind upper eye lobes coarsely, shallowly, abundantly punctate; setae as on vertex.Area behind lower eye lobes smooth close to eye, except rugosepunctate area close to lower margin, coarsely striate punctate on remaining surface; glabrous, except sparse long, erect yellowish setae close to lower margin of eye. Genae short, with the lower eye lobe almost reaching the clypeus; finely, somewhat abundantly punctate, except smooth apex; with sparse, decumbent yellowish-white setae on punctate area, glabrous on smooth area. Maxillary palpomere IV and labial palpomere III securiform. Median groove distinct from frontal plate to area between antennal tubercles. Wide central area of postclypeus rugosepunctate, with bristly yellowish-white setae not obscuring integument, a few long, erect yellowish-brown setae interspersed laterally, and one very long, erect yellowish-brown seta on each side. Sides of postclypeus smooth, glabrous. Posterocentral area of labrum finely, abundantly punctate, and remaining surface smooth; with short, bristly yellowish-white setae not obscuring integument on punctate area, and long, erect yellowish-brown setae laterally, and fringe of short yellowish-brown setae anteriorly. Gulamentum smooth, glabrous posteriorly, with sparse, coarse and shallow punctures laterally; coarsely striate-punctate anteriorly, with long, erect, somewhat sparse yellowish setae between eyes. Outer side of mandibles coarsely, densely punctate, except smooth apex, with decumbent, somewhat abundant yellowish-white setae and long, erect yellowish-brown setae interspersed on punctate area, glabrous on smooth area. Upper eye lobes with three rows of ommatidia; distance between upper eye lobes 0.39 times distance between outer margins of eyes; in frontal view, distance between lower eye lobes 0.52 times distance between outer margins of eyes. Antennae 1.3 times elytral length, almost reaching elytral apex. Scape coarsely, somewhat rugose-punctate, except smooth apex (this area widened toward outer side of dorsal surface); with short, decumbent, sparse pale yellow setae dorsally and laterally, with a few long, erect setae of same color interspersed, except glabrous smooth area, and long, erect pale yellow setae ventrally. Pedicel and antennomeres III–XI with decumbent pale yellow setae not obscuring integument, gradually denser toward antennomere XI; antennomeres III–X with long, erect pale yellow setae ventrally, gradually sparser toward X, and somewhat long erect pale yellow setae on dorsal apex; antennomere III slightly carinate dorsally; antennomeres IV–V slightly distinctly carinate on basal third of dorsal surface; inner apex of antennomere III with spine about twice pedicel length, with distinct blunt apex; inner apex of antennomere IV 0.9 times pedicel length, with acute apex; inner apex of antennomere V with spicule. Antennal formula (ratio) based on length of antennomere III (excluding spine): scape = 0.75; pedicel = 0.18; IV = 0.81; V = 0.90; VI = 0.87; VII = 0.87; VIII = 0.81; IX = 0.78; X = 0.68; XI = 0.87.

Thorax. Prothorax distinctly longer than wide; anterior and posterior constrictions well-marked, especially anterior one. Pronotum with one slightly distinct gibbosity on each side of anterior and posterior quarters; coarsely, somewhat abundantly punctate except smooth longitudinal area centrally on posterior half (not reaching posterior margin), and posterior fifth with abundant fine punctures; punctures with three types of erect yellowish setae, minute, short, or long, but a few punctures lacking seta. Sides of prothorax coarsely, abundantly punctate on wide central area, obliquely striate on posterior region, obliquely striate-punctate on anterior region, these two last regions gradually widened toward ventral surface; with both, short and long, erect pale yellow setae, distinctly more abundant on wide central region. Prosternum coarsely rugose-punctate on posterior 2/3, transversely striate with a few coarse punctures interspersed on anterior third; posterior 2/3 with abundant grayish-white decumbent pubescence not obscuring integument, and long, erect yellowish setae interspersed; anterior third with sparse, bristly, both short and long yellowish setae. Prosternal process with abundant grayish-white pubescence not obscuring integument; narrowest area 0.17 times procoxal width. Procoxal cavities distinctly opened posteriorly ( Fig. 78 ). Ventral surface of mesothorax with grayish-white pubescence, sparse on center, denser laterally. Metanepisternum, and sides and areas close to meso- and metacoxae of metaventrite with abundant grayishwhite pubescence partially obscuring integument; remaining surface of metaventrite with long, erect yellowish setae, except glabrous central area; metaventrite coarsely, somewhat sparsely punctate, except smooth area close to metathoracic discrimen. Scutellum with dense white pubescence.

Elytra. Coarsely, abundantly punctate, punctures slightly finer and sparser on posterior quarter; punctures with short, bristly pale yellow seta, except a few punctures with long, erect seta of same color; apex obliquely concave, with outer and sutural angles projected.

Legs. Femora coarsely rugose-punctate, especially toward apex; with short, decumbent, sparse yellowishwhite pubescence on basal third, and long, erect pale yellow setae throughout, more abundant ventrally and posterior 2/3 of dorsal and lateral surfaces; inner and outer apex of meso- and metafemora with rounded projection. Tibiae with abundant, long, erect yellow setae, sparser on basal third of protibiae, and denser, bristly yellowish-brown pubescence on ventral surface of protibiae and posterior third of meso- and metatibiae. Metatarsomere I about as long as II–III together.

Abdomen. Ventrites 1–4 coarsely, sparsely punctate; ventrite 5 finely, sparsely punctate; ventrites with abundant grayish-white pubescence laterally, partially obscuring integument; with both, short and long, sparse yellowish setae on wide central area, except glabrous apex; apex of ventrite 5 rounded.

Variation. Maxillary palpomere IV yellowish-brown; scape dark reddish-brown, but lighter than head capsule; pedicel and antennomeres III–VI black; elytra blackish basally; sides of ventral surface of meso- and metathorax dark brown; coxae, trochanters, and femora reddish-brown; tibiae black; abdominal ventrites mostly blackish; antennae surpassing elytral apex at base of antennomere XI; elytral apex concave but not oblique.

Dimensions in mm (holotype female/ paratype female). Total length, 13.10/11.00; prothoracic length, 2.20/1.90; anterior prothoracic width, 1.60/1.30; posterior prothoracic width, 1.55/1.30; maximum prothoracic width, 1.80/1.55; humeral width, 2.35/2.00; elytral length, 9.25/7.80.

Type material. Holotype male from MEXICO, JALISCO: MX80, 7 km N Autlán on road to Microondas de San Francisco , 19.VII.2006, Skillman and Hildebrandt leg. ( FSCA, formerly FWSC) . Paratype female, same data as holotype, except 27.VII.2011, Skillman and Turnbow leg. ( FWSC).

Etymology. The specific epithet comes from the Latin “obscurus” (dark) + “venter” (belly), referring to the dark abdominal ventrites of the species, which contrasts with the rest of the integument coloration.

Remarks. Psyrassa obscuriventris new species can be included in the alternative of couplet “15” from Toledo (2005), with P. brevicornis and P. cylindricollis . It differs from P. brevicornis (see photograph on Bezark 2022) by the antennae surpassing the elytral apex in females (not reaching in females of P. brevicornis ), and body distinctly slender (stouter in females of P. brevicornis ). The new species differs from P. cylindricollis ( Fig. 19–57 ) by the elytra four times the prothoracic length or slightly longer (at most, 3.5 times in P. cylindricollis ), pronotal sculpturing denser ( Fig. 74, 82 ) (sparser in P. cylindricollis (e.g. Fig. 19, 26, 29 , 30 )), and sculpturing on sides of the prothorax distinctly denser ( Fig. 78 ) (sparser in P. cylindricollis ( Fig. 32 )). The general appearance resembles that of P. basicornis Pascoe, 1866 (see photographs on Bezark 2022), but differs by the spine of the antennomere III distinctly blunt apically (acute in P. basicornis ), and elytra at least four times longer than prothorax (at most slightly longer than three times in P. basicornis ).

Figures

Figures 74–82. Psyrassa obscuriventris sp. nov. 74–80) Holotype female: 74) Dorsal habitus. 75) Ventral habitus. 76) Lateral habitus. 77) Head, frontal view. 78) Procoxal cavities. 79) Antennomeres III–IV. 80) Antennomeres V–VII. 81–82) Paratype female. 81) Prothorax, lateral view. 82) Paratype female, dorsal habitus.

Figures 19–29. Psyrassa cylindricollis Linsley, 1935, specimens from Mexico (Michoacán). 19–24) Male: 19) Dorsal habitus.20) Ventral habitus.21) Lateral habitus. 22) Procoxal cavities. 23) Apical spine of the antennomere III and IV. 24) Head, frontal view.25) Male, dorsal habitus. 26–28) Female 1: 26) Dorsal habitus.27) Ventral habitus. 28) Antennomeres III–VI. 29) Female 2, dorsal habitus.

Figures 30–40. Psyrassa cylindricollis Linsley, 1935, specimens from Mexico (Jalisco). 30–33) Female (1): 30) Dorsal habitus. 31) Ventral habitus. 32) Prothorax, lateral view. 33) Antennomeres III–V. 34) Female (2), dorsal habitus. 35) Female (3), dorsal habitus. 36–40) Male: 36) Lateral habitus. 37) Dorsal habitus. 38) Ventral habitus. 39) Head, frontal view. 40) Apical spine of the antennomeres III–V.

Figures 41–57. Psyrassa cylindricollis Linsley, 1935, specimens from Mexico (Jalisco). 41) Male, procoxal cavities. 42) Male (1), dorsal habitus. 43) Male (2), dorsal habitus. 44) Male (3), dorsal habitus. 45) Female, dorsal habitus. 46–57) Spine of the antennomere III, variation.