Caledonica viridicollis viridicollis Deuve, 1987

Kudrna, Arnošt, 2016, Revision of the genusCaledonica (Coleoptera: Cicindelidae), Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae 56 (2), pp. 567-628 : 597-599

Caledonica viridicollis viridicollis Deuve, 1987

( Figs 29–30 )

Caledonica viridicollis Deuve, 1987: 114 (original description). WIESNER (1992): 76 (catalogue); DEUVE (2015): 76 (figure), 77 (noted).

Type locality. ‘Nouvelle Calédonie’.

Type material examined. HOLOTYPE: ♀, ‘cd 3, Rivalier’ [handwritten] ; ‘Type’ [red, printed]; ‘Muséum Paris, 1952, Coll. R. Oberthur’ [printed]; ‘Ex. Musaeo Gambey, 1892’ [printed]; ‘ viridicollis, Deuve , Holotype’ [handwriten] ( MNHN) .

Redescription. Body of female holotype (the only existing specimen) small, length 12.50 mm, width 4.20 mm ( Fig. 29 ).

Head with large eyes, slightly narrower than elytra, dorsally bronze to indistinctly cupreous with metallic reflections; frons and vertex moderately convex, frons separated from clypeus by distinct suture, irregularly wavy-rugulose; vertex with rather shallow posterior impression, longitudinally to irregularly striate; orbital plates distinctly longitudinally parallel-striate with two setae on each side; occipital area irregularly wavy to vermicular-rugulose; genae glabrous, metallic green, finely parallel-striate; clypeus coriaceous, cupreous with metallic lustre.

Labrum with four setae ( Fig. 30 ), with acute anterolateral teeth, testaceous with widely darkened lateral margins, 1.55 mm long, 1.50 mm wide, with prominent and sharply tridentate median lobe of acute teeth which are bent downwards, thus their acute shape is not obvious in dorsal view.

Mandibles of the holotype partly closed, thus not fully visible, with testaceous teeth and paler basolateral half.

Labial and maxillary palpi testaceous with terminal and in maxillary palpi also penultimate palpomere darkened.

Antennae. Scape testaceous, pedicel dark testaceous, remaining antennomeres missing.

Thorax. All portions glabrous. Pronotum 2.00 mm long, 2.70 mm wide, anterior and posterior sulci well pronounced, anterior and posterior lobe of about the same width; disc with rounded to slightly convex lateral margins and elevated notopleural sutures obvious in dorsal view in form of short, but distinctly wide, flat lateral ribs that are gradually effaced towards anterior and posterior sulci; pronotal surface dark bronze with metallic reflections; partly shiny green along anterior and posterior sulci, shallowly irregularly wavy- to vermicular-rugulose, rugae becoming more regularly transverse-wavy along indistinct median line; pro-, mes- and metepisterna ochraceous with less distinct green metallic reflections, nearly smooth; female mesepisternal coupling sulci absent, metepisterna with rather deep impression at posterior suture; pro-, meso-, and metasternum brownish-testaceous with limited green reflections; metasternum with less distinct fovea-like impression placed at dorsolateral corner.

Elytra elongate, length 7.90 mm, anteapical angles and apices rounded, slightly emarginate towards short, but distinct sutural spine; juxtahumeral impressions and basodiscal convexity moderate, apical impressions indistinct; each elytron between basodiscal convexity and apical impression with two longitudinal costae: markedly elevated discal costa forming distinct edge, and sublateral costa forming less distinct elevation; interspaces between costae and suture impressed; elytral surface anteriorly densely and deeply punctate (juxtahumeral impressions with few punctures); punctures towards elytral apex become smaller and shallower and nearly effaced on apical area, punctures on flat interspaces between costae and also between suture are very indistinct; elytral coloration dark olivaceous with metallic lustre; interspaces between costae and also along suture notably iridescent silvery-bronze, iridescence changing to dull depending on angle of illumination; elytral maculation ochre-white, in both sexes consisting of three maculae: short humeral macula, transverse and oblong median band reaching discal costa, and irregularly circular anteapical macula.

Abdomen. Ventrites glabrous, dark brown, in lateral areas with limited green metallic lustre.

Legs. Coxae and trochanters testaceous, femora testaceous except for indistinctly darkened apices on metafemora; tibiae testaceous except for darkened apical area on metatibiae; protarsi and mesotarsi dark testaceous, metatarsi black.

Differential diagnosis. Close to C. myrmidon , but differs in having short but distinct and long ribs along pronotal lateral margins. From C. rivalieriana sp. nov. it is distinguished by absent female mesepisternal coupling sulci and much larger anteapical macula. From C. viridicollis laevioricollis it differs in surface of pronotal disc that is coarser, with well visible rugae.

Biology and distribution. Nothing is known about the origin of the holotope except that it came from the collection of René Oberthür, acquired in 1952 by MNHN. It lacks any locality label, but was most probably collected in New Caledonia.

Remark. Relationships between Caledonica v. viridicollis , C. v. laevioricollis , C. rubicondosa and C. rivalieri are not clear. All these species are quite similar and more specimens including males are required to clarify their identity (see also remarks under C. rubicondosa ).

Figures

Figs 29–35. 29–30 – Caledonica viridicollis viridicollis Deuve, 1987: 29 – habitus,♀, holotype, 12.5 mm (MNHN); 30 – labrum, ibid. 31–35 – C. viridicollis laevioricollis Deuve, 2006: 31 – habitus, J, holotype, 11.5 mm (QMBA); 32 – frontal view, ibid.; 33 – habitus, ♀, paratype, 10.8 mm (QMBA); 34 – frontal view, ibid.; 35 – aedeagus (not measured), holotype (QMBA). Scale bars = 1 mm.