Caledonica rivalieri Deuve, 1981

Kudrna, Arnošt, 2016, Revision of the genusCaledonica (Coleoptera: Cicindelidae), Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae 56 (2), pp. 567-628 : 595-597

Caledonica rivalieri Deuve, 1981

( Figs 19–23 , 84 )

Caledonica rivalieri Deuve, 1981: 182 (key), 184 (original description). WIESNER (1992): 76 (catalogue); DEUVE (2015): 73 (redescription of male), 74 (figure).

Type locality. ‘Nouvelle Calédonie, Baie de Prony’.

Type material examined. HOLOTYPE: ♀, ‘Baie de Prony, N-lle Calédonie’ [handwritten]; ‘Muséum Paris, coll. Fleutiaux’ [pink, printed/handwritten]; ‘Type’ [red, printed]; ‘ Cal. myrmidon Fauv. ’ [handwritten]; ‘ rivalieri, Deuve , Holotype’ [handwritten] ( MNHN). PARATYPE: ♀, ‘Baie de Prony, N-lle Calédonie’ [handwritten]; ‘Muséum Paris, 1952, Coll. R. Oberthur’ [printed]; ‘Paratype’ [red, printed]; ‘Ex Musaeo Gambey, 1892’ [printed] ( MNHN).

Additional material examined (3 specimens). NEW CALEDONIA: PROVINCE SUD: Plaine des Lacs , 5 km E of Grand Lac, 300 m, 22°16´S, 166°58´E, Jan. 1984, 1 J, M. Pogue & M. Epstein ( MNHN) ; 15 km NE of Noumea, forest of Mts. Koghis , 30.i.–4.ii.2005, 2 ♀♀, A. Kudrna jr. lgt ( AKCB) .

Redescription. Body small (more robust in female), length 11.20 mm, width 3.25 mm in male ( Fig. 19 ); in female ( Fig. 21 ) length 10.90–11.50 (holotype: 10.90) mm, width 3.50–3.75 (holotype: 3.75) mm.

Head with large eyes, slightly narrower than elytra, dorsally black with dark cupreous to dark violet or even blackish metallic reflections; frons moderately convex, separated from clypeus by distinct suture, irregularly vermicular-rugulose; vertex moderately convex, with distinct posterior impression, mostly longitudinally striate; orbital plates distinctly longitudinally parallel-striate with two setae on each side; occipital area irregularly wavy to vermicular rugulose; genae glabrous, finely parallel-striate with strong green or cupreous reflections; clypeus dark testaceous, coriaceous, with green or partly cupreous metallic lustre.

Labrum with four setae in both sexes, male labrum ( Fig. 20 ) testaceous except for darkened lateral margins, with acute anterolateral teeth, shorter than wide, length 1.15 mm, width 1.35 mm, median lobe prominent, with blunt teeth; female labrum ( Fig. 22 ) longer, testaceous with acute anterolateral teeth and darkened lateral margins, only slightly shorter than wide, length 1.40–1.45 mm, width 1.40–1.55 mm, with prominent and sharply tridentate median lobe of acute teeth which are bent downwards, so their acute shape is not obvious in dorsal view.

Mandibles subsymmetrical, brownish-testaceous with paler basolateral part; each mandible with three teeth and basal molar; third inner teeth smaller than second in both mandibles.

Labial and maxillary palpi in male testaceous except for entirely black terminal palpomeres, penultimate palpomeres of maxillary palpi dark testaceous; in female maxillary palpi with basal palpomeres entirely testaceous or partly darkened, penultimate and terminal palpomeres black, penultimate (longest) palpomeres of labial palpi testaceous with darkened apices or with entirely black glabrous side.

Antennae. In male paler, scape pale testaceous, slightly darkened apically, pedicel testaceous, antennomeres III–IV testaceous to dark testaceous, with paler subapical areas, V–X testaceous, terminal antennomere darkened; in female scape entirely testaceous or with darkened belt, pedicel and antennomeres III–IV dark testaceous to black with paler subapical areas, antennomeres V–XI dark brown to black, progressively darkened (female paratype with much paler, brownish antennomeres V–X, antennomere XI missing).

Thorax. All parts glabrous. Pronotum in male 2.15 mm long, 3.00 mm wide; in female 1.75–1.80 mm long, 2.35–2.50 mm wide (on average 1.36 times wider than long), anterior and posterior sulci well pronounced; disc with convex lateral margins, elevated flat lateral ribs on notopleural sutures missing or only indistinctly present; pronotal surface black, with dark, cupreous, bronze or blackish metallic reflections, irregularly wavy to vermicular-rugulose, rugae becoming more regularly transverse-wavy along developed median line; proepisterna, mesepisterna and metepisterna ochreous, with shiny green to shiny cupreous or even blackish metallic reflections, in both sexes very shallowly striated to nearly smooth; female mesepisternal coupling sulci absent, metepisterna with large impression at posterior suture; pro-, meso-, and metasternum brownish-testaceous with greenish or cupreous lustre; metasternum with deep fovea-like impression placed at dorsolateral corner.

Elytra elongate, length 6.75 mm in male, 7.40–7.70 mm in female, only indistinctly narrowing towards rounded anteapical angles, apices rounded, slightly to distincty emarginate towards short sutural spine; juxtahumeral impressions moderate (less distinct in male), basodiscal convexity distinct, 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 in form of indistinct elevation; interspaces between costae and suture impressed; elytral surface anteriorly densely and deeply punctate (juxtahumeral impressions punctate only sporadically); punctures become smaller towards elytral apex, punctures on apical area smaller and shallower but distinct, on flat interspaces among costae and suture nearly effaced, occasionally larger punctures are adjacent to discal costa, sparse setigerous punctures with rather long white hairlike setae are distributed on anterior area; elytral coloration dark cupreous to black, mostly with cupreous and rarely also partly olivaceous metallic lustre; interspaces between costae and also along the suture notably iridescent silvery-cupreous, cupreous or blackish, the iridescence changing to dull depending on angle of illumination; elytral maculation ochre-white, in both sexes consisting of three maculae: slightly elongate humeral macula, transverse and oblong median macula which is usually slightly cranked upwards and never reaching the discal costa, and irregularly circular or reniform anteapical macula.

Abdomen. Ventrites glabrous, testaceous to dark testaceous with green, blue or cupreous metallic lustre.

Legs. Coxae and trochanters testaceous, femora in male testaceous, in female vary from testaceous to dark testaceous with black apical half, the blackish area is more largely expanded on meso- and metafemora; tibiae testaceous except for black-darkened apices and lateral areas (more markedly in female); tarsi in female black, in male dark testaceous to black, mesotarsi with testaceous basal segment; claws black in basal part, becoming testaceous toward apex.

Aedeagus ( Fig. 23 ) 3.25 mm long and approximately 0.50 mm wide, with narrow basal half and voluminous apical half, conically attenuating towards blunt apex.

Differential diagnosis. Distinguished from C. myrmidon by its larger body size (8.90– 10.40 mm in C. myrmidon , 10.90–11.50 mm in C. rivalieri ), entirely darkened terminal antennomere and absent female mesepisternal coupling sulci. From C. rivalieriana sp. nov. it differs in the following characters: on average smaller body size (10.90–11.50 mm in C. rivalieri , 10.90–13.10 mm in C. rivalieriana sp. nov.), absent female mesepisternal coupling sulci, proportionally longer male labrum with prominent median lobe, much darker – entirely black male terminal palpomeres in contrast to testaceous (occasionally with darkened apices) terminal palpomeres of male of C. rivalieriana sp. nov., darker penultimate (longest) palpomeres of female labial palpi with darkened or entirely black glabrous side, elytral median band slightly angled upwards and elytral colour strongly iridescent cupreous instead of predominantly bronze in C. rivalieriana sp. nov.

Biology and distribution. Caledonica rivalieri is a very rare species. It was recognized as a separate species among the historical specimens identified as C. myrmidon deposited in MNHN ( DEUVE 1981). The original description was based on two females which were the only existing specimens for a long time. They came from Baie de Prony situated on the southern tip of the main island (Grande Terre) covered with coastal forest. Recently two more female specimens were caught in forest of Mts. Koghis and single known male, collected in 1984 in Plaine des Lacs, became available for study.

Figures

Figs 19–28. 19–23 – Caledonica rivalieri Deuve, 1981: 19 – habitus, J, Plaine des Lacs, 11.2 mm (MNHN); 20 – frontal view, ibid.; 21 – habitus, ♀, paratype, 11.5 mm (MNHN); 22 – frontal view, ibid.; 23 – aedeagus, Plaine des Lacs (MNHN). 24–28 – C. rivalieriana sp. nov.: 24 – habitus, J, paratype, Sarramea, 11.5 mm (AKCB); 25 – frontal view, ibid.; 26 – habitus, ♀, allotype, 12.1 mm (AKCB); 27 – frontal view, ibid.; 28 – aedeagus, paratype, Bourail (AKCB). Scale bars = 1 mm.

Figs 83–86. Habitats and adults. 83 – Province Sud, Sarramea, Plato de Dogny, a path through forest with saplings of Coffea arabica, a biotope of Caledonica mniszechii (Thomson, 1856) and C. bavayi Fauvel, 1882; 84 – Province Sud, Mt. Koghis, a biotope of C. mniszechii, C. acentra Chaudoir, 1869, C. rivalieri Deuve, 1981 and C. bavayi; 85 – a mating pair of C. mniszechii, Plato de Dogny; 86 – C. luiggiorum sp. nov. on the trunk of young Acacia spirorbis tree in a garden, Province Nord.