Pediacus kurosawai Sasaji

Marris, John W. M. & Ślipiński, Adam, 2014, A revision of the Pediacus Shuckard 1839 (Coleoptera: Cucujidae) of Asia and Australasia, Zootaxa 3754 (1), pp. 32-58 : 45-47

Pediacus kurosawai Sasaji

Figs. 6 E–G.

Pediacus kurosawai Sasaji, 1983: 18 .

Diagnosis. Recognisable by the combination of the following characters: body form strongly elongate, colour uniform red-brown, eyes small and weakly projecting, antennomere VII distinctly larger than VI and VIII, pronotum with sides broadly curved.

Description. Body length 4.5 mm (n=1), strongly elongate, 3.20× longer than wide; colour uniform redbrown; pubescence long, pale, appressed and moderately conspicuous; surface moderately glossy. Head transverse, 1.61× wider than long; puncturation faintly impressed and sparse medially, increasing in size and density laterally with punctures separated by about their diameter; setae moderately long, fine and appressed, conspicuous; microsculpture very faintly reticulate, surface glossy; eyes small, weakly projecting, ocular index 0.82, finely faceted, postocular denticle absent; antennae as in Fig. 6 F, antennomere VII distinctly larger than VI and VIII. Pronotum transverse, 1.30× wider than long, widest at about midpoint, sides broadly curved; lateral margins weakly explanate, anterior and antero-medial denticles faintly projecting and broadly rounded, posteromedial and posterior denticle small and broadly obtuse; disc faintly impressed; puncturation as for head with an indistinct narrow impunctate median strip; setation as for head, microsculpture faintly reticulate. Elytra strongly elongate, 2.16× longer than wide, sides subparallel; epipleura strongly explanate, puncturation moderately dense but weakly impressed basally, becoming more dense and deeply impressed laterally, puncturation faint on disc; setation long, appressed and conspicuous; microsculpture coriaceous. Genitalia not examined.

Type material. Holotype (male): “[ Japan] Yunohana Tateiwa V. Minami–Aizu D. 8–V.1949 Y. K. [Handwritten] // NSMT [purple card] // HOLOTYPE Pediacus kurosawai SASAJI. 1983 [Red card]”. Specimen mounted on card ( NSMT).

Distribution. Japan.

Discussion. Sasaji (1983) considered that specimens of P. depressus recorded from Japan by Kurosawa (1963) were in fact specimens of P. kurosawai and that the P. depressus may not be present in Japan.

Figures

FIGURE 6. Pediacus species: (A – D) P. japonicus Reitter; (E – G) P. kurosawai Sasaji, holotype. (A, E) Head and pronotum; (B, G) dorsal habitus; (C) aedeagus; (D, F) antenna.