Brachyllus songhaitiani Zhao, Qi, Su & Liao, 2023

Zhao, Ming-Zhi, Qi, Zhi-Hao, Su, Rong-Xiang & Liao, Tao-Kun, 2023, New and poorly known species of the genus Brachyllus Brenske, 1896 (Coleoptera Scarabaeidae: Melolonthinae) from China, Zootaxa 5256 (4), pp. 358-370 : 359-361

Brachyllus songhaitiani Zhao, Qi, Su & Liao , new species

( Figs. 1A–B, 1D–E , 2A , 7A–B , 8 )

Type material. Holotype: ♁ ( SCAU), “ CHINA: Fujian Province, Sanming City, Youxi County / Mt. Damoshan [kDffi], 1400 m, 2021.V.1, / Zhi-Hao Qi, Rong-Xiang Su, Tao-Kun Liao leg.” Paratypes: Fujian: 1♀ ( LDPC), 1♀ ( QZPC), 2♀♀ ( SCAU), 1♁, 1♀ ( SHPC), 1♁ ( SRPC), 2♁♁, 4♀♀ ( ZMPC), same data as holotype; 1♁, 1♀ ( DKPC), 1♁, 1♀ ( FAF), 1♁, 2♀♀ ( QZPC), 6♀♀ ( SHPC), 2♀♀ ( SRPC), same data as holotype but “ 2021.IV.30 ”; 1♀ ( SHPC), same data as holotype but “ 2021.V.2 ” ; Jiangxi: 2♁♁ ( SYSU, En-361022 and En-363211), “Jiangxi, Mt. Jinggangshan, Songmuping [K†„] / 27-iv-2011 / leg. Feng-Long Jia, Wei-Cai Xie, Shuang Zhao ” .

Description of the holotype ( Figs. 1A–B , 2A , 7A–B ). Elongated ovoid, subcylindrical, somewhat broadened behind.

Colour. Generally reddish brown, frons, vertex, disc of pronotum, scutellum, abdominal ventrites II–V and disc of pygidium dark brown. Elytra shinning, anterior margin and raised surface structures dark brown. Erect setae mostly yellowish brown, semierect or recumbent setae on elytral surface pale yellow.

Head. Clypeus strongly emarginated, anterior margin reflected, lateral corner rounded, lateral margin strongly converging posteriad. Frontoclypeal suture distinctly raised. Inner margin of eyes strongly reflected. Surface of clypeus and frons with dense and coarse punctures, vertex impunctate. Head excluding antenna with moderately dense, rather long and erect setae, setae on outer surface of clypeus moderately long. Antenna 9-segemented, antennal club 3-segmented, length of antennal club equals to the combined length of antennomeres 1–6, antennomere 2 glabrous.

Pronotum. Wider than long. Lateral margin generally parabolic, with scalloped modification. Anterior angle moderately protruding and blunt at apex, posterior angle obsolete, margins not reflexed. Surface with moderately dense and large punctures, as well as rather long erect setae.

Scutellum. Nearly triangular. With several large punctures at posterior two third. Each puncture bears a recumbent short seta.

Elytra. Surface uneven, with irregularly raised reliefs, the sutural interval well-defined, other intervals are interrupted by the unraised portions and hardly recognizable; humeral and subapical umbones prominent. Reliefs rarely punctured, except for the sutural interval; unraised portions and the sutural interval with moderately dense punctures, punctures smaller than those on pronotum. Each puncture with a semierect or recumbent seta, mostly minute to short; lanceolate and moderately long setae somewhat aggregated in posterior half; basal portions and lateral margin with moderately dense and rather long setae, epipleura with a row of short setae.

Ventral thoracic surface. With dense large punctures, punctures on mesoventrite smaller and somewhat aggregated on each side, punctures on metaventrite very dense. Ventral pro- and metathoracic surfaces with dense and rather long setae, setae on anterior half of ventral prothoracic as well as mesothoracic surface sparser. Disc of metaventrite depressed. Prosternal process small and conical, not extending beyond procoxa.

Abdomen. Abdominal ventrites with sparse and small punctures, somewhat denser laterally. Each puncture bears a semierect moderately long seta; ventrite V with longer setae, intermediate with several rather long setae. Pygidium weakly convex, with dense and large punctures, a small central portions impunctate; each puncture with a short or moderately long seta, with moderately dense long setae along posterior margin.

Legs. Slender. Protibia tridentate, apical and second teeth prominent, proximal tooth spaced and small; without protibial spur. Each tarsal claw with a strong medial tooth. Femora with moderately and dense rather long setae each emerging from a large puncture; outer surface of tibiae with moderately dense and short to moderately long setae.

Male genitalia. As in Fig. 7A – B .

Paratypes. Males. External features and shape of aedeagus consistent. Anterior angle of pronotum sometimes less protruding. Females ( Fig. 1D–E ). Externally similar to male, but body slightly broadened behind. Antennal club short, equals to the combined length of antennomeres 2–6. Setae of ventral thoracic surface sparser than in male. Abdominal ventrites more convex, ventrite VI slightly longer than in male. Protibia and apex of metatibia wider than in male.

Measurements. Males. Body length (measured from anterior margin of clypeus to apex of elytron): 10.8–11.2 mm (holotype 11.2 mm), body width (measured across humeri): 4.6–4.8 mm (holotype 4.8 mm). Females. Body length: 10.7–12.0 mm, width: 4.8–5.1 mm.

Differential diagnosis. Brachyllus songhaitiani Zhao, Qi, Su & Liao , new species is very similar to B. svetlanae Keith, 2006 ( Figs. 1C , 2B ) from Guangxi, China. The moderately long setae upon elytra of B. songhaitiani new species are spiniform or lanceolate ( Fig. 2A ) but oblanceolate in B. svetlanae ( Fig. 2B ). In lateral view, the dorsal carina on paramere of B. songhaitiani new species raises stronger than in B. svetlanae ( Fig. 7A ). Lower margin of paramere of B. songhaitiani new species strongly concave subapically, but it is straight in B. svetlanae ( Fig. 7B ).

Etymology. This species is dedicated to Hai-Tian Song, who kindly supported the collecting trip in Mount Damoshan.

Remarks. The type series of B. songhaitiani new species from Fujian was found dead at the base of several wind turbines ( Fig. 8 ). The surrounding area is primary forest.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Habitus of Brachyllus spp. A–B, B. songhaitiani new species, holotype; C, B. svetlanae, male paratype (©Maxim E. Smirnov); D–E, B. songhaitiani new species, female paratype. A, C, D, dorsal view; B, E, ventral view. (Fig. 1C is not scaled.)

FIGURE 2. Elytra of Brachyllus species, arrows indicate the moderately long setae. A, B. songhaitiani new species, holotype; B, B. svetlanae, male paratype. (Fig. 2B is not scaled.)

FIGURE 7. Male genitalia of Brachyllus species. A–B, B. songhaitiani new species, holotype; C–D, B. deuveianus, holotype; E–F, B. rougeriei rougeriei, holotype; G–H, B. rougeriei langeri; I–J, B. dongzhiweii new species, holotype; K–L, B. frontalis; M–N, B. itohi mantilleri, holotype; O–P, B. tangzhaoyangi new species, holotype. Upper row, parameres in dorsal view; lower row, aedeagus in lateral view.

FIGURE 8. A, habitat of Brachyllus songhaitiani new species in Mt. Damoshan; B, base of a wind turbine, where specimens of B. songhaitiani were collected; C, a dead specimen of B. songhaitiani.