Oxypoda (Sphenoma) kirghisica, Assing, 2009

Assing, V., 2009, On some Oxypoda species of the subgenus Sphenoma MANNERHEIM (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Aleocharinae), Linzer biologische Beiträge 41 (2), pp. 1307-1315 : 1312

Oxypoda (Sphenoma) kirghisica nov.sp. ( Figs 5-6, 1-12 , 18-19 )

T y p e m a t e r i a l: Holotype 3: " Kyrgyzstan / Naryn , Moldo-Too Ch., Suulu-Kurtka pass, 31.VII.2006, 41°40'09"N, 75°02'11"E, 3250 m, l. L. Schmidt / Holotypus 3 Oxypoda kirghisica sp. n. det. V. Assing 2009" (cAss) . Paratypes: 433, 4♀♀: same data as holotype (cAss) ; 1♀: " Kyrgyzstan / Naryn , Moldo-Too Ch., Suulu-Kurtka river, 30.-31.VII.2006, 41°38'20"N, 75°02'10"E, 2350 m, l. L. Schmidt " (cAss) .

D e s c r i p t i o n: Habitus and forebody as in Figs 5-6 . Body length: 3.0-4.0 mm. External characters as in O. abdominalis , except for the sometimes darker coloration of the pronotum, distinguished only by the primary sexual characters:

3: median lobe of aedeagus stout and rather short, 0.45-0.50 mm long, shaped as in Figs 11-12 ; paramere as in O. abdominalis , with long and slender apical lobe.

♀: spermatheca as in Figs 18-19 ; distal portion of capsule with smaller cuticular invagination, proximal portion stouter and shorter than in O. abdominalis .

C o m p a r a t i v e n o t e s: Oxypoda kirghisica is reliably distinguished from O. abdominalis and allied species only based on the primary sexual characters. For illustrations of the primary sexual characters of O. abdominalis see Figs 10 , 17, 24 . Oxypoda robustior , whose internal structures of the aedeagus are of rather similar morphology, is of darker coloration, has a larger and more robust body, longer antennae, a distinctly larger aedeagus, and a larger and differently shaped spermatheca ( Figs 13-14 , 20 ). The aedeagus of O. kirghisica is also similar to that of O. aulica , the only other Sphenoma species reported from Middle Asia, but the proximal portion of the spermathecal capsule is distinctly shorter in the former than in the latter. For illustrations of O. aulica see PACE (1984).

E t y m o l o g y: The name (adjective) is derived from the ancient name of the region where the species was discovered.

D i s t r i b u t i o n a n d b i o n o m i c s: Oxypoda kirghisica is known only from two localities in Naryn province, central Kyrgyzstan. The type specimens were collected by sifting at altitudes of 2350 and 3250 m.

Figures

Figs 1-9: Oxypoda robustior nov.sp. (1-4), O. kirghisica nov.sp. (5-6), and O. barbarica nov.sp. (7-9): (1, 5, 7) habitus; (2, 6, 8) forebody; (3, 9) antenna; (4) abdomen. Scale bars: 1-2, 4-8: 1.0 mm; 3, 9: 0.5 mm.

Figs 10-16: Oxypoda abdominalis (MANNERHEIM) (10), O. kirghisica nov.sp. (11-12), O. robustior nov.sp. (13-14), and O. barbarica nov.sp. (15-16): (10-11, 13, 15-16) median lobe of aedeagus in lateral view; (12, 14) ventral process of median lobe in ventral view. Scale bar: 0.2 mm.

Figs 17-25: Oxypoda abdominalis (MANNERHEIM) (17, 24), O. kirghisica nov.sp. (18-19), O. robustior nov.sp. (20), and O. barbarica nov.sp. (21-23, 25; 21-22: Morocco; 23: S-Spain): (17-23) spermatheca; (24-25) ventral process of median lobe of aedeagus in ventral view. Scale bar: 0.2 mm.