Anthaxia (Melanthaxia) lencinai, Arnáiz-Ruiz, Lucía & Bercedo-Páramo, Pablo, 2003

Arnáiz-Ruiz, Lucía & Bercedo-Páramo, Pablo, 2003, Two new species of Anthaxia Eschscholtz, 1829 from Spain (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), Zootaxa 267, pp. 1-7 : 4-6

Anthaxia (Melanthaxia) lencinai sp. n.

Description of the holotype

Length 3,8 mm.; moderately convex, elongate, parallel­sided; entire body with shining black coloration. Head: frons, in dorsal view, slightly convex, somewhat depressed in the middle; clypeus slender, medially emarginate; clypeus­frontal suture concave; vertex wide, approximately 2,0 times as wide as width of one eye; internal margins of eyes slightly converging dorsally; head sculpture consisting of irregular polygonal cells with very fine central grains; frons with very short, sparse white pubescence, clypeus and clypeus­frontal suture with semierect, sparse white setae of variable length; antenna expanded from antennomere 4. Pronotum: convex, transverse, 1,6 times as wide as long; maximum width at anterior third; anterior margin feebly bisinuate, arcuately projecting, posterior margin slightly bisinuate; lateral carina only defined at basal third; two irregular, shallow, central depressions; posterior half with distinct longitudinal median groove; lateral margins almost regularly rounded in the anterior third then regularly narrowed to obtuse posterior angles; pronotal sculpture consisting of irregular, well­defined polygonal cells with poorly developed central grains; entire pronotum with very short, barely visible, white pubescence. Scutellum: subtriangular, slightly wider than longer, fine and densely microsculptured. Elytra: convex; 1,6 times as long as wide at humeri, there as wide as maximum width of pronotum; humeral swellings and basal depressions well­marked; elytra surface irregular, microsculptured with homogenous grainy sculpture and very short white, barely visible pubescence; elytral apices feebly serrate and separately rounded; epipleuron extending to sutural apex. Whole ventral surface of body microsculptured, with short whitish, regularly distributed recumbent pubescence; sculpture of prosternal process distinctly more rugose than that on abdomen; meso­ and metatrochanters rounded; metasternum with two grooves, one longitudinal, median groove and the other transverse, semicircular groove; apical portion of ventrite 5 concave with incurved and feeble serrate margins, apex regularly rounded, depressed. Apex of metatibia unarmed. Aedeagus as in Figure 4 .

Variation

This is a variable species as are most of its allies. Length: 3,7-4,2 mm.; some specimens with irregular pronotal sides, subquadrangular, slightly marginated before posterior angles; posterior half of pronotum with deep groove, very well marked (usually in females); median pronotal depressions irregularly marked, varies from shallow to deep.

Type specimens

Type locality: Spain, Cuenca province, Puerto de Cabrejas, altitude 1150 m., N 40º 0 6’ W 2º30’, UTM 10x10 Km. 30TWK43.

The male holotype of A. lencinai ( MNCN, catalogue number 9194) bears the following labels and data: [white label]: Aedeagus mounted / [white label]: Pto. de Cabrejas (CU), 13-VII-1996, Lucía Arnáiz leg. / [printed red label]: HOLOTYPUS / Anthaxia (Melanthaxia) lencinai L. Arnáiz & P. Bercedo des. 2003.

Paratypes: 1 male, La Sagra, Granada, 1500 m., VII-1949, Anthaxia (Melanthaxia) cum godeti, S. Bílý det. 0 3, Cobos coll. ( MNCN); 8 ex. (males and females), Moratalla, Sierra de Villafuerte, Murcia, 1650 m., 18-VII-2002, J. L. Lencina leg.; 1 male, Moratalla, Sierra de Taibilla, Murcia, 1800 m., 25-VII-2002, Lencina & Muñoz leg.; 1 male, Moratalla, Puerto Alto Revolcadores, Murcia, 1500 m., 24-VI-2002, J. L. Lencina leg.; 1 ex., Paterna del Madera, Río de los Endrinales, Albacete, 1100 m., 7­VII­2002, Lencina & Ortuño leg.; 3 males, Huéscar, Barranco de los Pastores, Sierra Guillimona, Granada, 1400 m., 4­VIII­1986, J. L. Lencina leg.; 5 ex., Puerto de Cabrejas, Cuenca, 1150 m., 8­VII­ 1995 & 13­VII­1996, Lucía Arnáiz leg.

All of these specimens (most of them a little deteriorated, tarsomeres and antennae lost) are provided with a printed red label bearing following data: PARATYPUS / Anthaxia (Melanthaxia) lencinai L. Arnáiz & P. Bercedo des. 2003. The paratypes are deposited in the following collections: 4 specimens in collection of MNCN (type’s catalogue number 9194), 2 specimens in collection of S. Bílý ( NMPC), 4 specimens in collection of J. L. Lencina (Jumilla, Murcia, Spain), 2 specimens in collection of C. L. Bellamy ( CLBC, Sacramento, California, USA) and the remainder of the specimens in collection of P. Bercedo­ L. Arnáiz (Vegas del Condado, León, Spain).

Differential diagnosis

Anthaxia (Melanthaxia) lencinai sp. n. ( Fig. 3 [Habitus], Fig. 4 [Aedeagus]) is very closely related to A. godeti from which it can be distinguished by characters given in the table.

Character A. (M.) godeti Gory & Laporte A. (M.) lencinai sp. n.

Antennae Widely expanded from antennomere 4 Less expanded Etymology

This species is named after our friend and enthusiastic entomologist José Luis Lencina Gutiérrez who collected most of the type material.

Figures

FIGURES 3 - 4. Anthaxia (Melanthaxia) lencinai sp. n. 3. Habitus; scale bar = 1, 0 mm. 4. Aedeagus; scale bar = 1, 0 mm.