Notaepytus quisqueya Keller and Skelley, 2019

Keller, Oliver & Skelley, Paul E., 2019, A new species of Notaepytus Skelley, 2009 (Coleoptera: Erotylidae: Tritomini) from Dominican amber, Zootaxa 4609 (1), pp. 191-195 : 192-193

Notaepytus quisqueya Keller and Skelley , new species ( Figures 1 a–c)

Diagnosis. Notaepytus quisqueya is readily distinguished from other species in the genus by the circular, black macula on the disc of the pronotum ( Fig. 1a ), the distinctly triangular and flattened antennomere VIII ( Fig. 1b , arrow), and the distinct elytral marks ( Fig. 1c ).

Description. Length: 7.7 mm; width: 2.6 mm.

Body elongate, somewhat flattened; surface weakly microreticulate, glossy or satiny. Color black except as noted: femora and base of tibiae red-brown; antennomere XI pale; prosternum anteriorly red-brown; pronotum orange except black discal spot; scutellar shield pale orange anteriorly; elytra with three orangish bands, sinuate band at basal third not touching suture, broad anteriorly rounded band at apical quarter that touches suture, and large apical spot; elytral epipleuron reddish beyond basal quarter; abdominal ventrites laterally with large triangular orangish area.

Head interocular width = 1.5 × ocular width; vertex and epistome puncture size = 0.5–1.0 × ocular facet diameter, separated by 2–3 × their diameter, epistome anterior margin truncate [half missing]. Eyes coarsely faceted ( Fig. 1b ). Antennomere III length = 5 × width, antennomere III length slightly less than length of antennomeres IV+V combined; antennomeres IV–VI equal in length, length = 2 × width; antennomeres VII–VIII shorter than VI, with VII weakly triangular, VIII distinctly triangular, flattened; antennomere IX triangular, length = 1.2 × width; antennomere XI circular, slightly elongate. Terminal maxillary palpomere triangular, slightly asymmetrical, 2 × wider than long. Terminal labial palpomere triangular, asymmetrical, width = 2 × length, width equal to terminal maxillary palpomere.

Pronotum transverse; punctures on disc equal to those on head in size and distribution; with small group of indistinct larger punctures at each side of base. Scutellar shield pentagonal, length = 0.5 × width. Elytral striae punctures weak; intervals with fine punctures.

Prosternum slightly convex, length = 2.0 × intercoxal width; sternal punctures fine; sternal lines not continuous around coxal cavity, turning medially in front; base shallowly concave. Mesoventral lines parallel, not continuous around coxal cavity. Metaventrite long, distance between meso- and metacoxae = 1.6 × intermesocoxal width; anterior lines meeting medially; not continuous around mesocoxal cavity, with short coxal line; punctures fine, obscured, widely scattered. Abdomen with coxal lines not meeting medially; line not continuous around metacoxal cavity, with short coxal line; general punctation fine medially, indistinct laterally. Sex unknown.

Distribution. Dominican Republic (Santiago).

Type Material. Holotype reported from Santiago mines of the Dominican Republic, with red label “HOLOTYPE Notaepytus quisqueya Keller and Skelley 2019 ”. Deposited in FSCA.

Etymology. The island of Hispaniola was called Quisqueya by the aboriginal Taíno people. We here apply Quisqueya to this species as a noun in apposition.

Figures

FIGURE 1. 1a) Notaepytus quisqueya sp. nov., habitus drawing adapted from Skelley (2009). 1b) Dorsal image of head and pronotum of Notaepytus quisqueya showing the distinctive circular, black macula on the disc of the pronotum, and the triangular and flattened antennomere VIII (arrow). 1c) Dorso-lateral view of the left elytron of Notaepytus quisqueya showing the distinct elytral marks.