Tychus albanicus, Sabella, Giorgio & Šíma, Adam, 2016

Sabella, Giorgio & Šíma, Adam, 2016, Study on Tychini of Balkan Peninsula (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae, Pselaphinae), Zootaxa 4200 (4), pp. 591-599 : 591-593

Tychus albanicus sp. n.

( Figs 1–9 )

Type material. Holotype, ♂. SOUTHERN ALBANIA. Butrint village , Roman City, Butrint forest, 39°44’45.12’’N 20°1’22.25’’E, 10.V.2013 (A. Šíma) ( NMPC) . Paratypes, same data of holotype, 1 ♀ ( NMPC) ; same data of holotype, 1 ♂ and 6 ♀♀ ( ASCP) .

Description: Body ( Fig. 1 ) length 1.5 mm, head, pronotum and abdomen dark brown, elytra red darkened at the base and at the apex, antennae and legs yellowish and yellow palpi. Relatively dense pubescence of long and flattened golden setae on head pronotum, elytra and abdomen; other setae shorter, yellowish and suberect on antennae, palpi and legs. Tuft of dense setae present behind temples. Tegument smooth and shiny; only elytra with some punctures.

Head ( Fig. 2 ) widest at eyes and narrowest posteriorly to antennal tubercles, as wide than long (0.24 mm). Antennal tubercles 0.13–0.14 mm wide and 0.05–0.06 mm long, separated by a median longitudinal sulcus. Vertex separated from frontal rostrum by slightly transverse depression. Pair of small dorsal vertexal foveae between and close to the eyes, the latter prominent with 20–25 facets. Sometimes small tooth in front to each vertexal fovea. Tempora rounded. Last segment of maxillary palpi ( Fig. 3 ) 0.15 mm long and 0.075 mm wide, with very slightly rounded lateral margin.

Pronotum wider than head, barely wider (0.34 mm) than long (0.33 mm), widest anteriorly the middle. It is more clearly tapered and rounded anteriorly than posteriorly with seven small basal pits, median pit larger than lateral ones. Its lateral antebasal foveae large and very impressed.

Elytra wider (0.69 mm) than long (0.53 mm) and longer than pronotum, with protruding humeri. Two basal foveae on each elytron; sutural fovea associated with a shallow sutural stria that extends to elytral apex, while discal fovea extended posteriorly in discal stria reaching about half of elytral length.

Abdomen with 1st tergite 0.19 mm long with discal carinae short and weakly defined, surface between discal carinae with pubescent basal impression occuping 1/4 of tergite width. 1st tergite with pair of basolateral foveae, 1st abdominal paratergite with pair of antebasal impressions, 2nd abdominal tergite with pair of antebasal foveae. All abdominal ventrites not modified in both sexes.

Male. Antennae ( Fig. 4 ) 0.81–0.82 mm long, club 0.31–0.32 mm long; scape distinctly longer than wide; antennomeres II and III longer than wide, this latter slightly narrowed at base, IV wider than long, V distinctly bigger than the other of the funiculus, as long as wide, with its medial margin enlarged, VI-VIII wider than long, VII longer than VI and VIII, antennal club with three antennomeres broaden progressively from IX to XI, antennomeres IX and X transverse, the latter wider than IX, terminal antennomere longer than wide and longer than combined length of antennomeres IX and X. Metasternum with a median impression that to its posterior margin extending over 1/2 of its length, posterior margin of mesotrochanters extend into a long and sharp median spine, lateral margin of metathrochanters prolonged into a small median spine, femora and tibiae of all legs slightly thickened, mesotibiae with a small subapical spur, metatibiae with a small apical spur. Aedeagus ( Figs 6–8 ) 0.375 mm long. The ventral portion of median lobe relatively long, sinuate and canaliculate bearing in the middle a short ventral spine directed laterally. Its lateral margin in the middle with a big and recurved spine with apex medially directed. Dorsal apophysis of median lobe slightly shorter than ventral portion, larger at base and gradually narrowed towards the apex, the latter ending with a spine directed medially and upward.

Female. Antennae ( Fig. 5 ) similar but shorter than male, 0.74–0.75 mm long, club 0.30 mm long, with thiner antennomeres, V antennomere bigger than other of funicle, but no so large than male, metasternum without median impression, mesotrochanters and mesotibiae unarmed, genital plate as in Fig. 9 .

Comparative notes. Tychus albanicus sp. n. belongs to Tychus monilicornis group ( Sabella & Poggi, 1986), on the base of the following features: narrow frontal lobe, antennae with stout funicular antennomeres with rounded sides, eyes well developed and longer than tempora, metasternum with a median impression, male with mesotrochanters armed with a median spine, mesotibiae with a small subapical spur, and ventral portion of median lobe of aedeagus bearing two spines, one ventral and one lateral.

The discovery of T. albanicus sp. n., that is very similar to T. sbordonii , convinced us to tranfer the latter from dalmatinus group (Sabella et alii, 1998) to monilicornis group, mostly because the dorsal apophysis of median lobe of aedeagus of T. sbordonii bears two spines (only one spine in all other species of dalmatinus group). Tychus sbordonii is known only for a male from Latium (Mounts of Velino, Rascino Lake, Rieti province).

The male of T. albanicus sp. n. is very similar to that of T. sbordonii regarding antennal and aedeagal morphology. The males of the two species differ in external morphology by antennomere III longer than wide in T. albanicus (wider than long in T. sbordonii ), medial margin of antennomere V less enlarged in T. albanicus , abdominal ventrites not modified in T. albanicus (first and second abdominal ventrites modified in T. sbordonii ). Also the features of aedeagus show the differences. The ventral spines of ventral portion of median lobe of T. sbordonii is distinctly shorter than that of T. albanicus , and the apex of dorsal apophysis of median lobe is different.

These two species are easily distinguishable from those of the dalmatinus group by the V antennomere bigger (and enlarged in males) than other funicular antennomeres.

Ecological notes. All the specimens of the new species were collected by sifting of leaf litter and rotten twigs covering soggy mud of drying periodical sweet water pool hidden in deciduous forest composed of oaks, ahs and laurel trees (fig. 10).

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 5. Tychus albanicus sp. n. Scale bar: 0, 1 mm. 1 — Habitus of male holotype. 2 — Head, schematic drawing. 3 — Left maxillary palpus (holotype). 4 — Right antenna of male (holotype). 5 — Right antenna of female (paratype).

FIGURES 6 – 9. Tychus albanicus sp. n. Scale bar: 0, 1 mm. 6 — Aedeagus of male holotype, ventral view. 7 — Aedeagus of male paratype, ventral view. 8 — Aedeagus of male holotype, lateral view. 9 — Dorsal plate of female (paratype).