Scaphisoma elpis, Ivan Löbl & Ryo Ogawa, 2016

Ivan Löbl & Ryo Ogawa, 2016, On the Scaphisomatini (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae, Scaphidiinae) of the Philippines, IV: the genera Sapitia ACHARD and Scaphisoma LEACH, Linzer biologische Beiträge 48 (2), pp. 1339-1492 : 1384-1385

5.2.9.1. Scaphisoma elpis nov.sp. ( Figs 114 , 115 )

T y p e m a t e r i a l: Holotype 6: Philippines, Palawan central Sabang 50-100m, degraded rainforest on slope 30. XI. 1995, Kodada lgt. (MHNG).

D e s c r i p t i o n: Length 1.28 mm, width 0.94 mm. Head, body, femora and tibiae almost uniformly light brown, elytra near apices, apical abdominal segments tarsi and antennae lighter than remainder of body. Pronotum and elytra not microsculptured and not iridescent. Length/width ratio of antennomeres as: III 10/7: IV 11/6: V 20/6: VI 35/9: VII 40/14: VIII 32/12: IX 40/15: X 35/15: XI 40/14. Pronotum very finely and densely punctate, punctures at 50 times magnification hardly visible, lateral margins evenly rounded, lateral margin carinae not visible in dorsal view, lateral striae impunctate. Exposed tip of scutellum minute. Elytra convex, with lateral margin carinae concealed in dorsal view, apical margins rounded, inner apical angles not prominent, situated in level with outer angles; sutural margin not raised, sutural striae fairly deep, bent at base and extended along pronotal lobe almost to basal mid-width, slightly converging apically, impunctate; adsutural areas narrow, flat, with hardly visible punctures, lateral striae impunctate. Elytral disc with punctation very fine, punctures larger than those on pronotum, poorly delimited, visible at 30 times magnification. Hind wings fully developed. Hypomera and mesanepisterna smooth. Mesepimera about as halves of intervals to mesocoxae, about four times as long as wide. Metaventrite not microsculptured; mesal area weakly convex, with fairly dense, very fine punctation, lacking impressions or stria; lateral areas sparsely and very finely punctate; antecoxal puncture rows absent. Submesocoxal areas 0.02 mm, about as seventh of intervals to metacoxae, submesocoxal lines convex, finely punctate, punctures not extended by striae. Metanepisternum flat, strongly narrowed anteriad, inner margin rounded, suture fairly deep. Tibiae straight. Abdomen not microsculptured and very finely and sparsely punctate; submetacoxal areas 0.04 mm, almost as fourth of intervals to apical margin of sternite, submetacoxal lines convex, distinctly punctate.

M a l e: Protarsomeres hardly widened. Aedeagus ( Figs 114 , 115 ) with median lobe strongly asymmetrical, bearing large, sclerotized lamina on left side, apical process situated at right side, inflexed and strongly narrowed apically, tip acute. Articular process prominent. Parameres symmetrical, arcuate, almost evenly wide, not lobed. Internal sac bulbous, with compact spine-like and denticular structures.

E t y m o l o g y: The species epithet is the name of the goddess of hope in Greek mythology.

C o m p a r a t i v e n o t e s: The species possesses a unique shape of aedeagus and it relationships are unknown. It may be readily distinguished from congeners possessing elytra with basal striae by the absence of abdominal microsculpture, in combination with the small body-size and the length rations of the antennomeres III to IV. The weakly sclerotized basal bulb of the aedeagus was damaged by dissection. Therefore, the total length of the aedeagus is unknown.

Figures

Figs 108 - 114: Aedeagi of Scaphisoma; (108, 109), S. subanun nov. sp., in dorsal and lateral views; (110, 111), S. breviatum nov. sp., in dorsal and lateral views; (112, 113), S. opacum nov. sp., in dorsal and lateral views; (114), S. elpis nov. sp., in dorsal view, without contours of proximal part of basal bulb. Scale = 0.1 mm.

Figs 115 - 119: Aedeagi of Scaphisoma; (115), S elpis nov. sp., lateral view, without contours of proximal part of basal bulb, scale = 0.1 mm; (116, 117), S. alticola nov. sp., in dorsal and lateral views, scale 0.2 mm; (118, 119), S. bicuspidatum nov. sp., in dorsal and lateral views, scale 0.2 mm.