Synarmostes beankae, Ballerio, 2021

Ballerio, Alberto, 2021, The Ceratocanthinae of Madagascar and Comoro Islands: a revision of the genera Synarmostes and Goudotostes, and of the flightless Philharmostes, with description of 64 new species (Coleoptera: Scarabaeoidea, Hybosoridae), Fragmenta entomologica 53 (2), pp. 105-282 : 124-126

Synarmostes beankae sp. nov.

( Figs 16 e-h, 31 d-f, 35) http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:2FBBC23DB7E3-4BB4-B8F3-1DB846E2E9FE

Type series. Holotype, ♂, deposited in the collection of the California Academy of Sciences , San Francisco, CA, USA, labelled as follows: / CASTYPE 20244 / Madagascar: Majunga Réserve forestière Beanka 52.7 Km E of Maintirano el. 300 m 24-27 Oct. 2009 / 18° 03’ 44” S 044° 31’ 33” E California Acad. of Sciences coll. B. L. Fisher et al. tropical dry forest on tsingy sifted litter BLF22925/ Synarmostes beankae n. sp. det. A. Ballerio 2020 Holotypus ♂ / [distended, glued on card, dissected, male genitalia glued in DMHF resin on a separate card, same pin]. Paratypes: 1 ♂ and 2 ♀♀ (2 in CASC and 1 in ABCB), same collecting data as holotype .

Diagnosis. Synarmostes beankae sp. nov. can be differentiated from all other species of Synarmostes by the following combination of characters: a) small size, b) ventral ocular area small-sized, c) dorsal ocular area present, d) dorsal setation absent (20×), e) flightlessness, f) carinae of elytral apical third regular (without tubercles or other irregularities), g) scutellum with transverse comma-shaped punctation, h) pronotal punctation consisting of transverse comma-shaped punctures, i) pronotum without an anteromedian area smooth or with very sparse punctation, j) head with sparse shallow small simple punctation. Synarmostes beankae sp. nov. belongs to the antsingyi group of species and is very similar to S. antingyi sp. nov. (with which it shares the shape of parameres), from which differs mainly because of the presence of uniform punctation on pronotal disc and to S. monoculus sp. nov., which differs from it because of the smaller elytral punctation and the vestigial dorsal ocular area.

Description. Size: HL = 0.6 mm; HW = 1.2 mm; PL = 1.00 mm; PW = 1.9 mm; EL = 1.9 mm; EW = 1.8 mm. Overall morphology as in generic diagnosis. Small-sized flightless Synarmostes . Body convex. Dark-brown with bronze sheen, shiny, dorsum glabrous (20×), underside, tarsi and antennae reddish-brown, setation yellowish-brown. Head: W/L ratio = 1.40, clypeal apex obtuse, apical projection small but distinctly protruding and sharp; dorsal ocular area small, interocular distance about 30 times the maximum width of dorsal ocular area, inferior ocular area small; head dorsal surface, except from vertex and a small area on clypeal disc, uniformly covered by small impressed comma-shaped punctures mixed to some simple punctures. Fore margin with one or two irregular transverse large comma-shaped punctures. Interpunctural distance of impressed simple punctures irregular: four to six times larger than their width. Vertex smooth with one continuous transverse impressed line. Pronotum: subrectangular (W/L ratio = 1.88), regularly convex, pronotal surface almost uniformly punctured, only sides and base almost impunctate; punctures short transverse comma-shaped, each one bearing a simple puncture internally, curvature centripetally oriented. Interpunctural distance once to three times longer than punctural width. Scutellum : with some transverse comma-shaped punctures. Elytra: longer than wide (W/L ratio = 0.92); subovoidal (dorsal view); inferior sutural stria reaching humeral area although under the form of a very shallow fine line; humeral callus indistinct; elytral surface regularly convex, uniformly covered by sparse punctation. Interpunctural distance once or twice the maximum width of punctures. Punctures comma-shaped, small and transverse, each one having a simple setigerous puncture internally. Elytral distal third with eight raised longitudinal carinae (excluding elytral suture), sometimes having a longitudinal shallow line among them. Wings: flightless (apterous). Male genitalia: aedeagus (L = 0.9 mm) with parameres as in Figs 31 d-e, spiculum gastrale (L = 0.9 mm) as in Fig. 31f .

Etymology. Noun in the genitive case, referring to the type locality.

Distribution and habitat. Known only from the type locality in western Madagascar. The type series was collected by sifting litter (leaf mold, rotten wood) on a Tsingy in tropical dry forest. The vegetation cover of the area is classified as “Dry deciduous forest” ( Goodman et al. 2018), also known as “Western dry forest” ( Moat & Smith 2007). The area falls within the protected area “ Paysage harmonieux protegé de Beanka”.

Synarmostes bekaraokae sp. nov.

( Figs 27 e-f, 31 g-i, 35) http://zoobank.org/ urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:AB5DFAAF-0B45-484F-B3AC-920E8ED1814A

Type series. Holotype, ♂, deposited in the collection of the California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, CA, USA, labelled as follows: / CASTYPE 20246 / CASENT8135203 / Madagascar: Antsiranana, forêt de Bekaraoka 6.8 km 60° ENE Daraina el. 150 m 7 December 2003 / 13° 10 00” S 049° 42’ 36” E California Acad. of Sciences collector: B. L. Fisher, sifted litter (leaf mold, rotten wood) tropical dry forest BLF9872 / Synarmostes bekaraokae n. sp. det. A. Ballerio 2020 Holotypus ♂ / [distended, glued on card, dissected, male genitalia glued in DMHF resin on a separate card, same pin].

Diagnosis. Synarmostes bekaraokae sp. nov. can be differentiated from all other species of Synarmostes by the following combination of characters: a) medium size, b) ventral ocular area large-sized, c) dorsal ocular area present, d) dorsal setation absent (20×), e) wings fully developed, f) pronotum without callosities on disc, g) pronotal punctation on disc consisting of shallow transverse comma-shaped punctures, h) elytral punctation consisting of small shallow transverse horseshoe-shaped punctures, i) carinae of elytral apical third irregular (with some weak irregularities). Synarmostes bekaraokae belongs to the tibialis group of species. It can be easily distinguished from the other species of the group thanks to the combination of pronotal punctation and elytral sculpturing (in particular because of the larger shallow punctation of elytra, whereas all the other volant and large-eyed species of the group have much smaller and deeper elytral punctation).

Description. Size: HL = 1.0 mm; HW = 1.4 mm; PL = 1.1 mm; PW = 1.9 mm; EL = 1.9 mm; EW = 1.8 mm. Overall morphology as in generic diagnosis. Medium-sized volant Synarmostes . Body moderately convex. Black, shiny, dorsum glabrous (20×), underside, tarsi and antennae reddish-brown, setation yellowish. Head: W/L ratio = 1.40; clypeal apex obtuse, apical projection small but protruding and sharp; dorsal ocular area small, interocular distance about 24 times the maximum width of dorsal ocular area, inferior ocular area large, head dorsal surface covered by dense impressed simple punctation, less dense on disc (almost impunctate). Fore margin with some irregular transverse lines. Interpunctural distance of simple impressed punctures irregular: less than or once or twice larger than the punctural diameter. Vertex smooth with one transverse impressed irregular line interrupted in the middle. Pronotum: subrectangular (W/L ratio = 1.87), regularly convex, base and sides with sparse punctation, disc covered by dense short transverse impressed comma-shaped punctures, sides of disc covered by dense impressed small simple punctures. Interpunctural distance shorter than or equal to punctural diameter. Scutellum : base smooth, distal third covered by few small longitudinal comma-shaped punctures. Elytra: longer than wide (W/L ratio = 0.90); subrectangular (dorsal view); inferior sutural stria reaching humeral area although under the form of a shallow fine line; humeral callus absent; elytral surface regularly moderately convex, covered by small dense shallow horseshoe-shaped punctures with opening directed backward becoming larger and shallower on distal third. Interpunctural distance irregular: equal or smaller than punctural diameter. Elytral distal third with at least eight weakly raised longitudinal irregular carinae. Wings: fully developed. Male genitalia: aedeagus (L = 0.9 mm) with parameres as in Figs 31 g-h, spiculum gastrale (L = 0.9 mm) as in Fig. 31 i

Etymology. Noun in the genitive case, referring to the type locality.

Distribution and habitat. Known only from the type locality in northern Madagascar (Bekaraoka forest) less than four kilometres north of Bemarivo river. The type series was collected by sifting leaf litter (leaf mold and rotten wood) in tropical dry forest. The vegetation cover consists of “Dry deciduous forest” ( Goodman et al. 2018) also known as “western dry forest” ( Moat & Smith 2007). The collecting locality falls within the protected area “Paysage harmonieux protegé de Loki Manambato”.

Figures

Fig. 16 – Synarmostes antsingyi (Tsingy de Bemaraha), a, dorsal view of distended specimen; b, ventral view of rolled up specimen; c, dorsal view of rolled up specimen; d, lateral view of rolled up specimen; Synarmostes beankae sp. nov., e, dorsal view of distended holotype; f, ventral view of rolled up paratype; g, dorsal view of rolled up paratype; h, lateral view of rolled up paratype.

Fig. 31 – Aedeagi and spicula gastrales, a–c, Synarmostes antsingyi (Tsingy de Bemaraha); d–f, Synarmostes beankae sp. nov., holotype; g–i, Synarmostes bekaraokae sp. nov., holotype; j–l, Synarmostes caterinae sp. nov., holotype; m–o, Synarmostes monoculus sp. nov., holotype.

Fig. 27 – Synarmostes tibialis (Andasibe, Mitsinjo forest), a, dorsal view of distended specimen; b, ventral view of rolled up specimen; c, dorsal view of rolled up specimen; d, lateral view of rolled up specimen; Synarmostes bekaraokae sp. nov., holotype, e, dorsal view of distended specimen; f, lateral view of distended specimen.