Euconnus oitaensis, Jałoszyński, 2022

Jałoszyński, Paweł, 2022, Taxonomy of ' Euconnus complex'. Part XXIV. Intermediate forms between Psomophus, Eupentarius and Euconnus s. str. in the East Palaearctic fauna unify problematic subgenera (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae, Scydmaeninae), Zootaxa 5194 (3), pp. 343-391 : 372-373

Euconnus oitaensis sp. n.

( Figs 97–101 , 113 )

Type material studied. Holotype ( Japan : Ôita Prefecture): ♂, three labels: “Tsukahara-kōgen / Yufuin-machi / Ôita Pref. ” [white, printed], “[Kyushu, JAPAN] / 25. v. 1997 / Kenshi Otsuka leg.” [white, printed], “ EUCONNUS s. str. / oitaensis m. / P. Jałoszyński, ’22 / HOLOTYPUS ” [red, printed] ( NSMT).

Diagnosis. Antennal club trimerous with antennomere 9 distinctly narrower than 10; males lacking secondary sexual characters; aedeagus conspicuously stout, with emarginate dorsal apical plate and with ventral apical plate as long as broad, broadest at base and strongly narrowing up to middle, then weakly narrowing to form broadly rounded apex.

Description. Body of male ( Fig. 97 ) elongate, strongly convex; pigmentation dark brown, appendages indistinctly lighter except for clearly lighter tarsi and maxillary palps; body covered with setae distinctly lighter than cuticle; BL 1.25 mm.

Head much narrower than pronotum, broadest at eyes, HL 0.30 mm, HW 0.24 mm; tempora in dorsal view about 3 times as long as eyes, behind eyes strongly and evenly convergent posterad, posterior margin of vertex strongly rounded and short, slightly bulging posterodorsad. Frons and vertex with unremarkable, fine punctures, glossy; setae sparse and suberect, tempora and posterior margin of vertex with dense thick bristles. Antennae short and compact, AnL 0.43 mm, scape and pedicel each distinctly elongate, antennomeres 3‒8 each slightly transverse, 9‒11 gradually increasing in width and length, 9 and 10 each strongly transverse, 11 indistinctly longer than 9 and 10 combined, about as long as broad.

Pronotum subconical, broadest distinctly behind middle; PL 0.33 mm, PW 0.30 mm. Base with two pairs of pits, outer pits much smaller than inner pair, but sharply marked, inner pair connected by barely noticeable faint transverse groove. Punctures and setae on disc similar to those on frons and vertex; sides of pronotum with dense thick bristles.

Elytra together oval, broadest distinctly in front of middle; EL 0.63 mm, EW 0.48 mm, EI 1.32; humeral calli small, elongate, each mesally demarcated by short elongate impression; elytral apices separately rounded. Punctures indistinct, superficial and unremarkable; setae sparse and distinctly longer than those on pronotal disc, suberect.

Legs slender, protibiae unmodified, weakly and evenly curved, with mesal margins slightly sinuate.

Aedeagus ( Figs 98–101 ) stout, moderately strongly sclerotized, AeL 0.15 mm; median lobe in ventral view broadest in subapical region, dorsal apical plate in ventral view emarginate at middle, ventral apical plate as long as broad, broadest at base and strongly narrowing up to middle, then weakly narrowing to form broadly rounded apex; endophallic structures symmetrical, partly darkly sclerotized but poorly delimited. Parameres relatively broad and long, almost reaching apex of median lobe, each with 4‒5 short apical and subapical setae, and additionally with 3 tiny setae far from apex, on lateral surface.

Female. Unknown.

Distribution. Japan: Kyūshū: Ōita Prefecture ( Fig. 113 ).

Etymology. Locotypical, after the name of Ōita Prefecture.

Remarks. This species is most similar to E. cryptoiriomotensis ; see Remarks for the latter.

Figures

FIGURE 113. Distribution of Euconnus bibaculatus sp. n., and E. oitaensis sp. n.

FIGURES 97‒101. Euconnus oitaensis sp. n., male. Dorsal habitus (97); aedeagus in ventral (98, 100) and lateral (99, 101) views.