Cladoconnus Reitter

Hlaváč, Peter & Stevanović, Miroslav, 2013, A review of the subgenus Cladoconnus Reitter of the genus Euconnus Thomson (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Scydmaeninae) from the Balkan Peninsula, Turkey and Caucasus, Zootaxa 3646 (4), pp. 401-425 : 403-405

subgenus Cladoconnus Reitter

Cladoconnus Reitter, 1909: 226 , as subgenus of Euconnus Thomson. Type species: Scydmaenus motschulskii Motschulsky, 1837 (subsequent designation by Franz, 1998: 145).

Euconnus (Cladoconnus) Reitter : Franz, 1971b: 300 (diagnosis, key to central European species); Karaman, 1974: 134 (diagnosis).

Diagnosis. Relatively large species, differing from all other representatives of Euconnus in the following combination of characters: tempora strongly convergent posteriorly or posterior margin of head oval; vertex slightly, evenly rounded and weakly convex in ventral view; vertex and at least antero-lateral parts of pronotum with dense and long bristles; antennal club 4-segmented with strongly modified antennomeres VIII and IX in males; pronotum with one pair of antebasal foveae and short, longitudinal, median carina; elytra with well-defined humeri and each with two basal foveae; sutural stria of various length present in basal part of elytra, from very short to reaching up to basal third of elytral length; metacoxae widely separated by wide, inwards curved metaventral process.

Redescription (based on male of C. motschulskii ): Body ( Fig. 1 ) shiny, from light reddish-brown to dark brownish-black, stout, strongly convex, with well-defined humeri, lenght 1.40–2.20 mm. Head capsule divided by occipital constriction into large anterior and smaller posterior (neck region) part, posterior part retracted into pronotum, anterior part about as long as wide or slightly wider, posterior margin oval or with tempora strongly convergent posteriorly, each temple with dense bunch of posteriorly directed setae, eyes large, prominent, anterior margin of frons subtriangular, antennal tubercles each other distant and each other separated in middle by shallow, wide impression, occipital region broad and widened posteriorly. Dorsum of head convex. Labrum ( Fig. 2 ) slightly narrowed anteriorly, transverse, anterior half with setae. Mandibles ( Fig. 3 ) symmetrical, wide at base, apex recurved, pointed, lacking teeth, prostheca with short setae. Maxillae ( Fig. 4 ) with triangular stipes bearing long seta, elongate palpifer, galea longer than lacinia, apex with dense setae, not reaching apex of palpomere II, maxillary palpi long, palpomere I short and curved, II pedunculate, with four setae in apical half, palpomere III pedunculate, at apex about twice as wide as palpomere II, with dense pubescence, terminal palpomere conical, pointed.

Antennae relatively long and slender, thickening towards apices, when bent backwards always exceeding base of elytra, scape and pedicel elongate, subequal in length, all antennomeres covered with setae, antenomeres III–VII similar in shape and size, each clearly shorter than pedicel and scape, antennal club 4-segmented, with strongly modified antennomeres VIII and IX, which are flattened dorso-ventrally and have microserrate internal edge, antennomere X shorter than XI which is pointed apically.

Prothorax strongly convex, with lateral carinae and short median carina between two antebasal foveae. Pronotum longer than wide, subconical, slightly narrowing anterad, with dense lateral bunches of long, abristle setae.

Metaventrite very long, clearly longer than mesoventrite, with sparse pubescence, mesocoxae separated by narrow median keel, mesanepisternum with dense bunch of setae, metacoxae widely separated by wide, curved metaventral process.

Elytra relatively long, finelly pubescent and punctured, strongly convex laterally, each elytron with two basal foveae, humeri well-defined, sutural stria of various length present in basal part of each elytron, from very short to reaching up to basal third of elytral length, apices of elytra rounded.

Legs long and slender; pro- and mesotrochanters large, almost oval, metatrochanters small, elongated, femora pedunculate, clavate distally, tibiae slender, stick-like, with dense setae at apex, terminal tarsomeres slightly longer than two previous combined but shorter than three previous combined.

Aedeagus elongated, with large basal bulb, apical lobe of various shape, internal structure with distinctly marked armature; parameres with one to three subequal apical setae.

Abdomen fully covered by elytra, sternites IV–VI equal in length, VII slightly longer, VIII slightly longer than VII.

Sexual dimorphism. Females very similar to males but with simple antennal club, with unmodified antennomeres VIII–IX.

Biology. Species of Cladoconnus are usually collected by sifting of leaf litter or moss in forested areas. Distribution. Cladoconnus was recorded from a major part of the Palaearctic region. It is known from the Iberian Peninsula, Italy, France, Switzerland, Germany, central and northern Europe ( Sweden, Latvia), Balkan Peninsula (so far not recorded from Bulgaria), Turkey and Caucasus, with two East Palaearctic species, E. ussuriensis Kurbatov, 1988 from the Russian Far East (Southern Primorsky Kray) and E. matsuae Hoshina, 2004 from Japan (Honshu).

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 6. Euconnus motschulskii. 1, male, dorsal habitus (scale: 1 mm); 2, labrum (scale: 0.2 mm); 3, right madible (scale: 0.2 mm); 4, maxilla (scale: 0.2 mm); 5, antennae of male (scale: 0.2 mm); 6, aedeagus, dorsal aspect (scale: 0.2 mm).