Scirtes pseudoveisariensis, Ruta & Kiałka, 2021

Ruta, Rafał & Kiałka, Agata, 2021, The genus Scirtes Illiger of Fiji (Coleoptera: Scirtoidea: Scirtidae), Zootaxa 4926 (4), pp. 501-520 : 514-515

Scirtes pseudoveisariensis sp. nov.

( Figs 1J , 8 C–D)

Type material. Holotype, male ( BPBM): “ FIJI: Viti Levu , Naitasiri Prov., / 4.8km N Veisari, logging rd. to / Waivudawa, [-18.075, 178.362] 300m / 12.XII.2002 – 3.I.2003. Malaise: M01. / E.I. Schlinger. M. Tokotaa. FBA201714”.

Diagnosis. Body elongate, depressed, identification possible only on the basis of male genital features: single process of tegmen hooked at apex, pointed, paired processes of tegmen of equal lengths, penis has a single apical process, which is very short, ca. 0.1× as long as pala.

Description. Holotype, male. Body oblong oval, depressed, shining, covered with brownish setae. Dorsum brown, antennomeres and legs brownish.

Head of moderate size, convex dorsally, shiny, covered with subtle punctures, separated by ca. 2.0 diameters; clypeus moderately long, slightly expanded antero-laterally, gently arcuate in front margin. Eyes moderate in size, prominent; head ca. 1.5× wider than interocular space. Antennae filiform, reaching basal 1/3 of elytra. Pronotum convex in mesal portion of the disc, punctures sparse, stronger than on head, separated by ca. 1.5 diameter; anterolateral angles widely subtriangular; postero-lateral angles right-angled; posterior margin slightly bisinuate. Scutellar shield relatively small, finely punctate, equilateral-triangular. Elytra oblong-oval, sides subparallel, punctation strong, much stronger than on pronotum, punctures separated by ca. 0.5–1.0 diameter; humeri elevated. Hind tibial spurs slightly curved, dorsal one ca. 0.7× length of tarsomere 1, ventral one 0.3× as long as dorsal one.

Sternite VIII missing in the studied specimen. Sternite IX (L 0.18 mm, W 0.18 mm) V-shaped, consisting of paired, elongate, subtriangular hemisternites with sparse setae on apical portions. Tergite VIII (L 0.32 mm, W 0.22 mm) moderately sclerotized, with transversely oval apical plate, bearing a row of setae on apical margin, apodemes as long as apical plate; tergite IX (L 0.25 mm, W 0.20 mm) narrow, apical plate transversely rectangular, no setae on margin, apodemes 2× longer than apical plate. Aedeagus asymmetrical. Tegmen (L 0.57 mm, W 0.14 mm) asymmetrical, Y-shaped, one paramere bifid: one process very narrow and long, curved, second one shorter and wider, hooked at apex; the other paramere not divided, very narrow, long, and curved ( Fig. 8C ). Penis (L 0.63 mm, W 0.18 mm) well sclerotized, pala with subrectangular basal part an long narrowed apical portion, with single, short, hooked process at apex ( Fig. 8D ).

Female. Unknown.

Measurements and ratios. TL 1.97 mm, EL 1.63 mm, PL 0.37 mm, EW 1.23 mm, PW 0.93 mm, TL/EW 1.59, PW/PL 2.55, EL/EW 1.32, EL/PL 4.45, EW/PW 1.32.

Distribution. Recorded only from the type locality on Viti Levu Island ( Fig. 9D ).

Etymology. Name refers to external similarity to Scirtes veisariensis sp. nov.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Scirtes spp., dorsal view of adults. A) S. natovensis Champion; B) S. navaiensis sp. nov., holotype; C) S. schlingeri sp. nov., holotype; D) S. devoensis sp. nov., holotype; E) S. humeralis Pic, male; F) S. humeralis Pic, lectotype, female; G) S. tokotaai sp. nov., paratype; H) S. veitchi Champion, lectotype, male; I) S. abacaensis sp. nov., holotype; J) S. pseudoveisariensis sp. nov., holotype; K) S. veisariensis sp. nov., holotype. Scale bar = 1.0 mm.

FIGURE 8. Scirtes spp., tegmen (A, C, E), penis, dorsal view (B, D, F).A–B) S. abacaensis sp. nov.; C–D) S. pseudoveisarien- sis sp. nov.; E–F) S. veisariensis sp. nov. Scale bar = 0.50 mm.

FIGURE 9. Distribution of Fijian Scirtes spp. A) Scirtes humeralis Pic; B) Scirtes natovensis Champion; C) Scirtes tokotaai sp. nov.; D) remaining species.