Mordellistena algeriensis Ermisch, 1966

Selnekovič, Dávid & Kodada, Ján, 2022, First record of Mordellistena algeriensis Ermisch, 1966 in Italy (Coleoptera: Mordellidae), Fragmenta entomologica 54 (1), pp. 151-154 : 152-153

Mordellistena algeriensis Ermisch, 1966

Mordellistena algeriensis Ermisch, 1966b: 40–42 (original description; type locality: Sidi Ferruch, Algeria)— Batten 1980: 43–44 (localities, figures)— Horák 2008: 96 (catalogue)— Horák 2020: 92 (catalogue).

Type material examined. Holotype: Algeria, Algérois , Sidi Ferruch, 6 Jun 1954, G. Fagel leg., 1 ♂, SNSD. Photograph of the holotype is available at Zenodo (https://doi. org/10.5281/zenodo.5838168); male genitalia are present- ed in Fig. 2 a .

New records. Italy: Sardinia, Castiadas, Monte Turno env., 39.206812N, 9.562685E, 7 m, 1 Jul 2021, on Daucus carota L. flowers, D. Selnekovič leg., 2 ♂♂, DSBS .

Two adult specimens were swept from the Daucus carota inflorescences in the secondary grassland habitat on sandy soil near the coast around 5 p. m. ( Fig. 3 ). During the same collecting event, five specimens of Mediimorda bipunctata (Germar, 1827) , three specimens of Mordellistena purpurascens Costa, 1854 , twelve specimens of M. confinis Costa, 1854 , and six specimens of M. minima Costa, 1854 were also sampled.

Differential diagnosis. Mordellistena algeriensis may be assigned to the M. gemellata species group (sensu Ermisch 1956) based on the following morphological characters: first four antennomeres are slenderer than the following segments; hind tibia bear one apical ridge and two short lateral ridges that are nearly perpendicular to the dorsal tibial margin. Within the M. gemellata species group, M. algeriensis is further characterised by yellowish vestiture on the dorsal surfaces, black apical spines on the hind tibia, large body dimensions (BL: 3.8–4.16 mm), relatively long and narrow elytra, with elytral length / width ratio 2.26–2.30, male protibia expanded basally, with a cluster of long setae, and characteristically shaped parameres with long dorsal and ventral processes ( Fig. 2 ). The parameres are also conspicuously large in proportions to the body dimensions (RPrL: 0.38–0.41, LPrL: 0.43–0.49).

The most closely resembling species with similar body dimensions are Mordellistena peloponnesensis Batten, 1980 , M. pyrenaea Ermisch, 1966 , and M. gemellata Schilsky, 1899 . They may be differentiated from M. algeriensis by differently shaped parameres ( Fig. 2 ; for M. peloponnesensis see Batten 1980; for M. pyrenaea see Ermisch 1966a; for M. gemellata see Ermisch 1963). In addition to the different shape, the parameres of the former three species are significantly smaller in proportion to body dimensions than in M. algeriensis — M. algeriensis EL / RPrL ratio: 5.89–6.42, EL / LPrL ratio: 5.21–5.54; M. pyrenaea EL / RPrL ratio: 6.78, EL / LPrL ratio: 6.42; M. gemellata EL / RPrL ratio: 8.41, EL / LPrL ratio: 7.53; M. peloponnesensis EL /RPrL ratio: 7.81, EL/LPrL ratio: 6.54.

Mordellistena aureotomentosa Ermisch, 1966 described from Morocco, differs from M. algeriensis by smaller body dimensions (BL less than 3.95 mm), conspicuously light yellowish and dense pubescence on the pronotum and elytra, and smaller, differently shaped parameres ( Ermisch 1966b).

Mordellistena maroccana Ermisch, 1966 distributed in Morocco and Tunisia, differs from M. algeriensis in the distinctly shorter and broader elytra—the elytral length / width ratio in M. maroccana is 2.0, while in M. algeriensis it is 2.26–2.30.

Distribution. Mordellistena algeriensis was described on the basis of a single specimen from Sidi Ferruch, Algeria ( Ermisch 1966b). Later Batten (1980) reported two other localities from the same country— Bouira and Ain Zaatout. Finally, Horák (2008; personal communication) reported the species from Sousse and Monastir in Tunisia. Our recent finding of M. algeriensis from Sardinia represents the first record from Italy and Europe ( Ruzzier 2013) and is the northernmost record of the species.

Acknowledgements – The authors thank Olaf Jäger ( Senckenberg Naturhistorische Sammlungen , Dresden , Germany) and Bernd Jaeger ( Museum für Naturkunde , Berlin, Germany) for allowing to study the type material under their care. We thank Michal Šagát for the language corrections and great help during the acquisition of the material. We thank Jan Horák, who kindly provided us with details on Mordellistena algeriensis distribution. The present study was partially supported by the Slovak Research and Development Agency under project no. APVV-19-0076 .

Figures

Fig. 2 – Mordellistena algeriensis Ermisch, 1966, male terminalia:a, parameres,holotype;b, parameres, male from Sardinia;c, sternite VIII, male from Sardinia.

Fig. 3 – Habitat of Mordellistena algeriensis Ermisch, 1966 in Sardinia, Castiadas, Monte Turno env., 39.206812N, 9.562685E.