Paniestichus subsolianus Will

Will, Kipling W., 2011, Taxonomic review of the Pterostichini and Loxandrini fauna of New Caledonia (Coleoptera, Carabidae), ZooKeys 147, pp. 337-397 : 347

Paniestichus subsolianus Will sp. n.

Type locality.

New Caledonia, Northern Province, Mt. Panié, 1350 m.

Type material.

Holotype, female (EMEC80968), "New Caledonia, North Prov. Mt. Panié, 1350 m. 8-9.11.2001 leg. Balke & Wewalka (NC16), 320DNA M. Balke", returned to ZSM, to be hand carried and integrated into the MNHN collection for deposition by M. Balke. Paratype, male (teneral), same locality data as holotype except 1400m (NC 19), [ZSM] (EMEC80969).

Description.

Size. Overall length (sbl) 14.2-15.2mm, greatest width over elytra 5.2-5.4mm. Color. Dorsal and ventral surfaces black, legs, mouthparts, and antennomeres 1-4 black to piceous, antennomeres 5-11 paler, slightly infuscated. Luster. Dorsal and ventral surfaces moderately shiny. Iridescence. Elytra with distinct spectral iridescence. Ventral surface of body with slight spectral iridescence. Head. Dorsal microsculpture with microlines hardly visible at 50x magnification, sculpticells isodiametric or slightly irregular, forming mesh, clypeal-ocular sulci not impressed, represented as broad shallow depressions, ocular ratio 1.2-1.3, eyes very small, rounded, not prominent, post-ocular orbits relatively very large, including genal region more than 4x size of eye. Labrum anterior margin straight. Antennae: Overall length very long, antennomeres 9-11 reaching beyond base of pronotum, antennomeres very elongate. Thorax. Pronotum elongate cordate, sides shallowly rounded and convergent to near base and then very slightly sinuate and straight to base, marginal bead continuous from apex to base and across entire basal margin, hind angles about right angled, anterior margin very shallowly emarginate, anterior angles scarcely produced, inner basal impressions broad, shallow, not well impressed, slightly divergent, outer impression lacking, seta at hind angle in marginal bead. Dorsal surface moderately shiny, microsculpture not visible at 50x magnification. Elytral striae complete, shallowly impressed except laterally and apically, shallowly crenulate. Elytra moderately shiny, microsculpture not visible at 50x. Metacoxal sulcus straight and ended near lateral end of coxa. Abdomen. Last abdominal ventrite with very narrow, light apical bead.

Etymology.

The specific epithet is a compound word from the Latin sub (below) and solianus (of the sun), alluding to the presumed hypogenous life history of this species.