Mordellokoiles grandii Franciscolo, 1942

Ruzzier, Enrico & Di Giulio, Andrea, 2024, Taxonomic considerations of selected Western Palaearctic Mordellidae Latreille, 1802 (Coleoptera, Tenebrionoidea), ZooKeys 1207, pp. 151-165 : 151-165

Mordellokoiles grandii Franciscolo, 1942 stat. nov.

Mordellistena (Mordellokoiles) grandii Franciscolo, 1942: 134; Ruzzier 2013: 111.

Mordellokoiles grandii : Franciscolo 1995: 11.

Mordellistena (Mordellokoides) [sic!] grandii: Horák 2008: 96 (incorrect subsequent spelling); Horák 2020: 91 (incorrect subsequent spelling).

Material.

Holotype (female, not male as stated in the original description) and two paratypes (both females) labeled “ Calabria, V. del Crati, Leoni ” ( MSNG) ( Fig. 5 A ).

Conservation state: the holotype and one paratype are moderately damaged, missing antennomeres, tarsi, and some legs (including posteriors).

Redescription.

Measurements. Holotype. HL: 1.2 mm; HW: 1.4 mm; PL: 1.5 mm; PW 1.9 mm; EL: 4.6 mm; EW: 1.9 mm; PygL 1.1 mm; HpygL 0.5 mm; TL: 8.4 mm.

Color. Integument reddish brown to brown; head and ventrites darker ( Fig. 5 B, C ). Mouthparts and the first four basal antennomeres reddish brown; antennomeres from the fifth onwards dark brown (visible only in one paratype). Pronotum presenting a faint longitudinal patch of black, thin setae along the midline; elytra pale reddish brown on their basal half but dark brown on the apical half; dark part of the elytra covered with dark setae.

Head. Head moderately transverse in dorsal view (1.2 × wider than long), sub-hemispheric but slightly flattened in lateral view ( Fig. 5 B ), with the highest point just behind the middle of the frons; occipital margin almost straight in dorsal view ( Fig. 5 C ); integument smooth and densely covered with setigerous punctures. Eyes small, setose, and finely facetted, broadly ellipsoidal in lateral view, reaching anteriorly the antennal insertion but not reaching posteriorly the occiput. Anterior margin of the epistoma straight; labrum transverse, gently bisinuate on the anterior margin, setose. Maxillary palpus of the Mordellistena - type (sensu Franciscolo 1957) ( Fig. 5 D ); first maxillary palpomere flattened, conical and oblong, about 3.8 × its maximum width; second maxillary palpomere short, subcylindrical, 1.8 × longer than its maximum width; apical (third) maxillary palpomere scalene triangular and oblong, 2.7 × longer than its maximum width, outer margin of the segment (the longest) straight.

Antennae filiform (missing in the holotype and one paratype); antennomeres 1–4 cylindrical, with 1 and 2 slightly longer and thicker than 3 and 4; antennomeres 5–10 expanded and only slightly serrated, elongated, 1.7–1.9 × longer than wide; apical antennomere asymmetrically ellipsoid, slightly impressed on its inner apical side, 1.9 × longer than wide (visible only in one paratype).

Prothorax. Pronotum trapezoidal in dorsal view, 1.3 × wider than long, widest on its basal third, slightly convex in lateral view, the convexity increases towards the posterior third of the pronotum; pronotal disc smooth but densely covered with impressed setigerous punctures bearing recumbent and posteriorly oriented setae, punctures larger than those on head. Anterior margin not visible from above since the anterior angles curve downward; in dorsal view, lateral margins of the pronotum roundly and gently converge to the neck. Posterior margin of the pronotum irregular, with the central lobe protruding posteriad. Anterior and posterior angles of the pronotum obtuse in lateral view; lateral margins of pronotum straight in lateral view.

Pterothorax. Scutellum triangular, finely punctured, and covered with dense, thin setae.

Elytra 2.4 × longer than wide, parallel in dorsal view ( Fig. 5 C ); external margins markedly curving from the 2 / 3 of the elytral length towards the apices; elytra apices feebly rounded, almost converging at the suture. Elytra strongly and densely punctate; each puncture bears a spiniform seta, especially on the elytral disc.

Hind wing (paratype) of the Mordellistena - type (see Fedorenko 2009) ( Fig. 6 ).

Metepisterna of the Mordellistena - type (sensu Franciscolo 1957), trapezoidal, 2.1 × longer than its maximum width; sutures between Metepisterna and metaventrite marked and straight. Coxae (coxal plates) semicircular, and almost as long as wide. Metepisterna, metaventrite, and coxae on their half, densely covered with setigerous punctures like those on pronotum and elytra.

Mesofemora laterally compressed; mesotibia cylindrical and only feebly curved in dorso-lateral view; mesotarsus 1.1 × as long as mesotibia. Metafemora straight, laterally compressed; metatibiae conical, transversely truncate at apex; subapical comb present, short and not running parallel to the apical margin of the tibia; dorso-lateral side of metatibia bearing two strongly oblique combs with the proximal longer than the distal. Metatarsomere 1 bearing three oblique, parallel combs, metatarsomere 2 with two, metatarsomere 3 with one comb, and metatarsomere 4 devoid of any. Metatibial spurs asymmetrical with the inner 2.6 × as long as the outer.

Abdomen. Abdomen conical, tapered in both lateral and dorsal view; abdominal ventrite 1 almost of the same length as ventrite 2 and 3, ventrite 4 is the shortest. Pygidium conical in dorsal view, 1.8 × longer than wide at the base; in lateral view the pygidium is conical, slightly bending downward towards the base, 2.2 × as long as hypopygidium.

Comments.

Mordellokoiles grandii represents another case of a species described as native to Italy by Franciscolo but never found again since its description. Examination of the type material suggests that this taxon does not belong to the Western Palaearctic fauna and especially poses serious difficulties in framing Mordellokoiles with respect to the other genera of Mordellistenini .

As with Mordella quomoi , the description of the new taxon is rather synthetic, not accompanied by adequate iconography, the sex of the holotype is clearly mistaken (male instead of female), and the establishment of the subgenus Mordellokoiles is based on a sole antennal character of rather dubious validity (shape of the last antennomere). Because M. grandii possesses the penultimate tarsomere of the anterior and middle tarsi dilated, it cannot be considered in any way as a subgenus of Mordellistena Costa, 1854, a genus that possesses cylindrical and apically truncated pro- and mesotarsomeres. Furthermore, this taxon cannot be assigned to any of the Western Palaearctic Mordellistenini with a similar tarsal character, such as Tolida Mulsant, 1856 , Dellamora Normand, 1916 , or Pseudodellamora Ermisch, 1942 , because it differs from these in its general aspect and other characters. However, Mordellokoiles is rather similar to some Oriental and Eastern Palaearctic genera, such as Falsomordellistena Ermisch, 1941 , Glipostenoda Ermisch, 1950 or Pulchrimorda Ermisch, 1968 . However, it cannot be treated as a synonym of any of these because characters required to identify and separate the genera are almost exclusively sexually dimorphic, and it is the male that usually possess the most informative traits. Consequently, any placements of Mordellokoiles in any of the already existing genera could be incorrect, as this taxon establishment was based exclusively on females; therefore, we consider it appropriate to elevate Mordellokoiles to a genus rank, pending future reassignment if the male is discovered.

Figures

Figure 5. Mordellokoiles grandii Franciscolo, 1942, holotype A original labels B dorsal habitus C lateral left view D left maxillary palpus. Scale bar: 2.0 mm.

Figure 6. Mordellokoiles grandii Franciscolo, 1942., paratype, right wing, in ventral view.