Prothemus laticornis Y. Yang & X. Yang

Yang, Yuxia, Kazantsev, Sergey V. & Yang, Xingke, 2011, Two remarkable new species of Prothemus Champion from China and Thailand, with comments on their systematic status (Coleoptera, Cantharidae), ZooKeys 119, pp. 53-61 : 54-55

Prothemus laticornis Y. Yang & X. Yang sp. n. Figs 1 3-9

Type material.

Holotype male, CHINA: Yunnan, W. Cangshan, 2100m, 3.vi.2008 (IZAS). Paratypes: one male, Yunnan, Cangshan, 21.v.2009, leg. Shoubin Li (HBUM); one female, Yunnan, Yangbi, Xueshanhe, 2000-2800m, 6-8.vi.2004, leg. Song Wang (IZAS); one female, same data as the latter, leg. Xueyan Guo (IZAS); one female, Yunnan, E. slope Cangshan, Mojian, 2.vi.2009, leg. Jianhui Zeng (HBUM)[above transferred from Chinese labels]; two females, Yunnan, Gaoligong Mts., 1500-2500m, 25.22°N, 98.49°E, 17-24.v.1995, leg. V. Kubáň (ICCM).

Distribution.

China (Yunnan).

Diagnosis.

This new species can be easily distinguished from all others of Prothemus by the serrate antennae and elytra with distinct longitudinal costae and longer pubescence.

Description.

Male ( Fig. 1). Black. Pronotum and elytra red; pronotum with a darkened median longitudinal stripe. Body surface densely covered with black pubescence, except on pronotum and elytra with reddish brown pubescence, slightly longer on elytra.

Head surface densely and finely punctate, slightly depressed on vertex; eye slightly protruding, breadth across eyes narrower than maximum width of pronotum; ultimate maxillary palpomere elongate, securiform, widest near base, acute at apex; antenna ( Fig. 3) extending to apical one-third of elytron, antennomere II as long as wide at apex, III–X flattened and subserrate, widened apically, protuberant and rounded at apical inner angles, no more than 1.5 times as long as wide at apices, XI flattened and subparallel-sided, pointed at apex.

Pronotum slightly wider than long, widest near base, anterior and lateral margins rounded, posterior margins nearly straight, all angles rounded, disc distinctly convex, with an obscure median longitudinal groove.

Elytra about 5 times longer than pronotum and 5 times longer than wide at humeri, humeral width distinctly wider than that of posterior margin of pronotum, outer margins distinctly diverging posteriorly and slightly converging at apical one-third, disc surface densely and very finely punctuated, with 3 distinct longitudinal costae.

Abdominal sternite IX ( Fig. 8) strongly narrowed apically, and far from extending to lateral margins of ventrite IX in natural state.

Aedeagus ( Figs 5-7): dorsal plate of each paramere with lateral trunk entirely located in ventral side and slightly widened near apex, middle plate distinctly protuberant and roundly emarginated near inner angle, ventral process of each paramere slightly widened and acute at inner angle, laterophysis stout and as long as middle plate of dorsal plate of each paramere.

Female. Body larger and wider, eye less protruding, antenna ( Fig. 4) shorter and wider, pronotum wider than that of male, abdominal sternite VIII ( Fig. 9) with a large deep impression and membranous protuberance in middle of posterior margin.

Variation in type series. Legs sometimes mostly brown, pronotum sometimes entirely reddish brown, or with two black markings near middle of anterior and posterior margins respectively. Body length 9.0-13.0 mm, width 3.0-5.0 mm.

Etymology.

This new specific name is derived from Latin words latus (wide) and cornu (antenna), referring to its dilated antennae.

Remarks.

The holotype was damaged, its left elytron and right antennomeres VIII-XI were missing. Paratypes: the male with left antennomeres III–XI and right IX–XI and left pro-leg, one female with left antennomeres III–XI and another female with right antennomeres III–XI were missing.