Octavius hamifer Janák, 2025

Janák, Jiří, 2025, Overview of Octavius of Mpumalanga and Limpopo Provinces, South Africa (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Euaesthetinae) with descriptions of eight new species, Zootaxa 5737 (1), pp. 105-126 : 108-110

Octavius hamifer Janák sp. nov.

Figs. 11–15 , 89 , 95

Type locality. South Africa, Mpumalanga, Nelshoogte forestry, 25°45.15'S, 30°51.0'E .

Type material ( 7 specimens). Holotype ♂: “ RSA, Mpumalanga 17.xi.2023 / 25°45.15'S 30°51.0'E, / Nelshoogte forestry, nr. R38 [= national road 38] / 1180m, J. Janák lgt.”, “small patch of Acacia trees / Berlese extraction / logs and litter / sifting”, “ HOLOTYPUS Octavius hamifer sp. nov. J. Janák det. 2025” ( TMSA) . Paratypes: 2 ♂, 4 ♀: same data as the holotype ( JJRC, PPRI). All paratypes with additional labels: “ PARATYPUS Octavius hamifer sp. nov. J. Janák det. 2025” .

Description. Body length 1.2–1.7 mm (M 1.4 mm, HT 1.3 mm), forebody length 0.6–0.7 mm (M 0.6 mm, HT 0.6 mm). Microphthalmous, apterous, rusty, head and pronotum dull, elytra and abdomen moderately shiny ( Fig. 11 ).

Head ( Fig. 11 ) slightly narrower than pronotum (R 0.87–0.95, M 0.93, HT 0.93), eyes very small, temples about 3–4 times as long as eyes (R 3.09–4.33, M 3.73, HT 3.50), sides of head straight or very slightly rounded, not or slightly widened behind eyes to maximal width, then moderately narrowed towards posterior angles, posterior angles angular, median impression on disc shallow, shortened anteriorly and posteriorly, lateral parts of head finely granulose, median part densely and moderately finely reticulate.

Pronotum ( Fig. 11 ) slightly broader than long (R 1.10–1.20, M 1.15, HT 1.11), strongly narrowed posteriorly; anterior angles rounded, dorsal impressions moderately deep, transverse impression deep, lateral impressions deep, not delimited by sharp longitudinal ridge laterally; lateral parts beside lateral impressions moderately densely granulose, remainder of surface moderately densely and finely reticulate.

Elytra ( Fig. 11 ) subquadrate, much broader than long (R 1.30–1.54, M 1.43, HT 1.30), with two sharp longitudinal ridges laterally; between latter and suture with two longitudinal impressions, irregularly granulate, moderately reticulate and sparsely shortly setose.

Abdomen subparallel, slightly widened to segment V, with one paratergite and microsculpture consisting of triangular or rhomboid field, finely setose.

Male. Sternite VIII deep triangularly emarginated in posterior fifth ( Fig. 14 ), sternite IX as in Fig. 15 . Aedeagus strongly asymmetrical, moderately long ( 0.34–0.35 mm, M 0.35 mm, HT 0.35 mm) and moderately wide, with narrow projection, with elongate apically bent sclerotised internal structures; parameres slightly shorter than median lobe, with three or four setae in apical two third and about 5 subapicolateral setae ( Figs. 12–13 ).

Differential diagnosis. Octavius hamifer Janák , sp. nov. belongs among species with very small eyes, with temples at about 3–4 times as long as eyes, with the head not or at most slightly widened posteriorly, with small body and the disc of the head with a shallow incomplete median impression. In the most recent key of South African Octavius ( Janák 2014) is to be arranged at the couplet 99 (100) or 100 (99) near O. ocellifer Puthz, 2006 and O. muellerae Janák, 2014 , but it differs from both these by different shape of aedeagus and shallow median impression on disc of head.

Derivatio nominis. The name hamifer is a compound Latin word meaning hook-bearer and refers to the shape of the median lobe of the aedeagus.

Distribution. Octavius hamifer Janák , sp. nov. is currently recorded only from the Nelshoogte forestry, Mpumalanga Province, South Africa ( Fig. 95 ).

Bionomics. All specimens were collected in siftings of forest litter in a small forest patch of forest with Acacia trees at the elevation of about 1180 m a.s.l. surrounding by Eucalyptus plantation with the abundance of 3.2 specimens per kg of sifted material ( Fig. 89 ).

Figures

FIGURE 95. Distribution of Octavius in Mpumalanga and Limpopo Provinces, South Africa.

FIGURES 11–21. 11–15. Octavius hamifer Janák, sp. nov., 11–12, 14–15, holotype; 13, paratype. 16–21. Octavius hastifer Janák, sp. nov., 16–17, 19–21, holotype; 18, paratype. 11, 16, habitus; 12–13, 17–18, aedeagus ventral; 19, apex of aedeagus ventral; 14, 20, male sternite VIII; 15, 21, male sternite IX. Identical scales 0.1 mm: 12=13; 14=15; 17=18; 20=21.

FIGURES 89–94. 89: Nelshoogte forestry, Acacia trees, type locality of O. hamifer; 90: Klipkraal forest, type locality of O. klipkraalensis; 91–92: Pinnacle Rock, locality of O. morio and O. pinnaculus; 93–94: Woodbush forest: type locality of O. woodbushensis.