Socotractus micans, Colonnelli, 2014

Colonnelli, Enzo, 2014, Apionidae, Nanophyidae, Brachyceridae and Curculionidae except Scolytinae (Coleoptera) from Socotra Island, Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae 54, pp. 295-422 : 375-377

Socotractus micans sp. nov.

( Figs 92, 95 )

Type material. HOLOTYPE: J ( NMPC), ‘ Yemen, Socotra island // Al Haghier Mts. // Skant Mt. env. // 12°34.6′N E 54°01.5′E // Jiří Hájek leg. 12-13.xi.2010 ’. PARATYPES: 2 JJ 2 ♀♀, same label data as holotype (3 NMPC, 1 ECRI) ; 2 JJ 4 ♀♀, ‘ Yemen, Socotra island // Al Haghier Mts. // Skant Mt. env. // 12°34.6′N E 54°01.5′E // J. Bezděk leg. 12-13.xi.2010 ’ (5 NMPC, 1 ECRI) ; 36 JJ 16 ♀♀, ‘ Yemen, Socotra Island, // Hagher Mts. , Scand Mt. env. // montane evergreen woodland // 16-18.vi 2012 // 12°34.6′N, 54°01.5′E, 1450 m’, ‘Socotra expedition 2012 // J. Bezděk, J. Hájek, V. Hula, // P. Kment, I. Malenovský, // J. Niedobová & L. Purchart leg.’ (36 NMPC, 10 ECRI) ; 1J, ‘ Yemen, Socotra Island // Skant area , 1300-1500 m // N 12°34′33″, E 54°01′31″ // 31.i-1.ii.2010, at light // L. Purchart lgt.’ ( NMPC) ; 1 J, ‘ Yemen, Socotra Isl. , // Hagher Mts., Skant, // N 12°34,557′, E 054°01,514′ // 7-8.vi.2010, // V. Hula & H. Niedobová leg.’ ( NMPC) ; 4 JJ 3 ♀♀, ‘ Socotra Is ( YE) // Al Haghier Mts. Scant Mt. env. // 12°34.6′N, 54°01.5′E, 1450 m // Jan Batelka leg. 12-13.xi.2010 ’ (6 JBPC, 1 ECRI) ; 11 JJ 14 ♀♀,

‘ Yemen, Socotra // Al Haghier Mts. // Scant Mt. env. 1450 m // 12°34.6′N, 54°01.5′E // 12-13.xi.2010, P. Hlaváč’ (21 NMPC, 4 ECRI); 8 JJ 7 ♀♀, same locality and date with indication ‘sifting’ (14 NMPC, 1 ECRI); 1 J, ‘ Yemen, Socotra island // Al Haghier Mts. // wadi Madar, 1180-1230 m / 12°33.2′N E 54°00.4′E // Jiří Hájek leg. 12-14.xi.2010 ’ ( NMPC); 22 JJ 14 ♀♀, ‘ Yemen, Socotra // Al Haghier Mts., wadi // Madar, 1180-1230 m // 12°33.2′N, 54°00.4′E // 12-14.xi.2010, P. Hlaváč leg.’ (23 NMPC, 2 BMNH, 11 ECRI); 3 JJ, ‘ Yemen, Socotra Island, // Dixam plateau, Tudhen // shrubland with Commiphora // planifrons , 18+ 22.vi.2012 // 12°32.7′N, 53°59.9′E, 1135 m’, ‘ Socotra expedition 2012 // J. Bezděk, J. Hájek, V. Hula, // P. Kment, I. Malenovský, // J. Niedobová & L. Purchart leg.’ (2 NMPC, 1 ECRI).

Description. Male holotype. Body length 3.8 mm. Piceous, quite shining, antennae, club excepted, tibiae, apical comb of setae and tarsi ferruginous. Dorsal surface rather sparsely covered by recumbent comma-like, elliptical and hair-like scales, lanceolate ones forming two ill-defined longitudinal stripes on both sides of pronotum. On elytral declivity there are slightly curved erect capitate hair-like scales more evident and erect on prominences. Legs sparsely clothed by slightly to moderately erect golden setae, with barely perceptible trace of femoral middle ring. Ventral side with very sparse recumbent golden and greenish setae, slightly erect on meso- and metacoxae ( Fig. 92 ).

Head. Rostrum 1.15 times longer than wide, sides subparallel, pterygia hardly protruding. Epifrons almost flat, at narrowest point about 0.48 times as wide as interocular distance, dorsum with coarse elongate punctures and poorly visible keel from base to just basad of antennal insertion, then alutaceous towards ill-defined epistome, sides somewhat keeled laterally, strongly converging up to just apicad of midlength of rostrum and then abruptly widening towards pterygia. Head separated from rostrum by broadly V-shaped deep sulcus, space between eyes slightly depressed and with deep elongate pit, vertex hardly convex, temples much shorter than greater diameter of eye and converging forward. Eyes moderately large, elliptical, protruding and with maximum of convexity basad of middle. Antennae slender; scape just little curved at base; funicular antennomere I scarcely longer and barely wider than II, antennomeres III to VII progressively diminishing in length, antennomere VII not transverse; club fusiform-oval, slightly shorter than three preceding antennomeres.

Pronotum 0.90 times wider than long, widest at middle, quite flat dorsally, sides regularly rounded, base and apex truncate and of about same width; disc with deep irregular large punctures.

Elytra oval, 1.39 times longer than wide, 1.58 times as wide as pronotum, maximum width at middle, rather flat on basal half, then moderately convex in profile, base slightly concave, apical declivity subperpendicular. Striae formed by large subquadrate deep punctures. Intervals not wider than striae, barely convex; suture with blunt prominence at middle of apical declivity, intervals III, V and VII with elongate moderately protruding low tubercles towards apical declivity.

Legs quite elongate; femora clubbed; tibiae mucronate, slightly curved inwards at apical quarter, their internal margin with few brown stiff setae apicad of middle, metatibiae with their inner margin minutely granulate; tarsi robust with some stiff semirerect whitish microsetae, tarsomere I longer and slightly wider than II which is as wide as long, tarsomere III strongly bilobed and wider than long, tarsomere IV projecting from III by almost twice length of III.

Ventral side. Metaventrite and abdominal ventrite I with common shallow median depression.

Variability. Paratypes are almost identical to the holotype. Females have elytral prominences a little more evident and lack abdominal impression. In some specimens elytral tubercles are more evident as erect scales on them are whitish.

Male genitalia. Aedeagus as depicted in Fig. 95 .

Body length 2.7–4.3 mm.

Differential diagnosis. This species is immediately recognisable at once by it small size and obvious metallic golden vestiture. Other peculiar features are narrow rostrum with triangular ending, thin scape abruptly clubbed and only at apex barely compressed, and arrangement of elytral tubercles which are surmounted by tufts of erect scales.

Etymology. The species name, Latin participle micans meaning ‘glittering, glowing, twinkling’, was chosen in reference to the brilliant colour of the elytral scales.

Distribution. Endemic to Socotra Island.

Figures

Figs 92–97. 92, 95 – Socotractus micans sp. nov.: 92 – habitus of the holotype; 95 – aedeagus of a paratype in dorsal view. 93–94, 96 – Systates hlavaci sp. nov.: 93 – habitus of the holotype; 94 – habitus in side view; 96 – aedeagus of a paratype in dorsal view. 97 – Systates spinipennis sp. nov., aedeagus of a paratype in dorsal view.