Craspedophorus kirschenhoferi, Häckel, Martin & Anichtchenko, Alexandr, 2015

Häckel, Martin & Anichtchenko, Alexandr, 2015, Two new Craspedophorus species (Coleoptera: Carabidae: Panagaeini) from the Philippines, Zootaxa 3955 (3), pp. 427-434 : 431

Craspedophorus kirschenhoferi sp. nov.

( Fig. 3)

Type material. Holotype ♂: “ Philippines, Mindanao, Surigao del Norte. III. 2014, local collector leg. ( DUBC). Paratype, 1 ♀: “ Philippines, Mindanao, Bukidnon. Mt. Kalatungan. VIII. 2014, local collector leg. ( NMPC).

Description. Holotype length 11.5-12.0 mm, width 4.5-4.8 mm. Pronotum 1.37 wider than long, 1.62 wider than head, elytra 1.22x wider than pronotum.

Colour: Head, pronotum and elytra black. Elytra near margins densely covered by yellow setae, each elytron with two yellow spots. Humeral spot rounded, extending from 4th interval to margin and epipleura. Preapical spot smaller, rounded, reaching from 4th stria to 8th interval, separated from margin. Antennae, epistoma and legs black proximally; antennomeres IV–XI, tarsi and terminal parts of mandibles distally ferrugineous. Venter black, covered sparsely by long, yellow setae. Epipleura light yellowish, laterally near humeral spot.

Head large and wide, only 1.62x narrower than pronotum; frons medially smooth and weakly convex, laterally coarsely punctured, frontal margins rimmed by narrowly sulcate sharp furrows continuing posteriorly and medially between eyes; vertex coarsely punctured; clypeus smooth, shiny, medially upturned; anterior side of labrum concave; eyes strongly convex; temples barely indicated; neck convex, glossy, finely rugate.

Pronotum transverse, 1.37x wider than long, almost hexagonal, widest immediately before middle, lateral angles round; anterior margin flat, parallel with base, as long as base; lateral margins narrowing weakly forward; anterior angles indistinct, widely rounded and not extending forward; posterior margins narrow obliquely, in front of posterior angles become weakly sinuate without any indentation; middle of base weakly sinuate, margin weakly oblique; anterior side of lateral rims indistinct, near base wider, more excavated, coarsely punctured; disc weakly convex and punctured more coarsely than rims; sagittal line indistinct, interrupted; basal pits very shallow, weakly indicated.

Elytra moderately convex, almost parallel-sided, 1.22x wider than pronotum, weakly widening toward maximum width at middle, distinctly tuberose before apex; basal rim discernible only medial of 4th interval; humeri weakly developed, moderately oblique, widely rounded; striae deeply impressed, coarsely punctured; intervals convex, irregularly punctured; dorsum with black setae, on elytral spots setae yellowish red.

Venter black, glossy, metepisterna almost square, narrowed posteriorly, punctured, covered by setae.

Aedeagus (damaged in mounting), median lobe strongly curved laterally ( Fig. 3).

Differential diagnosis. Craspedophorus kirschenhoferi sp. nov. resembles species of the “ microspilotus species group sensu Kirschenhofer (2000) by its body size and shape, but differs clearly from most species of that group by markedly less transverse, hexagonal pronotum. The two species of that group with most similar pronotum, C. chiangdaoensis Häckel & Kirschenhofer, 2014 and C. kiwlomensis Häckel & Kirschenhofer, 2014 , differ inter alia by elytral pattern with distinctly larger spots. C. kirschenhoferi sp. nov. also weakly resembles species of C. basifasciatus group sensu Häckel & Kirschenhofer (2014) by similar pronotum, but differs in the elytral pattern with spots without serrate margins. Another very similar but larger (13.5 mm) species, C. soppongensis Kirschenhofer, 2011 (“kubani species group) from northern Thailand ( Fig. 4 ) has the pronotum similarly shaped but differently sculptured; the elytra shows a similar pattern but is differently sculptured; the sagittal line of pronotum is narrow and deeply impressed, and the pronotal basal pits are narrow, elongated and deeply impressed.

Etymology. Named after our colleague and friend Erich Kirschenhofer (Perchtoldsdorf, Austria), a specialist in the Panagaeini and Licinini (Carabidae) . The specific epithet is a noun in the genitive case.

Distribution. So far known only from two localities in Mindanao Island, Philippines.

Figures

FIGURE 4. C. soppongenis Kirschenhofer, 2011 male, holotype. Scale bar: 10 mm.