Operclipygus distractus (Schmidt, 1896) Schmidt, 1896

Caterino, Michael S. & Tishechkin, Alexey K., 2013, A systematic revision of Operclipygus Marseul (Coleoptera, Histeridae, Exosternini), ZooKeys 271, pp. 1-401 : 193-195

Operclipygus distractus (Schmidt, 1896) comb. n. Figs 50 D–EMap 18

Phelister distractus Schmidt, 1896: 59; Pseudister distractus : Bickhardt 1917: 165.

Type locality.

BRAZIL: Rio de Janeiro: Petrópolis [22.5°S, 43.18°W].

Type material.

Lectotype, here designated: " Phelister distractus typ. Petrop.[olis]" / “Type” / "coll. J. Schmidt" / " Phelister distractus Schmidt, 1896 ex. Coll. Schmidt-Bickhardt" / "LECTOTYPE Phelister distractus Schmidt, 1896 M.S.Caterino & A.K.Tishechkin des. 2010" (ZMHB). This species was described from an unspecified number of specimens, and the lectotype designation fixes primary type status on the only known original specimen.

Other material.

BRAZIL: Paraná: 1: Guartelá, Campo São Paolo, 24°32'S, 50°17'W, 900m, xi.2007, pitfall, E. Grossi (CHND); 1: Piraquara, Mananciais da Serra, 25°29.77'S, 48°58.90'W, 1000m, 17-31.x.2007, FIT, P. Grossi & D. Parizotto (UFPR).

Diagnostic description.

Length: 2.00-2.18 mm, width: 1.53-1.68 mm; body rufopiceous, elytra and pygidia appearing faintly darker than rest of body, elongate, subdepressed; frons flat, sides of frontal stria weakly rounded inward, central part of frontal stria fine, evenly arcuate, narrowly detached from sides; supraorbital stria absent; labrum distinctly asymmetrical with median apical depression and blunt process left of center; left mandible untoothed, right mandible with small subacute basal tooth; pronotal disk weakly, indistinctly impressed in prescutellar region, with fine ground punctation and ~15 coarser punctures toward sides; marginal pronotal stria interrupted behind head, submarginal stria continuous from sides across front; median pronotal gland openings situated behind eye, anterolateral opening midway between that and pronotal corner; elytra with striae finely, not too deeply impressed, outer subhumeral stria present in apical half, inner subhumeral stria absent, striae 1-3 complete, 4th stria present in apical half, 5th stria present in apical third, sutural stria present in apical three-fourths; elytral disk with few apical marginal punctures; prosternal keel truncate at base, carinal striae complete, free basally, united in narrow anterior arch, middle part of keel distinctly microsculptured; prosternal lobe with marginal stria interrupted or absent at middle; mesoventrite broadly emarginate, marginal stria interrupted; mesometaventral stria narrowly arcuate, reaching middle of mesoventral disk, angulate at mesocoxa, lateral metaventral stria extended toward outer third of metacoxa; 1st abdominal ventrite with two complete lateral striae, central part of disk with numerous small, shallow punctures in anterior half, between metacoxae; propygidium with moderately large, shallow, irregularly round punctures separated by slightly less than their diameters; pygidium with ground punctation fine and quite sparse, with coarser small punctures mainly in basal half; marginal pygidial sulcus complete, deeply crenulate, slightly removed from margin at middle, with fairly wide, flat marginal bead. Male not known.

Remarks.

Operclipygus distractus and Operclipygus punctifrons are unusual among members of the Operclipygus farctus group in a few characters. In particular they have the prosternal keel not at all emarginate at the base(Fig. 50E), and two complete lateral striae on the 1st abdominal ventrite. However, due to the marginal position of their median pronotal gland openings we retain them here. Operclipygus distractus can be recognized by these characters in combination with its lack of dense frontal ground punctation.