Trichotichnus (s. str.) schmidti, Kataev & Hongbin & Wrase, 2022

Kataev, Boris M., Hongbin, Liang & Wrase, David W., 2022, New data on carabid beetles of Trichotichnus s. str. (Coleoptera: Carabidae) of Yunnan (China) and adjacent areas, with description of six new species and two new subspecies, Zootaxa 5159 (3), pp. 301-353 : 327-329

Trichotichnus (s. str.) schmidti sp. n.

( Figs. 39 , 53 , 56–67 )

Type material. Holotype. Male , “ CHINA, Yunnan Provin. Gongshan, Dulongjiang Miliwang, above Bapo 27.72383°N, 98.36117°E ”, “ 1956 m, 2004.10.31 night Liang Hongbin collector California Academy & IOZ., Chinese. Acad. Sci” ( IOZ).

Paratypes. China. YUNNAN: 2 males, 3 females, Gongshan, Dulongjiang, Kongdang , roadside, 27.87696°N 98.33587°E, 1525 m, 25.X.2004, H.B. Liang leg. ( IOZ, CAS, ZIN) ; 1 female, same data but 5.XI.2004 ( IOZ) ; 2 females, Gongshan, Dulongjiang, Maku Village , roadside, 27.68533°N 98.30425°E, 1823 m, 1.XI.2004, H.B. Liang leg. ( IOZ, CAS) ; 2 males, 4 females, same data but 2.XI.2004 ( IOZ, CAS) ; 2 males, Baoshan Co., Gaoligong Mt. R., Nankang Pass , 24.82647°N 98.76787°E, 2100–2200 m, along road, 4.X.2012, B. Kataev leg. ( ZIN) ; 2 males, Baoshan Pref. , mountain range 25 km S Tengchong, 1900 m, 24°48'21"N 98°32'05"E, cleft with devasted primary forest, litter, mushrooms sifted, 30.VIII.2009, M. Schülke leg. [18] (cWR); 1 male, same data but 24°48'28"N 98°32'03"E, devastated primary decid. forest, litter, sifted, 2.VI.2007, D.W. Wrase leg. [17] (cWR).

Nepal. 1 male [teneral], SW Dhaulagiri Himal, Dhara Khola Vall. , 1900 m, 28°30′36′′N 83°18′16′′E, 21/ 22. V.2012, J. Schmidt leg. (cJS) ; 2 females [1female teneral], Dhaulagiri SE-slope, upp. Rahugat Khola river betw. Chim Khola & Dwari, 1750 m, 10.V.2002, Schmidt leg. (cJS) ; 4 males, 4 females, Annapurna, Krapa Danda 1800 m, 26.V.1997, Schmidt leg. (cJS) ; 3 females, Annapurna, Krapa Danda , 1800–2000 m, 27.V.1997, J. Schmidt leg. (cJS) ; 1 male, Annapurna , 8 km S Mt. Panchhase, 1900 m, W Pokhara, 22.V.1997, Schmidt leg. (cJS) ; 1 female, Annapurna, Mt. Panchhase , 2000–2300 m, W Pokhara, 18.V.1997, Schmidt leg. (cJS) ; 4 males, 4 females, Manaslu Mts , S of Bara Pokhari, 2000 m, 1.IV.1999, Lau & J. Schmidt leg. (cJS, ZIN) ; 1 female, Manaslu Himal, Bara Pokhara Lekh, upp. Taksar Vill. , 2000–2100 m, 1/ 11.IV.1999, Lau & Schmidt leg. (cJS) ; 1 male, Manaslu Mts, Bara Pokhari Lekh, Chhandi Khola Vall. , 2–2200 m, 11–12.2003, J. Schmidt leg. (cJS) ; 2 males, Manaslu Mts, 1600–1800 m, Bara Pokhari Lekh, above Bhachok Gaon vill., ca 28°14′28′′N 84°24′32′′E, 29.IV.2005, J. Schmidt leg. (cJS) ; 2 males, 3 females, Manaslu Mts, S Bara Pokhari , ca 28°15′N 84°25′E, 2000–2100 m, 29.IV.2005, J. Schmidt leg. (cJS) ; 1 male [teneral], Manaslu Mts, E-slope, Machhakhola vall., Gumda to Lapsibot , 28°11′49′N 84°50′07′′E, 1800–1900 m, 23.V.2006, J. Schmidt leg. (cJS) ; 1 female, Manaslu Mts., Marsyangdi Khola Vall., Puran Dobar ca. 1800 m, 31.III.1999, J. Schmidt leg. (cJS) ; 1 female, “Nepal, P. Bagmati, D. Lalitpur, Kathmandu-Tal NW Kathmandu near Tiniple 01.08.2013. leg. D. Mattern ”, “ 27°46′12′′N 85°16′18′′E 1450 mNN (#35)” ( NME); 1 m, “E-Nepal, Arun Valley Chichila, ca. 1900 mNN 9.V.2014 leg. J. Schmidt 27°27′44′′N 87°13′45′′E ” ; 1 male, “E-Nepal, Arun Valley, Deurali ca. 2100 mNN/ 10.V.2014, lg. J. Schmidt, 27°30′N 87°16′E ” (cJS) .

Description (8 males and 5 females measured). Body length 7.3–8.4 mm. Habitus as in Figs. 56–58 .

Body dorsally dark brown to almost black, shiny, slightly iridescent on elytra; ventral side of body blackish brown, more or less unicoloured, occasionally with medial portions paler than lateral portions; mandibles except for apex and margins, labrum, apical margin of clypeus, narrow margins of pronotum yellowish brown; palpi, antennae and legs brownish yellow; femora not darker than tibiae.

Head moderately sized (HWmax/PWmax 0.70–0.75, HWmin/PWmax 0.52–0.56). Eyes large and very convex (HWmax/HWmin 1.28–1.41), in lateral view wide oval. Genae very narrow, at most as wide as antennomere 3 basally. Tempora short, glabrous. Fronto-clypeal suture fine, occasionally slightly impressed, broadly rounded or almost straight. Frontal foveae wide. Fronto-ocular furrows fine, deepened at clypeus, reaching, occasionally only vaguely, supraorbital furrows. Supraorbital furrows very narrow, touching upper margin of eye. Supraorbital setigerous pores small, situated slightly before level of posterior margin of eye and removed from supraorbital furrows by distance approximately equal to width of antennomere 2 apically. Labrum almost straight or slightly concave anteriorly. Clypeus somewhat flat, at most slightly emarginate along anterior margin, with a pair of setigerous pores each located at anterior angle. Mentum separated from submentum, with prominent median tooth; epilobes narrow; submentum with one pair of long setae. Ligular sclerite markedly widened apically, truncate at apex, with one pair of ventroapical setae. Paraglossae narrow, rather short, with apices almost at level of apex of ligular sclerite and separated from it by wide notches. Labial penultimate palpomere about as long as ultimate palpomere. Left mandible in frontal view markedly narrowed apically, blunted at tip ( Fig. 53 ). Dorsal microsculpture very fine, consisting of obliterated, more or less isodiametric meshes, more distinct behind eyes. Antennae slender, surpassing pronotal basal edge by two apical antennomeres, with antennomeres 4–8 about 2.5 times as long as wide. Basal antennomere about as long as antennomere 3.

Pronotum markedly transverse (PWmax/PL 1.48–1.56), widest slightly before the middle (PWmax/PWmin 1.17–1.21), more strongly narrowed apically than basally, with one lateral seta inserted before widest point. Sides rounded along entire length, more widely in basal half than in apical half, never sinuate before basal angles. Apical margin shallowly emarginate, its border interrupted at middle. Apical angles more or less widely rounded, slightly protruding ahead. Basal margin almost straight or slightly convex medially, in most specimens completely bordered, slightly longer than apical margin. Lateral bead complete, narrow. Basal angle obtusangular, sharp or slightly blunted at tip, without any denticle. Disc moderately convex; lateral depressions very narrow in apical third, moderately widened from lateral setae posteriorly, fused basally with basal foveae forming on each side a wide laterobasal depression; area between basal foveae convex; punctation distinct and dense laterobasally and along sides, with finer punctures at base medially and at apical margin. Anterior transverse depression either shallow and narrow or moderately deep and wide. Microsculpture consisting of very fine meshes, transverse on disc and almost isodiametric at anterior margin.

Elytra convex, elongate oval (EL/EW 1.50–1.56; EL/PL 2.92–3.16; EW/PWmax 1.30–1.37), widest in the apical third; sides slightly concave or almost straightly diverging before the middle. Humeri rounded, in most specimens without denticle. Subapical sinuation distinct, but shallow ( Fig. 39 ). Sutural angle acutangular, blunted at tip. Basal edge evenly arched or oblique, forming a very obtuse, indistinct angle with lateral margin or arcuately curving inside humerus up to lateral margin. Striae impunctate, impressed along entire length, reaching anteriorly basal edge. Intervals slightly convex on disc, narrowed and becoming more convex apically. Parascutellar (abbreviate) striole long, with a distinct setigerous pore basally. Interval 3 with a distinct discal setigerous pore adjacent to stria 2 in the beginning of apical third. Marginal umbilicate series without distinct gap at middle. Microsculpture on intervals strongly obliterated, consisting of indistinct transverse lines.

Wings developed.

Prosternum with fine short setae. Punctation on proepisterna vague. Metepisternum markedly longer than wide, strongly narrowed posteriorly.

Legs relatively short. Metacoxae without additional setae medially. Metafemur ventrally with two setae at posterior margin and without setae at anterior margin. Protibia on dorsal side with longitudinal sulcus, on outer margin preapically with one stouter and two thinner spines in male and with three comparatively stout, similar sized spines in female. Tarsi glabrous dorsally, pro- and mesotarsomeres 1–4 in both sexes with comparatively sparse moderately long ventro-lateral setae; tarsomere 5 with three or four pairs of ventro-lateral setae. Metatarsus slender, slightly shorter than HWmax, with tarsomeres weakly widened distally; metatarsomere 1 slightly shorter than metatarsomeres 2 and 3 combined. In male, protarsomeres 1–4 and mesotarsomeres 2–4 moderately widened and with adhesive scales ventrally (mesotarsomere 1 without adhesive scales ventrally); protarsomeres 2 and 3 and mesotarsomere 3 about as long as wide; mesotarsomere 2 longer than wide. In both sexes, mesotarsomere 1 elongate, about as long as mesotarsomeres 2 and 3 combined.

Abdominal sternites without additional long setae; last visible abdominal sternite (VII) in male with one pair of marginal setae, subtruncate at apex, in female with two pairs of setae and widely rounded at apex.

Median lobe of aedeagus ( Figs. 59–64 ) in lateral view rather evenly arcuate, slightly bent dorsally just at apex; in dorsal view median lobe comparatively wide, only slightly narrowed apically, with terminal lamella ( Figs. 59 & 62 ) comparatively wide and short, roundly narrowed posteriorly. Ventral side finely edged laterally in apical part and flattened between margins. Apical orifice in dorsal position, wide apically. Internal sac with two (dorsal and ventral) wide spiny patches apically.

Female genitalia ( Figs. 65 & 66 ): gonocoxite comparatively narrow in ventral view, about 0.6 times as long as gonosubcoxite, with wide base.

Etymology. The species is named after our friend and colleague Joachim Schmidt (Admannshagen), an excellent carabidologist and expert on the biogeography of the Himalaya, who collected a significant part of the type series.

Comparison. Very similar in external morphology to T. doiinthanonensis but markedly differing in male genitalia as described above. Border along apical margin of pronotum in many specimens are interrupted or obscurely delimited at the middle.

Distribution. Known from Nepal, west to the Dhaulagiri Himal, at altitudes of about 1500–1900 m, and from northwestern Yunnan ( China) at altitudes of about 1600–2300 m ( Fig. 67 ). The gap in the distribution between Nepal and Yunnan is probably due to insufficient collection activity in this area.

Figures

FIGURE 67. Trichotichnus schmidti sp. n., distribution in China.

FIGURES 38–39. Trichotichnus spp., elytral apex. 38, T. cyrtops (Tschitschérine, 1906); 39, T. schmidti sp. n. Scale bar = 0.5 mm.

FIGURES 53–55. Trichotichnus spp., head, dorso-frontal view. 53, T. schmidti sp. n.; 54, T. noctuabundus Habu, 1954; 55, T. subangulatus Ito, 2021. Scale bar = 0.5 mm.

FIGURES 56–58. Trichotichnus schmidti sp. n. (Yunnan: 56 & 57, Nankang; 58, S Tengchong), habitus. Scale bar = 1.0 mm.

FIGURES 59–66. Trichotichnus schmidti sp. n. (59–61, Yunnan, holotype; 62–66, Nepal, Manaslu). 59 & 62, terminal lamella of aedeagus; 60, 61, 63 & 64, median lobe of aedeagus; 65, gonocoxite; 66, laterotergite, gonosubcoxite, and gonocoxite. Dorsal (59, 61, 62 & 64), lateral (60, 63 & 65) and ventral (66) views. Scale bars: A = 0.5 mm (59, 62, 65 & 66), B = 1.0 mm (60, 61, 63 & 64).