Trichotaenia nzingae Oesterle, Serrano & Capela

Serrano, Artur R. M., Capela, Rúben A. & Oesterle, Andreas, 2015, Three new species of tiger beetles and new data on Cicindelina species from Angola (Coleoptera: Carabidae: Cicindelinae), Zootaxa 4032 (2), pp. 151-178 : 154-158

Trichotaenia nzingae Oesterle, Serrano & Capela sp. n.

( Figs 1 , 2 , 3 , 6 a)

Type series. Holotype, ♂; Angola ( BIÉ), 17 km ESE Cachingues (coord.: unknown, 1654 m alt., 281), 16.XI.2013, DO, A. Oesterle leg., SMNS. Allotype 1♀, Paratypes 1♂, 1♀, Kakande (coord.: 12º 42´50.73´´ S, 16º 45´33.19´´ E, 1716 m alt., 233) ( BIÉ), 30.X.2014, DO, A. Serrano leg., ASC (Allotype 1♀, Paratype 1♂), MRAC (Paratype 1♀); Further paratypes: Angola ( BIÉ), 17 km ESE Cachingues (coord.: unknown, 1650 m alt., 281), 16.XI.2013, 2♂, DO, A. Osterle leg., 17.XI.2013, 1♂, 2♀, DO, A. Oesterle leg., AOC, Angola ( BIÉ), 34 km ESE Cachingues (coord.: unknown, 1650 m alt., 281), 17.XI.2013, 1♀, DO, G. Werner leg., GWC, 18.XI.2013, 2♀, DO, G. Werner leg., GWC and PSC; Angola ( BIÉ), 34 km ESE Cachingues (coord.: unknown, 1650 m alt., 281), 17.XI.2013, 1♂, DO, A. Oesterle leg., 18.XI.2013, 6♂, 3♀, DO, A. Oesterle leg., AOC. Holotype deposited in the collection of SMNS; Allotype deposited in ASC; Paratypes deposited in AOC (10♂, 5♀), ASC (1♂), GWC (2♀), MRAC (1♀) and PSC (1♀).

Derivatio nominis. This species is dedicated to “ Ngola Ana Nzinga Mbande”, known as “Rainha Ginga” also, which was a queen ( Ngola) of the kingdoms of Ndongo and Matamba in south‒western Africa in the seventeenth century. The royal title in Kimbundu language, Ngola, was the name used by the Portuguese to name the region ( Angola).

Diagnosis. A winged Trichotaenia species, black coloured with some slight punctual purpurish and bluish or violet reflections on head, pronotum and elytra. Clypeus mostly setose, blackish with some purpurish blue-greenish reflections. Labrum large, rounded and 5-toothed in front, variable setose on half posteriad surface with just four marginal sensorial setae, piceous in most specimens, triangularly doubled blackened in the first basal third (males) or triangularly blackened almost in the basal half and part of the apical half (females). A stripe of dense white recumbent pubescence on genae, continuing behind on the ventral half of pro and mesepisterna, on metepisterna up to the lateral sides of first four or five visible abdominal sternites. Sternum, except lateral half of metasternum, and abdominal sternites otherwise glabrous. Antennae attaining nearly the half of the elytral length in male, shorter in female; antennomeres 1-4 dark metallic black with bluish or violaceous reflections, antennomeres 5-10 strongly foliated. Elytral shoulders and part of the disk glabrous. Elytra with decumbent pubescence ( Fig. 3 ) covering the submarginal sides, from the middle of basal third to the apex where it becomes slightly wider and closer to the elytral margin in its apical third, emitting three or sometimes four rami on disc (one slightly arcuate just above the apex, one or two near the middle and a longer one above the middle ascending diagonally to the base of scutellum). A subsutural small elongate tuft of closely appressed setae below the scutellum, sometimes prolonged by sparse setae along the suture. A stripe of setae descending diagonaly between the middle of the anteriad discal ramus and the sutural band, sometimes incomplete. Elytral decumbent pubescence leaving four, sometimes five, naked areoles in between, one subsutural below the appressed setae close to the scutellum, the second one immediately above the middle, the third and larger one below the middle, a fourth one below it and before the apical area, and sometimes a fifth smaller one between the subapical stripe and the lower ramus of the middle stripe.

Description. Length of Holotype: 10.3 mm. Length of paratypes (without labrum): 9.2–10.3 mm (males), 10.2–11.4 mm (females).

Head ( Figs 2 a‒2b). Wider than long (1.4 times) [length: 1.76–2.08 mm (males), 1.95–2.40 mm (females), width 2.76–2.82 mm (males) and 2.85–3.18 mm (females)], with large eyes, slightly narrower than body ( Fig. 1 ), dorsal colour black with coppery reflections; surface sculpture rugulose, rugae forming irregular longitudinal meshes on vertex and transverse meshes on occiput; rugae straight, more or less parallel on orbital plates and frons; occiput, lateral parts of vertex, frons and clypeus sparsely covered with short piceous decumbent setae, temples (lateral area of head behind eyes) indistinctly striaterugulose, glabrous, glossy; a continuous narrow strip in the middle region of vertex and occiput glabrous; genae covered with dense white decumbent pubescence; orbital plates with two sublateral setigerous punctures; labrum large, shape nearly semicircular in both sexes ( Figs 2 a‒2b), transverse, wider than long (males: 1.4–1.5 times, females: 1.3–1.4 times), proportionally slightly longer in females [length: 0.90–1.07 mm (males), 1.22–1.44 mm (females), width 1.36–1.54 mm (males) and 1.60–1.92 mm (females)], anterior margin five-toothed, middle basal half slightly protruding, four sublateral sensorial setae, basal and median portions covered with sparse, white decumbent setae (males: 13–53, females: 5–71); colour yellowish with outer margin black, males triangularly doubled blackened in the first basal third, females triangularly blackened almost in the basal half, rarely reaching the anterior margin; antennae reaching the beginning of the median elytral transverse stripe of decumbent setae in male, shorter in female; antennomeres 1–4 dark metallic black with bluish or violaceous reflections, antennomeres 5–10 strongly dilated and foliated, more pronounced in females; mandibles four-toothed, black with large yellow patch basally on outer edge; maxillary and labial palpi light yellow, except terminal palpomeres black with metallic reflections; penultimate palpomere of labial palpus moderately inflated.

Thorax. Pronotum ( Figs 2 c‒2d) transverse slightly wider than long (1.1times) [length: 1.68–1.95 mm (males) and 1.79–2.08 mm (females); width: 1.82–2.05 mm (males) and 2.08–2.30 mm (females)], subcordiform-shaped, with the anterior margin slightly larger [width: 1.66–1.84 mm (males) and 1.95–2.11 mm (females)] than the posterior one [width: 1.60–1.79 mm (males) and 1.79–1.92 mm (females)]; black, on each side with a broad sublateral band with cupric reflections, this bands are covered with dense piceous decumbent pubescence, which is transversaly directed on median lobe, oblique on posterior and anterior lobes; along each side of median lobe and on central portions of anterior and posterior lobes a few additional thin piceous setae; surface of pronotum rugulose, rugae forming irregular meshes on latero-dorsal portions, along middle line a narrow band with more transverse-parallel rugae; dorsal half of proepisterna glabrous, ventral half densely covered with white decumbent pubescence which continues that of genae and extends to mesepisterna, metepisterna, lateral portions of metasternum and metacoxae to lateral portions of the first four to five abdominal sterni; proepisterna not visible from above; coupling sulcus: a deeply pitted, funnel-formed impression centrally in upper half of mesepisternum.

Elytra ( Fig. 3 ) longer than wide (1.7–2.0 times) [(length: 5.61–6.47 mm (males) and 6.47–7.06 mm (females); width: 3.01–3.36 mm (males) and 3.58–3.96 mm (females)], subrectangular-shaped, elongated (males) ( Figs 3 a–c), more convex and enlarged (females) ( Fig. 3 d), shoulders very marked, apex ending in a short but acute sutural spine in both sexes, surface sculptured by coarse, but very densely arranged polygonal (quadrangular to hexagonal) alveoli slight sharply walled, apical margin with distinct microserrulation; posteriad disc near suture not (males) or slightly protruding in relief in its uppermost region (females); colour of elytra black with more or less coppery lustre only in the pubescent areas, otherwise with some bluish or violaceous reflections; Elytra with white-piceous decumbent pubescence, consisting of a submarginal band, from the middle of basal third to the apex where it becomes slightly wider and closer to the elytral margin, anteriad ramus bending inwards towards the base of elytron close to the base of scutellum in the basal third of elytron; this anteriad ramus is sometimes prolonged diagonally in the middle to the subsutural sparse band of setae; the sublateral band emits around or nearly behind the middle a slightly backward straight spur on disc, sometimes divided into two rami (an upper ramus around the middle larger than a lower ramus below the middle, which sometimes can reach the base of the subapical band), and one oblique and slightly arcuate in the apical third of elytron not reaching the suture (sometimes discontinued, forming an isolated discal and more or less circular tuft); parallel to the suture occurs a narrow subsutural band of sparse decumbent setae, beginning near a small elongated tuft of closely appressed setae below the scutellum.

Ventral surface. Black, with stronger coppery-golden reflections in head and thorax parts, violet lustre in abdominal sternites; sides of these sternites with decumbent pubescence, except the ultimate or sometimes the ultimate and penultimate ones, becoming sparser towards apex; trochanters black.

Legs. Metallic black with greenish reflections in tarsi and violaceous-bluish in femora and tibiae, a few rows of spiniform setae on femora and tibiae;

Aedeagus ( Fig. 6 a) relatively small (length: 2.56–2.85 mm), arched, tapering, with a straight, simple apex.

Intraspecific variation. The range of variability observed in T. nzingae sp. n. (19 specimens) affects the colour and the number of labral decumbent setae (see description) and slightly the elytral decumbent pubescence. The variability within this last character is associated with colour (more or less whitish or piceous) and with minor gaps of setae in the anteriad diagonal band, in the transversal middle band, in the posteriad transversal middle band and in the subapical band (e.g., Figs 3 b‒d). The shapes of pronotum and elytra are very conservative, but variation in the length of the apical denticle of elytra is very common, with individuals having longer denticles than others. Asymmetries in the length of left and right elytron denticles within the same specimen are common too.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Facies of Trichotaenia nzingae sp. n.: a) male holotype, b) female allotype.

FIGURE 2. Trichotaenia nzingae sp. n., head, mandibles and labrum, pronotum (dorsal view): a, c) male; b, d) female.

FIGURE 3: Trichotaenia nzingae sp. n., elytra (dorsal view): a) typical decumbent setae pattern, b ‒ d) examples of variability among the decumbent setae pattern.

FIGURE 6. Aedeagus (lateral view): a) Trichotaenia nzingae sp. n., paratype, Kakande, Bié, Angola, b) Trichotaenia pepetela sp. n., holotype, Catota, Bié, Angola.