Palaeocnopus mara, Alekseev, Vitalii I. & Grzymala, Traci L., 2015

Alekseev, Vitalii I. & Grzymala, Traci L., 2015, New Aderidae (Coleoptera: Tenebrionoidea) from Baltic and Bitterfeld amber, Zootaxa 3956 (2), pp. 239-257 : 254-256

Palaeocnopus mara sp. nov. Alekseev & Grzymala

( Figs. 24 , 32–35 )

Material examined. Holotype No. 890-1 [ CCHH], possible female ( Figs. 34–35 ). The beetle inclusion is preserved in a polished piece of transparent amber, yellow-orange in color and the amber piece is embedded in polyester resin. The syninclusions are represented by one trichome. Paratype No. 609-3 [ CCHH], possible female.

The beetle inclusion is preserved in a polished piece of transparent amber, yellow-orange in color, without any further fixation. The piece is small, irregular in form, with maximum length 14 mm and maximum width 11 mm. The syninclusions are represented by one spider and one trichome. Paratype No. 868-2 [ CCHH], possible female. The beetle inclusion is preserved in a polished piece of transparent amber, yellow in color. The amber piece was subjected to thermal and high-pressure processing in an autoclave. The amber piece is embedded in polyester resin. The syninclusions are represented by one tipulid (Diptera), one mymarid ( Hymenoptera : Chalcidoidea) and two trichomes. Paratype No. AWI-063 [ CVIA], possible female. The beetle inclusion is preserved in a polished piece of transparent amber, yellow-orange in color, without any further fixation. The amber piece was subjected to thermal and high-pressure processing in an autoclave. The piece is elongate, with maximum length 25 mm and maximum width 12 mm. The syninclusions are represented by one trichome and four ultimate tarsomeres of a large insect (the length of the inclusion is 2.5 mm). Paratype No. AWI-105 [ CVIA], possible female (Figs. 36–37). The beetle inclusion is preserved in a polished piece of transparent yellow amber, without any further fixation. The piece is flat, with maximum length 30 mm and maximum width 18 mm. The syninclusions are represented by one Nematocera (Diptera) and one Coleoptera larva (body length 1.2 mm).

Etymology. Noun in apposition. In Baltic (Prussian, Latvian) mythology, Mara is the Deity of destiny and cares for cattle, appearing in the form of a black beetle or black snake.

Type strata. Bitterfeld amber. Eocene.

Type locality. Germany, Sachsen-Anhalt, Goitzsche (Bitterfeld).

Description. Length 1.4–1.75mm (1.5 mm—No. 890-1; 1.75 mm—No. 609-3; 1.4mm—No. 868-2; 1.5mm— No. AWI-063; 1.75mm—No. AWI-105); moderately convex, elongate; uniformly dark brown, appendages light brown or rufous (specimen AWI-105 uniformly light brown). Upper surface glabrous. Body length 2.8× maximum body width. Elytral length 4.7× pronotal length.

Head. Eyes large, oval, coarsely faceted,very narrowly separated from hind margin of head; interocular space wider than one ocular diameter; temples narrow; apical maxillary palpomere acute, triangular. Vertex finely punctate. Antenna ( Fig. 33 B) filiform, 11-segmented, no apparent pubescence; reaching to basal third of elytra when folded backward; pedicel shortest in length, globe-shaped; antennomere length ratios: 4-2-4-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-5.

Thorax. Pronotum ( Fig. 33 A) transverse, widest posterad to middle; glabrous; finely and densely punctate; without visible pubescence; with two deep sub-triangular lateral impressions at anterior angles. Scutellum transverse, in form of slightly rounded rectangle. Elytron glabrous, moderately convex, slightly depressed on disc; subparallel; width 0.42× length; punctation irregular, moderate, dense.

Abdomen. Separation of abdominal ventrite I and abdominal ventrite II visible laterally, obsolete medially. Each abdominal ventrite finely punctate.

Legs. Metatarsomere I equal in length to metatarsomeres II–IV combined.

Diagnosis. Palaeocnopus mara sp. nov. differs from P. densipunctatus by the scarcely punctured vertex, by the shape of the basal pronotal impressions and slightly different antennomere ratios. This species has the vertex less densely punctate, the elytra longer, the pronotal impressions shallower, and the first metatarsomere shorter in comparison with those characters of P. saeticornis . The elytra of P. mara sp. nov. are not pubescent in comparison to those of P. glabricornis , but the elytra of the latter are distinctly shorter and have coarse punctation.

Note. This species, described as new on the basis of possibly female specimens (according to the antennal structure and wide interocular space), could belong to an amber species described earlier in this paper on the basis of possible male specimens— f. ex. to P. saeticornis or with less probability to P. glabricornis . Such doubts are common in paleontological descriptions, and could be confirmed or discarded by finding a Palaeocnopus beetle pair “ in copula ” in the future. This newly described species (like P. glabricornis and P. saeticornis ) is found in the Bitterfeld and in the true Eastern (the Sambian) Baltic amber, and is comparatively abundant.

Figures

FIGURES 21 – 24. Palaeocnopus spp. illustrations. 21) Palaeocnopus densipunctatus sp. nov. A. forebody, B. antenna; 22) Palaeocnopus saeticornis sp. nov. A. forebody, B. antenna; 23) Palaeocnopus glabricornis sp. nov. A. forebody, B. antenna; 24) Palaeocnopus mara sp. nov. A. forebody, B. antenna.

FIGURES 32 – 35. Palaeocnopus mara sp. nov. habitus photographs. 32) Holotype, lateral view; 33) Holotype, latero-ventral view; 34) Paratype (No. AWI- 105), latero-ventral view; 35) Paratype (No. AWI- 105), dorsal view. Scale bars = 1.0 mm.