Philonthus katangaensis Levasseur, 1967

Hromádka, Lubomír, 2008, Revision of Afrotropical species of the Philonthus peripateticus species group (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Philonthina), Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae 48 (1), pp. 51-65 : 56

Philonthus katangaensis Levasseur, 1967

( Figs. 13-18 )

Philonthus (Raucalius) katangaensis Levasseur, 1967: 1625 .

Type locality. Democratic Republic of the Congo, Katanga, Kolwezi.

Type material examined. HOLOTYPE: ♁, ‘ Kolwezi (Katanga) / xi.1953, bouse / Dr V. Allard / collection Louis Levasseur [white oblong label with red margin, handwritten]’ ( MNHN).

Redescription. Body length 12.0 mm (with stretched abdomen), length of fore body (to the end of elytra) 5.8 mm.

Colouration. Head and pronotum black, strongly shiny, elytra and abdomen black-brown, antennae dark brown, maxillary and labial palpi and legs testaceous.

Head ( Fig. 13 ) slightly transverse (ratio 33: 30). Eyes as long as temples, slightly convex. Four punctures between eyes, distance between medial interocular punctures about four times as large as distance between medial and lateral interocular punctures. Temporal area with many punctures of different size. Posterior margin of head with scattered punctures. Surface with fine, hardly appreciable microsculpture.

Antennae long, reaching posterior margin of pronotum when reclined. Antennomeres 1-3 and 11 longer than wide, antennomeres 6-10 slightly serrate.

Pronotum vaguely longer than wide (ratio 40: 38), almost parallel-sided; anterior angles rectangular, posterior angles markedly rounded. Right dorsal row with two punctures, left row with one puncture; each sublateral row with one puncture. Surface without microsculpture.

Scutellum very coarsely and densely punctate, punctures somewhat larger than eye-facets. Distance between punctures very short.

Elytra distinctly wider than long (ratio 58: 47). Punctation extremely dense and coarse, punctures coalescent here and there. Surface without microsculpture. Setation brown-yellow.

Legs. Metatibia as long as metatarsus. Metatarsomere 1 somewhat longer than metatarsomeres 2-3 combined, metatarsomere 5 somewhat shorter than metatarsomeres 3-4 combined.

Punctation of abdomen comparable with punctation of elytra. Tergites with traces of transverse microsculpture, more distinct on apex than on base. Elevated area between two basal lines on first three visible tergites very densely and coarsely punctate.

Male. Protarsomeres 1-3 markedly dilated and sub-bilobed, each covered with modified yellow setae ventrally, protarsomere 4 distinctly narrower than preceding ones. Sternite VIII ( Fig. 18 ), aedeagus with branches of paramere not reaching apex of the median lobe. ( Figs. 14-17 ).

Female. Unknown to the author.

Differential diagnosis. Philonthus katagaensis may be distinguished from the most similar species, P. lamtoensis , by the different shape of the aedeagus.

Bionomics. Found in cow excrement (LEVASSEUR 1967).

Distribution. Democratic Republic of the Congo (former Zair) (LEVASSEUR 1967, HERMAN 2001).

Figures

Figs. 11-19. 11-12 – Philonthus dendroaspis sp. nov.; 13-18 – P. katangaensis Levasseur, 1967; 19 – P. lamtoensis Levasseur, 1967. 11, 18 – apical portion of sternite VIII, ventral view; 12 – sternite IX, ventral view; 13, 19 – head; 14-16 − aedeagus: 14 – ventral view, 15 – dorsal view, 16 – lateral view; 17 – underside of paramere, with sensory peg setae.