Baconia scintillans, Caterino, Michael S. & Tishechkin, Alexey K., 2013

Caterino, Michael S. & Tishechkin, Alexey K., 2013, A systematic revision of Baconia Lewis (Coleoptera, Histeridae, Exosternini), ZooKeys 343, pp. 1-297 : 57-59

Baconia scintillans sp. n. Figs 14 A–BMap 3

Type locality.

PANAMA: Chiriqui: Hornito [8.68°N, 82.23°W].

Type material.

Holotype male: "PANAMA: Chiriquí Prov., Hornito, Finca La Suiza, 1220m 1.VI.2000 H. & A. Howden, FIT" / "Caterino/Tishechkin Exosternini Voucher EXO-00445" (CMNC). Paratype (1): same data as type, except: 3.vi.2000, FIT, H. & A. Howden (CMNC).

Other material.

GUATEMALA: Zacapa, Santa Clara, interior valley of Sierra de las Minas, under bark, 9.viii.1948, 5500 ft., R.D.Mitchell leg. (FMNH).

Diagnostic description.

Length: 2.2-2.3mm, width: 1.9-2.0mm; body broadly elongate oval, depressed, glabrous; color metallic greenish-blue over most of dorsum, venter rufobrunneus; frons elevated over antennal bases, depressed at middle, ground punctation fine, with few coarse punctures at middle and near vertex, frontal stria present along inner margin of eye, curving inward at front, interrupted over antennal bases, at middle, or both, supraorbital stria weakly impressed but complete; antennal scape short, club nearly circular; epistoma truncate apically; labrum about 3 ×wider than long, weakly emarginate apically; both mandibles with acute basal tooth; prono tum with sides increasingly arcuate to apex, marginal stria complete along lateral and anterior margins, lateral submarginal stria absent, ground punctation of pronotal disk very fine, interspersed with coarser secondary punctures in lateral fourths; elytra with two complete epipleural striae, outer subhumeral stria absent, inner subhumeral stria present as basal and median fragments, dorsal striae 1-3 complete, 4th and 5th striae weakly impressed in apical fourth, sutural stria present in apical third, elytral disk with few coarse punctures along apical margin; prosternum moderately broad, weakly convex, keel weakly emarginate at base, carinal striae complete, slightly sinuate, separate throughout; prosternal lobe about two-thirds keel length, apical margin rounded, marginal stria present along most of margin; mesoventrite weakly produced at middle, marginal stria interrupted for median one-third; mesometaventral stria arched forward, weakly crenulate, detached from lateral metaventral stria, which extends from inner corner of mesocoxa posterolaterad toward outer third of metacoxa, abbreviated apically, outer lateral metaventral stria absent, metaventral disk impunctate at middle; abdominal ventrite 1 with single, complete lateral stria, middle portion of disk lacking coarse punctures; protibia 4-5 dentate, the basal one or two denticles weak, outer margin serrulate between teeth; mesotibia with two weak marginal spines; outer metatibial margin smooth; propygidium lacking basal stria, with coarse punctures subserially arranged along basal margin, separated by 1 –2× their diameters elsewhere; propygidial gland openings evident about one-third behind anterior margin, about one-fourth width from each lateral margin; pygidium with ground punctation rather dense in apical half, secondary punctation denser toward base. Male genitalia extremely similar that of Baconia godmani (see Figs 12 A–D, I–J), differing as follows: T8 slightly more elongate, S8 with apical guides slightly more broadly expanded toward apex, tegmen with sides slightly more undulate, apex slightly more broadly rounded.

Remarks.

This species lacks submarginal pronotal and basal propygidial striae, and has an isolated median fragment of the mesometaventral stria (Fig. 14B). It is similar in all these respects only to Baconia choaspites , which lacks a sutural elytral stria and has a deeply emarginate labrum. In Baconia scintillans , the labrum is weakly bisinuate and the sutural stria is present in the apical half. The two types, collected at the same locality, differ substantially in color, with the paratype distinctly bluer, not greenish-blue as the holotype. Some of the coloration of the latter, however, may result from a slightly oily surface.

Etymology.

This species’ name refers to its shiny, metallic appearance.