Goudotostes randrianirinai, Ballerio, 2021

Ballerio, Alberto, 2021, The Ceratocanthinae of Madagascar and Comoro Islands: a revision of the genera Synarmostes and Goudotostes, and of the flightless Philharmostes, with description of 64 new species (Coleoptera: Scarabaeoidea, Hybosoridae), Fragmenta entomologica 53 (2), pp. 105-282 : 196

Goudotostes randrianirinai sp. nov.

( Figs 73 a-i, 77) http://zoobank.org/ urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:A80C3B8A-D46A-49B9-BCBB-0E43B19AA765

Type series. Holotype, ♂, deposited in the collection of the California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, CA, USA, labelled as follows: / CASTYPE 20282 / CASENT 8135153 / Madagascar: Toliara Grand Lavasoa 25.9 km W Tolagnaro elev. 450 m 30 Nov. – 2 Dec. 2006 / 25° 05’ 16” S 046° 44’ 56” E / California Acad. of Sciences coll. B. L. Fisher et al. sifted litter, rainforest BLF 15410/ Goudotostes randrianirinai n. sp. det. A. Ballerio 2020 Holotypus ♂ [distended specimen glued on a card, dissected, male genitalia glued in DMHF resin on a separate card, same pin]. Paratypes [2 ♂♂ dissected]: 15 ♂♂ and 7 ♀♀ (17 in CASC and 5 in ABCB), same collecting data as holotype .

Diagnosis. Goudotostes randrianirinai sp. nov is a very distinctive species, quite isolated with respect to the other known species of Goudotostes . It can be differentiat- ed from all other species of Goudotostes by the following combination of characters: a) small size, b) dorsal ocular area present, c) head without tubercles, d) pronotun without tubercles or carinae, e) pronotum with a transverse hemicircular line isolating the anterior portion of pronotum, f) elytra without tubercles and carinae, apart from lateral cariniform process under h), g) a longitudinal line parallel to sutural stria on each elytron, h) a longitudinal small apical carina of elytral sides. None of the known Goudotostes has such a dorsal sculpturing without carinae or tubercles even on sides.

Description. Size: HL = 0.7 mm; HW = 1.1 mm; PL = 1.0 mm; PW = 1.7 mm; EL = 2.1 mm; EW = 1.5 mm. Overall morphology as in generic diagnosis. Small-sized Goudotostes . Body weakly convex compared to the other species. Black, dorsum with extremely short fine setation (50×), underside, tarsi and antennae dark reddish-brown, setation yellowish-brown. Head: W/L ratio = 1.55; clypeal apex obtuse, apical projection absent, sides almost rectilinear apart from slightly unaligned genae; dorsal ocular area absent, genal canthus indistinct, ventral ocular area small-sized, genae acute, distinctly protruding outwards, genal suture indistinct; head dorsal surface without tubercles, with frons and vertex covered by large impressed simple punctures becoming transversely comma-shaped on clypeus, fore margin marked by some irregular transverse lines, one of them reaching periocular area. Interpunctural distance twice or equal to punctural diameter. Pronotum: subrectangular (dorsal view) (W/L ratio = 1.80), convex, fore angles broadly subtruncate; surface without tubercles and/or carinae, covered by small to medium-sized transverse comma-shaped punctures each one having next a small fine simple setigerous puncture. A wide, almost continuous, c-shaped furrow isolating the fore pronotal portion in correspondence with the head; some transverse large irregular lines mixed to comma-shaped punctures on remaining surface. Scutellum : surface, apart from apical portion, covered by large transverse impressed irregular lines. Elytra: longer than wide (W/L ratio = 0.88), subrectangular (dorsal view), slightly convex; inferior sutural stria complete, large and deep, reaching the humeral area; humeral callus indistinct; elytral surface uniformly covered by sparse small comma-shaped punctures oriented slantwise, each one having next a simple fine setigerous puncture, interpunctural distance twice to equal to punctural width. A few larger irregular punctures with opening directed outwards around humeral area and on distal third. Striated articular area hardly visible in lateral view, relatively narrow and short; marginal area large and protrudent outwards; elytral articular process well developed, smooth and shiny. Each elytron having one longitudinal fine impressed furrow parallel to suture, starting from elytral apex and occupying about two-thirds of elytral length. One relatively large smooth cariniform longitudinal process on elytral sides near apex. Wings: flightless. Male genitalia: aedeagus (L = 1.1 mm) with parameres as in Figs 73 f-i; spiculum gastrale (L = 1.2 mm) as in Fig. 73 e .

Etymology. Noun in the genitive case. Named after Jasmin E. Randrianirina, herpetologist and director of the Par- que Zoologique et Botanique de Tsimbazaza (Antananarivo).

Distribution and habitat. Known only from the type locality. Collected by sifting litter in rainforest. For details on the collecting locality see under Synarmostes parrilloi sp. nov..

Figures

Fig. 73 – Goudotostes randrianirinai sp. nov., a, holotype, dorsal view of distended specimen (thl: transverse hemicircular line isolating the anterior portion of pronotum; dlf: deep longitudinal furrow parallel to elytral suture); b, paratype, ventral view of rolled up specimen; c, paratype, dorsal view of rolled up specimen; d, paratype, lateral view of rolled up specimen (cp: apical cariniform process); e, holotype, spiculum gastrale; f–i, holotype, four views of aedeagus.