Microselasia burgeoni ( Pic, 1930 ) Kundrata, 2018

Kundrata, Robin, 2018, New minute Drilini species significantly extend the distributions of Lolosia and Microselasia (Coleoptera: Elateridae: Agrypninae) in tropical Africa, Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae 58 (2), pp. 531-538 : 534-536

Microselasia burgeoni ( Pic, 1930) comb. nov.

( Figs 15–16, 19–20, 22–24 )

Selasia burgeoni Pic, 1930: 307 ; WITTMER (1944: 208).

Type material. HOLOTYPE: ♁, ‘[ DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO], Haut-Uele : Yebo Moto, IV. 1926, L. Burgeon, Musée du Congo // R. dét. 1616 M; Selasia burgeoni n. sp.; Holotypus’ ( RMCA).

Redescription of holotype. Body ( Figs 15–16 ) 3.05 times longer than width at humeri. Body brown to dark brown, mouthparts and legs lighter, pro- and mesothorax yellowish brown; surface covered with yellow pubescence.

Head ( Fig. 22 ) including eyes almost as wide as pronotum; surface smooth, shallowly depressed medially, very sparsely punctate, covered with sparse, long, semi-erect setae; frons slightly produced forwards to surpass fronto-clypeal region; frontal carina complete; fronto-clypeal region high, narrow, with distinct longitudinal carina. Eyes large, their frontal distance 1.15 times eye diameter. Labrum transverse, sparsely punctate, with frontal margin widely concave. Mandible relatively long, bidentate, with sharp tooth located in middle part of incisor, basally with long setae, apical part shiny. Maxillary palpus tetramerous, slender, palpomere III short, slightly longer than wide, ultimate palpomere elongate, fusiform, subacute apically. Labial palpus tiny, apical palpomere fusiform, subacute apically. Antenna ( Figs 19–20 ) with 11 antennomeres, flabellate; scape robust, slightly widened apically, pedicel short, small; antennomere III slightly serrate, long, about 1.3 times as long as antennomere IV, its branch shorter than stem; antennomere IV with elongate branch about as long as its stem; antennomeres V–VII gradually shorter, with gradually longer branches, antennomeres VII–X short, subequal in length, with branches about four times longer than stems; antennomere XI simple, longest, slightly shorter than branch of penultimate antennomere, about 3.5 times longer than stem of penultimate antennomere; all antennomeres covered with moderately dense pubescence.

Pronotum ( Fig. 22 ) slightly convex, rather transverse, widest in anterior two fifths, 1.55 times wider than length at midline. Anterior margin almost straight, lateral margins sinuate, slightly diverging posteriorly, posterior margin simple, widely rounded. Anterior angles inconspicuous; posterior angles produced postero-laterally, slightly rounded. Disc with narrow, transverse carina near anterior margin, and with short sublateral carinae near posterior angles reaching first quarter of pronotum. Lateral carina incomplete anteriorly; hypomeron rather smooth, slightly depressed posteriorly. Surface of disc very sparsely covered with shallow punctures, with sparse semi-erect pubescence. Prosternum transverse, with frontal margin almost straight, oriented ventrally, with long semi-erect setae; prosternal process reduced, short, subacute.

Scutellar shield flat, triangular, about as long as wide, posteriorly narrowly rounded. Mesoventrite widely v-shaped, with frontal margin widely concave; mesoventral cavity reduced. Elytra ( Fig. 15 ) subparallel-sided, 0.75 times as long as body, combined 2.20 times as long as wide; basally wrinkled, with surface uneven, sparsely covered with shallow punctures; relatively densely covered with long, semi-erect to erect pubescence.

Legs slightly compressed, with sparse, long, semi-erect setae; tarsomeres I–II subequal in length, tarsomere III slightly shorter, tarsomere IV shortest, minute, extended ventrally, apical tarsomere long, slender; claws simple, slightly curved, each with long seta basally.

Abdomen with ventrites moderately densely covered with shallow punctures and with semi-erect pubescence. Tergites IX and X weakly connected by membrane; tergite IX transverse, tergite X slightly longer than wide. Sternite IX ( Fig. 26 ) 1.9 times as long as wide, deeply notched basally, rounded apically, with apex finely punctate and sparsely setose.

Aedeagus ( Fig. 27 ) 1.8 times as long as wide, with median lobe stout, relatively short, shorter than phallobase, surpassing apices of parameres, moderately curved in lateral view, basally with two relatively long struts, dorsally with rather short and sharp subapical hook; parameres minute, short, subacute apically; phallobase robust, long, u-shaped, about 1.2 times longer than wide.

Female and immature stages unknown.

Measurements. BL 3.15 mm, WHum 1.05 mm, EL 2.30 mm, WHe 0.80 mm, PL 0.55 mm, PW 0.85 mm, Edist 0.40 mm, Ediam 0.35 mm.

Differential diagnosis. Microselasia burgeoni comb. nov. is superficially similar to M. barombi Kundrata & Bocak, 2017 , M. gracilis Kundrata & Bocak, 2017 , M. macrocephala Kundrata & Bocak, 2017 , and M. obscura . These species share strongly flabellate antennae and pronotum with distinctly sinuate sides and postero-laterally projected posterior angles ( Figs 19, 22 ). Microselasia burgeoni comb. nov. differs from all these species in its yellowish brown pronotum which is distinctly lighter than head and elytra ( Figs 15–16, 22 ; usually brown to dark brown in other species). Microselasia obscura , which is similar to M. burgeoni comb. nov. in the body size (3.10–3.50 mm), large eyes (their frontal distance 1.15 times eye diameter), and pronotum widest in the anterior two fifths, differs additionally in less transverse pronotum (1.40 times wider than long; 1.55 times in M. burgeoni ; Fig. 22 ) and robust, relatively longer and wider subapical hook on median lobe (minute and short in M. burgeoni ; Fig. 24 ).

Distribution. The Democratic Republic of the Congo: Haut-Uele Province.

Figures

Figs 15–27. Morphology of Microselasia species. 15–16 – M. burgeoni (Pic, 1930): 15 – habitus, dorsal view; 16 – habitus, lateral view. 17–18 – M. sormovae sp. nov.: 17 – habitus, dorsal view; 18 – habitus, lateral view. 19–20 – M. burgeoni (Pic, 1930): 19 – apical antennomeres, ventral view, 20 – basal antennomeres, ventral view. 21 – M. sormovae sp. nov., antenna, dorsal view. 22–24 – M. burgeoni (Pic, 1930): 22 – head and pronotum, dorsal view; 23 – abdominal sternite IX, ventral view; 24 – aedeagus, dorsal view. 25–27 – M. sormovae sp. nov.: 25 – head and pronotum, dorsal view; 26 – abdominal sternite IX, ventral view; 27 – aedeagus, dorsal view. Scale bars = 1.0 mm (Figs 15–19), 0.5 mm (Figs 22, 25), 0.2 mm (Figs 20–21, 23–24, 26–27).