Nebria (Patrobonebria) hiekeiana, Charles Huber & Hannes Baur, 2016

Charles Huber & Hannes Baur, 2016, Nebria (Patrobonebria) incognita n. sp. and Nebria (P.) hiekeiana n. sp., two new species from the Western Himalaya, with remarks on Nebria (P.) desgodinsi (Coleoptera, Carabidae, Nebriinae), Entomologische Blätter und Coleoptera 112 (1), pp. 203-214 : 211-213

Nebria (Patrobonebria) hiekeiana n. sp.

Fig. 9

Type material. Holotype male: India, Punjab, Murree Hills, Thobba [printed] // H. Roberts. Coll., B. M. 1926- 395 [printed] // N. desgodinsi Oberth. , det. Morvan 1981 [handwritten] ( BMNH). [Remark: basal part of the aedeagus damaged]

Paratype: 1 female, same data as holotype // Nebria Patrobonebria macrocephala pallidipes Brt., Ledoux det. 1980 [handwritten] // N. desgodinsi det. Morvan 1981 [handwritten] (BMNH).

Description. Body length: 12-13 mm.

Colour black, mandibulae and labrum brown, appendages of the head yellow. Ultimate palpomere of the palpi brownish darkened. Antennae brown, the basal antennomeres 1-4 yellow. Head without spots on the vertex. Legs yellow, tarsi somewhat brownish darkened.

Head large, with a distinct transverse collar impression of the neck behind the eyes. Labrum with anterior margin distinctly trisinuate, bearing six setae. Apical margin of clypeus slightly concave. Supraantennal edge distinctly, but Fnely rebordered. Supraorbital impression shallow, obliquely wrinkled, Fnely punctate. Head near supraorbital seta longitudinally wrinkled. Vertex and collar impression Fnely and sparsely punctate. Eyes large, very prominent, ratio of maximal head width/frons width = 1.55 (1.51-1.58) ( Tab. 3). Temples long, strongly rounded towards the neck. One supraorbital seta. Antennae long and slender, extending to the middle of the elytra. Antennal scape suboval, basally narrowed, shorter than the eye’s diameter, with one dorsoapical seta; second antennomere with one ventral seta; fourth antennomere with an apical collar of long setae, with few additional short setae apically. Ligula blunt, apicolaterally with two long setae. Penultimate labial palpomere generally bisetose (the holotype’s right palpomere trisetose!). Mentum ( Fig. 5 E) with a median, distinctly excised tooth. Spina apicalis of the mentum pronounced, incisio apicalis of the mental lobe distinctly concave ( Fig. 5 E). Submentum with a row of 8-9 setae. Microsculpture of the head isodiametric.

Pronotum cordate, transverse, widest at apical fourth; ratio width/length of the pronotum 1.43 (1.39-1.47). Lateral margin convex without a break in the outline caused by the marginal pore. Pronotum widely rounded towards the anterior angles, narrowed towards the posterior angles, concavely and sharply angled in front of the posterior angles. Anterior angles very wide, regularly rounded, little protruding. Lateral groove wide, lateral margin towards base Fnely bordered, not blade-like. Posterior angles short and sharply right-angled, not protruding outwards. Posterior angles narrower than the anterior ones (0.83). Basal margin bisinuate. Pronotal disc convex, medially slightly transversally wrinkled. Prebasal fovea deep. Anterior and posterior transverse impressions deep, median longitudinal impression scarcely impressed as a line. Prebasal fovea, the anterior and the posterior transverse impressions and the lateral groove tightly and coarsely punctate. Apical and basal margin absent. One lateral and one basolateral seta present. Lateral seta situated at apical third behind the widest diameter of the pronotum ( Fig. 7 B). Microsculpture of the pronotum isodiametric. Pronotal disc faintly and sparsely punctate. Proepisternum apically and basally tightly punctate, medially smooth. Prosternum tightly punctate. Prosternal process slender, triangular, longitudinally bulged, coarsely punctate, unmargined.

Elytral silhouette elongate, widest slightly behind middle. Lateral margin slightly sinuate at the basal fourth and subapically as well. Elytral apex rounded. Basal margin faintly curved, joined at a very obtuse angle with the lateral margin. Humeral carina faint. Striae faintly impressed, Fnely punctate; in striae 1-3 punctation distinct only in the basal third, obliterate from disc. Striae 1-3 reaching the apex, the other striae and their punctation obliterate apically. Short carina at apex. Intervals faintly convex, interval 3 with 6-9 short setae. Scutellar seta absent (in female paratype specimen asymmetrically present). Microsculpture isodiametric. Mesepisterna tightly and coarsely punctate. Metepisterna 2.5 times as long as wide, tightly and coarsely punctate. Metacoxa with 2-4 basal and one apical setae. Hindwings fully developed. Second sternum laterally coarsely punctate. Third sternum laterally Fnely punctate, medially asetose. Sterna 4-6 each with 2-4 posterior paramedial setae. Anal sternum with one paramedial seta in the male and two in the female. Sterna without lateral impressions.

Legs long and slender. All tarsi without a dorsal pubescence. Protarsomeres 1-2 of the males slightly dilated, ventrally with pads of adhesive setae. Metatarsomere 4 with a short ventroapical tooth, bearing long setae. Metatarsomeres 2-4 laterally compressed in males.

Median lobe (basal part damaged; Fig. 8 B): Midshaft slender, slightly curved to the apex. Apex slender, acute, faintly deFected towards the left; tip short.

Diagnosis. N. hiekeiana n. sp. belongs to the N. desgodinsi species group with protruding eyes ( Tab. 3). N. hiekeiana n. sp. differs from N. desgodinsi in the lack of a deep incision of the mental lobe, and from N. incognita n. sp. in the regularly rounded lateral margin of the pronotum having the lateral seta behind the widest diameter of the pronotum, by the lateral margin of the pronotum, which is not turned up blade-like, and by the Fnely impressed and impunctate striae 1-3 on disc. N. hiekeiana differs from N. megalops in the yellow legs and appendages of the head, which are dark brown to black in N. megalops .

Etymology. The new species is dedicated to the inimitable Amarologist FRITZ HIEKE.

Distribution. N. hiekeiana n. sp. is only known from the locus typicus Camp Thobba (= Topa; 33° 54’N, 73° 26’E), in Punjab in present day Pakistan.

Figures

Fig. 5. Menta of Nebria (Patrobonebria) species. A – N. desgodinsi OBERTHÜR, 1883, (putative) male type specimen (MHNP), the right part of the mentum is white-bordered; B – N. himalayica BATES, 1889, type specimen (MNHN); C – N. capillosa LEDOUX & ROUX, 1992; D – N. incognita n. sp.; E – N. hiekeiana n. sp. All photographs C. GERMANN.

Fig. 7. Pronota of Nebria (Patrobonebria) species. A – N. incognita n. sp., with a break in the outline caused by the marginal pore, and with the lateral seta apically inserted in front of the widest diameter of the pronotum; B – N. hiekeiana n. sp. Photographs C. GERMANN.

Fig. 8. Aedeagi of Nebria (Patrobonebria) species. the male specimens of A – N. incognita n. sp., holotype; B – N. hiekeiana n. sp., holotype. Photographs C. GERMANN.

Fig. 9. Habitus of the male holotype specimen of Nebria (Patrobonebria) hiekeiana n. sp. Foto C. GERMANN.