Protoconnus princeps (Franz) Jałoszyński, 2018

Jałoszyński, Paweł, 2018, Revision of the Neotropical genus Protoconnus Franz (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Scydmaeninae), Zootaxa 4392 (1), pp. 41-82 : 53-54

Protoconnus princeps (Franz) , comb. n.

( Figs 23 , 32–33 , 94 , 101 )

Euconnus princeps Franz, 1967: 695 , fig. 179.

Type material. Holotype: PERU (La Convención Province): ♂, three labels ( Fig. 94 ): "Sierra Garavito / b. Quillabamba, 1800 m / Nebelwald,Peru" with "Sa 84" on the reverse side [white, printed], " Euconnus / princeps / m. / det.H.Franz" [white, handwritten and printed], "Typus" [red, handwritten] (NHMW).

Revised diagnosis. BL 0.88 mm; body relatively slender, elytra 1.52 times as broad as transverse pronotum, which is broadest in anterior third; frons in male distinctly impressed between supraantennal tubercles, the latter conspicuous large, narrowly separated at middle and each demarcated posteriorly by a narrow groove; vertex unmodified; pronotal base with small but distinct pits and groove; lateral pronotal carinae distinct in posterior third; humeral carinae indistinct, rounded; aedeagus in ventral view rapidly narrowed near middle, distal region parallelsided up to subtriangular and pointed subapical area; parameres with distinctly broadened apices.

Redescription. Body of male ( Fig. 23 ) strongly convex, light brown, setae yellowish; BL 0.88 mm.

Head broadest at vestigial eyes, each composed of three ommatidia, HL 0.18 mm, HW 0.20 mm; tempora in lateral view nearly three times as long as eyes; vertex distinctly convex, posterior margin of vertex demarcated from the 'neck' region by weakly elevated and rounded ridge laterally confluent with evenly rounded tempora; frons between supraantennal tubercles narrow and impressed; supraantennal tubercles conspicuously large but moderately elevated, narrowly separated at middle and posteriorly demarcated by narrow and shallow grooves. Punctures on frons and vertex inconspicuous; setae short, moderately dense and suberect. Antennae slender, AnL 0.35 mm, less than half as long as body, club distinctly delimited; antennomeres I and II each about twice as long as broad; III–X each distinctly transverse, XI much longer than X, about 1.1 × as long as broad.

Pronotum slightly transverse, rounded with nearly straight posterior margin, broadest in anterior third, but only slightly narrowing posteriorly; PL 0.23 mm, PW 0.26 mm. Lateral carinae distinct in posterior third; transverse antebasal groove and pits distinct. Punctures on pronotal disc inconspicuous; setae sparse, short, suberect.

Elytra much more convex than pronotum, oval, broadest in front of middle; EL 0.48 mm, EW 0.40 mm, EI 1.19; humeral carinae developed as elongate and rounded but relatively narrow ridges. Punctures and setae similar to those on pronotum.

Legs moderately long and slender, unmodified.

Aedeagus ( Figs 32–33 ) slender; AeL 0.23 mm; in ventral view basal capsule about as long as half of distal region, gradually narrowed distad; distal region laterally delimited from sides of basal capsule by a shallow constriction, broad, parallel-sided up to apical 1/3, which is subtriangular with pointed apex, in lateral view its distal half weakly recurved; in lateral view area above parameral bases forming a short subtriangular projection; parameres with apices distinctly broadened, recurved in ventral view, each with one long apical and one short subapical seta.

Female unknown.

Distribution. Southern Peru ( Fig. 101 ).

Remarks. Franz (1967) described the new genus Protoconnus and Euconnus princeps in one paper; he made a remark that the latter species is intermediary between Protoconnus and Euconnus . Although the holotype of E. princeps is partly damaged, its body shape and antennal structure do not leave any doubts about its generic affinities, and its aedeagus, accurately illustrated in the same paper, is typical of Protoconnus . Examination of ventral structures confirmed this placement.

Protoconnus princeps is unique in strongly reduced eyes in males, with only three ommatidia, whereas males of all remaining species are macrophthalmous.

Figures

FIGURE 101. Distribution of nominal Protoconnus species.

FIGURES 18–23. Dorsal habitus of Protoconnus species. Protoconnus andicola Franz (18); P. venezolanus Franz, holotype (19) and paratype (20); P. bolivianus Franz (21); P. comarapae Franz (22); P. princeps (Franz) (23).

FIGURES 24–33. Aedeagi of Protoconnus species. Protoconnus andicola Franz (24–25); P. venezolanus Franz (26–27); P. bolivianus Franz (28–29); P. comarapae Franz (30–31); P. princeps (Franz) (32–33).

FIGURES 90–100. Original labels of primary type specimens of previously described Protoconnus species. Protoconnus andicola Franz (90); P. venezolanus Franz (91); P. bolivianus Franz (92); P. comarapae Franz (93); P. princeps (Franz) (94); P. araguanus Franz (95); P. paraguayanus Franz (96); P. peruensis Franz (97); P. robustus Franz (98); P. minutus Franz (99); P. minutissimus Franz (100).