Pseudobironium achardi (Pic, 1920)

Löbl, Ivan & Tang, Liang, 2013, A review of the genus Pseudobironium Pic (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Scaphidiinae), Revue suisse de Zoologie 120 (4), pp. 665-734 : 730-731

Pseudobironium achardi (Pic, 1920)

Amalocera achardi Pic, 1920c: 242 .

LECTOTYPE: ♀, NMPC, by present designation, from INDONESIA, labelled: Sumatra Palembang (handwritten) / Amalocera Achardi mihi (handwritten by Pic) / TYPE (red, printed) / Amalocera achardi Pic J. Achard det. Type (handwritten by Achard, “J. Achard. det.” printed) / Mus. Nat. Pragae Inv. 18 744 (red) / Pseudobironium achardi (Pic) det. Löbl, 1970 (handwritten, “det. Löbl 19” printed) / Lectotype Pseudobironium achardi (Pic) det. Löbl, 2012.

REDESCRIPTION: Length 2.30 mm, width 1.66 mm. Head with frons very dark, blackish, mouth-parts reddish. Pronotum with large black central spot reaching anterior margin, reddish on sides and behind black spot. Narrow basal strip of pronotum darkened. Elytra black, reddish at apices. Reddish apical area of elytron near lateral margins almost as fourth of elytron, becoming narrower toward suture, at suture about as seventh of sutural length. Prohypomera, mesoventrite, abdomen and legs light reddish-brown, tarsi slightly lighter than tibiae. Metaventrite darker than mesoventrite and abdomen; antennomeres I to VI yellowish, following infuscate. Maxillary palpi with palpomere IV about 3 times as long as wide, tapering. Antennae conspicuously short, length ratio of antennomeres as II 9: III 5: IV 5: V 8: VI 5: VII 10: VIII 10: IX 10: X 10: XI 14; antennomere XI twice as long as wide (left antenna, only two basal antennomeres of the right antenna are present). Pronotal punctation distinct although very fine on dark spot, almost indistinct laterally. Elytral punctation similar to pronotal on narrow basal area, on remaining surface coarser, consisting of well delimited punctures, puncture intervals usually three to four times as large as puncture diameters, near apices denser, with intervals as to three times as large as puncture diameters. Prohypomera smooth. Mesoventrite lacking median ridge or stria, very finely punctate near margin. Metaventrite with median part not microsculptured, convex anteriad, flattened in apical half, with fairly coarse and dense punctation covering most of surface, mesal area included, only anterior portion impunctate. Lateral parts of metaventrite with punctulate microsculpture and very fine, sparse punctation. Submesocoxal area about as long as third of interval to metacoxa. Metacoxal process weakly sinuate. Mesotibiae hardly curved, metatibiae weakly curved, mesotibial ventral spur straight. Abdominal sternite 1 impunctate basolaterally, finely punctate apicolaterally and on median area; with distinct punctulate microsculpture on median area; with foveiform, fairly deep lateral impressions.

DISTRIBUTION: Indonesia: Sumatra.

COMMENTS: This species was transferred to Pseudobironium in Löbl (1975: 269). It is well characterized by its colour pattern and short antennae, with antennomeres III, IV and VI equally long. The body is comparatively weakly convex, similar to that in P. sparsepunctatum and P. languei . These three species have also similar antennae but differ drastically by the palpi which are tapering in P. achardi . The species remains represented by the single original specimen. As the number of specimens examined was not mentioned by Pic, 1920 and not necessarily conspecific syntypes may exist in collections, the designation of a lectotype is considered useful.