Pseudolathra brevalata, Assing, 2021

Assing, Volker, 2021, A revision of Palaearctic, Oriental, and New Guinean Pseudolathra. VI. Four new species, two new syonymies, and additional records (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae, Paederinae), Linzer biologische Beiträge 53 (1), pp. 451-463 : 454-455

Pseudolathra brevalata nov.sp. (Figs 1-3, 13-14)

T y p e m a t e r i a l: Holotype ♁: " NEPAL (Prov. Bagmati), Nagarju For. nr. Kathmandu , 1650 m, 2.IV.84, Löbl & Smetana / Holotypus ♁ Pseudolathra brevalata sp. n., det. V. Assing 2021" ( CNC).

E t y m o l o g y: The specific epithet (Latin adjective: with short wings) alludes to the short elytra.

D e s c r i p t i o n: Body length 8.0 mm; length of forebody 4.0 mm. Habitus as in Fig. 1. Colouration: body blackish; legs dark reddish-brown with darker meso- and metafemora; antennae brown with antennomeres I-II reddish.

Head (Fig. 2) moderately transverse, 1.13 times as broad as long; dorsal surface with few coarse punctures along sides, otherwise impunctate; microsculpture absent. Eyes large, approximately three times as long as postocular region in dorsal view. Antenna 2.8 mm long.

Pronotum (Fig. 2) weakly oblong, 1.02 times as long as broad and 1.01 times as broad as head, broadest in anterior half; lateral margins weakly convex in dorsal view; disc with a dorsal series of six coarse punctures on either side and few coarse punctures arranged in irregular rows laterally, otherwise impunctate; microsculpture absent.

Elytra (Fig. 2) short, barely 0.8 times as long as pronotum; disc dorsally with three series of macropunctures, one along suture, one along middle, and one laterally; interstices without microsculpture. Hind wings not examined, but probably reduced.

Abdomen with fine punctation, this punctation moderately dense on anterior and rather sparse on posterior tergites; interstices with fine transverse microsculpture; posterior margin of tergite VII with narrow palisade fringe.

♁: protarsomeres I-IV strongly dilated; sternite VII (Fig. 13) strongly transverse, posterior margin broadly excised, on either side with a cluster of dense black setae, medially with a pair of tooth-shaped projections; sternite VIII (Fig. 14) with narrow and deep posterior excision nearly reaching middle of sternite; aedeagus 1.2 mm long and shaped as in Fig. 3.

♀: unknown.

C o m p a r a t i v e n o t e s: Based on the shapes and chaetotaxy of the male sternites VII and VIII, as well as on the structure of the aedeagus, P. brevalata belongs to the P. nigerrima group (see ASSING 2012). It is easily distinguished from other similarly small representatives of this group by shorter elytra, the distinctive shape of the male sternite VII, and by the structure of the aedeagus.

D i s t r i b u t i o n a n d n a t u r a l h i s t o r y: The type locality is situated near Kathmandu, Nepal. The holotype was collected at an altitude of 1650 m, probably by sifting.