Psychristus (Nipponobradycellus) glaber JAEGER & WRASE, 2007

D. W, Jaeger, B. & H, Rolwaling, 2007, New species of Psychristus ANDREWES 1930 subgenus Nipponobradycellus HABU 1973 (Coleoptera, Carabidae, Harpalini, Stenolophina) from Nepal, Linzer biologische Beiträge 39 (1), pp. 681-692 : 687-688

Psychristus (Nipponobradycellus) glaber JAEGER & WRASE nov.sp.

T y p e m a t e r i a l: Holotype: " NEPAL Annapurna Mts. below Thulo Bugin, above Talbagar 3500-3800 m 30/31.5.04 leg. Schmidt " (Coll. D.W. Wrase, Berlin, Germ.).

D i a g n o s i s An apterous species of small body size in Nipponobradycellus , dark reddish brown to piceous, with appendages, first interval of elytra, apical half of head somewhat paler, with antennae relatively short for a stenolophine, and with pronotum cordiforme, strongly convex to anterior angles, roundly narrowed toward the base, with a weak sinuation before the well marked denticulate posterior angles, and with elytra with first stria weakly impressed and punctured, second stria partly reduced, remaining ones indicated only by single punctures and the remaining striae completely reduced, only marked by shallow punctures (habitus see Fig. 9 , for values of measurements and ratios see also Tabl. 1).

D e s c r i p t i o n: Body length 3.6 mm; width 1.5 mm, respectively.

Colour: Head, pronotum and elytra dark brown to piceous, with margins and sutural interval of elytra and apical half of head lighter. Appendages light brown to testaceous.

Head: Head of average size in Nipponobradycellus (0.79 times as wide as pronotum), with eyes moderately prominent. Tempora oblique, of about one sixth of eye diameter. Antennae pubescent from antennomere 4.

Pronotum ( Fig. 9 ): Transverse, cordiform (1.20 times as wide as long, 1.26 times as wide as head), widest at beginning of second third, lateral seta inserted somewhat behind this. Disc convex, median line smooth, weakly impressed medially, becoming shallow to anterior and posterior margin and not reaching them, anterior and posterior transverse impressions only suggested. Anterior margin slightly convex, anterior angles not projecting forward, narrowly rounded at tip. Sides strongly curved apicad, from widest point weakly convex, distinctly sinuate to the weakly obtuse-angled posterior angles, sharp at tip, denticle very small but distinct, protruding laterally. Base about as wide as anterior margin (maximum width about 1.33 times as wide as base), medially weakly and laterally strongly convex with hind angles strongly produced. Lateral furrows narrow, becoming finer toward anterior angles, anterior margin only laterally bordered, at basal margin border reaching the basal foveae. Basal foveae small and indistinct, somewhat elongately impressed, base with only a few shallow punctures in and around foveae.

Elytra ( Fig. 9 ): Short-oval (1.45 times as long as wide, 1.47 times as wide as pronotum), on disc slightly convex, with humeri well developed, rounded and somewhat projected forward, without humeral tooth; toward behind somewhat enlarged, widest at about middle. Basal bead arcuately curving inside humerus, with a sharp angle turning to lateral margin. Scutellar pore puncture present, scutellar stria completely reduced. Interval 3 without a setigerous pore puncture on disc. Stria 1 weakly impressed and punctured, stria 2 partly, remaining striae completely reduced, only marked by fine and shallow punctures. Subapical sinuation weak. Last sternite with 1 seta on each side (male).

Hind wings: Strongly reduced to small scales.

Sterna: Prosternum (except some single shallow punctures anteriorly), pro-, mes- and metepisternum impunctate. Metepisternum ( Fig. 12 ) short, ventral margin only about 1.2 times longer as anterior margin, strongly narrowed posteriad.

Legs: Male protarsi weakly and mesotarsi very weakly dilated, both with adhesive vestiture ventrally, consisting of not numerous biseriate, elongate hyaline setae difficult to see (in protarsi apically distinctly, in metatarsi weakly widened).

Microsculpture of surface: Strongly reduced, except for distinct isodiametric meshes on labrum and scutellum, surface strongly shiny.

Median lobe of aedeagus ( Figs 10, 11 ): Relatively short, moderately arcuate, with apex flattened (lateral view), apicad moderately narrowed and twisted somewhat to the left, apical lamella short, triangular (dorsal view). Internal sac without any larger teeth but with a specific folding pattern, medially covered by large and flat honeycomb-like plates of somewhat irregular shape.

Female genitalia: Unknown.

C o m p a r i s o n s: Easily distinguished from P. schmidti nov.sp. and P. umbraticornis nov.sp. by elytra with only stria 1 impressed, 2 partly and remaining completely reduced and without discal pore puncture in interval 3, and by a completely different construction of the median lobe, additionally by extreme small body size (to date the smallest species known in Psychristus ).

E t y m o l o g y: The new species is named for the reduced striation of elytra (Latin "glaber": smooth).

D i s t r i b u t i o n: Currently only known from the type locality in the western macroslope of the Annapurna Mountains into the Kaligandaki Valley in Central-Nepal.

H a b i t a t: Taken by sifting leaf-litter in a Rhododendron arboreum forest in the upper cloud forest zone.

Figures

Figs 9-12: Psychristus (Nipponobradycellus) glaber nov.sp. Habitus (9). Median lobe, lateral view (10), median lobe, dorsal view (11). Left metepisternum (12). Scale bars: 1 mm (9); 0,5 mm (10, 11, 12).