Azerberyxia serratotibialis, Romantsov & Moseyko, 2020

Romantsov, Pavel V. & Moseyko, Alexey G., 2020, A new subgenus and species of Eumolpinae (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) from Azerbaijan, with faunistic notes on adjacent countries, Zootaxa 4853 (1), pp. 139-145 : 140-141

Eryxia subgenus Azerberyxia serratotibialis new species

( Figs 1, 2 , 5, 6, 7 , 10, 11, 12, 13 )

Material examined. Holotype. “C Azerbaijan / Baku reg., Sangachan vill. env. / Jeirankechmez riv. N 40°09‘28“,/ E 49°24‘53“ 8–9. 05. 2012 / Leg. Kasatkin D. ”, alt. 10 m., 1 ♂ ( ZIN) . Paratype. Same data as holotype, 1 ♀ (PR) .

Description (Holotype). Body elongate-ovate. Head dark brown, palpi light brown, mandibles almost black; antennae light brown; pronotum and elytra dark brown with lighter sides; legs dark brown, middle and hind legs with dorsal part of femora and tibiae reddish brown. Underside dark brown. Upperside covered with adpressed white and reddish brown scales, not forming a distinct pattern ( Fig. 1 ); underside covered (sparsely on prothorax and closely on meso- and metathorax and abdominal sternites) with white scales, margins of tergites with same scales. Legs covered with white scales adpressed on femora but with semi-erect scales on tibiae and tarsi.

Head. Labrum transverse, about twice as wide as long, anterior margin slightly concave; surface microsculptured in posterior, with several punctures on sides of middle and smooth in anterior; anterior margin with a few pale setae. Anterior margin of frontoclypeus deeply concave. Frontoclypeus, frons and vertex with microsculpture and punctures (coarser on frontoclypeus), each puncture bearing a white seta; frontal tubercles indistinct. Eyes large, strongly convex, elongate (about 1.6 times as long as wide); genae between eye and mandible very short, about a quarter transverse diameter of eye. Interocular space 1.5 times as wide as transverse diameter of eye. Preapical maxillary palpomere long (slightly longer than the following), apex of apical segment truncated with deep impression over the entire surface of cropped edge. Antennae filiform, reaching anterior third of elytra; proportions of segments 14-9-15-16-17-17-18-16-15-15 (apical segment of left antenna and two apical segments of right antenna missing), scape robust and slightly curved; pedicel slightly thickened, twice as long as wide; antennomeres 3–6 almost cylindrical, about 4 times long as wide; antennomeres 7–10 slightly expanded in middle, 3–3.2 times long as wide. Surface of scape covered with semi-erected scales, all following antennomeres with thin adpressed hairs.

Thorax. Prothorax 1.35 times as wide as long, broadest in middle, narrowed anteriorly and posteriorly; anterior margin almost straight, posterior margin slightly convex, lateral margins rounded, slightly emarginated before anterior angles; surface densely covered with moderately strong punctures; interstices narrower than diameter of punctures, covered with microreticulation. Anterior angles triangular, prominent; posterior angles obtuse, each angle with one moderately long seta. Anterior and posterior margins unbordered, lateral margins distinctly bordered. Anterior margin of proepisterna (anterior margin of lateral arms of prosternum) straight; propleurae (pronotal hypomera) with sparse punctures each bearing white seta; notosternal suture not evident. Scutellum about 0.8 times as wide as long, subpentagonal with triangular apex, surface microsculptured and punctured with several long scales along lateral and apical margins. Elytra wider than pronotum at base, about 1.3 times as long as wide, widest near middle, with jointly rounded apex. Surface with very weak postbasal impression, confusedly punctate; in basal third punctures larger with slightly convex interstices mostly smaller than punctures; remaining two thirds of elytral surface covered smaller punctures with slightly microreticulate interstices wider than punctures. Hind wings well developed. Legs with straight tibiae; dorsal surfaces of tibiae with many small spinules, arranged in unequal rows, so that they look serrate (especially metatibiae).Apex of metatibia with deep longitudinal excavation between raised outer and inner borders ( Fig. 7 ). Pro- and metatibiae moderately swollen, mesotibiae slightly swollen; all femora without ventral tooth. First segment of all tarsi elongate and slightly enlarged, approximately equal in width to third and in length to 2 + 3.

Abdomen. Pygidium simple, without furrow or ridges, rounded at apex. Aedeagus rather narrow ( Figs 10, 11 ) with pointed triangular apex, underside smooth in basal half and slightly convex in apical half. Length of aedeagus 1.6 mm.

Body length 6.7 mm, width 3.0 mm.

Female ( Fig. 2 ). Similar to male but slightly wider and with apex of last maxillary palpomere weakly truncated. Ovipositor long, about 4 times longer than wide when fully expanded ( Fig. 13 ). Styli absent. Spermatheca G-shaped ( Fig. 12 ), with short and narrow basal deflected part, narrowed apically. Body length 7.1 mm, width 3.7 mm.

Etymology. The specific epithet refers to serrate tibiae.

Remarks. Both specimens (dead and dried) were collected under the same stone on the semi-desert alluvial plain of Jeirankechmez River in the district of Kagniza-Dag Mountain (Kiçikdaş Mud Volcano) by D. Kasatkin. This species is only known from the type locality in Azerbaijan.

Differential diagnosis. This new species stands apart from the other congeneric species of Eryxia from Africa or Arabian Peninsula and belongs to a new subgenus, described above. Eryxia serratotibialis can be readily distinguished from any other species of Eryxia by the serrate tibiae and large elongate eyes.

Figures

FIGURES 1–4. Eryxia species and Colasposoma species, dorsal view. 1, Eryxia (subgenus Azerberyxia) serratotibialis new species, holotype, male; 2, E. (Azerberyxia) serratotibialis, paratype, female; 3, Colasposoma (subgenus Falsonerissus) argentatum (Lopatin, 1981) from Iran; 4, Eryxia (subgenus Eryxia) confusa Selman, 1972 from Congo.

FIGURES 5–9. Eryxia species and Colasposoma species. 5, Eryxia (subgenus Azerberyxia) serratotibialis new species, lateral view of holotype; 6, E. serratotibialis, head of holotype; 7, E. serratotibialis, dorsolateral view of right metatibia of holotype; 8, E. (subgenus Eryxia) confusa Selman, 1972 right metatibia; 9, Colasposoma (subgenus Falsonerissus) argentatum (Lopatin, 1981) right metatibia.

FIGURES 10–13. Eryxia (subgenus Azerberyxia) serratotibialis new species. 10, aedeagus, dorsal view; 11, aedeagus, lateral view; 12, spermatheca; 13, ovipositor, ventral view, stretched.