Selasia ivanae Packova & Kundrata 2021, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Packova, Gabriela
name: Kundrata, Robin
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2021
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Elateridae
Selasia
Selasia ivanae

description: Selasia ivanae sp. nov.
(Fig. 2)
Type material. Holotype, male, „ Ceylon. Nietn. // 52667 // Selasia /? / det. W. Wittmer // erwünscht“ (MFNB).
Type locality. Sri Lanka (without further details).
Diagnosis. This species can be easily distinguished from all other Oriental Selasia species by its unicolorous elytra (other species have elytra bicolorous, basally lighter and apically darker; Figs 1A, 2A). Additionally, Selasia ivanae sp. nov. differs from other Sri Lankan species, S. apicalis, in the yellowish brown head (in S. apicalis head darker, brown; Figs 1C,D, 2 D–F), larger body (9.00 mm; in S. apicalis 5.15 mm), smaller eyes with interocular distance 1.45 times eye diameter (in S. apicalis 1.05 times eye diameter; Figs 1C,D, 2 D–F), pronotum widest both medially and at posterior angles (in S. apicalis widest slightly before middle; Figs 1C, 2D), posterior margin of pronotum medially distinctly emarginate (in S. apicalis almost straight), sternite IX narrowed at apical third (in S. apicalis at basal half; Figs 1F, 2J), relatively shorter male genitalia, 2.20 times as long as wide (in S. apicalis 3.00 times as long as wide; Figs 1G,I, 2K,M), relatively longer and narrower parameres, and relatively wider phallobase, 1.10 times as long as wide (in S. apicalis 1.60 times as long as wide; Figs 1G,I, 2K,M).
Description. Body (Fig. 2 A–C) 2.90 times as long as width at humeri; yellowish brown to light brown, with antennae, maxillary and labial palpi, legs, metathorax and abdomen dark brown; body surface relatively densely covered with yellowish semi-erect pubescence.
Head (Fig. 2 D–F) including eyes approximately as wide as pronotum, with relatively deep median depression between antennal insertions, sparsely and finely punctate, covered with sparse, long, semi-erect pubescence. Fronto-clypeal region slightly convex, smooth, overreaching base of labrum. Eyes rather large, their frontal distance 1.45 times eye diameter. Labrum transverse, sparsely punctate, with several long, semi-erect setae, apically slightly emarginate. Mandible robust, bidentate; base with long setae, apical part bare, shiny. Maxillary palpus slender, penultimate palpomere approximately 1.50 times as long as wide, apical palpomere approximately 2.50 times as long as penultimate palpomere, very slightly widened medially, flattened apically and cut obliquely and roundly. Antenna (Fig. 2G) flabellate; scape robust, gradually widened apically, pedicel short, antennomere III elongate, approximately 1.70 times as long as antennomere IV, with elongated branch approximately as long as its stem; antennomeres IV–X shorter, longer than wide, gradually narrowed towards apex, with long, flattened branches, which are slightly shorter in antennomeres IV and V and longer in subsequent antennomeres, branches 2.30–4.30 times as long as their stems; ultimate antennomere simple, longest, slightly longer than branch of penultimate antennomere; all antennomeres covered with rather dense pubescence.
Pronotum (Fig. 2D) transverse, slightly convex, widest both medially and at posterior angles, 1.65 times wider than long. Anterior margin very slightly bisinuate, lateral margins sinuate, posterior margin simple, widely arcuately emarginate medially. Anterior angles inconspicuous, posterior angles short, rounded apically. Lateral pronotal carina almost complete. Surface of disc almost smooth, sparsely and shallowly punctate, with sparse and long semi-erect pubescence, denser and longer at margins and posterior angles. Hypomeron rather smooth. Prosternum transverse, with shallow transversal groove medially, with long semi-erect setae, prosternal process reduced. Scutel- lar shield (Fig. 2D) relatively flat, subtriangular, approximately 1.40 times as long as wide, anterior margin gradually declivous, posterior end narrowed, emarginate, sparsely punctate. Mesoventrite with frontal margin almost straight; mesoventral cavity with indistinct borders. Elytra (Fig. 2A,C) elongate, rather subparallel-sided, slightly widened at apical fourth, both combined 2.30 times as long as wide, 0.80 times as long as body, 5.70 times as long as pronotum, indistinctly striate, with apices separately rounded, very sparsely punctate, relatively densely covered with long, semi-erect pubescence; epipleura rather wide in anterior third, abruptly narrowed near posterior part of metanepisternum, then reduced. Leg (Fig. 2 A–C) slender, slightly compressed, with sparse, long, semi-erect setae; tarsomeres I–III narrow, elongate; tarsomere I slightly shorter than tarsomere II, tarsomere II slightly longer than tarsomere III, tarsomere IV shortest, minute, longer than wide, lobed ventrally, apical tarsomere narrow, slender, longest; claws simple, slender, slightly curved, each with long seta basally.
Abdomen (Fig. 2B) soft, ventrites with relatively sparse shallow punctures, covered with semi-erect pubescence; penultimate ventrite widely emarginate medially. Tergites IX and X (Fig. 2H,I) tightly connected by membrane, tergite IX transverse, 1.70 times as wide as long; tergite X slightly longer than wide, apically partly membranous, sparsely covered with small punctures and setae. Sternite IX (Fig. 2J) approximately 1.80 times as long as wide, distinctly narrowed at apical third, rounded apically, apex finely punctate and sparsely covered with relatively long setae. Male genitalia (Fig. 2 K–M) 2.20 times as long as phallobase at its widest part, median lobe elongate, 1.35 times as long as phallobase length, curved in lateral view, basally with two short struts, dorsally with robust, elongate subapical hook; parameres elongate with lateral margins widely rounded, apically narrowed, apex partly membranous, with sparse short setae; phallobase u-shaped, 1.10 times as long as wide.
Female and immature stages unknown.
Measurements. BL 9.00 mm, BW 3.10 mm, EL 7.10 mm, WHe 2.00 mm, PL 1.25 mm, PW 2.05 mm, Edist 1.00 mm, Ediam 0.70 mm.
Etymology. This species is named in honor of MUDr. Ivana Pačková (Uherské Hradiště, Czech Republic), the mother of the first author.
Distribution. Sri Lanka.
description: Published as part of Packova, Gabriela & Kundrata, Robin, 2021, The genus Selasia Laporte, 1838 (Coleoptera: Elateridae: Agrypninae) in Sri Lanka, pp. 285-292 in Zootaxa 4926 (2) on pages 288-290, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4926.2.8, http://zenodo.org/record/4506196