Megistophylla octobracchia Gao & Li & Fang 2019, new species
Creators: name: Gao, Chuan-Bu
name: Li, Chun-Lin
name: Fang, Hong
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2019
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Melolonthidae
Megistophylla
Megistophylla octobracchia

description: Megistophylla octobracchia Gao & Li, new species
(Figs. 1, 2, 5–11, 19–25, 33–37)
urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: C6D8B7D8-F81B-4E26-AEDA-90576F08B303
Type locality. CHINA: Yunnan Province: Yingjiang County: Xima Town.
Type material. Holotype, male, labeled: “ Yunnan Province, Dehong Zhou / Yingjiang County, Xima Town / 5.?. 2018 lamp / Collector Yang, Wei-zong [typeset, Chinese and English] // HOLOTYPE ♂ / Megistophylla octobracchia sp. nov. / Chuan-bu Gao & Chun-lin Li / det. 2018 [typeset, red label]”, deposited in SYAU; paratype, male: “ Yunnan Province, Dehong Zhou / Yingjiang County, Xima Town / 5.?. 2018 lamp / Collector Yang, Wei-Zong [typeset, Chinese and English] // PARATYPE ♂ / Megistophylla octobracchia sp. nov. / Chuanbu Gao & Chun-lin Li / det. 2018 [typeset, yellow label]”, deposited in SYAU; paratypes, 3 males: “Hulukou, Xima Town, Yingjiang / County, Yunnan, 1200 mm / 2018.?-? W.- Z. Yang leg. [typeset, Chinese or English] // PARATYPE ♂ / Megistophylla octobracchia sp. nov. / Chuan-bu Gao & Chun-lin Li / det. 2018 [typeset, yellow label]”, deposited in SYAU.
Description of holotype (male) (Figs. 1, 2, 5–11, 19–25, 33–37). Body length 14.5 mm; width across humeri 6.9 mm; body oval-elongate, dorsal surface densely punctate, punctures deep rugopunctate; head, pronotum, elytra and pygidium sparsely covered with long setae; scutellum with tiny setae (Figs. 1, 2).
Colour: Antennae, head, pronotum and elytra brown; scutellum and legs reddish brown.
Head: Antennae with 10 antennomeres, antennal club composed of 5 antennomeres, strongly curved outwards, club 2.5 times longer than antennomeres 1–5 combined (Fig. 5). Clypeus setiferous and punctate, anterior margin bow-shaped, reflexed and emarginate. Frons setiferous and densely punctate, frontoclypeal suture defined. Frontal carina distinctly raised, bent forwards medially. Clypeus 1.16 times width, and 0.91 times length of frons (Fig. 6). Frons between eyes 2.1 times width of eye. Ocular canthus setaceous, length of canthus 0.6 mm.
Mouthparts: Labrum strongly depressed at middle (Fig. 7). Mandible with wrinkled molar lobe and rounded notch in incisor lobe (Figs. 8, 9). Mala of maxilla bears 3 strong, distal teeth (Fig. 10). Mentum distinctly bilobate at apical half; paraglossae with several setae near inner margin (Fig. 11).
Thorax: Pronotal surface densely rugopunctate and setaceous, setae long and sparsely distributed. Widest of pronotum at middle; anterior and posterior margins smooth; lateral margin moderately crenulate and setaceous; anterior and posterior angles obtuse (Fig. 19). Scutellum triangular, 1.58 times wider than long; dorsal surface punctate and setiferous, punctures and setae tiny, setae longer than diameter of puncture (Fig. 20). Ventral surface of thorax with long soft hairs. Prosternal process wedge-shaped (Fig. 21). Dorsal surface of elytra setaceous and rugopunctate; sutural costa developed; epipleuron with long soft setae before apex (Fig. 2).
Legs: Protibia tridentate, apical spur of protibia reaching middle of protarsomere 1 (Fig. 1). Metafemora covered with long soft setae near anterior and posterior margins (Fig. 2). Outer side of metatibia with a completed carina at apical 2/5; dorsolateral margin of metatibia with a thorn at basal 1/4; dorsomedial margin with one large thorn at front 1/3 and 3¯4 small thorns at basal half (Fig. 22). Metatibia with two apical spurs of different sizes, spurs lanceolate-shaped; metatarsi 1.5 times longer than metatibia; basal metatarsomere 1.2 times longer than metatarsomere 2 (Fig. 23). Each claw with a tooth medially (Fig. 24).
Abdomen: Lateral sides with long setae; ventrite 2 with dense short setae; sternites 5, 6 with soft setae. Pygidium inverted trapezoid, 1.5 times wider than long; surface densely punctate and pubescent (Fig. 25).
Genitalia: Phallobase 1.18 times longer than parameres; apical 1/4 narrow and basal 3/4 expanded laterally (Fig. 33). Parameres symmetrical, with 8 long branches; lateral branches shorter; dorsal and ventral branches thin; middle branches thick; bases of parameres of lateral and dorsal branches enclosed with a membranous area (Figs. 34, 35). Endophallus with slender temones on dorsum and a few small cone-shaped thorns near discal part (Fig. 36). Spiculum gastrale Y-shaped (Fig. 37).
Female. Unknown.
Variability. Paratypes differ in size (body length 14.8–15.7 mm, width across humeri 6.6–6.9 mm). Antennal club 2.1–2.3 times longer than basal antennomeres.
Diagnosis. Megistophylla octobracchia Gao & Li, new species can be distinguished from other Megistophylla species by the following combination of characters: antennal club composed of 5 long antennomeres; club curved outwards strongly, 2 times longer than basal antennomeres; dorsum of head, pronotum, elytra and pygidium with long soft setae; lateral margin of pronotum moderately crenulate and setaceous; epipleuron with long soft setae before apex; dorsomedial margin of metatibia with 4¯5 small thorns; parameres with eight branches.
Distribution. China (Yunnan).
Etymology. The specific name octobracchia means “eight-branched” referring to the branched parameres in the male genitalia of species that are unique in the genus Megistophylla.
Chinese name. 八岐多鳃金龟
Remarks. Up to now, Megistophylla octobracchia Gao & Li, new species is the third species of the genus known from mainland China. Xima Town (the type locality of the new species) is located at 24°51'24"N– 25°16'24"N and 97°44'54E–97°63'56E, between 820–2580 m a.s.l. (Zheng & Li 1997). When using the key proposed by Li et al. (2016), M. octobracchia Gao & Li, new species will be carried to the couplet 5 without regard to the body length. We modify the key in the following manner to comprise M. octobracchia Gao & Li, new species:
5 Dorsal surface of elytra glabrous......................................................................... 6 - Dorsal surface of elytra setaceous.......................................... M. octobracchia Gao & Li, new species 6 Antennal club curved vertically in apical half.................................... M. grandicornis (Fairmaire, 1891) - Antennal club gradually curved outwardly............................................ M. pentaphylla Arrow, 1925
description: Published as part of Gao, Chuan-Bu, Li, Chun-Lin & Fang, Hong, 2019, Megistophylla octobracchia Gao & Li, new species (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Melolonthinae) from Yunnan, China, and redescription of M. grandicornis (Fairmaire, 1891), pp. 515-522 in Zootaxa 4565 (4) on pages 516-518, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4565.4.5, http://zenodo.org/record/2591335