Eucinetus tropicus Lawrence 2019, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Lawrence, John F.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2019
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Eucinetidae
Eucinetus
Eucinetus tropicus

description: Eucinetus tropicus sp. nov.
(Figs 28–29, 51, 65, 85, 112, 114, 135)
Diagnosis. This species differs from E. bicolor, E. bicolorellus, E. brindabellae, E. dorrigo, E. limitaris, E. minutus, E. protibialis and E. tasmaniae in having a longer and narrower metanepisternum and less sharply acute scutellar shield and in having an internal eye notch and well-developed hind wings. It differs from E. lorien and E. similis in having a shorter and broader body (less than 1.9 times as long as wide; elytra together less than 1.57 times as long as wide) and the apical maxillary palpomere widest at the middle with an acute apex, and from E. nebulosus in having the head, pronotum and scutellar shield red and elytra black and the terminal antennomere more than twice as long as wide.
Description. Length 2.10–2.40 (2.21 ± 0.08, n = 10) mm; body 1.72–1.87 (1.78) times as long as combined elytral width; greatest depth 0.68–0.73 (0.71) times elytral width. Colour of head, pronotum and scutellar shield red; elytra black; undersurfaces mainly black with antennae and legs reddish-brown. Head 0.96 times as long as wide; distance across eyes 1.38 times distance between them; inner edge of eye with distinct notch. Labrum 0.33 times as long as wide; sides weakly curved and converging; apex broadly rounded. Antenna about 1.74 times as long as head width behind eyes; 3rd antennomere 0.77 times as long as 4th; 11th antennomere 1.36 times as long as 10th, 2.14 times as long as wide, with obliquely truncate apex. Mandibular mola well developed. Galea about 1.2 times as wide as lacinia at middle, distinctly widened apically. Apical maxillary palpomere 2.92 times as long as wide, widest at middle, asymmetrically narrowed to obliquely truncate apex. Apical labial palpomere subulate, 2.42 times as long as wide, with short, broad, subtruncate tip. Pronotum 0.36–0.47 (0.41) times as long as wide; prosternal process narrowly rounded at apex. Scutellar shield 0.18 times as wide as pronotum, 0.76 times as long as wide, narrowly rounded at apex. Elytra 1.41–1.54 (1.46) times as long as combined width and 4.32–5.39 (4.70) times as long as pronotum; elytral punctation and vestiture as in Fig. 85. Hind wings fully developed. Metanepisternum 0.96 times as long as mesepimeron, 1.88 times as long as wide, asymmetrically quadrate, widest at anterior end and narrowing posteriorly; anterior edge obliquely truncate with small anteromesal notch, posterior edge subtruncate; outer edge slightly sinuate and inner edge broadly curved. Metacoxal plate with outer edge about 2.45 times as long as posterior edge, which is minutely emarginate near its mesal end. Outer (acute) mesotibial spur in male 0.43 times as long as first mesotarsomere; inner spur of equal length, parallel-sided with a blunt apex. Meso- and metapretarsal claws without teeth but each with slender accessory lobe. Parameres as wide at about middle as penis at same point, very slightly curved mesally almost to apex, then more strongly curved and narrowly rounded. Penis gradually narrowed to subapex, then more abruptly narrowed acute apex, extending almost to parameral apices.
Types: Holotype, ♁: “Julatten, N.QLD, 21Nov-30Nov 1987, A. Walford-Huggins, edge of rainforest along creek, ex intercept trap ” (ANIC type #25-067881).
Paratypes. QLD: 40 Mile Scrub N. P., via Mt. Garnet, 23.x.1985 – 25.ii.1986, intercept trap, Malaise trap, Storey, Heinar (5, QMB); Clacherty Rd., Julatten, 26.xii.1986 – 8.i.1987, intercept trap, Storey, Howden (2, QMB); Davies Creek, 19 km WSW Mareeba, 21.xii.1984 – 7.i.1985, Malaise trap, Storey, Titmarsh (1, QMB); Julatten, edge of rainforest along creek, 29.x–21.xi, 30.xi–13.xii.1987, ex intercept trap, A. Walford-Huggins (9, ANIC); Kuranda, 5 km NNW, 20.iii. v.1987, intercept trap, Storey, Titmarsh (1, QMB); Lake Eacham, 750m, 9.xii.1989, Pyrethrum logs & trees, Monteith, Thompson, Janetski (1, QMB); Mareeba, 6 km SE, 20.i–12.ii.1990, 12.ii–12.iii.1991, flight intercept traps, S. DeFaveri (2, QMB); Mareeba, 19.3 km ESE, 13.i–3.ii.1987, intercept traps, R. I. Storey (1, QMB); Tully Falls S. F., 9.5 km SSW Ravenshoe, 1000m, 5.xi–7.xii.1987, intercept trap, Storey, Dickinson (1, QMB); Windsor Tableland. 5.7 km past barracks (16°14’S, 145°00’E), 1300m, 24.xi.1997, 1653, Pyrethrum trees & logs, G. B. Monteith (1, QMB).
Distribution. Northern QLD.
Biology. Usually collected in Malaise or flight intercept traps, but also by pyrethrin fogging.
Etymology. Derived from the Latin tropicus, pertaining to the solstice, but usually referring to the warmer latitudes.
description: Published as part of Lawrence, John F., 2019, New species of Eucinetus and Noteucinetus from Australia (Coleoptera: Scirtoidea: Eucinetidae), pp. 151-182 in Zootaxa 4668 (2) on page 167, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4668.2.1, http://zenodo.org/record/3415013