Cyclosomus vespertilio Cueva-Dabkoski & Kavanaugh 2023
Creators: name: Kavanaugh, David H.
name: Cueva-Dabkoski, Mollie
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2023
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Carabidae
Cyclosomus
Cyclosomus vespertilio

description: Cyclosomus vespertilio Cueva-Dabkoski & Kavanaugh, sp. nov.
Figures 13, 14I, 15D, 16H, 17H, 22
Type material. HOLOTYPE, a male, in NMNH, labeled: “ NEPAL: Royal Chitwan National Park, black light 820ft 31 Oct1977 Gary F. Hevel”/ “ HOLOTYPE Cyclosomus vespertilio sp. n. M. Cueva-Dabkoski and D.H. Kavanaugh 2023 ” [red label]. A total of 44 paratypes: one male and one female, in CAS and NMNH, same label data as holotype; one male, in NHMUK, labeled: “ India ”/ “Bowring, 63.47*”/ “ NHMUK 010795925”; one female, in NHMUK, labeled: “ India ”/ “Bowring, 63.47*”/ “H.E.Andrewes Coll. B.M.1945-97.”/ “Ex coll. Brit. Mus.”/ “ Cyclosomus marginatus Motch. Compared with type H.E. A.”; one male, in NHMUK, labeled: “Indian Orient”/ “Fry Coll. 1905.100.”/ “ NHMUK 010796097”; one male, in NMNH, labeled: “ INDIA New Delhi ”/ “ 14-VII-1967 KEGibson light trap”; one female, in NHMUK, labeled: “ India 77.15 K.” [handwritten]; 12 males and 22 females, in NHMUK and CAS, labeled: “ India. Nevinson Coll. 1918-14”; one female, in NHMUK, labeled: “ India. Nevinson Coll. 1918-14”/ “ Cyclosomus marginatus Motch. ”/ “NNHMUK 010796368”; one male, in NHMUK, labelled: “ India. Nevinson Coll. 1918-14”/ “Ex coll. Brit. Mus.”/ “H.E.Andrewes Coll. B.M.1945-97.”/ “ Cyclosomus suturalis Wied. (see back) Compared with type H.E. A.” [back labeled: “The median band in type is very narrow”]/ “NNHMUK 010796362”; one female, in NHMUK labeled: “ India Dilhi [sic]”/ “39155” [= Moradabad, based on NHMUK accession records (M. Barclay, personal communication)]/ Fry Coll. 1906.100.”/ Cyclosomus marginatus Mots. India Or. v. major ” [handwritten]/ “NMHUK 0100795973”. Each paratype also bears the following label: “ PARATYPE Cyclosomus vespertilio sp. n. M. Cueva-Dabkoski and D.H. Kavanaugh 2023 ” [yellow label].
Type locality. Nepal, Royal Chitwan National Park
Etymology. The species epithet, vespertilio, is a Latin word for bat, here used as a noun in apposition. It refers to the shape of the middle transverse dark band of the joined elytra, which resembles a black bat with its wings spread in most specimens.
Diagnosis. Adults of C. vespertilio can be distinguished from those of other Cyclosomus species in Asia by the following combination of character states: Body size medium for genus, BL males = 6.6 to 7.4 mm, females = 6.5 to 7.6 mm; body form (Fig. 13A, C, D) roundly ovoid (ratio BL/EW = 1.36 to 1.41; ratio EL/EW = 0.88 to 0.93), with elytra widest at or near mid-length; dorsal surface with distinctly contrasting pale and dark areas; pronotum (Fig. 14I) relatively broad (ratio PWM/PL = 2.79 to 2.93) and more broadened basally (ratio PWM/PWA = 1.63 to 1.75), with disc rufous to piceous, lateral pale bands broad and more or less well-defined, anterior angles broad, lateral margins evenly arcuate, not or faintly sinuate near anterior angles; free apex of prosternal intercoxal process short (Fig. 15D); elytra pale yellowish-brown with basal, middle, and longitudinal dark bands present and dark reddish brown to black, preapical dark spot absent, middle transverse dark band varied, moderately thick in most specimens (Fig. 13A), markedly thickened (Fig. 13C) or narrowed (Fig. 13D) (much as in C. marginatus), in a few specimens; elytral striae moderately impressed, elytral intervals flat or nearly so; elytral epipleura with long setae only in humeral and subhumeral areas, setae in apical two-thirds distinctly shorter; median lobe of male genitalia with shaft distinctly thicker and more arcuate, ventral curvature distinctly curved throughout in lateral aspect (Fig. 16H), apical lamella smoothly rounded and slightly elongate in dorsal aspect (Fig. 17H); specimen from northern India or Nepal.
Specimens of C. vespertilio are most similar to those of C. inustus and C. marginatus. Most specimens of C. vespertilio have the middle dark band of the elytral color pattern darker and thick-er than those of the other two species, with its form in most specimens as in Fig. 13A or intermediate between that form and the extreme as shown in Fig. 13C. The extreme minimally developed form shown in Fig. 13D was found in only two specimens, and these specimens resemble those of C. marginatus. Refer to the key and Diagnosis sections for C. inustus and C. marginatus for distinguishing features.
Description. Size medium for genus, BL males = 6.6 to 7.4 mm, females = 6.5 to 7.6 mm; body form (Fig. 13A, C, D) roundly ovoid (ratio BL/EW = 1.36 to 1.41; ratio EL/EW = 0.88 to 0.93), with elytra widest at or near mid-length.
Color. Head rufous to black, clypeus and labrum slightly lighter in dark specimens, venter rufous; antennae, mandibles, maxillae, and maxillary and labial palpi pale yellow-tan to rufous. Pronotum with disc rufous to piceous, lateral pale bands yellow-tan, broad and more or less well-defined. Elytra mainly yellow-brown, with piceous to black markings; elytral base, scutellum, and longitudinal dark band on elytral interval 1 dark reddish brown to black, dark basal band slender, piceous to black, extended laterally to interval 5; middle transverse dark band piceous or black, varied in form, moderately thick in most specimens (Fig. 13A), markedly thickened (Fig. 13C) or narrowed (Fig. 13D) (much as in C. marginatus), in a few specimens; preapical dark spot absent. Venter rufous, proepipleura and elytral epipleura pale yellow-tan. Legs pale, yellow-tan to rufous.
Reflection, luster, and microsculpture. Dorsum and venter without metallic reflection. Head and pronotum dull, with microsculpture moderately impressed and comprised of isodiametric meshes; elytra slightly shiny with isodiametric meshes slightly less deeply impressed; venter with isodiametric to slightly transverse meshes shallowly impressed,
Head. Eyes large, hemispheric; antennae slightly short, extended only to basal one-fifth of elytra; clypeus bisetose; labrum with apical margin deeply emarginate, three pairs of setae present; mentum asetose, with a broad, apically emarginate medial tooth; submentum anteriorly with a single pair of setae.
Prothorax. Pronotum (Fig. 14I) trapezoidal, almost as wide as elytra at humeral angles, relatively broad (ratio PWM/PL = 2.79 to 2.93) and more broadened basally (ratio PWM/PWA = 1.63 to 1.75), anterior angles broad, rectangular or slightly acute, narrowly rounded apically; anterior margin smoothly concave between anterior angles; lateral margins gently arcuate, not or faintly sinuate near anterior angles; basal margin slightly bisinuate, faintly lobate medially; anterior and basal margination thin but distinct laterally, obsolete medially; lateral margination very slender and finely impressed; midlateral setae present, inserted just medial to lateral margination and at about one-third the distance between the anterior and basal angles along the lateral margin; basolateral setae present, inserted on lateral edge of pronotum and just anterior to posterior angles. Prosternal intercoxal process moderately long, lanceolate, with complete margination, free apex of process short (as in Fig. 15D).
Elytra. Broadly ovate, slightly shorter than wide (ratio EL/EW = 0.88 to 0.93), broadly rounded apically, humeri slightly obtuse, angulate; elytral striae moderately impressed throughout; elytral intervals flat or nearly so, smooth; parascutellar setiferous pore present at base of interval 1 near junction of striae 1 and 2; two discal setiferous pores present on interval 3 adjacent to stria 2, one inserted just posterior to elytral mid-length and the other inserted near apical one-third; apical seta present, inserted near apex of interval 3; umbilicate series comprised of 11 to 13 setae.
Legs. Males and females with front tarsi similar in shape and width (as in Fig. 2C), but males with tarsomeres 1 to 3 with two rows of adhesive squamosetae ventrally (as in Fig. 2B), females without such setae; middle tarsi with tarsomeres 1 to 3 distinctly broader in males (as in Fig. 2D) than in females and with two rows of adhesive squamosetae ventrally (as in Fig. 2E), absent from females. Tarsal claws smooth, edentate.
Male genitalia. Median lobe with shaft distinctly thickened and markedly arcuate, ventral curvature distinctly curved throughout, shaft tapered gently to apex in lateral aspect (Fig. 16H), apical lamella smoothly rounded and slightly elongate, slightly narrowed basally in dorsal aspect (Fig. 17H).
Habitat distribution. Unknown, but presumed to be restricted to the sandy shores of medium to large rivers at low elevation, like members of most other species of the genus. The elevation of New Delhi is about 200m, of Morababad about 190 m, and that of suitable habitat in Chitwan National Park about 550 m, so members of this species occupy at least that altitudinal range at the southern base of the Himalayan Mountains.
Geographical distribution. Fig. 22. This species is apparently restricted to northern India and Nepal, along tributaries of the Ganges River draining the southern slope of the Himalayan Mountains. We have found only three specific records, two of which represent the known extremes of the range of the species. The western locality is New Delhi (Delhi State, India [in NMNH]) and the eastern site is in Chitwan National Park (Narayani Zone, Nepal [in CAS, NMNH]). However, most of the specimens we examined were labeled simply “ India ” and were from the “Nevinson Collection” in NHMUK. According to Max Barclay (NHMUK, personal communication), most of the Nevinson material labeled “ India,” and for which no further supporting specificity has been found, has been from northern India, including Punjab, Sikkim and West Bengal (“Darjeeling”). It is likely, therefore, that the range of this species extends somewhat further east and west along the southern edge of the Himalaya than has yet been confirmed.
Geographical variation. Although there is some individual variation (Figs. 13A, C, D) in development of the dark color pattern of the elytra in this species, we could not discern any particular geographic component to that variation.
Geographical relationships with other Cyclosomus species. The known range of C. vespertilio is within the broad range of C. flexuosus at its northern limit, so these two species may be sympatric or even syntopic in at least some areas. However, they have not yet been recorded together from any locality. It is also possible that C. vespertilio is sympatric with C. marginatus and/or C. suturalis in the eastern or southeastern part of its range, depending on just where in “Bengal” (i.e, the area now including West Bengal, India and Bangladesh [see above]) the last two actually occur.
description: Published as part of Kavanaugh, David H. & Cueva-Dabkoski, Mollie, 2023, A Review of Genus Cyclosomus Latreille (Coleoptera: Carabidae: Lebiinae: Cyclosomini) in Asia., pp. 493-537 in Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences 67 (21) on pages 522-525, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.11512952