Neobuprestis (Balthasarella) williamsi Levey & Bellamy, 2013, sp. n.
Creators: name: Levey, B.
name: Bellamy, C. L.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2013
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Buprestidae
Neobuprestis
Neobuprestis williamsi

description: Neobuprestis (Balthasarella) williamsi sp. n.
(Figs. 4, 6, 14, 15, 22)
Balthasarella melandryoides Bellamy 1994 nec Obenberger 1958; Bellamy 1994: 300. Bellamy (1994) reported on some specimens of Balthasarella melandryoides he had seen from the New England National Park, New South Wales. On distributional grounds we think these are probably specimens of N. (Balthasarella) williamsi sp. n.
Material examined: Holotype 3 (AMSA) Summit of Mt. Banda Banda. 1260 m. Mt. Boss s.f. N.W. Wauchope. N.S.W. 15 Jan 1988. G. Williams.// On broad-leaved Racosperma sp. [Acacia sp.]. Paratypes: 13 (GWC) same data as Holotype but G. & B.Williams, D. Bickel; 1Ƥ (GWC) approx. 60km E.N.E. Gloucester. Barrington Tops State Forest. N.S.W. 6 Jan 1982. G. & T. Williams. Resting on Cassinia sp. in snow gum forest.// Neobuprestis frenchi Blckb. det G. Williams 1982; 1Ƥ (SAMA) Barrington Tp [Tops] Jan. '25. S.U. Zoo Exp.
Other material: New South Wales: 1 unsexed (TMSHC) Ebor, 14 December 1956, F.T. Fricke.
Other material not examined: New South Wales: 1 unsexed (GWC) vic. The Pinnacle, Border Ranges Nat. Park, WNW Nimbin, N.S.W. G. Williams, 28 Dec. 1993.// ex rainforest - sclerophyll forest ecotone; 13 (GWC) Summit of Mt. Banda Banda. 1260 m. Mt. Boss s.f. N.W. Wauchope. N.S.W. 15 Jan 1988. G. & B.Williams, D. Bickel.// On broad-leaved Racosperma sp. [Acacia sp.].
Diagnosis. General diagnosis: length 9.2–16.1 mm (from anterior margin of pronotum to tip of elytra); whole body predominantly bluish green; the elytra along the basal, lateral margins and apices more or less extensively reddish purple; abdominal ventrites and sometimes metaventrite and metacoxae more or less extensively reddish purple; head and pronotum with short very fine, erect, inconspicuous setae; elytra glabrous except for some short very fine, erect, inconspicuous setae close to the apices and lateral margin; underside moderately densely clothed with adpressed, moderately short fine setae.
Head (Fig. 15): densely punctate, the punctures, mostly rather shallow, round; lower half of frons convex, tumescent relative to the upper half of the frons which is flat; fronto-clypeus strongly depressed between the antennal insertions with a large very deep puncture close to the distal margin in the mid-line.
Pronotum (Figs. 6, 14): 1.4–1.6 times as wide at base as long in midline; anterior and posterior margins weakly bisinuate, anterior margin scarcely produced at the centre, with a complete well defined narrow bead; lateral margins almost parallel sided in basal half, weakly convergent to anterior margin; shiny, punctate-reticulate with well marked tranverse rugae on disc; midline unpunctured and depressed in basal half; with a well marked depression at the basal margin internal of the elytral humeral callosity; lateral carina visible from above becoming evanescent in apical fifth.
Scutellum: tranversely ovate, surface rugulose.
Elytra (Fig. 4): as wide to much wider at base than pronotum at base; basal margin weakly bisinuate; moderately strongly widening over the humeral callosities thence very slightly rectilinearly widening to mid length; before moderately strongly curvilinearly converging to the obliquely subtruncate or slightly excised apices; lateral margins smooth or very weakly serrate in apical third; a well marked large depression internal to the humeral callosity coextensive with the depression at the base of the pronotum; each elytron with a short scutellary costa, and three or four long equidistant costae, which become evanescent near the apex; intercostal areas sparsely to moderately densely, irregularly punctured with pin-prick or very fine weak punctures, which are partly arranged in regular series.
Hypomeron: sparsely punctured with small weak punctures.
Prosternum: punctures near anterior margin and laterally very strongly transversely ellipsoidal; anterior margin with a well defined narrow bead; prosternal process moderately densely punctured with small round punctures; lateral margins straight, slightly convergent towards apex, with a well defined bead at the margin.
Mesoepisternum: sparsely to moderately densely punctured with weak punctures.
Hind coxa (as in Fig. 31): about twice as wide at inner margin as at outer margin, abruptly narrowing about onethird the distance from the inner margin.
Abdomen (Fig. 22): ventrites (sternites) rather uniformly, sparsely punctured with very small weak punctures; apical ventrite strongly produced with the apex broadly, shallowly excised, without a well developed flange or lateral spines.
Aedeagus: not examined.
Ovipositor: elongate.
Comments. This species is very similar to N. (Balthasarella) frenchi in general appearance. In addition to the distinguishing characteristics given in the key the following differences from N. (B.) frenchi were seen in the limited amount of material available. Elytral costae narrower and less well defined especially so in the Holotype. Lower half of vertex variably but at least slightly more convex when viewed from above.
description: Published as part of Levey, B. & Bellamy, C. L., 2013, A taxonomic revision of Neobuprestis Kerremans (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) with the description of a new genus and two new species, pp. 225-240 in Zootaxa 3681 (3) on pages 229-230, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3681.3.2, http://zenodo.org/record/219605