Quedius (Microsaurus) aculeatus Cai, Zhao & Zhou, 2015, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Cai, Yan-Peng
name: Zhao, Zong-Yi
name: Zhou, Hong-Zhang
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2015
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Staphylinidae
Quedius
Quedius aculeatus

description: Quedius (Microsaurus) aculeatus sp. nov.
(Figs. 2, 2-1)
Type material. Holotype ♂, CHINA: Sichuan Province: North of Jiulong County, 3935 m, 8–14. VII. 2001, coll. Xiaodong Yu and Hongzhang Zhou. Paratypes: CHINA: Sichuan Province: 1 ♂, North of Jiulong County, 3735 m, 8–14. VII. 2001, coll. Xiaodong Yu and Hongzhang Zhou.
Description. Head black; pronotum, scutellum and elytra dark brown; abdomen dark brown, each tergite with posterior margin slightly paler; antennae dark brown, labrum and mandibles dark reddish brown, maxillary and labial palpi brown; legs entirely dark brown.
BL = 7.9 mm, BW = 1.7 mm, MHWL = 5.0 mm, HL/PL/EL/MHWL = 1.00: 1.29: 1.55: 4.83, HW/PW/EW/ AW = 1.00: 1.23: 1.40: 1.28
Head (Fig. 2A) round, wider than long, HW/HL = 1.17; eye large and convex, in dorsal view tempora shorter than length of eye, sharply narrowed posteriad, HEL/HTL = 2.95; posterior frontal setiferous puncture situated slightly before level of posteriomedial margin of eye, separated by distance a little shorter than diameter of puncture; one smaller setiferous puncture between it and temporal setiferous puncture at posterior margin of eye; temporal setiferous puncture situated very close to posterior margin of eye, separated by distance a little longer than diameter of puncture; 2–3 basal setiferous punctures situated close to nuchal constriction; head with fine and dense microsculpture of transverse waves and irregular meshes. Antenna moderately long with segment I longer than segment II or III, segment III slightly longer than segment II, segments IV–VII, XI slightly longer than wide, segments VIII–X slightly wider than long.
Pronotum (Fig. 2B) wider than long, PW/PL = 1.12, slightly narrowed anteriad, lateral margins not explanate, posterior margin broadly rounded; three setiferous punctures in each dorsal and sublateral row, last sublateral row puncture situated behind level of large lateral setiferous puncture; surface of pronotum with very fine and dense microsculpture of transverse and oblique waves.
Scutellum (Fig. 2C) with very fine and dense microsculpture of transverse waves, impunctate.
Elytra (Fig. 2C) moderately long, about as wide as long, EW/EL = 1.05, ESL/EL = 0.58, slightly broadened posteriad, surface of each elytron covered with dense and coarse setiferous punctures, transverse interspaces between punctures nearly equal to diameter of puncture, surface between punctures without microsculpture.
Abdominal tergite II impunctate; setiferous punctures of other tergites finer and denser than those of elytra, becoming sparser toward posterior margin of each tergite, and generally becoming so toward apex of abdomen; tergite VII with inconspicuous whitish apical seam of palisade setae.
Male first four segments of fore tarsus strongly dilated, sub-bilobed, each heavily covered with modified pale setae ventrally, segment II slightly wider than apex of tibia; tergite VIII with basal ridge complete, nearly straight, with five long setae on each side; sternite VIII (Fig. 2-1A) with basal ridge complete, slightly sinuate, with 8–9 long setae on each side, apical margin with a moderately deep and wide medioapical emargination, a small triangular area in front of the emargination impunctate; sternite IX (Fig. 2-1B) with basal portion wide and straight, with a very shallow medioapical emargination apically; tergite X (Fig. 2-1C) with basal side broadly and moderately deeply concave, apical margin subacute; aedeagus in lateral view (Fig. 2-1D) with apex of paramere not protruding beyond that of median lobe, median lobe with a small hook-shaped process at apex; aedeagus in parameral view (Fig. 2-1E) with paramere moderately narrow laterally in middle third, reaching widest point at about apical third, then slightly and straightly narrowed to apex, with deep medioapical emargination, hook-shaped process of median lobe fitting into this emargination; median lobe wide at base, then gradually narrowed to apex, with apical 1/3 narrower than paramere (Figs. 2E, 2-1G); apical portion of paramere with two moderately long apical setae at each side of apical emargination, and two similar subapical setae on each lateral side below apex, underside with 2–3 sensory peg setae arranged in curved group near apex at each side of apical emargination (Figs. 2D, 2-1F).
Female unknown.
Hind wings. Male with hind wings fully developed, MHWL/BL = 0.64. Female not examined.
Distribution. China (Sichuan).
Diagnosis. This new species is most similar to Q. katerinae Smetana in male genitalia, but it can be distinguished from the latter by having male sternite VIII with 8–9 long setae on each side, male sternite IX with a very shallow medioapical emargination, paramere of aedeagus with apical third slightly and gradually narrowed to apex, with deep medioapical emargination at apex; whereas the latter has male sternite VIII with six long setae on each side, male sternite IX with a very deep medioapical emargination, paramere of aedeagus with apical third almost parallel-sided, with minute medioapical emargination at apex.
Etymology. The specific name is from the Latin adjective aculeatus (thorny), referring to the spinose apex of the fore tibia.
description: Published as part of Cai, Yan-Peng, Zhao, Zong-Yi & Zhou, Hong-Zhang, 2015, Taxonomy on Quedius euryalus group (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Staphylinini: Quediina) from China with description of eight new species, pp. 1-70 in Zootaxa 3966 (1) on pages 9-12, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3966.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/14952367