Oocyclus espinhacu Alencar & Short & Hamada 2022, sp. n.
Creators: name: Alencar, Janderson Batista R.
name: Short, Andrew Edward Z.
name: Hamada, Neusa
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2022
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Hydrophilidae
Oocyclus
Oocyclus espinhacu

description: Oocyclus espinhacu sp. n.
(Figs. 3a–e, 11b, 14)
Type material. Holotype (male): “ BRASIL: MINAS GERAIS, Parque Estadual Grão Mogol, stream near the archaeological site, long -42.943556 lat -16.618111, 719 m a.s.l., rock-face seepages, 29.iv.2019, leg. J.B. R. Alencar” (INPA, Coleoptera, in alcohol). Paratypes (339 exs.): BRAZIL: Minas Gerias: Same data as holotype (24 exs. INPA; 10 exs. SEMC, in alcohol); except: “Waterfall of Mirante, long -42.899694, lat -16.576639, 821 m a.s.l., rock-face seepages, 27.iv.2019, leg. J.B. R. Alencar” (1 ex. INPA, in alcohol); “ Waterfall da Bocaina, long -42.837083, lat -16.301167, 669 ma.s.l., rock-face seepages, 28.iv.2019, leg. J.B. R. Alencar” (21 exs. INPA, in alcohol); “ Waterfall of Almas, long -42.931194, lat -16.618139, 691 m a.s.l., rock-face seepages, 29.iv.2019, leg. J.B. R. Alencar” (16 exs. INPA, in alcohol); “ Waterfall of Coronhas, long -42.885194 lat -16.522417, 792 m a.s.l., rock-face seepages, 30.iv.2019, leg. J.B. R. Alencar” (71 exs. INPA, in alcohol); “ PARNA Sempre Vivas, Waterfall of Felipes, long -43.703639, lat -17.907472, 1090 m a.s.l., rock-face seepages, 24.iv.2019, leg. J.B. R. Alencar” (2 exs. INPA, in alcohol); “Stream southwest of camp, long -43.773861, lat -17.924444, 1259 m a.s.l., rock-face seepages, 23.iv.2019, leg. J.B. R. Alencar” (15 exs. INPA, in alcohol); “Curimataí, Waterfall of Rio Curimataí, long -43.946806, lat -17.87825, 625 m a.s.l., vertical surfaces with water, 23.vi.2019, leg. J.B. R. Alencar” (9 exs. INPA, in alcohol); “ PARNA Serra do Cipó, Waterfall of Andorinhas, long -43.491472, lat -19.237611, 1028 m a.s.l., vertical surfaces with water, 10.iv.2019, leg. J.B. R. Alencar” (24 exs. INPA, in alcohol); “ Waterfall of Tombador, long -43.539833, lat -19.335639, 867 m a.s.l., vertical surfaces with water, 12.iv.2019, leg. J.B. R. Alencar” (24 exs. INPA, in alcohol); “ Waterfall of Gavião, long -43.555806, lat -19.335639, 844 m a.s.l., vertical surfaces with water, 12.iv.2019, leg. J.B. R. Alencar” (24 exs. INPA, in alcohol); “ Conceição do Mato Dentro, Waterfall of Três Barras, long -43.539833, lat -19.335639, 701 m a.s.l., rock-face seepages, 21.vi.2019, leg. J.B. R. Alencar” (5 exs. INPA, in alcohol); “ Santo Antônio do Itambé, Rio Guanhães, long -43.307167, lat -18.454611, 731 m a.s.l., margin of Preto river, 21.vi.2019, leg. J.B. R. Alencar” (31 exs. INPA, in alcohol); “ Santo Antônio do Itambé, Rio Preto, long -43.320778, lat -18.461417, 702 m a.s.l., vertical surfaces with water, 30.iii.2020, leg. J.B. R. Alencar” (2 exs. INPA, in alcohol); “Serro, Waterfall of Amaral, long -43.406944, lat -18.388528, 1043 m a.s.l., vertical surfaces with water, 22.vi.2019, leg. J.B. R. Alencar” (17 exs. INPA, in alcohol); “Itacambira, Waterfall of Curiango, long - 43.324861, lat -17.147556, 1051 m a.s.l., vertical surfaces with water, 24.vi.2019, leg. J.B. R. Alencar” (6 exs. INPA, in alcohol); “Mato Verde, Waterfall Maria Rosa, long -42.795444, lat -15.432167, 725 m a.s.l., vertical surfaces with water and green algae, 25.iii.2020, leg. J.B. R. Alencar” (19 exs. INPA, in alcohol); “ Serranópolis de Minas, Waterfall of Serrado, long -42.843986, lat -15.677725, 720 m a.s.l., spray zones of waterfalls, 25.iii.2020, leg. J.B. R. Alencar” (12 exs. INPA, in alcohol); “Botumirim, Waterfall Quatro Oitavas, long -43.014047, lat -16.883492, 862 m a.s.l., vertical surfaces with water, 27.iii.2020, leg. J.B. R. Alencar” (6 exs. INPA, in alcohol); “Botumirim, Waterfall of Bananal, long -43.037042, lat -16.839917, 908 m a.s.l., vertical surfaces with water, 28.iii.2020, leg. J.B. R. Alencar” (5 exs. INPA, in alcohol); “Serro, Waterfall of Malheiros, long -43.445917, lat -18.654139, 738 m a.s.l., tiver margin, 31.iii.2020, leg. J.B. R. Alencar ” (9 exs. INPA, in alcohol).
Diagnosis. Large-sized species. Pronotum with rounded posterolateral margins. Elytra surface with shallowly impressed longitudinal grooves, with sparse short setae. Elytra with sutural interval raised (Fig. 12d) and margins explanate (Fig. 13b). Prosternum with 4–5 anteromedial spine-like setae. Abdominal ventrites dark brown, not paler than thoracic ventrites, in strong contrast to legs and pseudoepipleura, which are from yellow to light brown.
Adult. Body length 5.0–6.0 mm (n= 10, mean= 5.72, SD= ±0.33); TL/GW 1.65± 0.09 mm. General body shape broadly oval, slightly convex.
Color. Dorsum black (Fig. 3a), covered with dense, irregular green or bronze sheen. Anterolateral margins of pronotum with pale strip, extending to ca. four fifths of lateral margin length. Elytra with irregular patches of bronze or green iridescence; with row of rounded black [=without sheen] spots along suture. Each elytron with rounded pale spot in distal quarter. Antennomeres 1–5 yellowish brown, club dark brown. Maxillary and labial palps yellow. Ventral face of head dark brown to black. Lateral margins of prosternum; pseudoepipleura and epipleura yellowish brown. Thorax dark brown to black ventrally. Legs light brown to yellow, except for dark brown coxae and basal region of femora. Abdominal ventrites dark brown, with slightly lighter posterior margins on ventrites 1–4, sometimes with pale patches laterally on ventrites 2–3.
Head. Ground punctation on clypeus and frons moderately coarse, distance between punctures 2.0–3.0× width of one puncture (Fig. 3d). Ground punctation on labrum denser than punctation of clypeus, distance between punctures 0.5–1.5× twidth of one puncture; with few distinct systematic punctures medially. Labrum sometimes bearing short setae. Clypeus with several scattered indistinct systematic punctures laterally; sometimes bearing short setae. Frons with irregular row of systematic punctures toward the median plane of each eye and few fine setae around ocular suture. Maxillary palps shorter than width of labrum; segment 3 shorter than segment 2; apical segment longer than penultimate segment. Labial palps about two-thirds as long as width of mentum. Mentum smooth, with scattered coarse punctures; subquadrate, anterior margin slightly convex and depressed.
Thorax. Ground punctation on pronotum and elytra evenly distributed and moderately coarse (Figs. 3a, c, d). Pronotal systematic punctures with short fine setae, at least 2× size of surrounding ground punctures; anterior and posterior series each forming irregular field. Lateral margins of pronotum with fine setae distributed along its length, being more densely pubescent on anterior half. Pronotal posterolateral angles rounded. Sutural interval on elytra slightly raised along its length. Elytral interval with weak or non-existent pubescence on ground punctation (e.g. Figs. 12a, c, d). Rows of systematic punctures on elytra present but blending with surrounding fine ground punctation and as such hardly distinguishable (e.g. Fig. 12d). Elytral surface with shallow longitudinal depressions medially in posterior half. Humeral region (in frontal view) without antero-medial elevation. Elytral margins with short spine-like setae situated along its length and explanate on posterior half. Prosternum with clearly defined median carina; slightly elevated anteromedially (Fig. 3e); elevated region with 4–5 spine-like setae. Elevated process of mesoventrite wide and elongate, about twice as long as wide; slightly raised anteriorly; with 6–7 coarse spine-like setae. Metaventrite with posteromedial oval glabrous area ca. twice as long as wide; length of glabrous area about two-thirds length of metaventrite. Procoxae with fine short pubescence and set with coarse, short spine-like setae; grouped on basal half. Protibiae each with 9–12 spine-like setae on dorsal face. Meso- and metafemora with scattered punctures bearing short thickened, spine-like setae.
Abdomen. Ventrites covered with scattered, sparsely distributed setae of varying lengths; ventrites 1–4 with setae shorter to subequal than longest setae around margin of metasternal glabrous area (Fig. 3b). Aedeagus: outer margin of parameres weakly sinuous, gradually tapering to apex, curving inward; inner margin, straight, tapering from distal half (dorsal view); median lobe shorter than parameres, without apical hook. Gonopore located at 4/5 length of median lobe. Basal piece rounded (Fig. 11b).
Etymology. The specific epithet espinhacu is derived from “Serra do Espinhaço ”, the name of the Brazilian mountain range where this species is widely distributed. To be treated as a noun in apposition.
Distribution. Brazil (Minas Gerais) (Fig. 14).
Remarks. This species shares diagnostic features with O. itapecum Clarkson & Short, 2012 and O. fryanus Balfour-Browne, 1939: non-pale abdominal ventrites, elytral suture raised and four prosternal spines. However, in O. itapecum, the body shape is elongated (TL/GW =1.80), the elytra are smooth, without undulating grooves near the suture interval, and the legs are light brown to dark brown, while in O. espinhacu sp. n. the body is less elongated (TL/GW = 1.65), the elytra have undulating grooves near the suture interval and the legs are paler in color (light brown to yellow). O. fryanus, for its part, has multiple pale elytral spots, a more distinctive lateral depression on humeral region and a distinct medial indentation on the elytra easily distinguish it from O. espinhacu sp. n.
description: Published as part of Alencar, Janderson Batista R., Short, Andrew Edward Z. & Hamada, Neusa, 2022, New species and new distributional records of the hygropetric water scavenger beetle genus Oocyclus Sharp (Coleoptera, Hydrophilidae) from the Brazilian Shield, pp. 275-305 in Zootaxa 5087 (2) on pages 279-281, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5087.2.3, http://zenodo.org/record/5824101