Enoclerus opitzi Rifkind, n. sp.
Creators: name: Rifkind, Jacques
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2012
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Cleridae
Enoclerus
Enoclerus opitzi

description: Enoclerus opitzi Rifkind, n. sp.
(Fig. 13)
Type specimens. Holotype male: Panamá, Panamá Province, ± 10 km N. El Llano, 1400', June 3–8, 1986, E. Giesbert, coll. Holotype deposited in CSCA. Paratypes: PANAMÁ, Panamá Province: 2, Cerro Azul, 24 May, 1986, F. T. Hovore, coll.; 1, Cerro Azul & Jefe, 17/18 May, 1987, F. T. Hovore, coll. Paratypes are deposited in LACM and JNRC.
Diagnosis. Separable from congeners based on coloration, elytral markings and surface sculpturing. Extremely similar to E. melissae, but differs in having three rather than two sets of cream–colored elytral markings. Unlike E. melissae, E. opitzi has the elytral humeral angles pale.
Description (Holotype). Length: 4.40 mm. Color: head and pronotum dark metallic blue; venter similar but reflecting dark reddish tints at some angles; antennae, mouthparts and legs reddish testaceous; elytra metallic brownish–purple marked with three sets of cream–colored maculae as in Fig. 13. Humeral maculae covering umbones, but narrowly incomplete at anterior and post basal margins; median and apical maculae interrupted laterally at epipleuron. Head: shining; sparsely, finely punctulate; set with short and medium length suberect, posteriorly oriented ashy setae, intermixed with a few longer, erect dark setae. Pronotum: a little longer than broad; narrower than elytra at base; transverse impression broadly U–shaped at middle; disk subflattened above; surface shining, punctulate as on head; moderately but inconspicuously clothed with fine, suberect ashy setae and fewer longer, more robust, erect dark setae. Elytra: elongate (ratio of length to width 33:20); broadest posterior to middle; umbones prominent; subbasal tumescences obsolete; posterior slope gradual; surface shining, somewhat more densely and distinctly punctulate than pronotum; punctures appearing dark against cream–colored maculae; vestiture inconspicuous, consisting of fine, suberect, pale setae over pale maculae, and fine, suberect dark setae on darkened integument, intermixed with robust, infuscate erect setae. Mesosternum: posterior median process slightly raised at apex. Metasternum: convex; shallowly, minutely granulate–punctate, vested with rather long, fine ashy setae; anterior median process not elevated distally. Abdomen: shining; coarsely, sparsely and shallowly punctate, vested as on metasternum; visible sternite 6 with posterior margin truncate, shorter than visible tergite 6, which has the posterior margin narrowly rounded. Legs: robust.
Variation. Size ranges from 4.40 mm to 4.85 mm. All three paratypes have the elytral ground color darker than the holotype. One of the specimens from Cerro Azul has the venter, and particularly the abdomen, cupreous metallic. The female pygidium has visible sternite 6 and visible tergite 6 with their posterior margins rounded, and the latter slightly surpassing the former.
Etymology. The specific epithet is a patronymic recognizing Weston Opitz for his profound contributions to clerid systematics.
Distribution. All specimens were collected in Panamá Province, Panamá. This appears to be a montane species.
description: Published as part of Rifkind, Jacques, 2012, New Central American and Mexican Enoclerus Gahan (Coleoptera: Cleridae: Clerinae): Part II, pp. 1-27 in Zootaxa 3397 on pages 13-14, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.213050