Morphostenophanes purpurascens Zhou, new species
Creators: name: Zhou, De-Yao
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2020
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Tenebrionidae
Morphostenophanes
Morphostenophanes purpurascens

description: Morphostenophanes purpurascens Zhou, new species ḨaeẎȐAEƤ
(Figs. 11 A–D; 17K, P; 18G; 19D–F, V; 20G, R, V)
Type materials. CHINA: Yunnan: ♂ (Holotype, SNUC), Pingbian County, Mount Dawei, near the hotel on the peak, ca. 2093 m, 2018.v.26, Zhi-Wei Dong & Lu Qiu. Paratypes (8 ♂♂, 14♀♀): CHINA: Yunnan: 1♀ (SNUC), 1 ♂, 2♀♀ (CZDY, a sample of eggs was preserved in 99.7% ethanol at –18 °C), 2♀♀ (CQL), Pingbian County, Mount
Dawei, near the hotel on the peak, ca. 2093 m, 2018.v.26–27, Zhi-Wei Dong & Lu Qiu; 1♀ (CQL), Pingbian County, Mount Dawei, at the top of the mountain, 2016.v.16, Lu Qiu; 1 ♂ (CZDY), 1♀ (CQL), Pingbian County, Mount Dawei, 2016.v.18, Lu Qiu; 1♀ (CJM), Pingbian County, Mount Dawei, 2017.vii.24–28, Ming Jin; 1 ♂ (CYM), 3♀♀ (CZDY), 2♀♀ (MHBU), Pingbian County, Mount Dawei, near 22°54’21.21”N, 103°41’48.73”E, 1700–2100 m, 2015.vi.2, Tian-Long He; 1 ♂ (CBWX), Pingbian County, Mount Dawei, 2000–2200 m, 2009.v.20–21, Wen-Xuan Bi; 1♂ (MHBU), 2♂♂, 1♀ (MYNU), Pingbian County, Mount Dawei, Dajianshan, 2100 m, 2015.v.20, Jian-Yue Qiu; 1♂ (MYNU), Pingbian County, Mount Dawei, Dajianshan, 2100 m, 2018.v.25–27, Hao Xu & Jian-Yue Qiu.
Diagnosis. Large sized, elongate, strongly convex, green colored, anterior part of head, and all legs purple, pronotum, middle part of elytra and abdomen with purplish luster. Tempora strongly convex, separated from head by sulci. Elytra moderately convex, widest in apical 2/5, with densely and irregularly scattered round or oval encircled striae, each encircled area moderately convex. Male protarsi extremely narrow, pro- and mesotibiae nearly straight. Female possessing relative long legs. Ovipositor elongate, acute at apex.
Description. Male (Fig. 11A, C). Light to dark green, antennae, mouthparts, and tarsi dark brown, anterior part of head, and all legs purple, pronotum, middle part of elytra and abdomen with purplish luster. Body elongate, length 23.6–26.1 mm, width 7.9–8.9 mm, strongly convex, noticeably constricted between pronotum and elytra.
Head (Fig. 16L, P) transversely quadrate, densely and markedly punctate; with outer margin deeply notched between genae and clypeus; clypeus transversely hexagonal, gently bent downwards in front, anterior margin emarginate, clypeal transverse impression marked; frontoclypeal suture furrowed, widely U-shaped; genae strongly raised, depressed before eyes, roundly produced anterolaterally; frons broad, strongly wrinkled, frontal impressions vague, vertexal median impressions broadly presented; eyes transversely reniform, strongly convex laterally; inner ocular sulci grooved along inner margins, extending posteriorly and ventrally, encircled and separated tempora; tempora strongly convex, finely punctate. OI = 54.0–54.8. Antennae (Fig. 18G) slender, reaching basal third of elytra, with antennomeres weakly thickened to apices; relative lengths of antennomeres: 0.85: 0.37: 1.39: 1.38: 1.45: 1.45: 1.34: 1.24: 1.21: 1.14: 1.34. Mentum (Fig. 16P) inversely trapezoidal, lateral margins straight; medial surface sparsely and coarsely punctate, with several large pores with long setae, gradually rising anteriorly, depressed along both sides.
Pronotum (Fig. 17K) quadrate, PW/PL = 1.04–1.10, widest in anterior third, anterior margin nearly straight, anterior marginal border marked; lateral margins nearly straight, slightly widened at widest point, lateral marginal borders extremely thin, faintly presented; posterior margin weakly rounded, emarginate, posterior marginal border markedly presented; anterior angles rounded; posterior angles obtuse; disc strongly convex, a pair of impressions vague to absent in middle, shagreened, and densely markedly punctates. Scutellum triangular, glossy.
Elytra oblong, widest in apical 2/5, EL/EW = 1.96–1.97; strongly convex, highest in middle; with densely and irregularly scattered round or oval striae, each encircled area moderately convex; intervals sparsely and finely punctate.
Prosternum (Fig. 17P) shagreened, finely and sparsely punctate; prosternal process declivous, pointed at apex; hypomeron strongly rugulose, shagreened. Metasternum glossy, metaventral anterior process transversely aciculate. Abdomen (Fig. 19V) depressed, surface somewhat rough, wrinked along anterior margins and sides of each sternite, densely and finely punctate; sternites III and IV each shallowly depressed in posterior middle, with central portion of each impressions weakly convex.
Legs slender. Protibiae (Fig. 19D) nearly straight, apical half of inner margins pubescent; mesotibiae (Fig. 19E) nearly straight, weakly curved in apical fourth, apical half of inner margins pubescent; metatibiae (Fig. 19F) sinuous, apical 3/5 of inner margins feebly pubescent, outer margins depressed before apices.
Aedeagus (Fig. 20G) elongate, weakly curved in lateral view; parameres slender, 0.22 as long as total length, with rounded apex. Sternite VIII (Fig. 20R) with apical lobes broadly hooked.
Female (Fig. 11B, D). Wider than male, length 21.4–24.4 mm. Elytra more convex, highest in middle; abdomen straight in lateral view; without impressions on sternites. OI = 42.4–46.7, PW/PL = 1.15–1.18, EL/EW = 1.66–1.67. Ovipositor (Fig. 20V) elongate, gradually narrowing apically, with acute weakly beveled.
Variability. Several individuals have antennomere XI strongly narrowing from middle towards the apex (Fig. 18 Gv).
Comparative notes. Morphostenophanes purpurascens is assigned to the aenescens -group due to its slender habitus; elongate elytra widest in apical 2/5, with densely and irregularly scattered encircled segments of striae; and male sternites III and IV each depressed posterior of the middle. However, M. purpurascens is unique within aenescens -group. Compared with the stout females of other congeners, the female of M. purpurascens is much more slender with long legs; thus appearing like a male with wider and more convex elytra. The more acute ovipositor is similar to those of elegantulus and atavus -group. M. purpurascens can also be easily distinguished from congeners by its purplish body color, strongly convex tempora separated by sulci, and straight pro- and mesotibiae.
Comments. Localities of M. purpurascens and M. iridescens are only 39 kilometers apart. However, the two species are very different in body colors, habitus, and many detailed characters, which suggests they may have different last common ancestors. M. iridescens is clearly related to M. cuproviridis and M. aenescens yelang (see comparative note of M. iridescens and comments of M. aenescens). M. purpurascens has monotonous colors, lacks pinkish luster on the pronotum, elytra striae and legs, and unique acute ovipositor, which is typical in the atavus - and elegantulus -group, and could be a primitive feature, which indicates it may have developed from an earlier ancestor.
Distribution. (Map 1) CHINA: Yunnan.
Etymology. The new species is named from the Latin epithet ‘purpurascens’ (purple colored) referring to its purple body color.
description: Published as part of Zhou, De-Yao, 2020, A revision of the genus Morphostenophanes Pic, 1925 (Coleoptera, Tenebrionidae, Stenochiinae, Cnodalonini), pp. 1-81 in Zootaxa 4769 (1) on pages 22-24, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4769.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/3797078