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

description: Morphostenophanes gaoligongensis Zhou, new species dzṼḿẎȐAEƤ
(Figs. 34 A–F; 35A–D; 39A, E, I, M; 40A, H–L; 41A, E, L)
Type materials. CHINA: Yunnan: ♂ (Holotype, SNUC, a sample of muscle tissue was preserved in 99.7% ethanol at –18 °C in CZDY), Mount Gaoligong, Baihualing, Jinchanghe, 25°18’40.68’’N, 98°47’26.45’’E, 1700 m, 2016.vi.20, Zhi-Wei Dong. Paratypes (17 ♂♂, 12 ♀♀): CHINA: Yunnan: 1♀ (SNUC), Mount Gaoligong, Baihualing, 2100m, 2012.v.5, Wen-Xuan Bi; 1 ♂ (CZDY), 1 ♂ (CQL), Mount Gaoligong, Baihualing, Jin-
changhe, 25°18’40.68’’N, 98°47’26.45’’E, 1700 m, 2016.vi.20, Zhi-Wei Dong; 1 ♂ (CZDY, a sample of muscle tissue was preserved in 99.7% ethanol at –18 °C), Mount Gaoligong, Baihualing, near Ertaipo, 25°17’57.56’’N, 98°47’7.94’’E’, 2057 m, 2017.vi.28, Zhong-Liang Jiang; 1♀ (CZJZ), Mount Gaoligong, Baihualing, 25°18’28.47”N, 98°47’37.80”E, 1588 m, 2019.vii.25, Jia-Zhi Zhang; 4♂♂, 1♀ (MYNU), Mount Gaoligong, Baihualing, 1900 m, 2015.ii.23, Hao Xu & Jian-Yue Qiu; 1♀ (MYNU), Mount Gaoligong, Baihualing, 1900 m, 2016.ii.13, Hao Xu & Jian-Yue Qiu; 1♂ (MHBU), Mount Gaoligong, Baihualing, 1900 m, 2018.ii.18, Hao Xu & Jian-Yue Qiu; 1♂, 1♀ (CZDY, a sample of muscle tissue was preserved in 99.7% ethanol at –18 °C), Tengchong County, Gaoligong N.R., Xiaodifang Village, 24°51’15.43”N, 98°45’10. 73”E, 2172m, 2019.ix.19–20, Liang Ding; 1♂, 1♀ (SNUC), 3♂♂, 4♀♀ (CZDY, a female was preserved in 99.7% ethanol at –18 °C), Baoshan City, Tengchong County, Zha- oyun Village, ca. 25°8’56.60’’N, 98°30’21.67’’E, 2350 m, 2018.ii, native collector; 2♂♂, 1♀ (CZDY), Tengchong County, Zhaoyun Village, ca. 25°8’56.60’’N, 98°30’21.67’’E, 2350 m, 2019.i, native collector; 1♂, 1♀ (CZJZ), 1♂ (CZDY), Yingjiang County, Taiping Town, 1200 m, 2019.v.27, native collector.
Diagnosis. Body medium sized, bronze, sometimes greenish, weaklyshiny. Elytra widest near middle, with rows of encircled segments of striae, some interrupted or straight, each encircled area convex. Aedeagus with apex of parameres not curved ventrally.
Description. Male (Fig. 34A, B, D, E; 35A, C). Bronze, sometimes greenish, shagreened; antennae dark brown, claws reddish brown. Body stout, length 19.7–21.4 mm, width 7.4–7.7 mm, strongly convex, noticeably constricted between pronotum and elytra.
Head (Fig. 39A, E) transversely subquadrate, sparsely and finely punctate, with outer margin distinctly notched between genae and clypeus; clypeus transversely heptagonal, gently bent downwards in front, with anterior margin nearly straight, slightly emarginate in middle, clypeal transverse impression short, marked to absent; frontoclypeal suture depressed, becoming weaker laterad, widely U-shaped; genae strongly raised, depressed before eyes, strongly and roundly produced anterolaterally; frons broad, smooth to vaguely wrinkled, anterior part gradually sloping forwards; eyes transversely reniform, strongly convex laterally; inner ocular sulci finely depressed; tempora moderately convex. OI = 51.0–55.1. Antennae (Fig. 40A) slender, slightly surpassing basal third of elytra, with antennomeres weakly thickened to apices; relative lengths of antennomeres: 0.68: 0.37: 1.11: 1.19: 1.24: 1.22: 1.22: 1.17: 1.14: 1.04: 1.14. Mentum (Fig. 39E) subcircular, lateral margins rounded, seamlessly connected posteriorly to the emarginate posterior margin; medial surface sparsely and coarsely punctate, with several large pores bearing long setae, gradually rising anteriorly, depressed along both sides.
Pronotum (Fig. 39I) quadrate, PW/PL = 1.09–1.19, widest near anterior third; anterior margin nearly straight, slightly projecting in middle, anterior marginal border marked; lateral margins weakly curved, anterior half slightly projecting laterally, lateral sulci thin, visible in dorsal view along anterior third to half; posterior margin weakly rounded or nearly straight, emarginate in middle, posterior marginal border marked; anterior angles rounded, posterior angles obtuse; disc strongly convex in middle, depressed before posterior margin, shagreened, finely and sparsely punctate. Scutellum (Fig. 40H, I) widely triangular, glossy to shagreened, finely punctate.
Elytra fusiform, widest near middle, EL/EW = 1.75–1.85; strongly convex, highest near middle; with rows of round and oval segments of striae, some interrupted or straight, encircled areas convex; intervals strongly convex, surface smooth, sparsely and finely punctate.
Prosternum (Fig. 39M) shagreened, finely and sparsely punctate; prosternal process produced posterioly or declivous, apex truncate; hypomeron weakly rugulose, shagreened. Metasternum glossy, metaventral anterior process weakly wrinkled. Abdomen depressed, surface somewhat rough, densely and finely punctate, with sternites III and IV sulcate in both sides.
Legs slender. Protibiae (Fig. 40J) curved in apical third, apical 3/5 of inner margins pubescent; mesotibiae (Fig. 40K) weakly curved in apical third, apical half of inner margins pubescent; metatibiae (Fig. 40L) weakly sinuous, apical 3/5 of inner margins emarginate and pubescent, outer margins depressed before apices.
Aedeagus (Fig. 41A) elongate, curved in lateral view; parameres slender, straightly producing in lateral view, 0.20 as long as total length, with apex obtusely lance-shaped. Sternite VIII (Fig. 41E) with apical lobes rectangular in lateral view, superior margin straight, exterior margins straight, inferior margins rounded, cornered at lowest point.
Female (Fig. 34C, F; 35B, D). Stouter than male, length 20.0– 23.7mm. OI = 55.0–56.3, PW/PL = 1.14–1.23; elytra more convex, EL/EW = 1.57–1.75, highest in middle; abdomen straight in lateral view. Ovipositor elongate, gradually narrowing apically, apex of gonocoxite acute or truncate.
Variability. Both males and females of this species vary in habitus and body color. The male holotype (Fig. 34A, D) and one female paratype (Fig. 34C, F) have relatively stout bodies, while other male paratypes (as shown in Fig. 34B, E) and another paratype female shown less bloated bodies. Some individuals have greener body, even dark green (Fig. 35 A–D). The male holotype has a pair of impressions on scutellum (Fig. 40H), while other specimens lack such impressions (as shown in Fig. 40I). One male paratype (Fig. 34B, E) has more coarsely microsculptured pronotal disc and scutellum, and less curved protibiae. One female paratype has trcunted apex of gonocoxite (Fig. 41L), with a smoothly curved apical edge, which seems not caused by damage or abrasion. Another female has a normal, acute gonocoxite as those in all other congeners within the elegantulus - and atavus -group.
Comparative notes. Morphostenophanes gaoligongensis resembles M. sinicus, but can be clearly distinguished from the latter by its straight produced apex of parameres in lateral view, compared to that of M. sinicus, which isventrally bent. A preliminary identification of M. gaoligongensis is based on its more glossy body, antennomere XI less than 3x as long as wide comprared to that of M. sinicus more than 3x as long as wide, and stouter male elytra with aspect ratios ranging from 1.75–1.85, compared to that of M. sinicus in male greater than 1.9.
Distribution. (Map 1) CHINA: Yunnan.
Etymology. The new species is named after its type locality, Gaoligong Mountains.
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 55-57, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4769.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/3797078