Neodima yutangi Qiu 2021, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Qiu, Lu
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2021
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Elateridae
Neodima
Neodima yutangi

description: Neodima yutangi sp. nov.
(Figs 1–4)
Type material. Holotype, male, “ 2021.VI.5 / H川北川县ÑIâ/ƗÄ园 1500m /ḆẌ玥 I Ṫ 堂” [Jiucaiyuan, Yaowanggu, Beichuan Qiang Autonomous County, Mianyang City, Sichuan Province, China, 1500m, 5.VI.2021, Jian-Yue Qiu & Yu-Tang Wang leg.] (MYNU).
Diagnosis. The almost unicolored elytra and relatively larger body, longer and more divergent hind angles of pronotum, the shape and structure of aedeagus readily distinguish N. yutangi sp. nov. from N. sichuanensis and N. belousovi. This new species further differs from N. sichuanensis by more elongate elytra and the straight frontal margin of mesanepisternum. It most resembles N. cechovskyi by its elongate and almost unicolored body, the window-like large punctures, and the straight frontal margin of mesanepisternum (Fig. 1A–C, Fig. 2B–C), but it can be readily distinguished from the latter by the longer and more divergent hind angles of pronotum, smaller and sparser punctures on pronotum, and the curved prosternal process (Fig. 1C, Fig. 2A).
Description (male holotype). Relatively large species in the genus with slender antennae and legs (Fig. 1A–C). Body elongate, pronotum and elytra convex. Body surface covered with soft, semi-erect, and moderate long pubescence. Body length 7.1 mm; width 2.2 mm; antennae length 5.3 mm; pronotum length 1.4 mm, width 1.8 mm; elytra length 4.7 mm, width 2.2 mm.
Body generally yellowish brown to light brown (Fig. 1A–C). Head brown (including antennae and labrum), mandibles brown with darker apex, remaining mouthparts yellowish brown. Pronotum brown, with hind-lateral and hind margins darker. Scutellar shield brown, darker along anterior margin. Elytra yellowish brown, lateral and apical portions indistinctly light yellowish brown, humeri and outer margins dark brown, each window-like puncture with two lateral brown dots. Underside brown. Legs light yellowish brown; pubescence golden.
Head (Fig. 2A) including eyes 0.67 times as wide as pronotum. Edge of frons smooth apically, not carinated, overhanging base of labrum; surface above antennal insertions elevated but not forming carinae. Head surface sparsely punctate, punctures on basal portion denser than on distal portion; punctures small, intervals between punctures mostly equal 1–3 puncture diameter. Maxillary palpus with palpomere III longer than wide. Antenna surpassing mid-length of elytra, length ratio of antennomeres II–IV = 1.00: 1.10: 1.33; scape robust, pedicel shortest, about 2.5 as long as wide; antennomere III slightly longer than pedicel; antennomeres IV–X elongate, similar in length; ultimate antennomere elongate, gradually widened subapically, then narrowed apically, apex blunt.
Pronotum (Fig. 2A) widest near middle. It’s about as wide as long when length measured between anterior and hind angles and width between hind angles. In lateral view, pronotum strongly convex toward second half. Sides after half more or less evenly narrowing anteriad and posteriad, anteriorly narrowing more sharply than posteriorly; posterior angles long, divergent, left angle with outer margin slightly rounded, apex towards base of elytra, while right angle straight (probably aberrant), apices of hind angles bluntly rounded. Disc moderately densely punctate; punctures small, moderate deep, intervals between punctures on average subequal to three to six diameters of one puncture; interstices smooth. Pubescence curved, semi-erect, mostly directed forwards.
Hypomeron more densely punctate than pronotum, punctures large and deep, intervals between punctures on average subequal to one to two diameters of one puncture. Prosternal sutures excavated anteriorly. Prosternum including prosternal process about 1.4 times as long as wide, in front of coxal cavities 0.88 times as long as wide; with punctation slightly sparser than on hypomeron, intervals between punctures on average subequal to three to four diameters of one puncture. Prosternal process curved ventrad, 0.63 times as long as prosternum in front of procoxal cavities, apex blunt (Fig. 1B–C, Fig. 2B).
Scutellar shield (Fig. 2A) suboval, about 1.4 times as wide as long; anterior margin slightly extended medially, with distinct edge; posterior margin rounded.
Mesoventrite trapezoid-shaped, surface with deep punctures, medial prostrusion of frontal margin short, apically only slightly emarginate medially; procoxal rests indistinct. Mesanepisternum with frontal margin slightly rounded, with indistinct lateral extensions of procoxal rests, surface with large and deep punctures. Metaventrite with large and deep punctures. Metacoxal plate enlarged inward, strongly reduced outward (Fig. 1C, Fig. 2B, D).
Elytra (Fig. 1A) elongate, together about 2.1 times as long as wide, widest at 2/3 of their length from base. Sides from humeri gradually widened to 2/3 of elytral length, then narrowed towards apices; apices emarginated, independently rounded. Striae of the elytra formed by lines of large window-like punctures, each large puncture with two dark dots on each lateral sides; interstriae reduced to convex ridges, surface smooth but with some micropunctures (Fig. 2C). Pubescence curved, semi-erect, mostly directed backwards.
Abdomen (Fig. 1C) with ventrites sparsely punctate, punctures small, circular, intervals between punctures on average subequal to three to four diameters of one puncture; pubescence semi-erect, mostly directed backwards. Apical ventrite not reaching edge of elytra, distinctly truncate posteriorly. Tergite VIII (Fig. 3D) broadly oval, 1.32 times as long as wide, apically covered with sparse pubescence. Sternite VIII (Fig. 3D) with two dark colored lobes, with long setae, the rest portion transparent. Tergite IX (Fig. 3E) subtriangular, 1.36 times as long as wide, median deeply emarginate apically; two lobes elongate, lateral sides with long setae; tergite X (Fig. 3E) membranous, emarginate apically. Sternite IX (Fig. 3F) elongate, about 2.7 times as long as wide, apically widely rounded and setose.
Aedeagus (Fig. 3A–C) with robust median lobe, notably surpassing parameres, gradually narrowed before middle, then slightly widened near middle and sharply narrowing towards apex; apex bluntly rounded. Distal half with large oval extension, whole lobe bearing well-developed elongate sclerite inside, with row of strong spines along sclerite which is directed toward base of aedeagus; apical six spines smaller than remaining spines, apical portion of sclerite surpassing oval extension and slightly surpassing apex of median lobe. Paramere slender, straight, stick-like, reaching half of median lobe; apex blunt, slightly protruded outward, without pubescence; basal portion of paramere with transparent, elongate lobe; apex tapered and bluntly rounded. Phallobase narrowed, strongly U-shaped.
Female. Unknown.
Immature stages. Unknown.
Distribution. China: Sichuan (Beichuan) (Fig. 4A).
Etymology. The specific epithet is dedicated to Mr. Yu-Tang Wang (Taiwan, China), one of the collectors of the holotype.
Natural history. Holotype of this species was collected by net from the shrubs of the roadside during daytime in Yaowanggu, Beichuan (Fig. 4B) (Jian-Yue Qiu and Yu-Tang Wang, personal communication).
description: Published as part of Qiu, Lu, 2021, A new Neodima species (Coleoptera: Elateridae: Dimini), with notes on the distribution and morphology of the genus, pp. 115-121 in Zootaxa 5067 (1) on pages 116-120, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5067.1.7, http://zenodo.org/record/5656624