Cryptognatha nodiceps Marshall 1912

2. Cryptognatha nodiceps Marshall

Cryptognatha nodiceps Marshall 1912: 321; Korshefsky 1931: 219; Blackwelder 1945: 449.

Description. Male. Length 2.6 mm, width 2.6 mm. Dorsal surface entirely shiny. Color yellow (Fig. 8); pronotum with 5 pale brown spots, 2 on disc, 3 along posterior margin; elytron with irregular black spot occupying most of disc, and elongate longitudinal spot close to sutural margin anterior to middle (Fig. 8). Head without punctures; pronotal punctures small, separated by less than a diameter; elytral punctures slightly larger than on pronotum, separated by less than a diameter to twice a diameter; prosternal punctures small, separated by less than a diameter; meso- and metasternal punctures large, separated by a diameter or less on mesosternum, widely separated on median 1/3 of metasternum, lateral 1/3 without punctures; basal abdominal ventrite with coarse punctures separated by about a diameter medially, lateral 1/3 of ventrite and ventrites 2–4 lacking punctation, ventrite 5 with dense, fine punctation. Head with frons parallel-sided, medially depressed, twice as wide as eye, apex truncate medially, lateral 1/8 slightly retracted, angle acute (Fig. 9); eye canthus long, about 1/2 width of eye. Prosternum with lateral carina on each side extended from apex of intercoxal process nearly to midpoint of prosternum. Epipleuron strongly descending externally. Postcoxal line on basal abdominal ventrite evenly curved, extended 3/4 distance to rear margin of ventrite. Genitalia long, penis guide nearly as long as paramere, parallel-sided with apical 1/8 narrowed to rounded apex; paramere slender, parallelsided, apex rounded (Fig. 11, 12); penis slender, equal in width throughout, apex acute (Fig. 13).

Female. Similar to male except head weakly depressed, dark yellow; pronotum brownish yellow medially, lacking brown spots; genitalia with spermathecal capsule slender, evenly curved from ramus to acute apex of cornu (Fig. 14).

Variation. Length 2.4 to 2.9 mm, width 2.0 to 2.7 mm. Elytral color highly variable from typical to having disc entirely black with reddish yellow spot near suture posterior to middle.

Type locality. Trinidad, Cedros.

Type depository. BMNH.

Geographical distribution. Guyana, Trinidad.

Specimens examined. 44. Distributed throughout Trinidad, also a single specimen examined from Blairmont, Guyana.

Remarks. This species has a distinctive dorsal color pattern, but male genitalia appear identical to those of C. auriculata.