Euconnus (Glabriconnus) banari Jałoszyński 2016, sp. n.

Euconnus (Glabriconnus) banari sp. n.

(Figs 1–14, 20–22, 28–29, 38)

Type material. Holotype (MADAGASCAR): ♂, two labels: "ABT/ Nov.2011/01 MADAGASCAR / AMBOHITANTELY Spec. Res.; 16.xi. / 2011; S18º11'52.7''E47º17'0.4'' / 1603m, sifting forest litter under big / Pandanus, Winkler app. extraction / L.S. Rahanitriniaina & P. Baňař lgt." [white, printed], " EUCONNUS / (GLABRICONNUS) / banari m. /det. P. Jałoszyński, 2015 / HOLOTYPUS" [red, printed] (MMBC). Paratypes (11 exx.): 1 ♂, "ABT/ Nov.2011/12 MADAGASCAR / AMBOHITANTELY Spec. Res.; 1482m / S18º10'53.3''E47º17'22.4'' / 18.xi. / 2011; sifting forest litter; Winkler app. / extraction; L.S. Rahanitriniaina lgt."; 1 ♂, 4 ♀♀, "ABT/ Nov.2011/18 MADAGASCAR / AMBOHITANTELY Spec. Res.; 1614m / S18º11'48.7''E47º17'11.3'' / 22.xi. / 2011; sifting litter under group of / palm trees; Winkler app. extraction; / L.S.

Rahanitriniaina lgt."; 3 ♂♂, " ABT / Nov.2011/20 MADAGASCAR / AMBOHITANTELY Spec. Res.; 4.ix. / 2011; S18º11'26.8'' E47º17'04.9'' / 1626m, sifting of rotten wood +forest / litter under bamboo; Winkler app. / extraction; L.S. Rahanitriniaina lgt."; 1 ♂, " ABT /07/2011 MADAGASCAR 2011/ AMBOHITANTELY Spec. Res.; 19.iv. / S18º11'11.0'' E47º17'08.5'' / 1624m / sifting plant residues under / Pandanus; Winkler apparatus / extraction; L.S. Rahanitriniaina lgt."; 1 ♀, " ABT /17/2011 MADAGASCAR 2011/ AMBOHITANTELY Spec. Res.; 20.iv. / S18º11'43.1''E47º17'19.3'' / 1636m / sifting forest litter; Winkler app. extr. / L.S. Rahanitriniaina & R. Raveloson lgt." (MMBC, cPJ).

Diagnosis. Large species, BL> 2.5 mm; frons with two subparallel rounded longitudinal carinae; pronotum with one lateral hypomeral groove at each side; elytra drop-shaped, strongly narrowing posteriorly and distinctly less so anteriorly; aedeagus nearly four times as long as broad, broadest near middle.

Description. Body of male (Figs 1–2) very strongly convex, elongate with deep constriction between head and pronotum and between pronotum and elytra, appendages long; BL 2.53–2.70 mm (mean 2.60 mm); cuticle glossy and slightly opalescent, dark reddish-brown, pronotum and head slightly darker than elytra; legs and antennae, palps and tarsi light brown; vestiture of setae and bristles about as dark as cuticle.

Head (Figs 1–4, 6) in dorsal view (Figs 1, 3) approximately subpentagonal, broadest at eyes, HL 0.45–0.50 mm (mean 0.47 mm), HW 0.50–0.58 mm (mean 0.53 mm); vertex and frons confluent, frons and anterior portion of vertex with pair of subparallel longitudinal median carinae, which are rounded and weakly elevated but distinct, area between carinae distinctly impressed; supraantennal tubercles weakly raised but distinct, slightly lighter than surrounding cuticle; tempora slightly more than twice as long as eyes in dorsal view; eyes moderately large and moderately convex, coarsely faceted; head in lateral view (Figs 2, 4) distinctly flattened and with vertex not bulging posterodorsally. Punctures on vertex and frons very fine and sparse, inconspicuous; setae on vertex and posterior portion of frons indiscernible, only frons between supraantennal tubercles with several moderately long and suberect setae; genae and postgeneae, but not tempora, with thick bristles. Antennae moderately long, AnL 1.08–1.20 mm (mean 1.12 mm); antennomeres I–II strongly elongate, III–IV each about as long as broad, V slightly elongate, VI about as long as broad, VII indistinctly longer than broad, VIII slightly transverse, IX–X each distinctly transverse, XI broader than X, slightly shorter than IX–X together, only about 1.5× as long as broad, with subconical, indistinctly pointed apex.

Pronotum in dorsal view (Fig. 1) bell-shaped, broadest distinctly in anterior third, slightly variable in proportions, in some specimens slightly broader than long, in others about as broad as long, PL 0.68–0.70 mm (mean 0.69 mm), PW 0.70–0.80 mm (mean 0.75 mm); anterior margin nearly straight, anterior corners weakly marked, obtuse-angled and blunt; lateral margins strongly rounded in anterior half, slightly concave near base; posterior corners slightly obtuse-angled or nearly right-angled, blunt; posterior margin slightly bisinuate or weakly arcuate; base with one distinct pair of deep lateral pits; sublateral carinae very indistinct or absent; each side of pronotum with hypomeral groove of variable length, in some specimens barely marked near hind angles, in some extending anteriorly to 1/3−3/4 PL, groove not visible in dorsal view. Punctures on pronotal disc not visible at magnifications up to 80×; vestiture of pronotal disc composed of dense bristles along anterior margin, remaining surface covered with very sparse and inconspicuous short suberect setae, lateral area below hypomeral groove with dense thick bristles (Fig. 4).

Elytra (Figs 1–2) drop-shaped, broadest distinctly in front of middle but variable in shape and proportions, in some specimens more oval and with the widest place slightly shifted toward middle, EL 1.40–1.53 mm (mean 1.45 mm), EW 1.08–1.18 mm (mean 1.13 mm), EI 1.24–1.37; elytral base as narrow as pronotal base, without impressions and humeral calli. Punctures on elytral disc as fine as those on pronotum; setae barely noticeable, very sparse and very short, nearly recumbent. Hind wings absent.

Legs (Figs 1–2, 5, 20) moderately long and slender; protibiae modified, broadest near proximal third, with distal fourth bent ventrally and with ventral apical cuticular spur-like projection forming sharp angle with ventral tibial margin, the latter with tuft of setae just behind projection (Fig. 20).

Metaventrite with small distinct median tubercle near posterior margin (Fig. 5, arrow).

Aedeagus (Figs 21–22, 28–29) extremely elongate and very long in relation to body, AeL 1.28 mm, in ventral view broadest near middle, gradually and moderately strongly narrowing distally, subtriangular apical region with rounded apex; ventral submedian diaphragm flanked by slightly asymmetrical lateral tooth-like projections; in lateral view median lobe with apical portion curved ventrally; endophallus strongly asymmetrical, with several darkly sclerotized but unclearly defined internal components; parameres very slender, each with several apical and subapical setae of various length but none reaching apex of median lobe.

Female. Externally very similar to male but with unmodified protibiae (i.e., with apical portion less bent and lacking spur-like projection, but with tuft of setae), lacking metaventral tubercle, on average slightly smaller and with slightly shorter antennae. BL 2.45–2.59 mm (mean 2.54 mm); HL 0.45–0.48 mm (mean 0.46 mm), HW 0.50– 0.53 mm (mean 0.52 mm), AnL 1.03–1.05 mm (mean 1.05 mm); PL 0.65–0.70 mm (mean 0.67 mm), PW 0.70– 0.74 mm (mean 0.72 mm); EL 1.35–1.45 mm (mean 1.11 mm), EI 1.23–1.32.

Etymology. This species is dedicated to Petr Baňař, who made a large Madagascan collection of Scydmaeninae available for my study and talked me into spending the next 100 years working on this huge and extraordinarily interesting material.

Distribution. Central-northern Madagascar (Fig. 38).

Remarks. This species is so remarkably large and convex that it can be easily identified on the basis of its general appearance. However, as two species described below differ only in the aedeagus and cannot be distinguished on the basis of external features, it is necessary to examine the aedeagus in all specimens to confirm determinations.