Acylophorus capensis Cameron

Abstract

Acylophorus capensis Cameron (Figs 5, 36, 55, 82, 113) Acylophorus capensis Cameron, 1945: 716; Herman, 2001: 3028. Redescription. Length 7mm. Body black with iridescent abdomen. Abdominal tergite and sternite VIII black, occasionally pale at extreme base and apex. Antennae dark brown with segment XI and base of segment I occasionally red-brown. Legs pale with darkened meso- and meta-femora and tibiae. Palpi completely pale. Head large (pronotum 1.4–1.6x wider than head), as long as wide with temples well developed (Fig. 5). Mostly shining with sparse micro-punctures confined to front of head, but with dense short pubescence behind eyes. Antennae inserted close to front margin of head, but separated from it by a small pigmented strip. Temples long and pronounced behind relatively small eyes. Two pairs of interocular setae arising from foveate punctures much closer to eyes than each other. Four postocular setae visible from above on each side with a further seta out of line on the hind-border of the eye. Mandibles with two medial teeth on each side (Fig. 36). Maxillary palpi with terminal segment elongate and sparsely pubescent, almost symmetric with attenuated apex, longer than glabrous penultimate segment which is slightly elongate (Fig. 55). First segment of antenna longer than next three. Segments I to VI elongate, IX to XI 1 transverse (Fig. 81). Pronotum weakly transverse (1.025 –1.1x wider than long) with rounded sides, widest in basal half. One pair of dorsal setae (The type specimen has two proximate pairs of dorsal punctures, but this is probably an aberration.) One pair of lateral setae. Marginal setae long. Elytra transverse (1.5x wider than long) with long, close pubescence and asperate punctures which are sparser, but stronger than in A. orientalis. Fringe of bristles on hind margins longer than the general pubescence. Abdominal tergites also with long pubescence and strong asperate punctures, but not quite as dense as on elytra. Punctures sparser on apical half of each tergite than on basal half. Aedeagus with the paramere divided into two slightly converging, proximate lobes, each lobe being ridged dorsally, though much less so than in A. orientalis (Fig. 113). The internal pegs are confusedly distributed toward the apex. The median lobe is appreciably longer than the paramere and markedly expanded at the apex. Type material. Cameron described the species from a unique type in his collection. This specimen is the holotype by monotypy. Holotype Ƥ: “ Type / Marsh / Simon’s Town iv-vi- 15 MC / A. capensis Cam. TYPE ” (BMNH). The name capensis was also used for this species by Fauvel, but in manuscript form on a specimen label. He never published any description. Further material examined. SOUTH AFRICA: Eastern Cape: Hogsback, 970–1300m, 32 O 35 ’S 26 O 56-57 ’E, J Janák, 5–7. xii. 2006, 23 (cJanák); KwaZulu-Natal: Pietermaritzburg, Queen Elizabeth Park, 29 O 34.157 ’S 30 O 19.299 ’E, J Janák, 22.xi. 2006, 233Ƥ (cJanák & cLott); Western Cape: Cape Town, ex. Coll. Fauvel, 1 Ƥ (IRSNB); Swellendam, R. Kmeco, 28.xi– 1. xii. 1997, 13 (cJanák); Harkerville S.F., Kranshoek Picnic Area, 145m, 34 O 04.7 ’S 23 O 13.6 ’E, 1. ii. 2004, 13 (FMNH); Grootvadersbosch N.R., Bushbuck Trail (Bosbockrand), 360m, 33 O 58.9 ’S 20 O 49.1 ’E, 26. i. 2004, 1 Ƥ (FMNH). Distribution and bionomics. This species is only known so far from South Africa (Fig. 141). All recent specimens have been taken from stream margins. In two localities these were in “afromontane forest”. Comparative notes. Distinctive within the species group by virtue of its large head. Most s imilar to A. rossii but has even smaller eyes. The distinctive shape of the terminal segment of the maxillary palp, the arrangement of medial teeth on the mandibles, the short paramere in comparison to the median lobe of the aedeagus and the sparse, but strong punctures on the elytra are also useful diagnostic characters.Published as part of Lott, Derek A., 2010, The species of Acylophorus Nordmann (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Staphylininae) in continental sub-Saharan Africa, pp. 1-51 in Zootaxa 2402 on pages 12-13, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.27590