One New Species of Ptomaphaminus Perreau, 2000 (Coleoptera: Leiodidae: Cholevinae: Ptomaphagini) from a Granitic Subterranean Environment in Vietnam

Zootaxa 4021 (1): 195–200 ISSN 1175-5326 (print edition) www.mapress.com/zootaxa/ Correspondence ZOOTAXA Copyright © 2015 Magnolia Press ISSN 1175-5334 (online edition) http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4021.1.10 http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:ED10FD99-B9B3-432F-BFD7-14D9A1B80989

One new species of Ptomaphaminus Perreau, 2000 (Coleoptera: Leiodidae: Cholevinae: Ptomaphagini) from a granitic subterranean environment in Vietnam

MICHEL PERREAU1 & ARNAUD FAILLE2 1Université Paris 7 case 7139, 5, rue Thomas Mann, 75205 Paris cedex 13. E-mail: [email protected] 2Zoologische Staatsammlung, Muenchausenstrasse 21, Munich 81247. E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract. Ptomaphaminus granophilus n. sp. from Vietnam is described and illustrated. The special subterranean biotope of this species, deep interstices in a granitic blockfield, is emphasized.

Key words: Leiodidae, Cholevinae, Ptomaphaminus, new species, subterranean fauna, granitic blockfield, Vietnam

Introduction

The genus Ptomaphaminus Perreau, 2000 contains 22 species. It is widespread in South Asia and Southeast Asia: south of China (unpublished data), Vietnam (Szymczakowski, 1972; Perreau, 2009), Laos (Perreau, 2009), Cambodia (Jarrige, 1969), Thailand (Perreau, 1993), India (Szymczakowski, 1975; Perreau, 1991), Sri Lanka (Henrot & Szymczakowski, 1971; Szymczakowski, 1972), Nepal (Perreau, 1992; 2009), Malaysia and Sunda islands (Szymczakowski, 1964; Peck, 1981; Perreau, 2009), the Philippines (Zoia, 1994), and Indonesia (Szymczakowski, 1964). This genus was first considered as a species group of Ptomaphaginus Portevin (Szymczakowski, 1975) but differs by the following morphological characters: small size; spiculum gastrale of male genital segment very long, with half of the length protruding beyond the anterior edge of epipleurite IX; metasternal sutures convergent; ventral side of protibiae with regularly dispersed spines (not aligned along the lateral row). The two characters of loss of pigmentation and reduction of eyes are in relation with their lifestyle: all the species are living in subterranean environment, either endogean or hypogean. The last two characters are lacking in only one species, P. a t e r Perreau, 2009, although it was only collected in caves. During a joint expedition of the Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle (Paris, France) and the Institute of Tropical Biology (Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam) in the Hon Ba Nature Reserve, South of the Annamite range, various biotopes were sampled with the aim of inventorying some groups of Invertebrates, including ground-dwelling beetles. Various techniques were used: hand collecting, leaf-litter sieving, Winkler and Berlese extraction and pitfall trapping. While inventorying a very particular biotope which will be detailed in the discussion, the new species described below was discovered.

Ptomaphaminus granophilus n. sp. (Fig. 3)

Holotype. 1 male, Vietnam, granitic blockfield, Hon Ba, Suoi cat, 650 m, pitfall baited with vinegar, 20.IX 2013, A. Faille leg., deposited in Museum national d'Histoire naturelle de Paris, France. Description. Length: 1.6 mm. General color light brown, antenna and protarsi yellowish. Head. Eyes reduced, composed of approximately 40 ommatidia. Antennae slender, all antennomeres longer than wide except the eighth. The length of antennomeres (divided by the length of the first one) are: 1.00; 0.80; 0.35; 0.33; 0.30; 0.32; 0.45 ; 0.27; 0.50; 0.40; 0.87. Pronotum transverse, 1.6 times wider than long, largest width near the base, sides parallel near the base. Surface covered with transverse strigae.

Accepted by W. Hall: 4 Sept. 2015; published: 24 Sept. 2015 195 FIGURES 1–3. Ptomaphaminus granophilus n. sp. 1-2: biotope: the granitic blockfield. 3: habitus.

196 · Zootaxa 4021 (1) © 2015 Magnolia Press PERREAU & FAILLE FIGURES 4–16. Ptomaphaminus Perreau from Vietnam and Laos. 4: P. granophilus n. sp., aedeagus, dorsal view. 5: P. granophilus n. sp., male urite IX. 6: P. granophilus n. sp., aedeagus, lateral view. 7: P. bihamatus (Szymczakowski), aedeagus, dorsal view (from Szymczakowski, 1972). 8: P. bihamatus (Szymczakowski), aedeagus, lateral view (from Szymczakowski, 1972). 9: P. deharvengi Perreau, aedeagus, dorsal view. 10: P. deharvengi Perreau, aedeagus lateral view. 11: P. bedosae Perreau, aedeagus, dorsal view. 12: P. bedosae Perreau, aedeagus, lateral view. 13: P. boutini (Jarrige), aedeagus, dorsal view. 14: P. boutini (Jarrige), aedeagus, lateral view. 15: P. leclerci (Perreau), aedeagus, dorsal view. 16: P. leclerci (Perreau), aedeagus, lateral view.

198 · Zootaxa 4021 (1) © 2015 Magnolia Press PERREAU & FAILLE Elytra 1.35 times longer than wide together, as wide as the pronotum, largest width near the base. Surface covered with oblique (not strictly transversal) strigae, without longitudinal striae except the sutural one. Metasternal sutures convergent. Protibiae with a longitudinal row of equal spines along outer margin, and with ventral spines randomly dispersed. Mesotibiae and metatibiae with a circular row of equal spines at apex. Tarsi pentamerous. Male protarsi dilated, 0.75 times as wide as protibias. Urite IX with a long and narrow spiculum gastrale, protruding beyond the anterior edge of epipleurite IX by the apical half of its length which is imperceptibly widened (Fig. 5). Aedeagus long and rather narrow, with parallel sides which are narrowly convergent at apex. Lateral apical expansions of the median lobe asymmetrical (Fig. 4), the apex with a hook in lateral view (Fig. 6). Internal stylus of the endophallus thin, helically winded in a single turn (Fig. 4). Female unknown. Etymology. The epithet is from granum, latin origin of "granit", refering to the biotope where this species was found. Discussion. The general morphology of this species, either external or internal, is typical of the genus Ptomaphaminus Perreau: median lobe of the aedeagus long, parallel, with the lateral apical expansions asymmetrical: the left one (which appears on the right side on pictures traditionally represented in reversed orientation) with a hook ventrally deflexed in lateral view. But it is evidently different from other species: aedeagus longer and narrower than P. bihamatus (Szymczakowski, 1972) (Figs. 7; 8), P. bedosae Perreau, 2009 (Figs. 11, 12), P. deharvengi Perreau, 2009 (Figs. 9; 10), P. boutini (Jarrige, 1969) (Figs. 13; 14) and P. leclerci (Perreau, 1993) (Figs. 15; 16), and the apex of median lobe with a different conformation. These five species are distributed not far from the type locality of the new species: the first two are known from Vietnam, the third from Laos, the fourth from Cambodia and the fifth from Thailand (Fig. 17). The biotope where the new species was discovered is remarkable. Ptomaphaminus granophilus n. sp. was found in a granitic blockfield made of huge, piled up blocks which are forming more or less important void spaces (Figs. 1, 2) allowing to get through the screes and to go down several meters. The bottom is extremely wet and completely dark (Fig. 2). During our visit, some water flowed there, forming a stream difficult to reach but clearly audible. In this peculiar biotope we also found most of the Arthropod groups common in the caves of limestones areas of the region: Orthoptera: Rhaphidophoridae, Araneae: Sparassidae, Hemiptera: Fulgoroidea of the families Cixiidae and Meenoplidae. The description of one of the species collected on hanging roots in the same blockfield is currently in progress. The specimen was collected in the deepest reachable area of the blockfield, by means of a pitfall trap baited with vinegar. It is not excluded that the species will be found in the deep ground of the area. A second blockfield was localized at an altitude of 1500 meters behind the house of the bacteriologist A. Yersin who lived there until his death in 1943, close to the top of the massif. The new species was not found there, but these remarkable geological structures, forming a real subterranean environment in granitic area, would deserve to be inventoried and systematically sampled.

Acknowledgments

The study was funded by the LABEX BCDIV of the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (Paris) and partially supported by a project of the German Research Foundation (project FA1042/1-1) to AF. We are grateful to L. Deharveng (MNHN) and Truong Quang Tam (Institute of Tropical Biology, Ho Chi Minh City) who organized the field trip and obtained the research permits, to Nguyen Hanh, director of the Hon Ba Nature Reserve and the staff of the Reserve who provided guiding and facilities for the field work in Hon Ba. We warmly thank Wang Cheng-Bin for relevant remarks and improvements of the manuscript.

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