Baltic J. Coleopterol. 17(1) 2017 ISSN 1407 - 8619 A new coleopterous family Wabbelidae fam. nov. (Coleoptera: Cucujoidea) from Baltic amber (Cenozoic, Paleogene, Eocene) Vitalii I. Alekseev Alekseev V.I. A new coleopterous family Wabbelidae fam. nov. (Coleoptera: Cucujoidea) from Baltic amber (Cenozoic, Paleogene, Eocene). Baltic J. Coleopterol. 17 (1): 29 - 41. An unknown peculiar beetle from Tertiary Baltic amber, Wabbel cerebricavus gen. et sp. nov. designated to a new family, is described and illustrated. The new family, Wabbelidae fam. nov., is diagnosed and assigned to the superfamily Cucujoidea. The new family can be identified by the thick moniliform antennae, modified (deeply concave) frons and vertex, longitudinally strigose pronotum with pair of basal grooves, wide gula with complete gular sutures, pentamerous non-lobed tarsi, seriate punctuation of elytra, and dorsally non- flattened body. Key words: taxonomy, fossil resin, new family, Polyphaga, Cucujiformia Vitalii I. Alekseev. Department of Zootechny, FGBOU VO “Kaliningrad State Technical University”, Sovetsky av. 1. 236000 Kaliningrad, Russia. E-mail: [email protected] INTRODUCTION Trichoptera (Wichard 2013), Elektraphididae in Homoptera, Catastylidae and Palpigeridae in Baltic amber is comparatively young (as Collembola (according to Zherikhin 1970), compared with inclusions from Burmese, Babidae in Ephemeroptera (Kluge et al. 2006), Lebanese, Spanish, and other Cretaceous amber Yantarocentridae in Trichoptera (Ivanov & deposits) and includes almost modern insect Melnitsky 2016), Hoffeinsmyiidae in Diptera fauna at the family level. The most dramatic (Michelsen 2009), and Paleomelittidae (Engel changes in insect fauna took place before 2001), Pelecinopteridae (Zherikhin 1970), and Cainozoic (Zherikhin 1978), the last major Electrotomidae (Rasnitsyn 1977) in extinction of insects was in the early Hymenoptera. Three new coleopteran families Cretaceous, and the rate of extinct lineages of were described based on the material from family rank from Eocene is low. Baltic amber: (1) Berendtimiridae, a family with the monotypic genus Berendtimirus Winkler, New insect families from Baltic amber were 1987; (2) Electrapatidae, at present considered established in different orders. At least fifteen to be of the tribe Electrapatini Iablokoff- insect families are known: Protoxenidae in Khnzorian, 1962, belonging to the family Strepsiptera (Pohl et al. 2005), Weitschatidae Schizopodidae LeConte, 1859; (3) Circaeidae in Hemiptera (Koteja 2008), Ogmomyidae in 29 Alekseev V. I. Iablokoff-Khnzorian, 1961, currently within postocular constriction; genae projecting Aderidae Csiki, 1909. forward. Frons and vertex exceptionally deep concave. Antennae 11-segmented, moniliform, In the present paper the description of a new without distinct antennal club. Antennal enigmatic taxon of beetles discovered in Baltic insertions visible from above. Pronotum finely amber is provided. The inclusion cannot be bordered basally and laterally, without sublateral assigned to any extant family and therefore is carinae, longitudinally strigose medially, with placed in a new genus and new family based on two grooves basally. Prosternal process wider a combination of peculiar external than shortest diameter of a procoxal cavity. morphological characteristics. Procoxal cavities closed, without lateral slits. Mesocoxal cavities open, metacoxal cavities closed. Legs moderately developed. MATERIAL AND METHODS Trochantins not visible. Procoxae strongly transverse. Metacoxae not meeting edges of The examined material for the study consists elytral epipleura. Tibiae narrow, simple. of a single specimen (holotype) originating Trochanters completely separating femora and from the private collection of Christel and Hans coxae. Tarsi pentamerous, with non-lobed Werner Hoffeins (Hamburg, Germany) segments. Tarsomeres 1-4 equal in size, [CCHH]. The holotype will be deposited in the terminal tarsomere being the longest. collection of Senckenberg Deutsches Metaventrite without transverse suture, shorter Entomologisches Institut in Müncheberg than prothorax and mesoventrite combined. (Germany) [SDEI]. The amber piece was Elytra not truncate; finely punctate-striate; with prepared manually and embedded in a block of widely flattened lateral margins and apices. polyester resin (Hoffeins 2001). Photographs Epipleuron long, without cavities. Scutellum were taken with a Zeiss AxioCamICc 3 digital large, transverse. Abdomen with five free camera mounted on a Zeiss Stemi 2000 ventrites. Femoral lines absent. stereomicroscope. Measurements were taken with the ocular micrometer of the Derivatio nominis. The generic name of new stereomicroscope. Reconstructions were based taxon is derived from the word “Wabbel” (or on free-hand drawings made during the “Wabel”), i.e. “beetle” in the low Prussian dialect examination of the original specimen. Figures of German language. were edited using Adobe Photoshop CS8 software. Note: Unfortunately, morphology of genitalia, wings venation, and wing folding are not accessible in the studied fossil specimen and SYSTEMATIC PALAEONTOLOGY cannot be seen. Genus Wabbel gen.nov. Wabbel cerebricavus sp. nov. Type species. Wabbel cerebricavus sp. nov. (Figs. 1-6) Composition. The new genus is monotypic, Material examined. Holotype No. 1615-4 represented by the type species only. [CCHH], imago, sex unknown. Inclusion in a small yellow amber piece, embedded in a block Diagnosis. Body of medium size (4.2 mm); of GTS polyester resin measuring 10 x 9 x 6 elongate, moderately convex dorsally. Head mm. Syninclusions are absent. prognathous; with small round compound eyes; without subocular antennal grooves and Type strata: Baltic Amber. Upper to mid- Eocene. 30 A new coleopterous family Wabbelidae fam. nov. (Coleoptera: Cucujoidea) from Baltic amber... Fig. 1. Wabbel cerebricavus gen. et sp. nov. Habitus: dorsal view. Fig. 2. Wabbel cerebricavus gen. et sp. nov. Habitus: ventro-lateral view. Type locality: Baltic Sea coast, Yantarny ovate, moderately convex dorsally and settlement [formerly Palmnicken], Sambian subflattened ventrally, entirely black. (Samland) peninsula, Kaliningrad region, Russia. Head. Subquadrate; prognathous, not retracted into pronotum, finely punctate, not constricted Diagnosis. As stated for the new genus (vide behind eyes. Frons and vertex exceptionally supra). deep concave, forming a hole in the basal median third of head. Clypeus dull, longitudinally Description. Habitus. Total body length 4.2 triangular with angle directed basally, sharply mm, maximal body width 1.6 mm. Elongate- separated, slightly convex. Gular sutures well 31 Alekseev V. I. separated, entire; gula wide, smooth. Genae punctures. Prosternum in front of coxal cavities projecting forwards, knobbed in front of eyes. with fine lines directed forward and accumbent Temples 2.5 x longer than diameter of eye, long hairs. The ratio of lengths of prothorax to bearing a brush of long, dense, brown hair. mesoventrite to metaventrite to abdomen is Compound eyes small, round, entire, without 4.5:1.0:4.5:11.5. Metaventrite without interfacetal setae, not prominent, coarsely transverse suture, distinctly shorter than the facetted (in each eye about 50 facets). Maxillary prothorax and mesoventrite combined. palps 4-segmented; first and third palpomeres Metepimeron meeting anterior angle of ventrite short and transverse; second palpomere 1. Scutellar shield strongly transverse, longitudinal and 3 x longer than palpomere 1 or pentagonal with rounded angles. Elytra evenly 3; terminal palpomere cylindrical, apically convex; elongate oval in dorsal outline; rounded, being the longest. Ratio of palpomeres concealing abdominal apex; separately rounded 1:3:1:4. Antennal insertions exposed in dorsal apically; with widely flattened lateral margins view; distantly in front of eyes; separated from and apices; finely punctate; shiny. Elytral each other by a distance narrower than the punctures small, bearing short hairs, arranged distance between eyes, but wider than the first in striae, shallower on disc, becoming confused antennomere length. Antenna with 11 freely apically. Each elytron with 18 rows of fine articulating antennomeres, moniliform, nearly punctures (formed by strial and interstrial uniform in width, thick, not flattened, extending punctuation equal in size), 4 rows in basal third to elytral basis. Scape conical, pedicel and with distinctly enlarged 8-10 punctures bearing antennomeres 3-9 slightly transverse, erect hairs, 4 x as long as interval between strial antennomere 10 subquadrate, antennomere 11 punctures. All elytral intervals flat. Epipleura slightly longitudinal, truncate. All antennomeres well developed, wide, reaching apex, without with irregularly long (sometimes longer than cavities. Metathoracic wings fully developed, length of segment), thick, black, sparce, partially exposed in the holotype specimen. semierect hairs. Abdomen. With five visible, similarly Thorax. Pronotum transverse (in dorsal view articulated, finely and densely punctured, finely about 0.69 times as long as its median length), pubescent ventrites. Relative lengths (medially) slightly narrower than elytral base, finely of ventrites 1 5 equal to 3.5-1.7-1.7-1.5-3.0. bordered laterally and basally. Anterior margin Intercoxal process of abdominal ventrite 1 straight, posterior margin gradually arcuate; widely triangular and acute. The first ventrite is lateral margins weakly rounded. Posterior approximately as long as the second when