Neoserica ningyuanensis Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu 2014, sp. nov.

Neoserica (s.l.) ningyuanensis Ahrens, Fabrizi & Liu sp. nov.

(Figures 2I–L, 11)

Holotype. ♂ ‘ China, W Sichuan, Mianning Co. valley 20–30 km N– NW of Mianning around Ningyuan, 2100–2800 m 28°45 ′ –47 ′ & 102°02 ′ -15 ′ 19–22.VII.2001 coll. L. & R. Businský’ (ZFMK). Paratypes: 1 ♂ ‘839461 Neoserica spYU_091 China S. Murzin 29/7/09 Guang Ping, 34 km N Jihong Yunnan Pr. Xichuanbanna 1200 m / 839461’ (ZFMK), 1 ♂ ‘ Szechuen China DC Graham / W of Fu Lin 4000–8500 ft. Aug. 15, 1928 ’ (USNM), 1 ♂ ‘ Szechuen China DC Graham /near Fu Lin 3000–5200 ft. Jul. 19 ‘28’ (USNM), 1 ♂ ‘ Szechuen China DC Graham /nr Yueh Shi Jul 20–23-‘28 6000– 10000 ft. ’ (USNM).

Length. 9.4 mm, length of elytra: 6.8 mm, width: 5.1 mm. Body oblong, dark reddish brown, antenna yellow, dorsal surface dull and nearly glabrous.

Labroclypeus subtrapezoidal, widest at base, lateral margins straight and strongly convergent to widely rounded anterior angles, lateral border and ocular canthus producing an indistinct blunt angle, margins weakly reflexed, anterior margin distinctly sinuate medially; surface weakly convex medially and shiny, finely and densely punctate, partly punctures fusing with each other, with a few long erect setae in coarser punctures; frontoclypeal suture feebly incised and medially weakly angled; smooth area in front of eye approximately twice as wide as long; ocular canthus short and triangular, very finely and sparsely punctate, with a fine terminal seta. Frons dull, with fine and sparse punctures, with a few long setae. Eyes small, ratio of diameter/interocular width: 0.58. Antenna composed of 10 antennomeres; club with four antennomeres, as long as the remaining antennomeres combined. Mentum convexly elevated anteriorly.

Pronotum moderately wide, widest shortly before base, lateral margins evenly curved and weakly narrowed anteriorly and posteriorly, anterior angles moderately produced and sharp, posterior angles blunt and strongly rounded at tip, anterior margin convexly produced medially, broad marginal line widely missing, basal margin without marginal line; surface with moderately dense and fine punctures, with minute setae only; anterior and lateral borders setose; hypomeron distinctly carinate at base. Scutellum narrow and long, sharp at apex, with fine and moderately dense punctures and minute setae.

Elytra oblong, widest in posterior third, striae distinctly impressed, finely and densely punctate, intervals weakly convex and not densely punctate, intervals with punctures concentrated along striae and odd intervals with some single, fine setae; epipleural edge robust, ending at strongly curved external apical angle of elytra, epipleura densely setose, apical border membranous, with a narrow rim of short microtrichomes.

Ventral surface dull, with large and dense punctures, sparsely and shortly setose, setae partly adpressed; metacoxa glabrous, with fine setae laterally, apical margin straight and external apical angle nearly right-angled; each abdominal sternite with a distinct transversal row of coarse punctures each bearing a short seta between fine and moderately dense punctation. Mesosternum between mesocoxae nearly half as wide as mesofemur, with irregularly scattered, fine setae. Ratio of length of metepisternum/metacoxa: 1/1.46. Pygidium moderately convex, finely and moderately densely punctate, without smooth midline, punctures with sparse, short setae, a few longer setae beside apical margin.

Legs slender; femora with two longitudinal rows of setae, finely and moderately densely punctate; metafemur ventrally dull, anterior margin sharply carinate, without a submarginal serrated line, posterior margin moderately convex, with a few strong setae medially, only weakly widened externally in apical half and not serrated ventrally in distal half, finely serrated dorsally, with dense, short setae. Metatibia slender and moderately long, widest at apex, ratio width/length: 1/3.2, dorsal margin moderately carinate, with two groups of spines, basal group of spines shortly before half of metatibial length, apical one at about three quarters of metatibial length, basally with a few single fine spines; external face longitudinally convex, with a moderately coarse, moderately dense punctures; ventral margin finely serrated, with four fine, equidistant spines; medial face impunctate, apex concavely truncate interiorly near tarsal articulation. Tarsomeres smooth and glabrous, with evenly spaced, short setae ventrally; metatarsomeres with a strongly serrated ventral ridge and a fine longitudinal carina immediately beside it; first metatarsomere slightly shorter than following two tarsomeres combined and as long as dorsal tibial spur. Protibia long, bidentate, protarsal claws symmetrical, basal tooth of inner protarsal claw bluntly truncate apically.

The new species differs from the previous one by the ventral process of phallobase bent laterally, the right paramere being simple and not divided into two long lobes, and the left paramere being distinctly bifid, but it is not spherically widened as in N. vulpes or N. yangjiapingensis sp. nov.; the processes of the left paramere are at least half as long as the paramere.

The new species is named after its type locality, Ningyuan (Latin adjective in the nominative singular).

Length. 9.4–9.5 mm, length of elytra: 6.8–7.1 mm, width: 5.1–5.8 mm.