Anthobium conjunctum Shavrin & Smetana 2017, sp.n.

3.3.2.3. Anthobium conjunctum sp.n.

(Figs. 67, 76, 77–79)

Type material examined: Holotype ♂ [plastic plate with aedeagus, abdominal tergite VIII, sternite VIII and apical segment in Canadian balsam was pinned under the plate with beetle]: ‘ CHINA: Yunnan [CH07-02 A], | Dali Bai Auton. Pref., Diancang Shan W | Dali, 25°41'20''N, 100°06'12''E | 3160 m, small creek valley, litter and | debris sifted, 28.V.2007, M. Schülke’ <rectangular label, printed>, ‘HOLOTYPE | Anthobium | conjunctum sp.n. | Shavrin A. & Smetana A. 2017’ <red rectangular label, printed> (CSC).

Paratypes (2 specimens): 2 ♂♂: ‘CHINA (Yunnan) | Dali Bai Auton. Pref., | Diancang Shan W Dali | 25°41'20''N/100°06'12''E | 3160 m (small creek valley, | litter and debris sifted | 27.V.2007 D.W.Wrase [02]’ <rectangular label, printed>, ‘PARATYPE | Anthobium | conjunctum sp.n. | Shavrin A. & Smetana A. 2017’ <red rectangular label, printed> (1 ♂: CAS; 1 ♂: CSC).

Description. Measurements (n=3): HW: 0.83–0.84, HL: 0.52–0.55; AL (holotype): 1.66; OL: 0.22–0.23; PL: 0.68–0.71; PW: 1.35–1.38; ESL: 1.63–1.66; EW: 1.93–1.99; AW: 1.65–1.81; MTbL (holotype): 0.91; MTrL (holotype): 0.42 (MTrL 1–4: 0.30; MTrL 5: 0.12); AedL: 1.01; TL: 3.90–4.20 (holotype: 4.15).

Body moderately elongated, wide, distinctly convex. Body and antennomeres 4–11 reddish-brown; lateral and basal parts of pronotum and lateral sides of elytra yellow-brown; mouthparts, antennomeres 1–3 and legs yellow. Body glossy; anterior portion of head between antennal insertion and anterior margin of eye with traces of transverse microsculpture, posterio-lateral parts of head behind postocular ridges and neck with fine rugose sculpture; abdomen with distinct isodiametric microsculpture. Head with irregular sparse punctation, markedly denser and deeper on medio-basal portion; middle part of neck with deep and small punctation; pronotum with punctation as that on medio-basal portion of head, sparser and more irregular on medio-basal and latero-apical portions; scutellum with irregular small punctation; punctation of elytra as that in A. anishchenkoi sp.n. Body glabrous; clypeus with irregular long setation; frons and posterior portions of infraorbital ridges with very small setae, middle portion of head between middle length of eyes with a pair of elongated setae; anterior portions of middle elevation of pronotum with two pairs of elongated setae, latero-apical and lateral portions of pronotum with six to nine elongated setae very irregularly arranged; each elytron with very irregular and sparse setation indistinctly longitudinaly arranged. Habitus as in Fig. 67.

Head 1.5 times as wide as long; middle portion of head slightly elevated or somewhat flattened, with indistinct medio-basal transverse impression; occipital furrow between ocelli moderately wide and deep; grooves in front of ocelli moderately short, reaching posterior third of length of eye; postocular ridges markedly acute, distance between postocular ridge and posterior margin of eye as long as two nearest facets; anterior portion between antennal insertion and anterior margin of eye with wide semicircular notch. Eyes and ocelli as in A. nigrum. Antenna with elongated antennomeres 3–8; measurements of antennomeres (holotype): 1: 0.18 × 0.07; 2: 0.13 × 0.05; 3: 0.16 × 0.05; 4–5: 0.15 × 0.05; 6–7: 0.16 × 0.06; 8: 0.15 × 0.06; 9–10: 0.12 × 0.07; 11: 0.18 × 0.07.

Pronotum about twice as wide as long, 1.6 times as wide as head, widest in middle, more or less gradually narrowed posteriad and anteriad; anterior angles rounded, strongly protruded anteriad; posterior angles obtuse; latero-apical margins with irregular smoothed crenulation; disc of pronotum with very wide middle elevation with indistinct and irregular pair of transverse impressions in medio-basal third, or with moderately wide medio-basal impression uninterrupted in middle (one paratype); lateral portions wide and markedly explanate, each with deep pit at about middle.

Elytra about 1.2 times as wide as long, reaching apical margin of abdominal tergite IV or basal margin of tergite V, more than twice as long as pronotum, with widely rounded shoulders, with widely rounded apical margins truncated at suture; lateral portions moderately wide, markedly explanated; latero-apical margins with small flattened crenulation.

Male. Apical margin of abdominal tergite VIII straight. Apical margin of abdominal sternite VIII slightly sinuate. Aedeagus (Fig. 77) very narrow, with widely rounded apex of median lobe; parameres slightly exceeding apex of median lobe, with short apical and two preapical setae; internal sac very long. Aedeagus laterally as in Fig. 78.

Female unknown.

Comparative notes. Anthobium conjunctum sp.n. may be distinguished from all remaining species of the nigrum group by anterior angles of the pronotum markedly protruded anteriad, by the elytra markedly wider than long and by details of external and internal structure of the aedeagus.

Distribution. The new species is known only from one locality (Fig. 76) in Diancang Shan in Yunnan, China.

Bionomics. Specimens were sifted from litter and debris in a small creek valley at elevation 3160 m a.s.l. (localities: CH 07-02A (Fig. 81), 02)

Etymology. The specific epithet is the Latin adjective conjunctus, - a, - um (connected, related). It confirms the belonging of this species to the nigrum group.