Trechus cardioderus subsp. irenis Csiki 1912

4. Trechus cardioderus irenis Csiki, 1912 (status novus)

Type material: Syntype: Romania: 1♂, Antr. Godinest, Hunyad, Mihôk leg. (coll. Jeannel, MNHN)

Other material examined: Bulgaria: Stara planina Mts: 1♂, west of Krachela peak, N42.740061 E25.036336, 25.07.1996, B. Guéorguiev leg. (NMNHS); 1♂, below Tazha chalet, N42.751484 E25.001135, 27.07.1996, B. Guéorguiev leg. (NMNHS); 1♂, Toplya Vill, “Golyama Zhelezna” cave, vault of cave, 28.09.1997, P. Mitov & B. Guéorguiev leg. (NMNHS); 1♂ Rusalka hut, N42.689396 E25.056614, 12.10.1997, P. Stoev leg. (NMNHS); 3♂♂, Divchovoto Vill., Gradeshnitsa cave, N42.982760 E24.263574, 03.07.1999, B. Petrov leg. (NMNHS); 1♂, Vasilyovo Vill., N42.88206 E24.37411, 27.07.2012, R. Bekchiev leg. (BFUS); 1♂, Vasilyovo Vill, “Kozev dol” place, N41.51438 E25.16167, 07.05.2015, R. Bekchiev leg. (BFUS); 4♂♂, Chiflik Vill., N42.82665 E24.54894, 24– 27.04.2017, R. Bekchiev leg. (BFUS); 1♂, Pravets, path to “Kamicheto” place, N42.87944 E23.93628, 04.08.2020, R. Bekchiev leg. (BFUS); 1♂, Kalugerovo Vill., Chekotinski Monastery, N42.98888 E23.87380, 07.08.2020, R. Kostova leg. (BFUS); 1♂, Kalugerovo Vill., road to Chekotinski Monastery, N42.98888 E23.87380, 07.08.2020, R. Bekchiev leg. (BFUS); Sredna gora Mts: 1♂, Bratiya Vill., 12.08.2018, R. Bekchiev leg. (BFUS); Rila Mts: 3♂♂, Shipochane Vill., N42.36716 E23.62139, 17.06.2019, R. Bekchiev leg. (BFUS); Rhodope Mts: 2 ♂♂, Temenuga Vill., N41.51438 E25.16167, 26.06.2019, R. Bekchiev leg. (BFUS)

Additional comparative material examined: dissected aedeagi (on microscope slides): T. cardioderus s.str. —

Romania: 1♂, Ponorici, Hunedoarâ (coll. Jeannel, MNHN); T. cardioderus pilisensis — Austria: 1♂, Graz (coll. Jeannel, MNHN); 1♂, Reichenburg (coll. Jeannel, MNHN); pinned specimens: T. cardioderus s.str. — Hungary: 4♂♂, Montes Mecsek, grotte Abaliget, Dr. Gebhardt leg. (coll. Jeannel, MNHN); Romania: 2♀♀, Bǎile Herculane, Banat (coll. Jeannel, MNHN); 1♂, Ponorici, Hunedoarâ (coll. Jeannel, MNHN); 1♂, Negoi, Carpathes, 1500m (coll. Jeannel, MNHN)

Notes: Relatively small: the body length of males is 3.8–4.7 mm. The body’s dorsal surface is reddish-brown and unicoloured. Fully reduced wings. The legs, antennae, and palpi are lighter—yellowish brown. Median lobe of the aedeagus: in lateral view, it is strongly arched at the dorsal side and almost straight in the distal two-thirds at the ventral side. The apex is short and curved abruptly downward. In dorsal view, the apex is slightly narrowed distally, and the apical lamella has a straight tip (Fig. 4). The copulatory piece is strongly curved upward at the apical part. The subspecies first was discribed as a separate species by Csiki, 1912, after in 1927, Jeannel synonymised it with T. cardioderus cardioderus. We designated it as a subspecies of T. cardioderus after comparing the syntype of T. irenis and T. cardioderus cardioderus in the collection of Jeannel (MNHN), as well as with the Bulgarian material of the subspecies. The male genitalia of the studied Bulgarian material are very similar in lateral view to those of the syntype in Jeannel’s collection (MNHN) and slightly differ in the shape of the apex from those of T. cardioderus cardioderus examined at MNHN. In T. cardioderus cardioderus specimens from the collection of Jeannel (MNHN), the apex in lateral view is curved more abruptly straight downward, quite similarly to his illustration (Jeannel, 1927: 455). In the T. irenis syntype from the collection of Jeannel (MNHN), the apex in lateral view is also curved abruptly downward but much shorter and under a very obtuse angle, as in Fig. 4. As the differences between both groups are clear but only in the median lobe apex, we assigned T. irenis the status of subspecies of T. cardioderus.