Estola touroulti Lingafelter, 2024

Estola touroulti Lingafelter , new species

( Fig. 26 View Figure 26–30 )

Diagnosis. This is only the second species of the genus known from Hispaniola. It differs from the other species, E. annulicornis Fisher , by its much lighter brown coloration ( E. annulicornis is dark brown throughout) and by having the pale antennal annulations less contrasted from the dark portions of the antennae (in E. annulicornis , the antennal annulations, particularly on antennomeres 3, 4, 6, and 8 are bright ivory-white and the remainder of the antennomeres is very dark brown). In addition, the pronotal and elytral punctation of E. touroulti is less conspicuous (deep and conspicuous punctures are present in E. annulicornis ).

Description. Holotype male. 3.5 mm long; 1.4 mm wide at humeri. Paratypes (females): 4.3–5.1 mm long; 1.8– 2.1 mm wide at humeri. Color: Integument of head, pronotum, elytra, and venter light brown and mostly covered with appressed off-white and light tan pubescence. Pronotum with denser patch of off-white setae on each side of disk. Elytra with some irregular mottling of dark brown spots with a well-defined, small round black spot at suture near apex and with a few smaller patches of lighter pubescence. Antennomeres variably annulate with many light brown at base and darker brown at apex. Tibiae light brown with darker brown annulus at middle.

Head. Nearly as broad as pronotum, vertical, flat anteriorly, not protuberant, with slightly elevated and widely separated antennal tubercles. Head (including antennal tubercles) impunctate or with punctures hidden by off-white to very light tan setae. Eyes with lower lobe occupying most of the height of head below the antennal tubercle; with coarse ommatidia. Upper eye lobes connected to lower lobe by three ommatidia. Upper eye lobes separated by almost 1.5 × basal width of scape. Antennae extending almost to elytral apices. Antennomeres filiform, unexpanded at apices, and covered with combination of white, light brown, and dark brown, appressed setae as follows: scape with mostly light tan setae but with white setae at apex; antennomere 2 with off-white setae; antennomeres 3–4 with off-white to white setae at basal half and dark brown setae at apical half; antennomere 5 with mostly dark brown setae except for a few scattered white setae at extreme base and apex; antennomere 6 with white setae at basal half and dark brown setae at apical half; antennomere 7 with white setae at basal fifth and dark brown setae elsewhere; antennomere 8 with white setae at basal two-thirds and dark brown setae at apical third; antennomere 9 with white setae at extreme base and dark brown setae elsewhere; antennomere 10 with white setae at basal half and dark brown setae at apical half; antennomere 11 with white setae at basal third and dark brown setae at apical two-thirds. In addition to appressed setae, most antennomeres have a few slightly longer setae extending from apices and ventrally. Scape extending to basal third of pronotum, shorter than each of the third and fourth antennomeres which are subequal in length to each other and approximately 1.25 × longer than scape; antennomeres 5–7 each successively shorter (0.6–0.5 ×) than antennomere 4; antennomeres 8–10 subequal in length to 7; antennomere 11 approximately 1.2 × longer than 10.

Thorax. Pronotum broader than long with broad, rounded lateral tubercle on each side and lacking dorsal tubercles. Densely punctate, although many punctures hidden by setae. Prosternal process nearly as broad as procoxal width between coxae and expanded at apex to nearly coxal width, closing procoxal cavities posteriorly. Lateral thoracic sclerites with few punctures. Elytra without elevations or depressions; covered with evenly spaced, round, singly-setigerous punctures. Erect setae absent. Elytral apices rounded to suture. Scutellum truncate posteriorly. Femora clavate, short; hind femur extending to second abdominal ventrite. Femora with light brown and off-white setae; without dark or pale annulations. Tibiae with white and off-white setae except at middle third which have mostly dark brown setae. Mesocoxae separated by broad mesosternal process that is greater than half the width of mesocoxa.

Abdomen. Covered with dense, appressed, light brown and off-white setae; mostly impunctate. First ventrite shorter than metasternum and longer than ventrites 2–3 combined. Apex of ventrite 5 subtruncate.

Type material. Holotype (male): DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Espaillat Province, Río San Juan , 19°37′16.9″N; 70°7′45.4″W, beating, 10–25 July 2008, Touroult ( USNM) GoogleMaps . Paratypes: same data (3, JTPC) GoogleMaps ; same data but 20 July 2008 (1, USNM) GoogleMaps ; same data, but ex. larva, emerged from dead branches, December 2008 (1, SWLC) GoogleMaps ; same data but 2 August 2008 (2, MNHN) GoogleMaps .

Etymology. This species is named for my friend and colleague, Julien Touroult, Montreuil, France, who collected all the known specimens.

Remarks. Only seven specimens of this endemic Hispaniolan species are known, all collected in northeast Dominican Republic by beating vegetation and rearing from undetermined branches.

Eupogonius LeConte, 1852