Sternacutoides, Santos-Silva & Bezark & Tavakilian & Audureau, 2025

Sternacutoides gen. nov.

( Figs 19–24 View FIGURES 19–24 )

Type species: Sternacutoides albomaculatus sp. nov., here designated.

Etymology. From Sternacutus Gilmour, 1961 , plus the Latin suffix ‘-oides’ (meaning ‘resembling’), alluding to the general resemblance between the two genera (not to the morphological features). Masculine gender.

Description. Body widened, slightly flattened, less than 10 mm in the type species. Frons trapezoid-shaped. Eyes moderately coarsely faceted; upper eye lobes wide, distance between them slightly larger than width of one upper lobe; lower eye lobes distinctly longer than genae; area of connection between eye lobes slightly narrower than upper lobe. Antennae 11-segmented, distinctly longer than body in both sexes; scape slightly widened from base to middle, then subparallel-sided toward apex, reaching or almost reaching posterior margin of prothorax, without apical modification, with a few short, thick, erect setae on apical region of dorsal surface; pedicel cylindrical, slightly longer than wide, with a few short, thick, erect setae ventrally; antennomeres III–XI filiform, without tufts of setae; III the longest; III–VI or III–VII with sparse, thick, erect setae ventrally, setae gradually sparser from III. Prothorax wider than long; anterior constriction narrow, well marked; sides slightly rounded and divergent from anterior constriction to lateral tubercles, then convergent to posterolateral angles; lateral tubercles small, conical, almost as a continuation of the lateral margin of prothorax, located about posterior seventh. Pronotum without tubercles; moderately abundantly, coarsely punctate centrally, sparsely, coarsely punctate laterally, with transverse row of coarse punctures near anterior and posterior margins, posterior row not following toward sides of prothorax. Sides of prosternal process convergent from base to posterior quarter, then strongly widened; narrowest area about one-third procoxal width. Sides of mesoventral process convergent from base to posterior quarter, then slightly widened; narrowest area about half mesocoxal width. Scutellum semicircle-shaped. Elytra without tubercles and erect setae; subparallel-sided on anterior half, then convergent toward apex; apex slightly oblique, straight or slightly concave; humeral angles not projected; humeral and dorsal carinae absent; centrobasal crest distinctly elevated, distinctly projected backward apically ( Fig. 23 View FIGURES 19–24 ). Femora pedunculate-clavate; metafemoral club more gradually widened and proportionally more slender and longer than mesofemoral club, slightly surpassing elytral apex in male, not reaching elytral apex in female; profemora without modifications. Pro- and mesotibiae with small tubercles ventrally in males. Metatarsomere I distinctly longer than II–III in both sexes. Abdomen not surpassing elytral apex in both sexes.

Remarks. The keys from Monné et al. (2020b, 2020c) lead the new genus to Hamatastus Gilmour, 1957 . However, Sternacutoides gen. nov. differs from Hamatastus as follows: lateral tubercles of prothorax located near posterolateral angles; and elytra somewhat cuneiform. In Hamatastus , the lateral tubercles of prothorax are located on beginning of the posterior third or closer to middle, and the elytra are parallel-sided or almost so from base to about posterior quarter or fifth. The new genus also shares the centrobasal crest projected backward with Pucallpa Lane, 1959 , but differs by the prothorax with small and acute lateral tubercles (absent in Pucallpa ), and elytra without small tubercles (present in Pucallpa ). Anisolophia Melzer, 1935 is another genus with the centrobasal crest of elytra projected backward, but differs from Sternacutoides by the lateral tubercles of the prothorax larger and located on middle (smaller and located near apex in Sternacutoides ), pronotum tuberculate (not tuberculate in Sternacutoides ), and lower eye lobes about as long as genae (distinctly longer in Sternacutoides ).

The key from Monné et al. (2020c) can be updated as follows:

18(17). Sides of prothorax with distinct tubercle, acute at apex.......................................................18’ - Sides of prothorax without tubercle or, at most, with rounded protuberance....................................... 19 18’(18). Lateral tubercles of the prothorax distant from the posterolateral angles; elytra not distinct narrowed only from apical quarter........................................................................ Hamatastus Gilmour, 1957 - Lateral tubercles of the prothorax located near the posterolateral angles; elytra distinctly narrowed from middle...........

................................................................................ Sternacutoides gen. nov.