Gaindaphodius marigold Ziani, 2024

Gaindaphodius marigold Ziani View in CoL , new species

( Fig. 1–5 View Figure 1 View Figure 2 View Figure 3 View Figure 4 View Figure 5 )

Type locality. NEPAL: Bagmati Pradesh: near Meghauli (Chitwan District), 150 m, 27°33′33″N 84°13′28″E.

Type series. Holotype ♂ and allotype: NEPAL: Bagmati Pradesh, nearby of Meghauli ( Chitwan District ), 150 m, 27°33′33″N 84°13′28″E, 31.iii.2024, S. Ziani leg.. 38 paratypes: same data as holotype; 4 paratypes: NEPAL: GoogleMaps

Bagmati Pradesh, nearby of Jagatpur (Chitwan District), 170 m, 27°33′51″N 84°19′59″E, 31.iii.2024, S. Ziani leg.

Type depository. Holotype and allotype in NMPC ; paratypes in NHMUK, DCCG and SZCM .

Type labelling. Holotype bears two labels, as follows. 1st, white, printed in black “ NEPAL – Bagmati Pradesh / nearby of Meghauli ( Chitwan ) / 27°33′33″N 84°13′28″E 150m / 31.iii.2024 S. Ziani leg.”; 2 nd, red, printed in black “ Holotype / Gaindaphodius / marigold mihi / S. Ziani 2024”. GoogleMaps

Etymology. The specific name refers to the predominant light orange colour of the new species. In Nepali culture, the yellow/orange marigold flower ( Calendula sp. ) is a symbol of energy, enthusiasm and creativity, and is also used in religious ceremonies and to welcome foreign people. The name, taken from the Nepalese मैरीगोल्ड (“Mairīgōlda”), that means Calendula L., is applied as a noun in apposition.

Description ( Fig. 1 View Figure 1 ). Holotype ♂. Oblong, strongly convex, shiny. Total body length 7.6 mm. Yellow or light orange, with anterior edge of clypeus, external edge of protibiae, apex of protibial spur, basal edge of pronotum, apex of meso- and metatibae, and scutellum brownish black. In addition: head with a blackish oval spot above frontal suture; pronotum with a blackish spot laterally, on each side and a symmetrical posteromedian spot, always blackish brown, heraldry halberd shaped, with the base reaching pronotal base; elytra with a blackish band place at middle of length, interrupted on elytral disc and reaching externally ninth interstria, and humeral and preapical blackish spots. Pubescence yellow. Head. Head with epistome gibbous; clypeus very thinly bordered, margin distinctly upturned, very slightly or not at all emarginate at middle, not sinuate at sides; genae rounded, not auriculate, with yellow bristles, protruding from eyes external edge; frontal suture impressed, trituberculate, lateral tubercles weak, central one developed, horn-shaped, almost sharp apically, slightly curved backward; clypeal surface very shallowly and regularly punctate. Pronotum. Convex, irregularly and sparsely punctate; anteromedian fovea present, even if barely discernible; lateral pronotal margin obliquely truncate and slightly sinuate before posterior angles, the latter rounded; lateral and posterior margins distinctly bordered, the former with short setae infeudate on propleuron but visible from above. Scutellum. Small, triangularly widened, almost amygdaliform, strongly punctuate on basal half, smooth apically. Elytra. Elongate, convex, sides nearly parallel at middle, not denticulate at shoulders; striae strongly impressed and crenulate; interstriae convex, finely sparsely punctuate, pre-apically with short yellow setae. Metasternal plate. Slightly concave, glabrous, barely and sparsely punctate. Abdominal ventrites. Pubescent, with yellow sparse setae. Legs. Protibiae with three external teeth, apical spur stout, bent down- and outward, as long as or slightly shorter than first two tarsomeres combined; ventromedial carina with a series of various sized denticles, the one at apex longer than others; mesotibiae relatively short and widened apically, with two spurs at apex, the inferior one shorter than the upper one, clearly truncate, almost hooked apically; metatibiae more elongate than mesotibiae, with the apical fringe of spinules stout and, approximately, of the same length, upper spur shorter than the first tarsomere, the latter longer than following two combined. Epipharynx. Feebly sinuate at front margin ( Fig. 2 View Figure 2 ); epitorma drop-shaped; corypha with short, rather stout apical celtes, moderately protruding beyond frontal margin; pedia densely pubescent; chaetopariae short and dense. Aedeagus. Slender, with paramera acuminate and, in lateral view, distinctly curved apically ( Fig. 3a,b View Figure 3 ). Macropterous.

Allotype ( Fig. 4 View Figure 4 ). Total body length 7.0 mm. Frontal suture of head with tubercles less developed, especially the central one. Apical spur of protibiae shorter, reaching only half of second tarsomere. Pronotal punctation closer than that of holotype; anteromedian fovea absent. Inferior spur of mesotibiae short but not apically truncate. Metasternal plate almost flat. Second abdominal ventrite with a brush of fine, short and very close setae, light yellow, covered by what looks like waxy coating, yellow and fine ( Fig. 5 View Figure 5 , marked by two red arrows).

Variation. The specimens belonging to the type series show a uniformity in black patterns of the upper surface, which is rather astonishing in a species with such chromatic characteristics. Significant differences, however small, can be observed only in the elytral band, more or less extended but always interrupted near suture and in the shape of the pronotal posteromedian pattern, in a few specimens less extended. The total length of the body ranges from 5.9 to 7.9 mm.

Distribution and ecology. Gaindaphodius marigold new species is known from two Nepalese localities, both in Bagmati Pradesh, not far apart and very close to the border of Chitwan National Park. It is coprophagous, and all the specimens of the type series have been collected in dung from the Indian rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis L.).

Diagnosis. This new species undoubtedly belongs to the genus Gaindaphodius Král and Mencl, 2024 due to the presence of the characteristic brush on the second abdominal ventrite (Král and Mencl 2024). It is the second known species in the genus, after the type species G. gainda Král and Mencl, 2024 . Gaindaphodius marigold new species is also similar to G. gainda in having the pronotal black pattern heraldry halberd shaped, and the black spot on head. Differences between the two species are as follows. First, the overall color of the upper surface of the body: head, pronotum and elytra are dark red in G. gainda , ochre yellow/light orange in G. marigold . In addition, the new species shows black spots on pronotal sides, on shoulders and at elytral apex, and always blackish, a band interrupted on elytral disc. Underside, G. gainda presents protibiae, meso- and metafemura, meso- and metatibiae, meso- and metasterna blackish, whereas G. marigold features an uniform colour yellow ochre. Furthermore, in males of G. gainda the pronotal punctation is limited to the basal and lateral part, while in males of G. marigold it is present, even if spaced and irregular, across the entire pronotal surface. Lastly, the total body length of G. gainda (from 11.2 mm to 11.9 mm) is clearly larger than that of G. marigold (from 5.9 mm to 7.9 mm).