Panabachia papallacta, Muñoz-Tobar & Caterino, 2025

Panabachia papallacta sp. nov.

Figs 5 J View Figure 5 , 7 A View Figure 7 , 8 A View Figure 8

Type material.

Holotype • ♂ ( QCAZ-I -278835 ): “ ECUADOR: Pichincha, -0.30795, -78.23255, La Virgen , 3694 m, 28 JUN 2016, S. Muñoz, & R. Tobar, Ex. Berlese, Bosque Polylepis y pajonal ” / “ Muñoz DNA Voucher, Ex. SIMT 246 , Morphosp. LaVirgen 1 ”; deposited in QCAZI GoogleMaps . Paratypes ( 1 ♂, 4 ♀) • 1 same data as holotype ( SIMT 275 ) GoogleMaps • 4: “ ECUADOR: Pichincha, -0.32124, -78.21319, La Virgen , 3942 m, 18 JDEC 2016 , S. Muñoz & R. Tobar, Ex. Berlese, Leaf litter & moss ” ( SIMT 305 to 308 ) ( QCAZ-I -278725 to 278829) GoogleMaps .

Diagnosis.

Head broad, with lateral vertexal foveae deep, non-setose, closer to eyes on each side than to each other; median fovea absent; eyes protuberant but not large, diameter ~ 2 / 3 postocular genal width; in ventral view genae projected posteroventrad, rounded (Fig. 5 J View Figure 5 ); two gular foveae present; antennal bases slightly elevated, set off by oblique stria; antennae rather short, antennomere III slightly longer than wide, antennomeres IV – VI beadlike, rounded, VII – IX increasingly transverse, shorter, X short, widening slightly to apex, XI ~ 2 × as long as X, rounded, with setose depression on inner apex; no antennal dimorphism; male pronotum (Fig. 7 A View Figure 7 ) short, ~ 1.5 × as wide as long, widest at base, unevenly narrowed to weakly emarginate anterior margin; pronotal disk with large pair of close, deep impressions, a thin carina separating them, with three short, distinct rows of setae at middle and outer edges; outside of major depressions, lateral portion of disk with secondary, shallower impressions just anterad middle, lateral margin slightly angulate near their leading edges; posterior portion of the pronotum slightly swollen, with fine mediobasal fovea and a sparse posterior marginal setal row; two anteroprosternal foveae present; each elytron with four basal foveae, three foveae evenly spaced and one disjunct; discal stria absent; wings present, reduced in size; legs simple; male last sternite convex, with a forked process at the apical margin, setose patches at either side, basally arched setae at middle of apical margin absent; male apical tergite transverse, slightly depressed in the middle. Aedeagus (Fig. 8 A View Figure 8 ) with elongate median lobe and separate accessory sclerites; parameres apparently fused at base and middle of median lobe, briefly separate subbasally; median lobe narrow, with elongate oval basal foramen, narrowed beyond and curved laterad to rounded apex; accessory sclerites large and elaborate, with strongly sclerotized rim surrounding inner hooked disk. TL 1.56–1.59 mm, EW 0.28–0.34 mm.

Distribution.

This species is only known from grassland páramo and Polylepis forest of the Papallacta region, province of Pichincha, Ecuador.

Etymology.

This species is named from the Kichwa word ‘ papallacta ’, meaning land of potatoes, referring to the highlands where specimens were collected.

Remarks.

This species and the following ( P. ananay ) are very closely related, and actually more or less indistinguishable in male genitalia (Fig. 8 A View Figure 8 vs Fig. 8 B View Figure 8 ). They also share unusual, enlarged posterior genal margins (Fig. 5 J, M View Figure 5 ). However, they are nonetheless clearly separated by genetic data (see Muñoz-Tobar and Caterino 2020) and minor details of pronotal morphology (Fig. 7 A View Figure 7 vs Fig. 7 B View Figure 7 ). In particular, this species has the lateral angles of the male pronotum further forward and punctate, while the anteromedial cavities are more clearly subdivided into larger posterior and smaller anterior depressions. In P. ananay , the main anteromedial cavity is barely divided at all, only by a short rim of setae, with the posterior area smaller than the anterior. It is worth noting that this species is only known from the single locality, whereas P. ananay occurs at other localities in Pichincha, Chimborazo, and Carchi provinces.