Colpoptera acinaces Bahder & Bartlett, 2025

Colpoptera acinaces Bahder & Bartlett View in CoL sp. nov.

( Figures 2–6 View FIGURE 2 View FIGURE 3 View FIGURE 4 View FIGURE 5 View FIGURE 6 )

Type locality. Hotel Villa Blanca , Alajuela Province, Costa Rica ( 10.203231, -84.485094) ( Fig. 1 View FIGURE 1 ) GoogleMaps .

Diagnosis. Body dark, uniformly fuscous, face uniformly dark, forewing fuscous, less fuscous along costal margin and distal third, pale spot at RA branch apices and CuP apex. Pygofer quadrate in lateral view. Gonostyli from lateral view very broad, bearing large capitulum with helical sclerotized ridges. Aedeagus lightly sclerotized, upcurved, nearly bilaterally symmetrical, bearing pair of strongly bifurcated dorsal processes of moderate length arising subapically on lateral margins and pair of large, broad, long and hooked decussate processes on ventral margin that cross distally, nearly reaching the base. Anal segment elongated, irregularly sinuate on ventral margin, ventral margin with strong invagination approximately 2/3 from base, apex blunt.

Description. Color. Dark colored ( Fig. 2 View FIGURE 2 ), body uniformly fuscous, face uniformly dark, posterior 2/3 of vertex signficanlty paler, forewing fuscous ( Fig. 4 View FIGURE 4 ), paler along costal vein and distal third, especially near dorsoapical margin, pale spot at RA branch apices and CuP apex. ( Fig. 4 View FIGURE 4 ).

Structure. Body elongated, length male 5.5 mm, female 5.9 mm ( Table 3).

Head. In dorsal view, vertex nearly rectangular, anterior margin slightly curved, approximately level with anterior margin of eyes, posterior margin concave, median carina absent, transverse carina at fastigium evident ( Fig. 3A View FIGURE 3 ). In lateral view, generally rounded, slightly angled at fastigium, vertex slightly projected above eyes, frons curved dorsad ( Fig. 3B View FIGURE 3 ). In frontal view, dorsal margin weakly concave at transverse carina, lateral margins expanding from dorsal margin, reaching widest point just below antennae then constricting strongly to clypeus, median carina evident, extending from fastigium to frontoclypeal suture ( Fig. 3C View FIGURE 3 ). Eye roughly ovate (long axis diagonal), weakly emarginated above antenna. Lateral ocellus near anterioventral margin of eye. Antennae short, scape short, ring-like, pedicel ovoid, taller than wide, bearing irregularly distributed sensory plaques.

Thorax. Pronotum in dorsal view broad at midpoint, at midline about 1.5x length of vertex, widest at midpoint with anterior margin convex, posterior margin concave, tricarinate, carina at midline continuous from anterior to posterior margin, lateral carinae extending from anterior margin of pronotum, laterad, becoming obsolete ventrally ( Fig. 3A View FIGURE 3 ). Mesonotum approximately as wide as long at midpoint, unicarinate anteriorly with pair of carinae (slightly sinuate) forked at diagonal laterally from median carina near anterior margin, extending just beyond obscure lateral carinae ( Fig. 3A View FIGURE 3 ); in lateral view, mesonotum raised above level of pronotum ( Fig. 3B View FIGURE 3 ). Hind tibiae with single lateral tooth approximately 3/4 length distad from femoral-tibial joint, spinulation 6-7-2.

Forewing reticulate, anterior and posterior margin subparallel, asymmetrically rounded at apex ( Fig. 4 View FIGURE 4 ); clavel apex near distal ¾ of forewing; RP arises separately from Sc+RA at basal cell.

Male terminalia. Pygofer, in lateral view ( Fig. 5 View FIGURE 5 ), quadrate, nearly uniform width along entire length, anterior margin sinuate, posterior margin slightly sinuate, dorsal and ventral margin equal length, slightly sinuate, medioventral process lacking. Gonostyli, in lateral view, very broad, generally rounded with large capitulum arising proximad, with helical sclerotized ridges, apex blunt with posterior corner rounded, anterior corner angulate ( Fig. 5 View FIGURE 5 ). Aedeagus nearly bilaterally symmetrical ( Fig. 6 View FIGURE 6 ), distally upcurved, bearing two pairs of processes; first pair (A1 & A2) arising on subapical lateral margin, slender, strongly and widely bifurcated with dorsal projections (A1a & A2a) curved cephalad proximally, straight distally, ventral projections nearly straight, angled cephalad, extending just beyond apex of A1a and A2a ( Fig. 6 View FIGURE 6 ), from dorsal view ( Fig. 6C View FIGURE 6 ), processes A1b & A2b converging to meet medially; second pair (A3 & A4) arising on inner ventral margin just proximad of A1 and A2, curving dorsad and cephalad, stout and broadly flattened, narrowed basally, expanding immediately, lateral margins subparallel, apices strongly curved mesad (approximately 90°), decussate, nearly reaching aedeagal base. Anal segment elongated ( Fig. 5 View FIGURE 5 ), irregularly sinuate on ventral margin, dorsal margin angled ventrad approximately ¼ from base, ventral margin with strong invagination approximately 2/3 from base, apex distad of invagination comma-shaped, apex blunt (not downcurved); paraproct small.

Plant associations. Unknown, collected sweeping vegetation in vacant lot.

Distribution. Hotel Villa Blanca, Alajuela Province, Costa Rica.

Etymology. The specific epithet is derived from the Latin word ‘ acinaces ’ (scimitar or short sword), a reference to the large, scimitar-like ventral processes of the aedeagus, and is intended as masculine in gender.

Material examined. Holotype male “ Costa Rica, Alajuela Pr. / Hotel Villa Blanca / 12.VI.2018 / sweeping weeds / Coll.: B.W.Bahder // Holotype / Colpoptera acinaces ♂ ” ( FLREC) . Paratypes ( 2 males, 6 females); same data as holotype .