Penthicus kermanicus, Nabozhenko & Mofrad, 2025

Nabozhenko, Maxim V. & Mofrad, Farhad Eshraghi, 2025, Progress in the knowledge of the genus Penthicus Faldermann, 1836 (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae: Opatrini) of Iraq, Iran and Pakistan with descriptions of 17 new species, Zootaxa 5573 (1), pp. 1-100 : 73-76

Penthicus kermanicus sp. nov.

( Figs 57 , 58 )

Material. Holotype, ♂ ( NHML): “ IRAN [print] Kerman Rafsandjan 10.xi.60 [handwritten] E.S. Brown [print] 3423 [handwritten]” . Paratypes. 2 ♂♂ ( NHML): “ IRAN [print] Kerman Bam 20.xi.60 [handwritten] E.S. Brown [print] 3493 [handwritten]”, “Brit. Mus. 1961–641.” (print) and museum label with QR-code and numbers NHMUK 013663791 and NHMUK 013663799 ; 7 specimens (including at least one male and one female) ( HMIM): Iran, Kerman Prov., Bardsir, Khanehsorkh , 8–12.ix.1973 (leg. Yozdanqan) .

Description. Male ( Figs 57A, B, D, E ). Body very robust, short and wide, convex, opaque, black, dorsally glabrous.

Head widest across genae. Lateral margins of genae slightly roundely converging to epistoma in apical half and widely rounded in basal half. Widest portion of genae located ahead of eyes. Head coarsely and moderately densely punctured by round punctures in middle of frons and rasp-like elongate punctures around the middle; puncturation of epistome anteriorly coarser and denser, punctures circular. Eye dorsally slightly longitudinal, 1.15 times as long as wide. Head ventrally with dense granulation in basal area to submentum and smooth around mouthparts laterally and eyes.

Prothorax. Pronotum transverse (1.76–1.77 times as wide as long), widest at middle and base (in case of subparallel lateral margins), ahead of middle (in case of slightly coverging to base lateral margins) or at base (in case of slightly diverging to base lateral margins), 1.73 times as wide as head, strongly converging from anterior third to anterior margin; ratio width of pronotum at base, widest portion (or at middle) and anterior angles: 17.2: 17.2: 11.5 (subparallel lateral margins at basal half), 17: 17.2: 11.5 (convergind lateral margins at basal half) or 16.5: 16.3: 10.5 (slightly diverging lateral margins at basal half). Anterior edge widely deeply emarginated. Lateral edges straight (subparallel, converging or divergin) at basal half, rounded from widest portion (or middle) to anterior angles. Base bisinuate, rounded in middle, median portion slightly protruded backwards. Anterior angles right or slightly acute, projected, tip narrowly rounded, posterior angles slightly obtuse (or right in case of diverging lateral margins at basal half), tip narrowly rounded. Lateral edges margined, margin of anterior edge shortly interrupted in middle, base entirely margined. Disc of pronotum entirely evenly convex, coarsely and sparsely punctured by circular punctures (interpuncture space near 1.5–2 times as long as puncture diameter), slightly coarser and denser punctured by round or slightly elongate rasp-like punctures on lateral sides (interpuncture spaces near 2 times as long as puncture diameter); with distinct very fine secondary micropuncturation. Lateral sides of prothoracic hypomera widely flattened; flattened portion converging from base to to anterior margin, finely punctured. Other surface with sparse small granules and fine smooth longitudinal wrinkles more dense and distinct in anterior half; each granule bears short suberect seta. Inclined surface of prohypomera separated from outer flattened portion by sharp bend. Prosternum with granules and rasp-like punctures bearing recumbent short setae. Prosternal process slightly convex, slightly protruded beyond procoxae.

Pterothorax. Elytra short and wide, with slightly rounded lateral margins, widest at middle (1.28–1.32 times as long as wide), 1.77 times as wide as head, 1.05–1.12 times as wide and 2.39–2.57 times as long as pronotum. Basal margin of elytra in epipleural portion slightly oblique, humeral angles obtuse, tip pointed, lateral edge of elytra not emarginated near humeral angles. Strial punctures moderately coarse, round, dense, subequal in size to interstrial ones or slightly larger in middle, more depressed; interstrial puncturation fine and sparse, slightly denser near interstriae and sparser in middle; interstriae flat. Epipleuron in apical portion 2 times as wide as metepisternum in widest portion. Ventral side of pterothorax sparsely pubescent with recumbent setae. Mesoventrite densely rugosely granulated; intercoxal process of mesoventrite rasp-like punctured and wrinkled; mesepisterna with sparse granules. Metaventrite with rasp-like punctures in middle, distinct and sparse elongate granules on sides; metepistrerna sparsely granulated.

Abdomen. Abdominal ventrites 1–3 flattened in middle, sparsely and finely granulated on sides and sparsely and finely punctured in middle; ventrites 4 and 5 with sparse simple puncturation; ventrite 5 entirely finely margined apically. Genitalia ( Figs 58A–C ). Inner sternite VIII widely deeply roundly emarginated, with narrowly rounded lateral angulations. Spiculum gastrale with comparatively thin S-shaped rods and slightly elongate short blades widely rounded at apex. Parameres S-shaped, acute apically, lateral margins slightly emarginated in middle. Basal piece near 1.8 times as long as parameres.

Legs. Pro- and mesofemora reaching margin of pronotum; metafemora extending far beyond elytral margin. Protibiae moderately widened, protibia slightly shorter at apex than maximum width of profemur. Lateral margin of protibiae simple, not obliquely truncated near apex. Protarsi with combined length of 2 proximal tarsomeres subequal to apical width of protibia.

Body length 9.5–10 mm, width 4.7–5.5 mm.

Female ( Fig. 57C ). Externally the same as male.Sometimes lateral margins straight only in basal third.Ovipositor ( Figs 58D, E ) with wide coxite lobes IV, narrow barrel-shaped gonostyli and short, wide valvifer, converging from outer to inner sides; baculi of valvifer strongly bent inside; baculi of paraproct short and bent.

Etymology. The name derives from Kerman Province ( Iran), where the new species was collected in many localities.

Comparative diagnosis. See for P. bam sp. nov.

Figures

FIGURE 57. Penthicus (Stonavus) kermanicus sp. nov., habitus, details. A = male dorsally; B = male ventrally; C = female dorsally; D = head and pronotum dorsally; E = ditto, dorso-laterally; F = prohypomeron; G = puncturation of elytron; H = anterior angle of pronotum.

FIGURE 58. Penthicus (Stonavus) kermanicus sp. nov., genitalia. A = aedeagus ventrally; B = male inner sternite VIII; C = spiculum gastrale; E = ovipositor ventrally; F = ovipositor dorsally.