Penthicus grabantae, 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 : 68-70

Penthicus grabantae sp. nov.

( Fig. 54 )

Type material. Holotype (♀) and paratype (♀) ( HNHM): “ IRAN BELUTSCHISTAN Nimdeh 30 km S.W. Kūh i Taftan 1.III.1954 Richter u. Schäuffele” (blue), “ persica Schust. det. Kaszab ”.

Description. Body robust, convex, dull, black, dorsally glabrous ( Fig. 54A ).

Head widest across genae. Lateral margins of genae straightly converging from widest portion to middle and from middle to epistome. Widest area of genae located beyond midlengthof eyes, where genal margin angular. Head finely and sparsely punctured on frons by circular punctures, sparser in middle of frons and much coarser and denser on epistome and genae. Eye dorsally slightly longitudinal. Head ventrally with dense granulation in basal portion and sparse fine granules around mouthparts and eyes.

Prothorax. Pronotum moderately transverse (1.55 times as wide as long), widest across middle, 1.66 times as wide as head, moderately converging from widest portion to apical margin and to base, ratio width of pronotum at base, widest portion and anterior angles: 26.8: 28.7: 19. Anterior margin widely evenly emarginated. Lateral edges rounded from widest portion to apical margin and almost straight from widest portion to base. Base with straight edge on sides and rounded with weak sinuation at protruded backwards median portion. Anterior angles slightly obtuse, tip rounded, posterior angles more obtuse with rounded tip. Lateral edges margined, margin of anterior edge widely interrupted in middle, base finely entirely margined. Disc of pronotum entirely convex, punctured by sparse, moderately coarse circular punctures; puncturation in median portion finer and sparser (interpuncture spaces near 4–5 times as long as puncture diameter); punctures on the sides from median portion round, coarser and denser (interpuncture spaces near 2 times as long as puncture diameter); secondary micropuncturation almost invisible. Lateral side of prothoracic hypomera narrowly flattened; flattened portion with equal width from base to apex. Other surface of hypomera with round distinct granules and smooth longitudinal wrinkles; each granule bears long suberect setae. Prosternum with rasp-like puncturation (each bears short recumbent seta). Prosternal process slightly protruded beyond procoxae.

Pterothorax. Elytra wide, with lateral margins almost straight from widest portion to humeri and rounded from widest portion to apex, widest behind middle in apical third (1.29–1.3 times as long as wide), 1.9 times as wide as head, 1.1 times as wide and 2.3 times as long as pronotum. Basal margin of elytra in epipleural portion slightly and shortly oblique, humeral angles obtuse, tip pointed; lateral edge of elytra not emarginated near humeral angles. Strial punctures round, impressed, larger than interstrial punctures; flattened interstriae sparsely and finely punctured. Epipleuron in apical portion 2 times as wide as metepisternum. Ventral side of pterothorax sparsely pubescent with short recumbent setae. Mesoventrite coarsely granulated, mesepisterna very sparsely granulated. Metaventrite with distinct round sparse granules on sides and sparse puncturation at middle.

Abdomen. Abdominal ventrites 1–4 sparsely granulated on sides and punctured by fine and sparse punctures medially; ventrite 5 with slightly rasp-like and coarser puncturation, not margined at apex. Genitalia ( Figs 54E–G ). Ovipositor with densely punctured coxite lobes 2–4 and short setation; valvifer 1 parallel, baculi finished before apex, not curved. Coxite lobes 4 comparatively wide, tip widely rounded. Gonostyli narrow, conical, with one long seta. Baculi of paraproct narrow, straight, with subparallel margins. Proctiger widely rounded apically, without baculi.

Legs. Legs slender, femora slightly extending beyond body margin. Protibiae comparatively narrow, profemora in widest portion 1.26 times as wide as apical width of protibiae. Lateral margin of protibiae simple, not obliquely truncated near apex. Length of protarsomeres 1–3 combined subequal to apical width of protibia.

Body lenth 11 mm, width 5.5 mm.

Etymology. The species is named in honour of Aranka Grabant, the employee of HNHM, who kindly helps a lot with type material from the museum and photographs of types.

Comparative diagnosis. The new species belongs to the remotus species-group and it is very similar to P. zarudnyi sp. nov. (only females compared) from which it externally differs in the more robust body and elytra widest behind middle ( Fig. 54A ). Ovipositors of both species are distinctly differs. Penthicus grabantae sp. nov. has valvifer with subparallel sides and baculi of the valvifer not reaching apex and straight at apex ( Fig. 54F ), while valvifer in P. zarudnyi sp. nov. widened from base to apex and baculi strongly curved at apex ( Fig. 70D ). In addition, coxite lobes IV in the new species wider, and gonostyli conical ( Fig. 54G ) vs coxite lobes IV narrower and coxite lobes cylindrical in P. zarudnyi sp. nov. ( Fig. 70E ).

Figures

FIGURE 54. Penthicus (Stonavus) grabantae sp. nov., habitus, details. A = female dorsally, holotype; B = head and pronotum dorsally; C = ditto, dorso-laterally; D = prohypomeron; E = spiculum ventral; F = ovipositor ventrally; G = ditto, dorsally.

FIGURE 70. Penthicus (Stonavus) zarudnyi sp. nov., genitalia. A = aedeagus ventrally; B = male inner sternite VIII; C = spiculum gastrale; D = ovipositor ventrally; E = ovipositor dorsally.