Khoisan maddocki Meregalli & Borovec, 2025

Meregalli, Massimo & Borovec, Roman, 2025, Khoisan, a new genus of Cyclominae from South Africa, with nine new species (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), Zootaxa 5646 (1), pp. 1-37 : 25-27

Khoisan maddocki Meregalli & Borovec sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:EBCFA253-3206-4FCA-9155-252EC979A893

Figure 13

Type locality: South Africa, Eastern Cape c., Blinkwater env., pr. Fort Beaufort .

Material examined: Holotype: ♂, South Africa, Eastern Cape c., Blinkwater env., pr. Fort Beaufort , 550 m, 32°42.9'S, 26°35.8'E [-32.715° 26.597°], 27.xi.2018, M. Košťál lgt. ( TMSA) . Paratype: 1 ♂, same data as the holotype ( MKSS) ; 2 ♂♂, same data as the holotype, but 12.xi.2023, R. Borovec legit, sifting under various plants in perennial vegetation ( RBSC, MMTI) .

Description. Body length 2.53–2.56 mm, holotype 2.56 mm. Elytra black, tubercles, pronotum, legs and antennae dark reddish, rostrum and tarsi almost black. Scales on pronotum and elytral interstriae, excluding tubercles, rostrum, anterior part of scapes and legs pale ochreous, erect, oval, scales on tubercles, margin of pronotum and base of elytra white, long narrowly pedunculate, concave, on dorsum of pronotum scales sparse, unscaled spaces amidst scales broader than diameter of one scale, on elytral interstriae sparse, not regularly aligned in rows, scales on tubercles mainly inserted on apical part, base of tubercles unscaled, scales on legs triangular, thick, raised; setae dark brownish, narrow, contrasting with white scales, inserted on top of tubercles on pronotum and elytra, two–three setae inserted amidst scales on rostrum and near apex of scapes; surface of pronotum with extremely fine, narrow hair-like setae.

Rostrum in males 2.31–2.41× as long as wide, basal part evenly tapered anteriad with straight sides, curved towards antennal insertions; in lateral view 0.7–0.8× as long as pronotum; at base 1.85–1.90× as wide as at apex, apical part slightly enlarged apicad, in lateral view weakly and regularly curved. Antennal insertions between midlength and apical third.

Scapes slender, 1.7–1.8× as long as funicle, at apex 0.8–0.9× as wide as club; funicles 5-segmented with first segment relatively elongate, the others short; segment 1 1.4–1.5× as long as wide and 1.5–1.6× as long as segment 2, this 1.1–1.2× as long as wide; segments 3 and 4 as long as wide; segment 5 1.1–1.2× as wide as long, broader than previous; clubs 1.6–1.7× as long as wide.

Pronotum 1–1.12× as long as wide, subcylindrical, slightly constricted behind anterior margin; disc flat, with two median tubercles and two tubercles near base, anterior margin with four humps protruding from anterior margin, sides with two conical tubercles, almost 2× as long as wide at base, and one smaller narrower tubercle near lower margin; base slightly arched.

Elytra 1.06–1.09× as long as wide, striae with deep round punctures, distance between two consecutive punctures as long as diameter of one puncture or slightly shorter, punctures broader than width of interstriae; interstriae 2 with tubercle at midlength and before apex, interstriae 3 with three tubercles, one on first third, one on declivity and one at apex, interstriae 5 with tubercle at midlength, interstriae 7 with four tubercles; all tubercles long conical, very prominent, acutely pointed, on interstriae 7 up to 2× as long as wide at base.

Legs short, protibiae narrow, apparently thick because of dense coating of suberect scales, with median and subapical granules, apex narrowed, with three–four strong blackish spines.

Penis slender and long, 5.2× as long as wide, subparallel-sided along entire length in dorsal view, apically with rounded sides and elongate to slender, moderately long tip; in lateral view only slightly curved, widest at basal third, apically elongate to long, slender, straight tip. Endophallus not examined.

Bionomics. The known specimens were sifted in a dry, open countryside with grasses and shrubs, from roots of small vegetation ( Figure 14 ).

Derivation of the name. This species is named after the musician James Maddock, from New York, U.S.A., a very close friend of the first author.

Distribution. South Africa, Eastern Cape, in the vicinity of Fort Beaufort ( Figure 18 ).

Remarks. The new species is similar to K. karooicus and K. javalae , which differ in having broader pronotum and elytra, the pronotum strongly compressed anteriorly and the elytra only slightly longer than wide, the apex of the pronotum with very short, barely distinct tubercles, the tubercles on interstriae 7 at most 1.5× as long as wide at base and the penis with sides shortly convergent at apex; in K. karooicus additionally the scales on the interstriae are arranged in two to three regular rows.

Figures

FIGURE 13. Khoisan maddocki. Body, dorsum (a), side (b); head with rostrum, dorsal view (g), lateral view (c); antenna (j); pronotum, dorsal view (f), lateral view (i); elytra, dorsolateral view (d), base (e); protibia (k); aedeagus, dorsal view (1), penis, profile (h). Scale bar 1 mm; figures not to scale.

FIGURE 14. Habitat of Khoisan maddocki, near Blinkwater.

FIGURE 18. Distribution map. Symbols with a black dot indicate the locality of the holotype. Map generated from https:// www.openstreetmap.org.