Rhytomus Génier & Saxton: A new dung beetle genus from New Guinea with five new species and phylogenetic insights (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae)
Author
Génier, François
0000-0002-5399-8412
enier@nature.ca
Author
Gunter, Nicole L.
Biodiversity and Geosciences Program, Queensland Museum, South Brisbane, QLD, 4101 Australia.
Author
Saxton, Natalie A.
Department of Biology, Case Western Reserve University, 2080 Adelbert Road, Cleveland, OH, 44106, USA. & Corresponding author
text
Zootaxa
2025
2025-01-22
5575
1
87
110
https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5575.1.3
journal article
10.11646/zootaxa.5575.1.3
1175-5326
14746442
521D404D-EB9D-4110-989E-A8A273C10152
Rhytomus fervidus
Saxton & Génier
,
new species
urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:
27C09598-572B-4AF0-904F-59067A688C08
Figs. 4B
,
7A
,
8A
,
9B
,
11A, 11D, 11E
,
12B
Name-bearing type data.
Holotype
♂
(
CMNC
): || PAPUA NEW GUINEA | Western highlands, Mt. | Hagen, 6000’ |
5-8.VII.1974
,
S.Peck
|
oak forest dung
tps. 24-25 ||; ||
Canadian Museum
of |
Musée
canadien de la | NATURE |
CMNEN 00049283
|| [QR code label]; || HOLOTYPE ♂ |
Rhytomus
|
fervidus
| Des
. N. Saxton
&
F. Génier
, 2024 || [red card]
.
Material examined
(
20 ♂♂
,
9 ♀♀
).
PAPUA NEW GUINEA
:
WESTERN HIGHLANDS PROVINCE
,
Mount Hagen
,
1829 m
, [
05°52’
S
,
144°14’E
],
5–8.vii.1974
, oak forest,
dung traps
,
S. Peck
, (
dung traps
24-25)—
♂
holotype
,
♀
allotype
,
12 ♂♂
,
6 ♀♀
paratypes
(
CMNC
)
,
6 ♂♂
,
1 ♀
paratypes
(
MNHN
)
,
1 ♂
,
1 ♀
paratypes
(
QM
)
.
Description. Measurements.
Body length 4.2–5.0 mm, maximum body width
2.6–3.1 mm
.
Holotype
: body length
4.7 mm
, maximum body width 3.0 mm.
Body.
Overall shape in dorsal view oval, elytral edge evenly rounded from base to apex.
Head.
Clypeal edge lateral to clypeal teeth lacking emargination (
Fig. 4C
), head margin at clypeogenal suture of females slightly protruding. Dorsal parts of eyes semi-ovoid, separated by an interocular space of about 3.9 times eye width.
Pronotum.
Pronotal width to length along midline ratio 1.9, lateral pronotal edge sharply defined throughout, pronotal pubescence short and fine, pronotal basal portion along midline lacking fine longitudinal depression.
Elytra.
Elytral maximum width to length along suture ratio 1.0, elytral outline moderately convex in lateral view, elytral pubescence short and fine, elytral surface between punctures appearing glossy, at most with ill-defined microsculptures (
Fig. 12B
), basal elytral pit slightly wider than stria 10 and shallow (
Fig. 11D
), basal surface of pseudepipleuron with irregularly distributed more or less defined punctures (
Fig. 11E
), interstriae 3–5 on basal fifth with scattered unaligned punctures.
Legs.
Profemoral anterior surface flat, male metatibial apicointernal tooth approximately in line with posterior tibial edge.
Pygidium.
Pygidial surface along midline with punctures absent or distinctly more scattered than rest of discs, at least basally, pygidial surface along basal groove smooth between punctures (
Fig. 8A
), pygidium of female depressed apically.
Aedeagus.
Left paramere apex truncated apically, distinctly angular externally (
Fig. 9B
).
Female genitalia.
Spermatheca with two apodemes basally.
Etymology.
The specific epithet for this species is the masculine nominative Latin adjective meaning “boiling hot” or “fiery” in reference to the
type
locality, which is near an old composite volcano.