Corresponding author: Kirill V. Makarov (
Academic editor: Achille Casale
A new species,
Makarov KV, Sundukov YN (2014)
The carabid fauna of Kunashir Island, Kuriles, Russia, can be considered as well-known (see review by
In the summer of 2013, a small series of a remarkable brachypterous
Standard methods were applied for treating the material. Genitalia were mounted on permanent slides using the Faure-Berlese medium. External characters were studied with the help of MBS-1 and Leica M165C stereoscopes, the genitalia examined under MBR-15 and Micromed 2, version 2–20 compound microscopes. Pictures were taken using a Canon EOS 5D Mark III camera with a Canon MP-E 65 mm objective lens and a Canon PowerShot A640, while the extended focus images by means of the Zerene Stacker software.
The abbreviations used in text are as follows:
Designations of the sclerotized parts of the aedeagus are given after Maddison (1985). Female reproductive tract characters follow the terminology of Liebherr and Will (1998). Abbreviations given in the illustrations are the following:
The material has been shared between the collections of the Zoological Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, St. Petersburg (ZISP) and the Moscow State Pedagogical University (MSPU), as well as in the private collection of the second author, kept in Lazo, Maritime Province, Russia (CSLR).
♂ with labels: “Northern Kunashir, 2.5 km NW of Cape Nelyudimyi,
The specimen is deposited in ZISP, the genitalia mounted on a slide in Faure-Berlese medium are pinned beneath.
4 ♂, 3 ♀ from northern Kunashir, 2.5 km NW of Cape Nelyudimyi,
RUSSIA: Kuril Archipelago: Kunashir Island, at the foot of Ruruy Volcano.
The species epithet is a Latinized noun in apposition to reflect the name of the volcano at the foot of which the new species was found.
Body faintly convex. Length 4.1–5.1 mm, width 1.4–2.1 mm.
Head and pronotum black, elytra black- or dark brown, entire upperside with a faint bronze or bluish lustre. Head appendages: antennae black-brown with lighter bases of antennomeres 2–4; palpi black with yellowish apical palpomeres; mandibles entirely brown or with lighter apices; labrum dark brown. Underside black or dark brown. Legs black or black-brown with lighter pro- and mesotrochantera, as well apical parts of metatarsi; all tibiae and tarsi brown (Fig.
Habitus of
Upperside devoid of punctation, only basal pits of pronotum with a few small punctures at bottom. Dorsal microsculpture of head, including clypeus and labrum, with rough isodiametric meshes especially rough inside frontal furrows. Disc of pronotum finely microsculptured, with transverse meshes growing isodiametric and rougher like on head towards margins (Fig.
Head and pronotum of
Standard dimensions (mm): HW 0.78–0.95 (M 0.87); HL 0.58–0.74 (M 0.62); PA 0.75–0.94 (M 0.84); PW 1.03–1.30 (M 1.16); PB 0.80–0.95 (M 0.89); PL(t) 0.88–0.99 (M 0.92); PL(m) 0.83–0.95 (M 0.87); EW 1.60–2.05 (M 1.86); EL 2.38–3.05 (M 2.64); Ls 3.84–4.90 (M 4.18); L 4.10–5.10 (M 4.6).
Head not flattened, together with eyes 1.29–1.42 times as broad as long. Eyes moderately convex. Antennae long, in ♂ as long as elytra, in ♀ 0.90–0.95 their length. Mandibles small, with pointed apices. Labrum trapeziform, with six setae along fore margin. Clypeus trapeziform, with two long setae in fore angles. Tooth of mentum large, edged, broadly rounded at apex; mentum with two setae at base. Submentum with two pairs of large setae, external ones being shorter. Gula in basal 1/3 with a deep, thin, longitudinal sulcus (Fig.
Pronotum (Fig.
Elytra oblong-oval, rather large, broad (EL/EW = 1.39–1.69 (M 1.42), EL/PL(t) = 2.70–3.11 (M 2.91), EW/PW = 1.55–1.67 (M 1.59), slightly convex, broadest at 2/3 of elytral length. Shoulder not protruding, broadly rounded. Basal margin reaching apex of 4th (4 specimens) or 5th (5 specimens) stria, near shoulder arcuated and gradually turning into lateral margin. Lateral margin flattened and narrow. External apical angle broadly rounded. Striae complete, moderately deep, non-punctate, interspaces faintly convex; stria 7 either well-developed or superficial and faint in anterior half, but evident throughout; stria 8 fused to 9th about midway of series umbilicata (Fig.
Hindwings (Fig.
Legs moderately long, slender; metatarsus subequal in length to metatibia. All tibiae and meso- and metatarsomeres 1 with distinct longitudinal furrows. Meso- and metatarsomeres 3 and 4 with short dorsal keels. Claws thin, about 0.6 times as long as last tarsomere. Meso- and metafemora with 4 setae near caudal margin. Ventro-apical setae of penultimate tarsomere long, reaching beyond 2/3 of claw length.
Underside non-punctate (Fig.
Aedeagus rather slender, its ventral margin faintly curved, apex moderately broad, rounded. Central sclerite complex (CSC) of endophallus with a large brush sclerite and a rather short, S-shaped flagellum with an adjacent flagellar sheath. Right lobe of CSC poorly sclerotized, distinctly microsculptured, reaching down to basal notch of aedeagus. Left lobe small, sclerotized, devoid of a marked sculpture. Ventral sclerite patch small, lying beneath bush sclerite. Ostial microtrichial patch well-developed. Left part of endophallus with two additional structures: a short row of spinicles located level to brush sclerite and a rather long laterodistal sclerite formed by fused cuticular scales (Fig.
Male genital apparatus of
Female genital apparatus as in Fig.
Female genital apparatus of
Kunashir Island, southern Kuriles, Russia; known only from the island’s northern part at the foot of Ruruy Volcano.
Much of the type series was taken inside a water-logged gravel-clay mixture and in crevices of a wet rocky cliff at the bank of a mountain stream running through a narrow mudslide-formed canyon (Fig.
Habitat of
The shape of the head and pronotum, the elytral chaetotaxy pattern, and the complex of characters related to flight loss (shortened elytra, obliterated elytral shoulder, short metepisterna) allow for
1 | Larger (4–5 mm), upperside monochromous, black or brown with metallic lustre; legs and antennae monochromous, dark brown. Metepisterna elongated, external margin 1.5 times as long as breadth along fore margin. Metasternal process not edged at apex. Kunashir, Ruruy Volcano |
|
– | Smaller (3–3.5 mm), head and pronotum black, elytra brown to red-brown; antennomere 1 and legs light, reddish. Metepisterna very short, external margin only 1.12 times as long as breadth along fore margin. Metasternal process entirely edged. Hokkaido, Daisetsu Volcano |
|
In spite of the considerable similarity between
The presence or absence of an edging on the anterior process of the metathorax is traditionally significant when taxonomically sorting out the
It is noteworthy, however, that the significance of that character has repeatedly been questioned. Thus, in the recent review of the phylogeny of
The basal edging of the elytra in
The differences in endophallus armament seem to be considerable when comparing
When describing
Aedeagus of
Inasmuch as the main differences between
According to many authors (
A considerable sea transgression which was due to climate warming in the Late Pleistocene (130,000–70,000 y) separated Kunashir from Hokkaido, but the following two waves of cold (60,000–40,000 and 22,000–11,000 y) divided by a moderately warm climate resulted in a restored land connection of these two islands. In the Late Würm (15,000–13,000 y), another, rapid climate warming occurred, during which the rates of ice melting and sea-level rise dragged far behind climate change. The most intense interchanges of thermophilous biotic elements, especially those from Hokkaido to Kunashir, are believed to have taken place then, of course until the rising sea restored their isolation towards the mid-Holocene.
The above information concerning the morphological structure and geographical distribution of
The authors are most grateful to the administration and staff of the Kurile State Nature Reserve, due to whose help a very interesting material could be obtained in the northern part of Kunashir Island. We are obliged to S. Morita for interesting data on the distribution of
This work was financially supported by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation (project 6.632.2014 / K).
Habitus of
Image file.
This image correspond to Fig.
Habitus of
Image file.
This image correspond to Fig.
Habitus of
Image file.
This image correspond to Fig.
Habitus of
Image file.
This image correspond to Fig.
Habitus of
Image file.
This image correspond to Fig.
Habitus of
Image file.
This image correspond to Fig.
Male genital apparatus of
Image file.
This image correspond to Fig.
Male genital apparatus of
Image file.
This image correspond to Fig.