Holotype: CHINA: ♂: ‘China: Guangdong, Shenzhen City, Mt. Qiniang (七娘山), 23°32'28.73"N, 114°35'8.46"E, mixed leaf litter, sifted, 45 m, 23.III.2019, Tang, Shuai, Zhao, Zhou & Xia leg.’ (SNUC). Paratypes: CHINA: 1 ♂, 3 ♀♀, same label data as holotype (SNUC).

Body length slightly less than 2.5 mm. Male: antennal club almost simple, with antennomere IX slightly angulate at anteromesal corner; metaventral processes short and narrowing toward apex; protibiae with small denticle at apex; metacoxae with truncate, curved, ventral projection; aedeagus elongate, median lobe asymmetrically narrowed at apex. Female: identifiable only when in association with a male.

Male (Fig. 1A). Body length (combined length of head, pronotum, elytra, and abdomen) 2.32–2.33 mm. Head longer than wide, length from clypeal anterior margin to head base 0.52–0.54 mm, width across eyes 0.48–0.49 mm; eyes small, each composed of ca. 23 facets. Antennae elongate, 1.78–1.79 mm long, scape elongate, ca. 3.5 times as long as wide, antennomeres 2–8 each sub-moniliform, of similar width, antennal club (Fig. 2A) formed by antennomeres 9–11, antennomere 9 much longer than wide, broadening from base to apex, angulate at anteromesal corner (Fig. 2A, indicated by arrow), antennomere 10 slightly transverse, antennomere 11 truncate and broadest at base and narrowing apically, both antennomeres 10 and 11 simple. Pronotum (Fig. 2B) approximately as long as wide, with rounded lateral margins, length along midline 0.49–0.51 mm, maximum width 0.49–0.52 mm. Elytra strongly transverse, length along suture 0.56–0.57 mm, maximum width 0.85–0.88 mm. Metaventral processes (Fig. 2C) short, narrowing apically. Protrochanters and profemora (Fig. 2D) simple, protibiae (Fig. 2E) with small but distinct denticle at apex; mesotrochanters, mesofemora, and mesotibiae (Fig. 2F) simple; metacoxae (Fig. 2G) with truncate curved projection on ventral margin; metatrochanters, metafemora, and metatibiae simple. Abdomen approximately as wide as elytra, length of dorsally visible part along midline 0.74–0.77 mm, maximum width 0.86–0.87 mm; tergite 1 (IV) more than twice as long as tergite 2 (V); sternite 7 (IX) (Fig. 2H) semi-membranous, elongate. Length of aedeagus (Fig. 2I–K) 0.38–0.40 mm; median lobe asymmetrical dorso-ventrally, narrowing apically with pointed apex; elongate parameres slightly exceeding apex of median lobe, with rounded apices; endophallus with one broad, rounded triangular sclerite, and one much shorter, elongate sclerite forked at apex.

Figure 1. 

Dorsal habitus of Linan qiniangmontis sp. nov. A male B female. Scale bars: 0.5 mm.

Figure 2. 

Male diagnostic features of Linan qiniangmontis sp. nov. A antennal club B pronotum C metaventral process, lateral D protrochanter and profemur E apex of protibia F mesotrochanter and mesofemur G metacoxa, metatrochanter, and metafemur H sternite IX I–K aedeagus, dorsal (I), lateral (J), and ventral (K). Scale bars: 0.3 mm (A, B, D, F, G); 0.2 mm (C, I, J, K); 0.1 mm (H); 0.05 mm (E).

Female. Similar to male in general morphology, with slightly shorter antennae and smaller eyes; antennae and legs simple; lacking metaventral processes. Eyes each composed of approximately 18 facets. Measurements (as of male): Body length 2.33–2.44 mm, length/width of head 0.53–0.55 /0.49–0.51 mm, length of antennae 1.63–1.70 mm, length/width of pronotum 0.50–0.51/0.51 mm, length/width of elytra 0.57/0.89–0.91 mm, length/width of abdomen 0.72–0.81/0.92–0.93 mm.

China: Guangdong.

The new species epithet refers to the type locality of the new species, Qiniang Mountain.

The new species is placed as a member of the L. chinensis group by the almost unmodified antennal clubs in the male. It is most similar to L. hujiayaoi Yin & Li, 2013 and L. mulunensis Zhang, Li & Yin, 2018 (both from Guangxi) in sharing modified male metacoxae. Linan qiniangmontis differs from both known species in the slightly angulate anteromesal corner of antennomere 9 (rounded in L. hujiayaoi and L. mulunensis), a different form of the metaventral processes (processes stouter in L. hujiayaoi and much more elongate in L. mulunensis), the lack of additional projections above the metacoxae (present in L. hujiayaoi and L. mulunensis), and a more elongate aedeagus with a different configuration of the endophallus.