Phrynidius palliapicalis Noguera, Anderson & Santos-Silva 2025, sp. nov.

Phrynidius palliapicalis Noguera, Anderson & Santos-Silva, sp. nov. (Figs 69–79) Dimensions in mm (female holotype /female paratype). Total length, 8.20/7.80; prothoracic length, 2.40/2.35; anterior prothoracic width, 2.05/2.00; posterior prothoracic width, 2.25/2.20; maximum prothoracic width, 2.60/2.55; humeral width, 2.45/2.50; elytral length, 5.15/5.15. Description. Female holotype. Integument mostly dark brown; antennae light brown from apical quarter of antennomere IV; anteclypeus mostly dark yellowish brown; palpomeres brown except yellowish-brown apices; and metatarsomere V mostly dark orangish brown. Head. Frons slightly convex, moderately abundantly, deeply, coarsely punctate; with dense pale yellowish-brown pubescence and short, arched, thick whitish setae interspersed, setae not distinctly squamiform. Vertex with sculpturing, pubescence, and whitish setae as on frons, except glabrous median groove. Antennal tubercles not close to each other (Fig. 69), with distance between their apices wider than basal diameter of scape; pubescence and whitish setae as on frons, whitish setae more abundant frontally. Area behind eyes moderately abundantly, coarsely punctate; with dense pale yellowish-brown pubescence almost obscuring integument; with a few short, thick whitish setae interspersed. Genae 1.95 times longer than lower eye lobe; sculpturing, pubescence, and whitish setae as on frons, except smooth and glabrous apex. Wide central area of postclypeus with abundant pale yellowish-brown pubescence obscuring integument close to frons, pubescence slightly lighter than on frons, with sparse, thick whitish setae interspersed; area close to anteclypeus with moderately abundant yellowish-white pubescence not obscuring integument, pubescence longer anteriorly; with long, erect yellowish-brown setae interspersed close to anteclypeus. Sides of postclypeus with dense pale yellowish-brown pubescence except glabrous apex. Labrum sparsely, finely punctate with moderately abundant yellowish-white pubescence not obscuring integument centrally, except glabrous area close to anteclypeus; posterolateral areas with a few short, bristly yellowish-brown setae; remaining surface with sparse, long, erect yellowish-brown setae, except anterior margin with fringe of dense yellowish-brown setae. Distance between upper eye lobes 0.45 times distance between outer margins of eyes; in frontal view, distance between lower eye lobes 0.80 times distance between outer margins of eyes; upper eye lobe oblique in relation to the axis of lower eye lobe; eye lobes not well separated, area between eye lobes without ommatidia (Fig. 75). Antennae 1.2 times elytral length, reaching posterior third of elytra. Scape with dense pale yellowish-brown pubescence except apex with dense yellowish pubescence, yellowish pubescence denser dorsally and laterally; with short, thick, arched whitish setae interspersed. Pedicel with sparse yellowish-brown pubescence on base of dorsal surface, glabrous on remaining basal area; with dense yellowish pubescence on apical half. Antennomere III with abundant yellowish-white pubescence basally, dense yellowish pubescence apically, and dense pale yellowish-brown pubescence on remaining surface; with short, thick, arched yellowish-white setae interspersed. Antennomere IV without modification on apical region; with dense pale yellowish-brown pubescence and short, thick, arched yellowish-white setae interspersed on dark region, and abundant yellowish-white pubescence not obscuring integument on light apical region. Antennomeres V–IX with abundant yellowish-white pubescence not obscuring integument, and short, erect setae of same color interspersed. Antennomere XI with abundant yellowish-white pubescence not obscuring integument on basal half, and dense yellowish-white pubescence on apical half; with short, erect setae of same color interspersed. Antennal formula (ratio) based on length of antennomere III: scape = 1.08; pedicel = 0.20; IV = 0.80; V = 0.48; VI = 0.40; VII = 0.40; VIII = 0.36; IX = 0.36; X = 0.32; XI = 0.44. Thorax. Prothorax slightly wider than long; sides rounded, slightly straighter on posterior fifth. Pronotum with three slightly elevated tubercles on anterior half, one on each side slightly before middle, another centrally, slightly more elevated, more elongated, located between anterior margin of lateral tubercles and anterior fifth; middle of posterior half transversely, slightly tumid; moderately abundantly, coarsely punctate; with dense pale yellowish-brown pubescence on tubercles, transverse tumid area, and other irregular areas, and sparser pale yellowish-brown pubescence between these areas. Sides of prothorax abundantly, coarsely punctate; with abundant pale yellowish-brown pubescence not obscuring punctures and partially obscuring integument. Prosternum with moderately sparse yellowish-white pubescence. Prosternal process abundantly, moderately coarsely punctate; with abundant yellowish pubescence partially obscuring integument; narrowest area 0.24 times procoxal width. Mesoventrite with abundant yellowish-white pubescence not obscuring integument centrally and dense yellowish pubescence laterally. Mesanepisterna with abundant yellowish pubescence partially obscuring integument close to mesoventrite; remaining surface with abundant yellowish-white pubescence not obscuring integument. Mesepimera with abundant yellowish-white pubescence not obscuring integument. Metaventrite with dense yellowish pubescence, except slightly sparser pubescence between central region and sides, and sparser pubescence close to metacoxal cavities. Scutellum with its exposed region widely triangular (Fig. 74), with base of this area about 4.0 times its length; with abundant yellowish pubescence not obscuring integument centrally, glabrous laterally. Elytra. Ovoid, with epipleural margin slightly inclined on posterior third; with moderately abundant and slightly elevated tubercles dorsally, tubercles not aligned and slightly more elevated on posterior half; moderately abundantly, coarsely punctate; with dense pale yellowish-brown pubescence on tubercles, sparser, not obscuring integument on remaining surface; with short, thick, arched yellowish-white setae interspersed, more abundant on apex of tubercles. Legs. Femora slightly concave near apex of ventral surface; with dense pale yellowish-brown pubescence, slightly yellower apically, and short, thick, arched yellowish-white setae interspersed. Tibiae with dense pale yellowish-brown pubescence, except apex with sparser whitish pubescence laterally, almost glabrous dorsally, dense, bristly yellowish-brown pubescence on apical third of ventral surface of protibiae and narrow ventral area close to apex of meso- and metatibiae, and fringe of dense erect yellowish-brown setae on dorsal sulcus of mesotibiae. Dorsal surface of tarsomeres with abundant yellowish-white pubescence not obscuring integument, except glabrous anterocentral region of tarsomeres I–II; central apex of tarsomeres I–II with a few short whitish setae directed backward. Abdomen. Ventrites with dense pale yellowish-brown pubescence, except sparse pubescence on central region of ventrite 2, distinctly sparser yellowish-white pubescence on central area of ventrites 3–4 and base and apex of ventrite 5. Male. Unknown. Etymology. The epithet ‘ palliapicalis’ (from the Latin ‘ pallidus ’ (pale, discolored) and ‘ apex ’ (tip, end)) refers to dense yellowish-white pubescence on the apex of some antennomeres (the first four and the last). Type material. Female holotype from HONDURAS, Cortés: 4 km S Potrerillos, 1.VIII.1977, C.W. & L. O’Brien & Marshall leg. (FSCA, formerly RHTC). Female paratype from HONDURAS, Comayagua: 9 km WSW Siguatepeque, 2.XII.1995, R. Turnbow leg. (RHTC). Remarks. Phrynidius palliapicalis is similar to P. asper (see photographs on Bezark 2025) but differs as follows (females): antennal tubercles more distant, distance between apices slightly shorter than twice basal diameter of the antennomere III (Fig. 73); prothorax wider (Fig. 69); elytral tubercles small and more abundant (Fig. 69); and elytra slender (Fig. 69). In P. asper, the antennal tubercles are closer to each other, distance between their apices at most as wide as basal diameter of the antennomere III, prothorax is slender, elytra distinctly wider, and the elytral tubercles are larger and sparser. It differs from females of P. armatus Linsley, 1933 (see photographs on Bezark (2025), in Gutiérrez et al. (2020), and in Noguera & Santos-Silva (2023)) especially by the prothorax proportionally wider (slender in P. armatus), pronotal tubercles slightly conspicuous (distinct in P. armatus), and by the elytral tubercles small (distinctly larger in P. armatus). Phrynidius palliapicalis differs from P. hondureno (Figs 55–59) especially by the antennomere III distinctly shorter (longer P. hondureno), and by the pronotal tubercles slightly conspicuous and not concave anteriorly (distinctly more conspicuous and concave anteriorly in P. hondureno). It differs from P. zacapensis (Figs 60–68) by the eye lobes closer to each other (more distant between them in P. zacapensis), abdominal intercoxal process distinctly wider (narrower in P. zacapensis), and by the tibiae without squamiform white setae (present in P. zacapensis). Phrynidius palliapicalis differs from P. inaequalis (Fig. 80) especially by antennal tubercles more distant from each other (closer in P. inaequalis), and by the antennomere III longer (shorter in P. inaequalis). Finally, it differs from P. murallaensis (Figs 35–47) by the elytra proportionally wider (narrower in P. murallaensis) and by the metatarsomere V stouter and shorter (slender and longer in P. murallaensis).

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