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Adamastoraltica humicola sp. nov. Diagnosis. Adamastoraltica humicola sp. nov. is the only known species of the new genus here described, thus, it is clearly distinguishable from other flea beetle species by the genus characters. Similarities with moss-inhabitant flea beetle genera are likely due to adaptive convergence (see “Taxonomic notes” in the description of the new genus). The lack of scutellum is the most evident diagnostic trait. Although it is shared with species of the genus Stegnaspea, A. humicola sp. nov. is easily distinguishable from each Stegnaspea species by several features on head, pronotum, elytra, ventral parts, legs, aedeagus and spermatheca (see “Taxonomic notes” in the description of the new genus). Type material. Holotype ♂. [Republic of South Africa] Z A.40 / Table Mount. [Table Mountain] / Wynberg- Cave / Ravine C.P. [Newlands Ravine, 33°58’S 18°44’E] // xi-xii.1960 / Humus // N. Leleup leg. (MNHN). Para- types. Same data as the holotype, 2 ♂♂ and 3 ♀♀ (MNHN); Republic of South Africa: Z. A.43 / Table Mountain / Doline. Bats Cave [~ 33°58’S 18°57’E] // Humus / xii.1960 // N. Leleup leg. (MNHN). Description of the holotype ( ♂ ). Body ovate in dorsal view, very strongly and evenly convex in lateral view (Figs 1–3); total length of body (LB) = 1.33 mm; maximum pronotal width at base (WP = 0.59 mm); maximum width of elytra at middle (WE = 0.89 mm). Dorsal surface glabrous, metallic black, without evident punctures (Figs 1, 3–4); antennae and legs brown. Head (Figs 5–6) with impunctate surface; supraorbital and suprafrontal grooves joined and distinctly impressed; inter-antennal space slightly wider than length of the first antennomere; frons length (from upper orbital line to clypeus) about three times the inter-antennal space; frontal ridge wide, slightly raised, apically rounded; eyes sub-elliptical, small; interocular width about four times the transverse width of each eye; labrum apically deeply incised (Fig. 7); antennae about as long as half body length (LAN = 0.71 mm; LAN/LB = 0.54); last antennomeres distinctly wider than middle ones (Fig. 1); LA: 100:82:68:54:64:54:64:64:68:77:136. Pronotum (Figs 3–5) very convex, in dorsal view transverse, distinctly longer medially than laterally (LP = 0.38 mm; WP/LP = 1.54), with slightly rounded sides converging anteriorly; surface apparently smooth, but with very sparse and very shallow punctation; anterior, lateral, and basal margins very finely bordered (Fig. 5); anterior and posterior angles not prominent. Scutellum absent. Metathoracic wings absent. Elytra (Figs 1–3) moderately elongate (LE = 1.16 mm; WE/LE = 0.77; LE/LP = 3.04), strongly convex, with clearly rounded sides, apically jointly acute; lateral margin thin, not visible in dorsal view; surface smooth, with very sparse and very shallow punctation. Humeral calli absent. First pro- and mesotarsomeres weakly enlarged (Figs 1, 8a). Ventral parts brown; last abdominal ventrite without preapical sculptures or impressions. Median lobe of aedeagus (Fig. 10) (LAED = 0.56 mm; LE/ LAED = 2.09) with smooth surface; slightly tapered and weakly sinuate laterally in ventral view, apically rounded, with a median tooth; basal opening large; median lobe distinctly and evenly curved in lateral view, gradually thinner towards apical part, with dorsally oriented apex; dorsal ligula wide, laterally parallel, extending from half-length of aedeagus to subapical part. Variation. Males (n = 4; range): 1.16 ≤ LE ≤ 1.24 mm; 0.89 ≤ WE ≤ 0.90 mm; 0.38 ≤ LP ≤ 0.40 mm; 0.59 ≤ WP ≤ 0.60 mm; 0.68 ≤ LAN ≤ 0.73 mm; 0.56 ≤ LAED ≤ 0.57 mm; 1.33 ≤ LB ≤ 1.41 mm; 3.04 ≤ LE/LP ≤ 3.13; 1.47 ≤ WE/WP ≤ 1.51; 1.52 ≤ WP/LP ≤ 1.54; 0.72 ≤ WE/LE ≤ 0.77; 0.51 ≤ LAN/LB ≤ 0.54; 2.09 ≤ LE/LAED ≤ 2.14. Fe- males (n = 3; range): 1.22 ≤ LE ≤ 1.38 mm; 0.89 ≤ WE ≤ 1.08 mm; 0.37 ≤ LP ≤ 0.44 mm; 0.60 ≤ WP ≤ 0.65 mm; 0.69 ≤ LAN ≤ 0.75 mm; 0.17 ≤ LSPC ≤ 0.19 mm; 1.40 ≤ LB ≤ 1.67 mm; 2.93 ≤ LE/LP ≤ 3.11; 1.44 ≤ WE/WP ≤ 1.66; 1.44 ≤ WP/LP ≤ 1.62; 0.71 ≤ WE/LE ≤ 0.78; 0.45 ≤ LAN/LB ≤ 0.50; 7.00 ≤ LE/LSPC ≤ 7.25. Paratypes very similar in shape, sculpture and color to the holotype. Females distinguishable by the less enlarged first pro- and mesotarsomeres. Spermatheca (Fig. 11a) with elongate, subcylindrical basal part gradually narrower from half-length towards the distal part; distal part about as long as 1/3 of the basal part, lacking distinct collum and appendix; ductus short, uncoiled, U-shaped, apically inserted. Tignum (Fig. 11b) elongate and narrow, in lateral view basally and apically clearly curved; vaginal palpi (Fig. 11c) thin, basally not connected, moderately sclerotized along their entire length, apically with three setae. Etymology. The specific epithet is after the word “humus”, the type of habitat where the specimens of the new species were collected. Distribution. Republic of South Africa, Western Cape Province (Table 1; Fig. 12). Possible Southern-Western Afrotropical chorotype (SWA). Ecological notes. All the specimens were collected in humus, in a site without trees or shrub vegetation. Considering the species morphology (see “Diagnosis” in the description of the new species) and the absence of leaf litter in the collection site, Adamastoraltica humicola sp. nov. is likely to be a moss inhabitant.

Adamastoraltica gen. nov. Description. Body ovate and very convex, with maximum pronotal width at base and maximum width of elytra at middle (Figs 1, 3); elytral base as wide as pronotal base (Fig. 4). Dorsal surface glabrous, metallic, apparently smooth, but with very sparse and very shallow punctation (Figs 1, 3���4). Head (Figs 5���6) with supraorbital, suprantennal and suprafrontal sulci distinctly impressed and joined, forming a continuous groove; supraorbital pore poorly visible; area of frontal calli paler, but neither delimited nor raised; inter-antennal space slightly wider than length of the first antennomere; frons length (from upper orbital line to clypeus) distinctly longer than the inter-antennal space; frontal ridge slightly raised; eyes sub-elliptical, small. Mouth parts (Fig. 7) with clearly medially-incised labrum; three-segmented and flat maxillary palpi; three-segmented and thickset labial palpi. Antennae about as long as half body length (Fig. 1), with last antennomeres distinctly wider than middle ones. Pronotum (Figs 1, 3���5) very convex, in dorsal view transverse, subtrapezoidal, with converging anteriorly sides; margins very finely bordered; anterior and posterior angles not prominent; anterolateral setiferous pore very small, placed on the vertex of the anterior angle (Fig. 5). Scutellum absent (Fig. 4). Metathoracic wings absent. Elytra (Figs 1���3) moderately elongate, strongly convex, with clearly rounded sides and thin lateral margins, apically jointly acute; epipleurae (Fig. 2) very wide, horizontally oriented, little visible in lateral view. Humeral calli absent. Procoxal cavities posteriorly open (Fig. 2). Pro-, meso- and metasternum short (Fig. 2); intercoxal process of prosternum about as wide as supracoxal part, laterally subparallel; medial process of both metasternum and first abdominal ventrite distinctly elongate and anteriorly acute. Hind femora slightly swollen (Fig. 2); hind tibiae (Fig. 8b) longitudinally not channelled, without any spines or teeth on lateral margins; apical spur of hind tibiae simple; first metatarsomere as long as second and third together (Fig. 8c); third tarsomere of all legs very deeply incised; tarsal claws simple (Fig. 8a). Metafemoral extensor tendon (Fig. 9) with dorsal lobe slightly and evenly curved; extended arm of the dorsal lobe elongate; tendon basal edge straight, forming an acute dorsal-basal angle with the dorsal lobe; tendon central furrow very wide; dorsal edge of the ventral lobe straight, angled downward; basal angle of the ventral lobe slightly acute, not pointed apically; recurved flange significantly sclerotized. Metafemoral extensor tendon displays many similarities with the Altica Morpho-Group (Furth & Suzuki 1998). Median lobe of aedeagus (Fig. 10) simple, lacking ventral sulcus and other sculptures, evenly curved in lateral view, with a large dorsal ligula. Spermatheca of Alticinae-type (Furth & Suzuki 1994) (Fig. 11a) with sub-cylindrical basal part; distal part distinctly shorter than basal part, lacking a distinct collum and appendix; ductus short, uncoiled, U-shaped, apically inserted. Tignum (Fig. 11b) elongate and narrow, in lateral view basally and apically clearly curved; vaginal palpi (Fig. 11c) thin, basally not connected, moderately sclerotized along their entire length, apically with three setae. Type species. Adamastoraltica humicola sp. nov. Etymology. The name of the new genus means ���flea beetle of Adamastor���, a mythological figure of Titan transformed into a towering mountain in order to protect the Cape from passing sailors who dared to discover the African continent���s mysteries. Gender: feminine, because of the ��� altica ��� suffix. Distribution. Republic of South Africa, Western Cape Province (Table 1; Fig. 12). Taxonomic notes. Adamastoraltica gen. nov., known from a single species collected in humus, appears very similar to most moss-inhabitant flea beetle genera distributed worldwide (Fig. 12), possibly due to adaptation to similar environmental conditions of their habitat (see ���Introduction��� and ���Discussion���). Possible adaptive convergences concern: very small size, very convex and subglobose body, antennae with enlarged apical antennomeres, strongly reduced hind wings, greatly simplified and shortened mesothorax and metathorax, and elytra lacking humeral calli. However, the new genus shares some characters with the Asian genus Cangshanaltica Konstantinov, Chamorro, Prathapan, Ge, and Yang, know from China, Hong Kong and Thailand (Dama��ka & Aston 2019; Dama��ka & Konstantinov 2016; Konstantinov et al. 2013), such as: labrum apically deeply incised (Fig. 7); antennae not clavate (Fig. 1); anterior coxal cavities posteriorly open (Fig. 2); base of pronotum without transverse impression (Figs 1, 4���5); first abdominal ventrite with longitudinal ridges between metacoxae (Fig. 2); third tarsomere narrow and deeply incised (Figs 1, 3, 8a, c). The new genus is, however, easily distinguishable from Cangshanaltica by: suprantennal and suprafrontal sulci distinctly impressed (Fig. 6) (shallow, barely visible in Cangshanaltica); pronotal anterolateral setiferous pore very small, placed on vertex of the anterior angle (Fig. 5) (almost in the middle of the lateral margin in Cangshanaltica); pronotum with posterolateral callosity absent (Figs 1, 4���5) (present and slightly protruding in Cangshanaltica); scutellum absent (Fig. 4) (present in Cangshanaltica); metafemurs slightly swollen (Fig. 2) (robust in Cangshanaltica); hind tibiae longitudinally not channelled, without any spines or teeth on lateral margin (Fig. 8b) (clearly channelled with small spines on lateral margin in Cangshanaltica); apical spur of the hind tibiae barely distinguishable among tibial setae, very shorter than tarsal claws (Fig. 8b) (longer in Cangshanaltica); tarsal claws simple (Figs 8a, c) (subappendiculate in Cangshanaltica). The lack of scutellum, a peculiar character of Adamastoraltica gen. nov., is shared with Stegnaspea Baly, a genus generally associated with Poaceae and also occurring in the Western Cape Province with six species (D���Alessandro et al. 2012). The new genus, however, is clearly distinguishable from Stegnaspea by the following characters: body surface apparently smooth, with very sparse and very shallow punctation (Figs 1, 3���4) (clearly punctate in Stegnaspea); labrum medially incised (Fig. 7) (rounded in Stegnaspea); maxillary palpi flat (Figs 6���7) (slender in Stegnaspea); frontal calli absent (Fig. 6) (present in Stegnaspea); medial processes of metasternum and first abdominal ventrite comparatively narrow and elongate (Fig. 2) (wider and shorter in Stegnaspea); tarsal claws simple (Figs 8a, c) (subappendiculate in Stegnaspea); metafemoral extensor tendon attributable to the Altica morpho-group sensu Furth & Suzuki (1998) (Fig. 9) (attributed to the Chaetocnema morpho-group in Stegnaspea); median lobe of aedeagus simple (Fig. 10) (with complex sculptures in Stegnaspea); spermatheca without distinct collum and with short, apically inserted ductus (Fig. 11a) (with distinct collum and longer, sub-apically inserted ductus in Stegnaspea)., Published as part of Biondi, Maurizio, Iannella, Mattia & D'Alessandro, Paola, 2020, Adamastoraltica humicola, new genus and new species: the first example of possible moss-inhabiting flea beetle genus from sub-Saharan Africa (Coleoptera Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae), pp. 99-108 in Zootaxa 4763 (1) on pages 100-103, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4763.1.8, http://zenodo.org/record/3744099, {"references":["Furth, D. G. & Suzuki, K. (1998) Studies of Oriental and Australian Alticinae genera based on the comparative morphology of the metafemoral spring, genitalia, and hind wing venation. In: M. Biondi, M. Daccordi & D. G. Furth (Eds), Proceedings of the Fourth International Symposium on the Chrysomelidae. Proceedings of XX ICE Firenze. Museo Regionale di Scienze Naturali, Firenze, pp. 91 - 124.","Furth, D. G. & Suzuki, K. (1994) Character correlation studies of problematic genera of Alticinae in relation to Galerucinae (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae). In: Furth, D. G. (Ed.), Proceedings of the third international symposium on the Chrysomelidae, Beijing. Citeseer. Backhuys Publishers, Leiden, pp. 116 - 135.","Damaska, A. F. & Aston, P. (2019). Leaf litter and moss-inhabiting flea beetles of Hong Kong (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Alticini). Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae, 59, 151 - 161. https: // doi. org / 10.2478 / aemnp- 2019 - 0013","Damaska, A. F. & Konstantinov, A. S. (2016) A new species of Cangshanaltica Konstantinov et al., a moss-inhabiting flea beetle from Thailand (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Galerucinae: Alticini). Zootaxa, 4107 (1), 93 - 97. https: // doi. org / 10.11646 / zootaxa. 4107.1.7","Konstantinov, A. S., Chamorro, M. L., Prathapan, K., Ge, S. - Q. & Yang, X. - K. (2013) Moss-inhabiting flea beetles (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Galerucinae: Alticini) with description of a new genus from Cangshan, China. Journal of Natural History, 47, 2459 - 2477. https: // doi. org / 10.1080 / 00222933.2012.763068","D'Alessandro, P., Grobbelaar, E. & Biondi, M. (2012) Revision of the genus Stegnaspea Baly with descriptions of five new species from southern Africa (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Galerucinae: Alticini). Insect Systematics & Evolution, 43, 11 - 33. https: // doi. org / 10.1163 / 187631212 X 626032"]}

Biondi, Maurizio, Iannella, Mattia (2019): Unravelling the taxonomic assessment of an interesting new species from Socotra Island: Blepharidina socotrana sp. nov. (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae). Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae (Acta. Ent. Mus. Natl. Pragae) 59 (2): 499-505, DOI: 10.2478/aemnp-2019-0040, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.2478/aemnp-2019-0040

The alternation of glacial and interglacial cycles of the Quaternary period contributed in shaping the current species distribution. Cold-adapted organisms experienced range expansion and contraction in response to the temperature decrease and increase, respectively. In this study, a fragment of the mitochondrial marker COI was used to investigate the phylogeography of Cryptocephalusbarii, a cold-adapted alpine leaf beetle species endemic of Orobie Alps, northern Italy. The relationships among populations, their divergence time, and the most probable migration model were estimated and are discussed in light of the Pleistocene climate oscillations. Through a species distribution modelling analysis, the current habitat suitability was assessed and the distribution in a future global warming scenario predicted. The main divergence events that led to the actual population structure took place from ~750,000 to ~150,000 years ago, almost following the pattern of the climate oscillations that led to the increase of the connections between the populations during cold periods and the isolation on massifs in warm periods. The most supported migration model suggests that the species survived to past adverse climatic conditions within refugia inside and at the limit of the actual range. The species distribution modelling analysis showed that C.barii is extremely sensitive to air temperature variations, thus the increase of temperature caused by global warming will reduce the suitable areas within the species range, leading to its possible extinction in the next 50 years. Cryptocephalusbarii is a representative case of how cold adapted and limited distributed species have been and could be affected by climate change, that highlights the implementation of conservation actions.