Omophron (Omophron) mimeticum Anichtchenko & Valainis 2023, sp. n

Omophron (Omophron) mimeticum sp. n. Material examined. Holotype, ♀: “ Namibia, Okavango reg., 80 km W of Divundu, 1080m, 5–6.XII.2011, Rudolf Kmeco leg.” (DUBC). Differential diagnosis. In overall appearence, similar to O. capense, but easely distinguished by punctate epipleura and ventrite VI. Description. Body length 4.8 mm; width 3.5 mm. Habitus (Fig. 23). Color: head green with light purple tinge, frons with diffused brown triangular spot; pronotum green, laterally with light purple tinge, anterior and posterior margins dark brown, sides of pronotum widely yellow, with greenish pearl tinge; elytra green, laterally with purple tinge, elytral pattern consisting of isolated and diffused, brown prescutellar spot, a large humeral spot, an oblique post-median band, extended from stria 5 to lateral margin, a preapical spot, and 3 marginal intervals connecting all other pale areas. Lateral edge of elytra narrowly greenish-pearl color. Labrum of pearl color. Legs and antennae brownish yellow. Venter rufopiceous. Head relatively flat, sparsely punctate laterally and posteriorly, with one supraorbital setiferous puncture on each side of head. Subocular ridge well developed, curved upwards and slightly rounded. Clypeus smooth, bisetose. Clypeal suture distinct. Labrum with slightly bisinuate anterior margin, moderately rounded sides and six setae. Antennal scape unisetose at apex, antenomeres 3 and 4 smooth, with a few longer setae around the apex, 5–11 pubescent. Gula slightly wrinkled, gena strongly wrinkled, coarsely and densely punctate. HW: 1.41–1.43 mm. Pronotum (PL: 1.12–1.17 mm, PW: 2.58–2.63 mm.) moderately convex, base bisinuate on each side, with wide lateral border, sides almost regularly and slightly rounded. Anterior angles acute. Disc coarsely and densely punctate, punctures sparsein center. Median impression barely visible. Prosternum, episternum, and proepipleura coarsely but sparsely punctate. Elytra (EL: 2.79–2.86 mm, EW: 2.93–3.01 mm.) strongly convex, sides regularly rounded; with 15 deep, densely punctate striae. Intervals moderately convex on the disc, distinctly convex laterally. Venter (Fig. 26). Mesepisternum sparsely punctate. Metasternum, metepisternum, metepimeron and elytral epipleura coarsely and densely punctate. Ventrites I–III coarsely punctate laterally; ventrites IV–V with 2–3 large punctures on sides and 4–6 punctures across middle; ventrite VI coarsely punctate. Aedeagus. Male unknown. Etymology. From Greek mimçtikos “imitative, good at imitating”, because at first glance, it is easy to confuse with O. capense, with which it occurs. Distribution. Known only from type locality in Namibia (Map. 2).
Published as part of Anichtchenko, Alexander & Valainis, Uldis, 2023, Revision of the subgenus Omophron (s. str.) Latreille, 1802 (Coleoptera: Carabidae Omophron) of the Afrotropical region, pp. 201-246 in Zootaxa 5284 (2) on pages 215-216, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5284.2.1, http://zenodo.org/record/7923218