Limbodessus paniai Balke, Villastrigo, Hájek, Surbakti, Panjaitan & Hendrich, 2025, sp. nov.

Limbodessus paniai sp. nov. Figs 5 C, 9 B, 11 J, 13 L, 14, 15 C Type locality. Mats of floating grasses, Enarotali, Lake Paniai, 1,900 m [3°55'16S, 136°22'33E], Papua, Indonesia. Type material. Holotype, male. “ IR 25 - W. New Guinea, Enarotali [Bobairo], Danau Paniai, 1900 m, 29. vii. - 4. viii. 1991, Balke & Hendrich leg. ” [IR 91 # 25], “ Holotype Limbodessus paniai sp. nov. Balke et al. 2025 ” [red printed label] (NHMW). Paratype: 1 female with the same label data as the holotype (ZSM). The paratype is provided with a red printed paratype label. Measurements. Holotype: TL = 2.1 mm; TL-H = 2.0 mm; MW = 1.0 mm. Paratype: TL = 2.05 mm; TL-H = 2.0 mm; MW = 1.0 mm. Description. Small, body oblong-oval, somewhat parallel-sided, with almost no discontinuity in lateral outline between pronotum and elytron. A faint cervical line visible; sutural line absent. Pronotal and elytral stria present and distinct, both straight; elytral stria short (Fig. 5 C). Color. Head dark brown, clypeus paler, ferruginous. Pronotum yellow. Elytron darker yellowish. Body appendages yellow (Fig. 5 C). Prosternum, epipleura and ventrites posteriorly yellow. Mesoventrite dark ferruginous to blackish. Sculpture. Head with sparse, coarse punctation; posterior of cervical line impunctate but with microreticulation. Pronotum with moderately dense punctation along anterior margin; otherwise faint and sparse, almost impunctate; punctures however rather shallow giving the pronotum an exceptionally smooth and shiny impression. Elytron with moderately dense and evenly distributed punctation; punctures rather shallow rendering elytron comparably smooth. Ventral side with few punctures only. Structures. Metacoxal lines anteriorly diverge and do not reach posterior margin of metaventrite. Male. Elytron shiny, without visible microreticulation between punctures. Antenna stout (Fig. 13 L). Median lobe as in Fig. 9 B and parameres as in Fig. 11 J. Female. Elytron dull, with distinct microreticulation between punctures. Antenna stout but without conspicuous modifications. Etymology. Named after the type locality, Lake Paniai (= Wisselmeren). The name is a noun in the nominative standing in apposition. Distribution. Only known from the type locality (Fig. 14). Differential diagnosis. The new species can be easily separated from most of the other New Guinean Limbodessus by its yellowish dorsal surface without any dark markings (Fig. 5 C). Limbodessus paniai sp. nov. is close to L. baliem (Fig. 5 A, B) but can be separated by its smaller size (L. paniai sp. nov. = 2.0– 2.1 mm; L. baliem = 2.6–3.0 mm], the form of the median lobe (Fig. 9 B), and the form of the parameres (Figs 10 H, 11 I, J). Habitat. Both specimens were collected in very shallow water, among sun exposed floating mats of grasses, at the edge of the large Paniai lake near the village Enarotali (Fig. 15 A – D). The species was associated with numerous Rhantus ekari Balke & Hendrich, 1992, the most common diving beetle in that habitat (Balke and Hendrich 1992).