Augustia is a monotypic genus of cave-dwelling leiodid beetle found in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is represented by a single known species, Augustia weiratheri. It was described and named by Ricardo Zariquiey in 1927.
The first specimens of Augustia weiratheri were collected by the biospeleologist Leo Weirather, from a cave in ÃÂvrsnica that he nicknamed "Vuk jama". However, he obscured his collection localities using code names to guard them against less scrupulous collectors.
The body is 3 mm long with a reddish testaceous color, fine dense punctuation, and short appressed pubescence. The antennae reach the mid-body; the first segment is shorter than the second. Segment III is slightly longer than 4, about 3.5 times longer than wide. Segment 8 is cylindrical, just over twice as long as wide. The final three segments (9âÂÂ11) are flattened.
The pronotum is bell-shaped, as wide as the elytral base, with slightly rounded sides and a faintly bisinuate base. The elytra are not strongly convex, slightly longer than wide, and attenuated toward both base and apex. Their maximum width is at the posterior two-thirds. The apices are separately rounded and divergent, with a visible marginal rim nearly to the tip. There is no sutural stria.
The fore tibiae lack a true comb and have a well-developed external spur. Intermediate tibiae are slightly spinose. The male fore tarsi are four-segmented, slightly dilated but narrower than the tibial apex.
The mesosternal keel is very high, inserted directly behind the articular collar. Its anterior edge forms a rounded quarter-circle; the ventral edge is faintly sinuate. Their junction forms an obtuse, untoothed angle. The anterior edge is thin, the ventral edge thickens toward the metasternum, which is unkeeled.
The genital organ is short and broad. The penis has parallel sides that narrow abruptly and curve at the apex, terminating in a triangular, depressed beak. The basal lamina is broad with a well-developed tongue at its free edge midpoint. The lateral styles are longer than the penis, clubbed apically, and bear three setae: one terminal, one subterminal, and a more distant ventral seta.
The internal sac contains a central chitinous piece: short, broad, strongly incurved, and slightly lanceolate apically. It is flanked by two elongated, slightly bent chitinous pieces that are broad basally and pointed apically. The sac is transparent around this armature; its mid-portion has thicker, opaque, wrinkled walls without chitinous structures.
Augustia shares several characteristics with Anthrodulus, Bozidaria, Henrotiella, Proleonhardella and Weiratheria, and is probably closely related to them.